Category: Sport

The Clare Ladies Football Minors will travel to Cork on Wednesday to play the Rebels in the second round of the Munster Minor A Championship. The Clare girls will feel they could have played better against Kerry last week and should come out with all guns blazing if they are to play to the level they set themselves at the start of this year’s campaign. With all the ground work done in the lead up to the Munster Championship, their biggest test will be to see if they retain the appetite for the big game. It doesn’t get much bigger than going to Mallow to play Cork who have come off the back of a big win over Tipperary. Clare last met Cork in the final of the 2010 Munster A Championships and already know they will have to be ready to take any and every scoring opportunity against Cork and also to defend tirelessly.The team bus will depart Bank Corner Miltown Malbay at 4pm and leave the West County Hotel at 4.50pm sharp. The Clare Panel is as follows:

Niamh O’Dea, Laurie Ryan, Niamh Walsh, Eleanor Carey, Orlaith Lynch, Aoife Martin (Banner) Megan Byrne, Kayleigh McCormack, Roisin Howley (Burren Gaels) Roisin Looney, Aoife O’Gorman (Cooraclare) Karen O’Brien (Doora-Barefield) Tara Sheehan, Alana O’Brien, Shaunagh O’Brien: (Eire Og) Ciara O’Malley, Aoife Clohessy: Eimear O’Shea (Fergus Rovers) Edel McMahon, Eleanor O’Gorman (Kilmihil) Aisling Torpey, Roisin Rouine, Threase Shannon (Liscannor) Niamh Pender, Shauna Crowley, Ciara Burke (Miltown) Shauna Harvey, Grainne Harvey (West Clare Gaels)

Clare face Tipperary in the third round of the Munster Minor A Championship which is set for this Saturday April 23rd at St. Joseph’s Doorabarefield at 3:30pm THE BANNER Ladies’ Under 14’s will accompany West Clare Gaels, Kilmurry Ibrickane and Doorabarefield into the semi-finals of the Feile Peil na mBan after emerging strongest from their group at the weekend. The Banner Ladies coasted to the semi’s with emphatic wins over New

market, Wolfe Tones and Crusheen at the St. Flannan’s pitches last Sunday. The semi-finals and final will be concluded in Gurteen on Bank Holiday Monday at 10am. This year’s football Feile is hosted by Cork and the winners of the Clare Feile will be grouped in Division 1 with Cork local teams Fermoy and Aghada and the Feile winners of Mayo.

Clare 5-13 – Wicklow 2-12 at Templetuohy, Tipperary

CLARE secured promotion back up to Division 2 of the National League on Saturday. Within a year of relegation, they will be back competing there in 2012 thanks to their semi final victory over Wicklow at Templetuohy, Tipperary.

It was Wicklow who started the better team and dominated early on in this game. Wicklow centre forward Niamh Carroll notched 1-2 from play to give her side a 1-5 to 0-4 lead sixteen minutes into the match. A goal from Kilmihil’s Eimear Considine then got Clare motoring and Wicklow failed to score for the remainder of the half. Points from team captain Niamh Keane, midfielder Louise Henchy and full forward Niamh O’Dea saw Clare retire at half time 1-9 to 1-5 ahead.

Wicklow again started well and had cut the deficit to two points and it was clear the next score would be crucial. It fell to Clare wing forward Naomi Carroll and from here Clare took over and controlled the remainder of the game. O’Dea had the first of four second half Clare goals and Shannon Gaels Colette Corry got Clare’s third. At this stage Clare led 3-13 to 1-11.

The next score was another Clare goal, this time from Eimear Considine who made no mistake from close range and Katie Geoghegan had Clare’s final goal. The last score went to Wicklow who managed a consolation goal in injury time.

Overall it was a fine team performance which was shown by the score board and Clare can now look to Division 3 Final against Fermanagh with real confidence. They now have an opportunity to collect some silverware when they face Fermanagh in the Division 3 final at Parnell Park, Dublin on Saturday May 7th.

Clare
Emma O’Driscoll (Banner Ladies); Clare Hester (Fergus Rovers), Lorraine Kelly (Fergus Rovers), Laurie Ryan (Banner Ladies); Eimear O’Connor (Coolmeen), Roisin McMahon (Newmarket), LouiseWoods (0-1) (Banner Ladies); Marie Considine (Liscannor), Louise Henchy (0-2, 1f) Banner Ladies); Colette Corry (1-0) (Shannon Gaels), Niamh Keane (0-3) (Banner Ladies), Naomi Carroll (0-1) (Banner Ladies); Eimear Considine (2-1) (Kilmihil), Niamh O’Dea (1-5, 3f) (Banner Ladies), Sarah Bohannon (Shannon Gaels). Subs: Carmel Considine for C. Corry, Katie Geoghegan (1-0) for N. Carroll, Carol O’Leary for S. Bohannon, Grace Lynch for L. Kelly.

