The Clare People Archive

Smith O’Briens 1-7 – Killanena 0-10 at Scariff

A DRAW in the end as 14-man Smith O’Brien’s showed some true grit in the second half when playing against the gale, but for long stretches of this rugged encounter it looked as if Killanena were on the cusp of something special.

They couldn’t have dreamt up a better return to senior ranks after an interval of 103 years. Despite playing against a gale they led by 0-5 to no score inside nine minutes and soon afterwards had numerical advantage after Liam Walsh was marched for striking.

Killanena famously marched off the field themselves on their first ever senior championship game back in 1900 when they complained of not knowing the rules – they were going nowhere on this day as the looked to be on their way to a first ever championship win. They relished the close confines of the Scariff pitch, tearing into Smith O’Briens from the opening minutes, so much so that nothing other than a Killanena win looked on the cards, after the opening exchanges and again at half-time even though the 14-man Killaloe side had drawn level.

It was the wind factor – Killanena were inspired when playing against it as two Mark Flaherty frees inside four minutes got them off to a flier, while points from play by Flaherty, Mickey Noone and Colm McNamara had them in some faraway nirvana as Smith O’Briens’ profligacy began to take hold.

They hit ten wides in the opening half, seven of them inside the first 15 minutes before they broke their duck in the 17th minute with a moraleboosting goal. Brilliant stickwork from Mark O’Halloran created the opening as he killed the sliotar at speed and then doubled on it with a long delivery over the Killanena fullback line to Anthony O’Sullivan who slammed home from 13 yards.

However, Smith O’Briens’ cause still looked a forlorn one another Mickey Noone point meant they trailed by 0-6 to 1-0 after 24 minutes. Points by Mark McInerney, Kevin Walsh and John Cusack did have Smith O’Briens level at the break, but the points were there for Killanena’s taking in the second half.

Fintan McNamara’s point from distance inside the first two minutes edged Killanena back in front, while a Mark Flaherty free in the 41st stretched the lead to two points as Smith O’Briens struggled to lift the siege.

However, they finally came good in the final 15 minutes to earn a share of the spoils – principally because Killanena lacked the killer instinct to put them away. Kevin Walsh pegged a point back in the 48th minute with a pointed free, but points by Mark Flaherty (2) to a lone reply from John Cusack still had Killanena in poll position entering the last two minutes, only from points by Trevor Howard and substitute Dean Sinnott to save Smith O’Briens’ day.

Inagh/Kilnamona 0-16 – Whitegate 0-9 at Cusack Park, Ennis

CHAMPIONSHIP dark horses Inagh/Kilnamona did what was expected of them in Cusack Park on Sunday afternoon. It’s true that, at times, they struggled to shrug off Whitegate’s dogged persistence and never-say-die attitude, but did so in the end as they eased to a comfortable seven-point victory.

Ger Arthur’s final flurry of three pointed frees in the last three minutes may have given the scoreboard a distinctly lop-sided look to it that didn’t reflect well on Whitegate’s spirit of endeavour, but the truth is that Inagh/Kilnamona had that extra dimension in the forward division, that bit of class to show up the gulf between the sides.

Throughout the game they sniped good points from play – all six forwards got on the scoresheet, while midfielder Tomás Kelly and Eamon Glynn also thundered forward to find the range.

Whitegate just didn’t have these qualities and instead were dependent on Georgie Waterstone’s frees in the first half to keep them in touch, even though when playing with the breeze they should have been look- ing at opening up a scoring gap that they might have been able to defend on the turnover.

The sides were level on five occasions in the first half, before Inagh/ Kilnamona eventually made forged clear on the turnover when playing with the wind blowing into the scoreboard end at their backs.

Georgie Waterstone had opened Whitegate’s account from play in the second minute while four more points followed by the 25th minute as they edged 0-6 to 0-4 clear. Inagh/Kilnamona didn’t seem too perturbed, however, because any time they attacked scoring opportunities presented themselves.

They did hit six first half wides but still, good points from play by Ger Arthur, Damian Lafferty, Cathal Lafferty and Eoin Vaughan kept them ticking over before Conor Tierney finally roused himself with a couple of points before half-time to leave the side dead-locked at 0-6 apiece.

Early in the second half it was Niall Arthur’s turn to rouse himself, first by setting up Tomas Kelly for a point, then scoring himself, while another Tomás Kelly point by the 38th helped Inagh/Kilnamona forge 0-9 to 0-6 clear.

