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Weekly Notes - 4th April 2007Tosach maith leath na h-oibre (well begun is half done). Let's hope that this is the case with the Intermediates who have impressed in their first two outings in the league. Easter Sunday they host Ballymanus. One nurses a certain disquiet as to their fate in this game as Ballymanus have, over the years, proved to be somewhat of a stumbling block and the scenario carries worrying historical overtones. The last two games have been very sporting and the team has shown admirable discipline. If the situation is otherwise on Sunday, questions will have to be asked.Against Stratford the half-back line as a unit was outstanding with Eoin O'Neill at centre giving a 'man of the match' performance and Paul Doherty on the wing initiating many attacking movements. Young Dominic O'Brien also impressed on the other wing. Peter Smith dispatched some great balls from the full-back line and Craig Smullen worked hard at centre-field. Willie O'Hagan, previously looked on as a back, was outed as a forward - he scored 6 points from play. Darren Hayden played well at centre-forward and scored a particularly spectacular point. Conor Monaghan had a great return from placed balls and Oran Bambrick had an excellent debut between the posts. The 2007 Juvenile season is upon us - hurling competitions have begun and those in football are imminent. At each underage level, every year is unique and last season is "another country". Management changes and critical players move on, and doing well in one season does not bode success in the next. So, for juvenile mentors, an air of trepidation attends the opening of each season's campaign. HurlingOur u-14 and minor hurlers were in action at the week-end. The former were involved in the Féile blitz which was hosted jointly by Kilcoole and ourselves. The final between Glenealy and Bré (winners) was played in Greystones.Éire Óg defeated St. Pats and Michael Dwyers in the preliminary rounds but were narrowly beaten by Glenealy in the semi-final. Our victory over St. Pats was facile to the point of disappointment. The mighty Caesar of hurling which was once St. Pats, 'why dost it now lie so low? ' A lesson to us all on the fragility of success and the magnitude of the struggle which must continuously be enjoined to ensure the survival of this, the greatest of all field games. (John O' Donoghue, please note). Michael Dwyers (Kiltegan) proved to be much more of a challenge and it took some for our lads to find their measure. The game against Glenealy was a thriller. One was stirred by the intensity of its always-fair exchanges and rejoiced at the level of the skills displayed. Victory tantalised our lads throughout but the shameless hussy spurned them in the end. While none of our players could be faulted for endeavour or commitment, the contributions of Dan O'Neill (goals), Luke Cranley, Josh Campbell, James Smullen, Shane Nolan, Ryan Horan, James Nolan and Andrew Walsh are worthy of special mention. We are grateful to all those involved in the provision of refreshments for visiting mentors and parents. Our minor hurlers played host to Carnew on Sunday in the first round of the Minor Championship (cum league). Carnew started well and had Éire Óg on the backfoot for much of the 1st half. Some excellent points by Marty Byrne from placed balls kept the deficit on the scoreboard during this period of Carnew supremacy from reaching a discouraging magnitude. Approaching the interval, Éire Óg began to build a momentum which carried over into the 2nd half. Early after the break, its thrust was slowed somewhat with the dismissal of one of our players. However, despite this set-back, the Éire Óg lads stuck to their task with commendable determination and hauled their opponents back to level terms at the death. The moving of Fintan Donnelly from full-back to centre-field at the three-quarter stage turned out to be a master stroke - his long range points proved to be decisive. Fintan was, by common accord, the Man of the Match. However, there were also excellent performances from Daniel O'Connor, Daniel Salmon, Marty Byrne, Shane Mulford, James Kelly and Michael Walsh (goals). |
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