Wicklow
Emer Miley,Aoife Heffernan, Caitriona Byrne, Lisa Brady, Sarah Miley, Caitriona McKeon, Niamh Kelly, Caoilfhoinn Deeney (1-3, 2f), Loretta Gilbert,Amie Byrne (0-1), Niamh Carroll (1-2), Eadaoine Lenihan (0-1), Laurie Ahern, Jackie Kinch, Lucy Mulhall (0-4f). Subs: S Hogan for L Brady, J Miley for C Byrne,AMDoran (0-1f) for L. Mulhall, MShelley for E Lenihan, CByrne for E Kelly, L Hogan for L Ahern

Referee:
Richard O’Connor (Tipperary)

Ballyea 0-18 – O’Callaghan’s Mills 0-05 at Cusack Park, Ennis

THESE are heady days for hurling out Ballyea way – just because they expect to win county titles and because of the strong pool of talent that’s come through the underage ranks in the club.

Much of that talent was on show at headquarters on Sunday as they clinically dispatched the O’Callaghan’s Mills challenge to claim their second under 21 title in three years.

And, like previous rounds of this year’s campaign much of the credit for Ballyea’s hegemony rested on the considerable shoulders of midfielder Tony Kelly – this year’s Clare minor captain who had accounted for 4-29 before this decider.

To say the 0-10 he contributed here was crucial is putting it midly – he was the talisman, the thorn in the Mills’ side, the match-winner as Ballyea bade farewell to the under 21 B ranks for 2012 (they have to be in the A grade) with this comprehensive 13-point victory.

It was the Tony Kelly show, with a considerable supporting cast that overwhelmed an O’Callaghan’s Mills that tried hard, but was limited in many departments and second best in nearly every departmeant by the end as Ballyea cruised to victory.

The gulf between the sides was really shown up in the second half when Ballyea hit ten points without reply, with Kelly being difference as he ripped the Mills apart and killed the game with the three brilliant points from play inside the first ten minutes.

Indeed, it was Kelly who had them on their way with a point inside two minutes, while he added two more by the seventh as Ballyea made a fast start to this county final.

The Mills did stay with them in the first half and three-in-a-row from Eoin McInerney, Aidan O’Gorman and a Jamie Lynch free did have the sides level by the 13th minute, but in truth it was as good as it got for them.

Ballyea edged 0-5 to 0-3 clear by the 15th minute thanks to points from Martin O’Leary and Niall Griffin. All the Mills could muster for the rest of the half were two Jamie Lynch frees as Kelly (2) and Martin O’Leary with the point of the half eased Ballyea into an 0-8 to 0-5 interval lead.

There was still much to play for, but once Kelly got into his stride in the second half this game had an inevitability about it as Ballyea were shooting for fun long before the end.

With Ballyea leading 0-11 to 0-5 by the 40th minute, that there was a lull was no surprise as they went ten minutes without a score before they cranked it up again in the final the final ten minutes.

Kelly reached double figures with another point on the run after 20 minutes and a free five minutes later; Niall Deasy produced a closing cameo of three points, while Paudge McMahon and Gearóid O’Connell also got on the scoresheet.

Parteen 4-6 – Feakle/Killenana 1-15 at Dr Daly Park, Tulla

JUST desserts of a draw and another day out for both at the end of this entertaining game in Tulla on Saturday afternoon, but certainly Feakle/Killanena were by far the happier side as they jogged off the field at the call of full-time.

They’d gone into the game without the injured Shane McGrath and school tour-tied Padraig Brady who bagged 4-2 in the semi-final, found them six points adrift at half-time and three down with only five left, but somehow they summoned the resolve and scores to fight another day.

And, it was what they deserved after a storming second half in which Colin Nelson, Gary Guilfoyle and substitute Shane McGrath they reeled in a Parteen side that looked to be on the high road when they opened up a 3-2 to 0-5 interval lead.

A goal inside the first five minutes from the pacy Noel Bridgeman when he raced onto a ball from Brian McSweeney and whipped to the net helped Parteen into a 1-1 to 0-2 lead and from there they dominated the first half.

Bridgeman’s second goal when he cut through the defence on 14 min- utes and rifled low past Eibhear Quilligan seemed to herald a one-sided final against a Feakle/Killanena side sorely missing both McGrath and Brady.

Only points by Gary Guilfoyle (2) and Ronan McGuinness kept Feakle/Killanena competitive, but they looked a spent force when luck favoured Parteen in the 22nd minute when a long free cannoned off the upright into the path of Sean Quinn who blasted the ball to the net from 10 yards.

However, Feakle/Killanena dug very deep on the turnover, posting their intentions with early points from Ronan McGuinness and Declan Noonan, while Shane McGrath’s goal in the 11th minute brought the game alive.