This early blast was the winning of the game really, even though Whitegate hit back with points via a Georgie Waterstone free and an effort from play by Shane O’Rourke by the 42nd minute.

It was the effort that went into getting those two points – against the wind they needed a goal, not points as Inagh/Kilnamona team playing well-within themselves had the facility to kick for home again when danger threatened.

Points by Conor Tierney and an 85yard pointed free from goalkeeper Patrick Kelly restored their threepoint advantage by the 50th minute, before Whitegate’s final fling came with a 52nd minute point from Tomás McNamara.

They were killed off by points from Damian Lafferty and man of the match Eamon Glynn before Ger Arthur frees stretched the back in the closing moments.

Tulla 1-14 – O’Callaghan’s Mills 1-7 at Cusack Park, Ennis

THE FINALE of the first round action and in many ways, this game typified the disappointing nature of the championship so far as even this keenly contested derby failed to ignite.

That’s probably harsh on Tulla who were up for the game and certainly played their part in the contest but after two successive titanic championship struggles against their close rivals, they must have been scratching their head in wonder of how routine this victory actually turned out to be.

To put it into context, this was more the Mill’s of last year’s quarter-final replay against the ‘Bridge rather than the freeflowing, combatant version of the drawn game. Granted, they were without rising star Adrian Donovan and Diarmuid Hehir but that still should not have affected their belly for battle or in this case lack of.

Still, Tulla could only beat what was put in front of them and with the wind at their backs, they set about the task in a competant fashion with Andrew Quinn placed balls supplementing points from Aidan Lynch (2) and Cathal Dinan on their way to a 0-7 to 0-3 advantage by the 32nd minute.

To be only four points down at the break might have steeled the Mills for a second half recovery but a further hammerblow in the fifth minute of injury time when Conor O’Halloran’s speculative effort for a point dropped short and spilled from the hand of goalkeeper John Cooney over the line, effectively gave them a mountain to climb.

To their credit, the Mills were willing to don the harness and hoist the rope on the peak in an effort to tackle the mountain but after three successive points and as many wides to even pull back Tulla’s goal by the turn of the final quarter, all it took was for Tulla to cut the safety cord and hit back with points from Conor O’Halloran and the tireless Aidan Lynch.

A Mills goal five minutes from time did provide a more entertaining finish after Adrian Flaherty won pos- session on the 40, picked out James McMahon whose shot was saved and Alan Duggan added to Eoin Pewter’s rebound to get the Mills to within four at 1-11 to 1-07.

However, it was a mere consolation not a revolution as Tulla upped the ante and saw out the win courtesy of the O’Halloran brothers, Danny and Conor to finally get one over on their near neighbours. To make matters worse, the Mills will have three months to pick through the bones of this disappointing display while their neighbours hope to carry their momentum into round two and a meeting with the Magpies.

THE Crotty Cup is back and here to stay – that’s the new mission statement of the West Clare Cycling Club that’s reviving the oldest cycling race in Clare to coincide with the An Post Rás coming to Kilrush.

Club PRO Paul Edson told The Clare People this week that the Rás’ return to Kilrush after an interval of 13 years has been the spark to ensure the restoration of the Crotty Cup to Clare’s sporting calendar.

“The Rás coming back to Kilrush was our chance,” said Edson.

“It was appropriate, given that a whole weekend of activities are being organised around the Rás that it would be a perfect opportunity to get the Crotty Cup going again, getting that great tradition going again.

“It ran consistently from 1934 to 2007, but hasn’t been in the last three years.

“There were problems and it got a bit messy with the Munster Cycling Federation, who put on an event in competition with the Crotty Cup down in Tipperary. It took away cyclists and effectively ended the Crotty Cup,” he added.

Now, the race’s return to the cycling circuit represents another turn in its chequered history, attracting Olympians like Bertie Donnelly who represented Ireland in the Amsterdam games of 1928 through to David O’Loughlin who competed in the Beijing games in 2008.

“The Crotty Cup has been lost and found,” the programme notes for the 60th staging of the race in 1994 famously remarked. “It has travelled to England and America and has had to be tracked down to enable its return to Kilrush.

“The last time it vanished, club member Kevin O’Gorman discovered its location and secured its return,” the notes added.

“It was started by Michael Crotty, Elizabeth Crotty’s husband, who was a renowned cyclist and athlete in this day. He started the West Clare Cycling Club in the early 1930s and presented the Crotty Cup in 1934, a race that went from Kilrush to Kilkee and back.

“The club has been running ever since. It had a bit of a dip in the early ‘60s, but it kept going.

Now, its latest return sees a change of format that West Clare Cycling Club members feel will secure its future. “Because of the problems we had the last time,” said Paul Edson, “we decided to on a new format for the race, running it as a time-trial because of the fact that there’s such a great interest in time-trialling now.

“We think it will open up the race. It’s an excellent route, a 20k route that’s challenging, from the Kilrush out the Kildysart Road.

“We’re hoping for a good entry. From west Clare alone we should get 30 to 40 entries, while we are leaving the entry open to people who want to register on the day,” he added.

WHEN the An Post Rás rolls into Kilrush on Monday next, the west Clare capital’s link with Ireland’s most prestigious cycling event will be restored.

And those links run deep thanks to Kilrush’s storied association with the famous event that was first staged in 1953 when the route went from Dublin to Wexford and back.

Kilrush had to wait 18 years to play host to the Rás – the town’s first big day coming in 1971, when a stage started and finished in the county.

It was a 17-mile morning time-trial from Miltown Malbay to Kilrush, with the finish on the Town Square. Victory went to Barry Flynn, riding on the Kerry team. From there the cyclists traveled on to Killimer to take the ferry service to Tarbert, from where the next stage that taking them to the Dunquin in the Kerry Gaeltacht began.

Almost a year to the day of the Rás’ first coming to Kilrush, the cyclists were back – this time it was a 26-mile time-trial from Ennistymon, won by Carlow’s Mike O’Donoghue, before cyclists took another ferry ride ahead of the next stage from Tarbert to Killorglin.

It was not until 1982 that the Rás had its third coming in Clare – this time cyclists ferried in the other direction from Tarbert and coasted two miles in the road ahead of the start to the 23rd stage from Kilrush to Kilkee – not a short seven-mile spin but the long way around and a 67-mile trek via Lissycasey, Ennis, Inagh, Miltown Malbay, Quilty, Doonbeg and finishing in Kilkee. Victory in the stage went to William Gibb of Scotland.

The fourth and last visit to Kilrush came in 1998 when it was the stage finish for one of the longest stages in the history of the race – 116 miles from Wesport, with victory going to Belgian Jonge Rakkers.

It was a big day for Kilrush on the double as Vincent Gleeson, then riding for the Mayo team, had the opportunity to finish a stage in his home town.

And the West Clare Cycling Club connections with the Rás don’t end the – the overall winner in 1981 Jamie McGahan from Scotland is married to Brid Cotter, daughter of former West Clare Cycling Club chairman, Paddy Cotter, from Kilmihil.

McMahon later became a member of the West Clare club and won the 55th running of the Crotty Cup in 1989.

YOGA, surfing and taekwon-do were all the menu for PE class at Inagh National School last week as the parents, staff and students of the school all took part in their first ever Active School’s Week.

The week, which saw children from the school taking part in a host of traditional and non-traditional sports and activities, is the latest step in the school’s bid to become of the first school’s in Clare to earn a Active School’s Flag.

Similar to the Green Flags handed out to school for environmental achievements – the Active Schools Flag aims to encourage staff and pupils to focus more on enjoying themselves through a range of diverse physical activities.

The week was co-ordinated at the school by teacher Síle O’Loughlin, who believes that it has already had a positive effect for all the students.

“We are a very strong hurling school here and the local club was very helpful in sending in coaches to the school but the week was about showing the children the benefits off all different types of sports. For a start the children either walked or cycled to school every day and we also had a large variety of different activities for them throughout the week,” she said.

“The children all kept a daily diary where they tracked how much exercise they were getting. The aim to make sure that every child got at least 60 minutes of solid exercise each day. It was about introducing different things to the children, like we had one boy on Monday who ab- solutely loved the yoga, he wouldn’t have had a chance to do that if wasn’t for Active School Week.

“Also some of the older boys who would play a lot of hurling found things like yoga much more challenging than they had expected. The Green Room Surf Club were also with us and they told us how a lot of sports club would come to them because surfing is good for building stamina and working muscles that they wouldn’t normally be working.”

The Active School Week is just one part of a series of events that Inagh National School are undertaking in order to win the Active School Flag. The school has a already undertaking a review of it’s Physical Education policy as well as looking at the open play areas and trying to make them as interesting as possible.