It left Feakle/Killanena only 3-4 to 1-8 adrift, but seven minutes later they were level thanks to points via a massive effort from play by Ronan McGuinness and another from Shane McGrath.

The force was with Feakle/Killanena only for them to be rocked by a Darragh Yelverton goal in the 52nd minute, but the last ten minutes played by referee really summed up the Feakle/Killanena attitude.

It was never say die – first when points by Colin Nelson and Gary Guilfoyle (2) had them level again by the 55th minute; then when they twice came from behind in the frantic closing minutes to earn a replay.

James Long edged Parteen a point clear on 57 minutes, only for Shane McGrath to level matters, while McGrath again came to the rescue in the dying seconds to cancel out Noel Bridgeman’s lead point that came two minutes into injury time.

Feakle/ Killanena
Eibhear Quilligan, Killian Bane, Martin Glynn, Henry Purcell, Colin Nelson (0-1), Michael Noonan, Colin McNamara, Ronan McGuinness (0-3), Declan Noonan (0-2), Gary Guilfoyle (0-6, 2f, two 65), Paul McArthur, Stephen Moloney, Gavin Fox

. Sub
Shane McGrath (1-3, 2f) for Fox

Parteen
Eoin Kelly, Jason Smyth, Philip Lavin, Gearóíd Cox, Martin Moroney, Matthew McSweeney (0-1), DarrraghYelverton (1-1), Paraic O’Connor, Brian McSweeney (0-1), James Long (0-1), Sean Quinn (1-0), Noel Bridgeman (2-2, 1f), David Small.

Subs
Cian McCarthy for Cox

Man of the Match
Noel Bridgeman (Parteen)

Referee
Martin Kennnedy (Kilmaley)

Kilmurry Ibrickane 2-17 – Clondegad 0-6 at Ballynacally

IF EVER a scoreline summed up the difference between the very top flight of senior football and intermediate football, this was it. It was a stroll for a rampant Kilmurry side as they brought an abrupt halt to Clondegad’s 100 per cent start to the league season. It was hugely impressive from Kilmurry – hugely disappointing for Clondegad, albeit that their star forward in Paudge McMahon was play- ing his second game in five hours after his exertions with Ballyea in the Under 21 B hurling final. Still, McMahon was Clondegad’s top scorer with four points, but that made little impression on a Kilmurry scoreline which once again showcased their considerable talents. They trailed early on to points from Kenneth Kelly and Paudge McMahon but by half-time had clicked into over-drive as they carved out a 1-10 to 0-4 interval lead. Three Ian McInerney frees helped them edge 0-5 to 0-2 clear by the 19th minute before Enda Coughlan blasted a penalty over the bar in the 21st minute. However, Coughlan made amends seven minutes later with a goal, which allied to earlier points from Michael O’Dwyer, Peter O’Dwyer, Mark McCarthy and Coughlan himself helped Kilmurry into their ninepoint interval lead. Eoin Griffin and Paudge McMahon had offered some resistance with points before the break, but all Clondegad could manage on the turnover were frees from McMahon and Eoghan Donnellan as they were pinned back by the former kingpins of Munster. Kilmurry had to wait until the 42nd minute for their first of the half, but they tacked on 1-6 in the closing 15 minutes to run out 17-point winners. The scores came from everywhere – Declan Callinan pointed from corner-back, Shane Hickey hit 1-2 from wing-back, Mark McCarthy, Johnnie Daly and Seamus Lynch were also on the mark, with the final nail being driven by Hickey’s goal in the 59th minute when he lobbed Declan O’Loughlin.

Kilmurry Ibrickane
Peter O’Dwyer, Declan Callinan (0-1), Darren Hickey, Martin McMahon, Shane Hickey (1-2), Paul O’Connor,Thomas Lernihan, Keith King, Peter O’Dwyer (0-1), Ian McInerney (0-3f), Mark McCarthy (0-2), Seamus Lynch (0-2), Michael O’Dwyer, Enda Coughlan (1-3, 0-1pen) EvanTalty.

Subs
Johnnie Daly (0-2) for Talty, Seamus Murrihy for King, Gary Donnellan for McInerney, Brian Callinan for Lernihan.

Clondegad
Declan O’Loughlin, Conor Gavin, Patrick Coffey, Kevin Donnelly, James Murphy, Kieran Browne, Francie Neylon, Gary Brennan, Eoin Griffin (0-1), Kenneth Kelly (0-1), Paudge McMahon (0-3, 1f), Shane Brennan, Eoghan Donnellan (0-1f), Francis O’Reilly, ColmGavin.

Man of the Match
Mark McCarthy (Kilmurry Ibrickane)

Referee
Michael Rock (Ennistymon)

St Joseph’s Doora/Barefield 3-9 Liscannor 2-9 at Gurteen

null

Shannon Gaels 0-8 – St Joseph’s Miltown 0-5 at Labasheeda

THIS was a repeat of last year’s decider. Back then St Joseph’s Miltown bridged a 15-year gap to their last Division 1 success, but much has changed since then.