PAT Rutherford could be described as a sporting fanatic – he’s run more marathons than there are sunny days in an average year in Ireland, swims every day, or at least every other day. Plays golf too.

Not much time left for other sporting pursuits you might think, but if so, you’d think wrong. There’s the Special Olympics, be it up on Lees Road getting the best out of Robbie McNamara ahead of the 21-year-old’s participation in the Special Olympic European Games in Poland last year; be it in the bowling alley in Drumbiggle, but further up the Drumbiggle drag in Ennis Golf Club.

“I love it,” he says. “All of us involved do and we have a lot of volunteers now who help out in Special Olympics,” he adds.

His work on the track in Lees Road yielded gold and silver medals for Robbie McNamara in Poland, but true to the Olympic ideal, for Pat it’s not all about winning but taking part and seeing athletes grow as the participate.

In golf, in athletics, table tennis, bowling. “It’s seeing their personalities coming out and the confidence they get from Special Olympics. It’s brilliant to be part of it – brilliant for the athletes in other times they might have been left out and others got to play games.”

Rutherford makes the time, as do other key volunteers like Larry Parks, Barbara Foley, Pierce Cahill and many more – so much so that their Monday mornings aren’t the space without a date for Special Olympics golf.

“There is something in it for every athlete,” says Rutherford “and that’s what makes it so interesting for them. The degree of disability puts you into the divisions – the first half of every big event is validating the information and deciding what category the athletes should be in.

“It’s the HER, the honest effort rule. This is fundamental to the games, in other words that they would be in the right category. If you are 15 per cent of your recorded performance beforehand in the final, you are disqualified. It’s the way the games are run,” he adds.

BRIDGE UNITED B shocked most by reaching the Clare Cup final last year, a feat that many would have put down to a bit of fortune and some good luck along the way but they have proved just how much of a formidable cup side they can be by reaching back to back finals.

Such a great cup run again after last years final defeat could not have been predicted and what makes it harder to believe is that Bridge United B were relegated from Division 1 this year having only won one league game out of eighteen all season. However, their form in the Clare Cup over the past two years is one that cannot be argued with.

Having only beaten lower league teams with the exception of a big win over Bridge Celtic, manager Mark Egan admits that the semi-final against Burren was a great game for them before the final.

“The Burren was definitely the most difficult game. It was a good workout, going the whole distance there and coming through has its just rewards and at the end of the day the lads were delighted with it.”

Last years 3-0 defeat to Avenue in the cup final will still be in the minds of the players but a lot has changed since then according to Egan.

“The lads know that we went up to the final last year and they got caught up in the moment and we never really produced the goods on the day.

“All we can do is get the heads right this time around and hopefully we will give them a good game.”

If Bridge United B are to be successful against Avenue United on Saturday they will need the experience of players such as Albert Finnan, Gavin Downes and Damien Murray along with the fresh talent of Alan Mulready and Dan Larkin to aid them to victory as they look to gain revenge from last years final heartache.

LAST YEAR’S double winners, Avenue United lost out on retaining the league just a few weeks ago but they will be hoping to retain the Cup when they meet Bridge United B in this Saturday’s Clare Cup Final in Doora for the second successive year.

Avenue United won both the cup and league last season but this year they have already surrendered their league crown to rivals Newmarket and according to manager Pat McDaid they will be going all out to win the in cup in order to end the season with some silverware.

“We have to go all out for the cup, there’s two big trophies really the cup and the league and at the end of the season we want to end up with both of them. We were a bit unlucky in the league but you know thats the way it goes.”

Avenue United have become teh flagship side in Clare football and Pat feels ending the year without a trophy would be disappointing but a cup win would end the season on a positive note.

“This is what we have now, we take what we have. Its a Cup Final its a big day in Clare soccer so its good to be there again and hopefully we’ll win it.”

Avenue have come through some close encounters along their path to the final, having been brought to extra time against West Clare United and Bunratty and beating Tulla Utd

on penalties in the semi

final will have been great

preparation for this resil

ient Bridge United B side,

a side which Avenue will

not be taking lightly.

“You can’t take it away

from them they’ve been

in two cup finals in two

years. That says an awful lot about them. One year a team might sneak it but two years on the trot says something, you got to have something about you and they have.”

Avenue United are favourites going into the game but they will not be taking the challenge of underdogs Bridge United B lightly. They will know how determined Bridge will be especially after last year and how good they can preform in cup encounters. However, Avenue will be hoping with the talented squad they have that they will retain the Cup on Saturday.