The big difference now is that Miltown are managerless, after the decision by Michael Neylon to step down a few weeks back. The other big thing was that the result was reversed as Shannon Gaels finally kick-started their league season after a poor start that saw them lose their opening two games.

They did so thanks to the starring role played by corner forward Michael Coughlan – he’s not normally associated with being a prolific scorer but on this evening he accounted for half of the Gaels’ scores as they eased away from a profligate Miltown team in the second half to win with three points to spare.

To say that it all went wrong in the second half for Miltown when they only registered one point would be very true, but the rot had set in during the first 30 minutes when they missed another of gilt-edged goal chances. Kevin Keavey should have goaled, so to should Seanie Malone, but once let off the hook the Gaels kicked on to score a comfortable win.

Gary Egan, Dessie Molohan (2) and Gordon Kelly were on the mark for Miltown in the first half. Michael Coughlan hit the opening two scores for the Gaels, while points via a booming John Paul O’Neill sideline and an effort just on the stroke of half-time from Bryan Cunningham left the sides deadlocked at 0-4 apiece.

The Gaels had played with the wind in the first half, but against the elements they totally dominated Miltown in the opening exchanges of the second half with points from Bryan Cunningham, Michael Coughlan and John Paul O’Neill put them 0-7 to 04 ahead.

Miltown rallied with a point, but Michael Coughlan sealed the points for the home side with the final point of the hour to give them a comfortable win. John Reidy had stepped into the breach as Miltown manager for the day – he was the man in charge with Miltown last won a championship back in 1990, but on this day he was left to rue those missed goal chances.

Shannon Gaels
Keith Ryan, Stephen O’Shea,Tomás Madigan, Fergal Kenny, John Bermingham, John Neylon, Francis Cleary, Noel Kennedy, Sean Reynolds, Tomás Cleary, Bryan Cunningham(0-2), John Paul O’Neill (0-2, one sideline), Ruairi Norrby, Brian Bermingham, Michael Coughlan (0-4, 1f). Subs Mark Bohannon for Kennedy, Brian O’Shea for Norrby.

St Joseph’s Miltown
Padraig Queally, Enda Malone, GrahamKelly, David Cleary, Gearóid Curtin, Sean Meade, Ian Sexton, Gordon Kelly (0-1), John Meade, Gary Egan (0-2), Kevin Keavey, Brian Curtin, Joe Curtin, Des Molohan (0-2), Seanie Malone (0-1). Subs Micheal Malone for Sexton

Man of the Match
Michael Coughlan (Shannon Gaels)

Referee
Michael Talty (Kilmurry Ibrickane)

Doonbeg 1-14 Kilrush Shamrocks 0-09 at Doonbeg

null

Cork 2-10 – Clare 0-11 at Pairc Ui Rinn, Cork

null

SOME of Clare’s top boxing talent are preparing for a crucial week of competitive action.

Hopes abound for all three Ennis boxers who have won their Provincial titles and now go forward to contest the National Juvenile Championships at the National Stadium in Dublin, getting under way on Easter Monday and continuing through Easter Week. Conor Doyle boxes in the 46 Kilo class in only his first year in Championship Boxing while Brian McDonagh contests the 46 Kilo Boy 2 class and is in with a great chance of victory. 70 Kilo Boy 3 contender Keelan Sexton is a defending champion and fancies his chances of making it three-in-a-row for his new club. Sexton was an emphatic winner of the recent Munster Chps , winning both his semi-final and final bouts by knockout . He is a prodigious exponent of the lethal left-hook and must be fancied to achieve his goal.

Tara Dowling is the lone girl representative from Ennis and she competes in the 60 Kilo class , while Paddy Donovan who boxes out of the OLOL Club in Limerick , but does most of his training and sparring in the Ennis club will represent his club in the 36 Kilo division. A prodigious handball player and all-rounder , he is a pupil of the CBS school in Ennis.

Meanwhile, Ennis Lightweight Lee Sherlock made tremendous strides in the Senior Cadets (15-17 year olds) Championships in the National Stadium in Dublin during the past week. The championships are run each year at the end of the season to select boxers for the Elite International squad for the Home Internationals in the Autumn and are a prized commodity for all Champions.

Sherlock beat Bernard McDonagh from the St Anns Club in Westport in Friday’s preliminaries on a 4-3 scoreline before disposing of Martin Collins from Kilkenny in the quarter-final on Saturday and he saw off the challenge of Donegal’s Andrew Gallagher (Finn Valley BC) in Sunday’s semi-final , guaranteeing himself silver and a possible gold when he faces up to Ulster Champ Caoimhin Hynes in the final on Wednesday April 27.