PREMIER INTERMEDIATE HURLING CHAMPIONSHIP: Kildimo/Pallaskenry 4-16 Blackrock 0-16. In the final game of the group stage of the Premier Intermediate Hurling Championship, we rattled in four goals against Blackrock and secured a well-deserved 12-point victory! We did what we had to do in terms of securing a large enough margin victory to be the team with the highest score difference but results elsewhere saw us slip to second in the table as it came down to head-to-head. But the hard work has been done, the semi-final was the true aim and that has been achieved. It was nice to finish the group stage off with a victory to leave us full of confidence heading into the semi-final and it was a good performance, particularly a storming first half.

 

We flew out of the traps, laying down a marker right from the off and Barry O’Connell had a goal right from the throw-in. After starting the attack, Barry drifted into space in behind, he was picked out cleverly by Ruairí Maher; Barry put the head down and rifled the ball into the back of the net, his 4th goal of the Championship campaign! We continued our whirlwind start over the next ten minutes, as we simply blew our opponents away with clever movement, strong running and excellent scoretaking. When Peter Nash picked out Ruairí Maher in space around the middle of the field, Ruairí opened the shoulders to land a great score. Kyle Hayes was next to get in on the act, taking his man on and popping the ball over the bar from the left wing. Then great work rate from Adam Butler saw him flick the ball away from the defender to Jack O’Keeffe, who cleverly recycled the ball outside to Cían Hayes for him to fire the ball over the bar. Ruairi then replicated his first point with another similar strike from way out the field before we raised our second green flag of the half. This it was our other county player, Kyle Hayes, who saw the bit of space in front of him. Kyle powered past his marker and lashed the ball past the helpless goalkeeper. This gave us a 9-point lead, Blackrock having landed a solitary free. Adam Butler then landed a free for us, our only score from a placed ball in what was a superb first half of hurling.

 

It had taken Blackrock a while to settle, but over the next few minutes, they would let us know that we were in a real game and they landed the next few scores to reel in the deficit bit. There was just the two goals between us again when Kyle Hayes did brilliantly to win a puckout, he was able to pop the pass to Ruairí Maher and with the form he was in, he made no mistake, firing over his third point of the half. Kyle caused absolute havoc in the Blackrock defence over the next few minutes as he fired over three points on the trot; his pace, power and physicality impossible to handle. The first of the trio was an absolute monster score from way out on the left touchline while on the run. He then linked up well with Conor Staff, came through the centre and popped it over the bar before great work from Keel Moloney set him up for another point. Kyle then turned creator and his pass across the field found his All-Ireland-winning teammate, Barry O’Connell, and Barry made no mistake either to give us a 10-point advantage.

But as they did before, Blackrock came roaring back into the game and again, they would land four scores in a row to cut the deficit to just those two goals again. They hit a lot of frees in that first half but also started to get a couple of points from play despite the best efforts of our backline. However, we would finish the half out strongly. Kyle almost doubled his tally for the entire season in the first half alone, another point for him saw his count rise to 1-5, a phenomenal score from play in a half of hurling. A brilliant team move involving a number of players saw the ball worked carefully to Barry O’Connell, and Barry converted to take his personally to 1-2 and a total of 2-10 from play from our half-forward line in the first half. Conor Staff rounded out the half by taking the ball on through the middle and landing a score on the run. It was a really good first half of hurling from us, particularly scintillating in attack and we were unlucky not to have a third goal as Jack O’Keeffe rounded the goalkeeper and finished to the net but was adjudged to have taken too many steps. It meant we led at half-time: Kildimo/Pallaskenry 2-13 Blackrock 0-11.

If the first half was free-flowing attacking hurling, the second half was a real dogged affair. It was our opponents, desperate to get a result to secure their Premier Intermediate status for next season, who came flying out of the blocks and laid down a marker early in the second half. They managed to make life a lot more difficult for our forwards while setting up plenty of attacks for their forwards. This is where our backs really earned their corn; the first half was a game for forwards, the second half was one for backs and they really showed their worth. Although Blackrock would again land four scores in a row to cut the deficit to just four points again; considering the amount of attacks and possession they had, it was a real credit to our backs. Lorcan O’Leary had an absolute stormer of a second half at centre-back, constantly emerging with ball. Bob McKeogh was similar on the wing, while Luke O’Keeffe fought tooth and nail for every ball that came his way.

When we needed scores in the second half, we turned to our bench and they duly delivered; we managed to get 2-3 from our subs which is a very decent return. Peter Nash helped drive us on in that second half, getting on a huge amount of ball and when we won a sideline; up stepped Liam Griffin to cut the ball over the bar for our first score of the half. It wasn’t long after when another substitute, Shaun Barry, put in a great tackle only a minute or so after coming on. Shaun put in the hit, turned the ball over, headed for goal and buried the ball to the back of the net, across the goalkeeper. It was a huge moment in the game to really stall the Blackrock momentum and they wouldn’t score for the rest of the game as they chased goals. They weren’t forthcoming with Kevin O’Connell safe as a house at full-back. At this point, we found our second wind and drove on again; the half-back line really getting on top and Keel Moloney and Conor Staff linking up a couple of times down the left wing. Liam Griffin popped over a free after Shaun Barry had been fouled, before we finished the game off in style. Great persistence from Jack O’Keeffe saw him keep the ball in over on the right touchline and he then set off on a run along the endline. It was a great run but as he came inside, the ball was flicked away but who was there, only goalpoacher supreme, Darren O’Connell who finished the ground shot to the net from a tight angle. Darren as our top goalscorer in last year’s Championship with 4; he has already beaten that in less games, at a higher grade this year as this was his 5th goal of the season (and our 16th goal in 7 Championship games, the highest in the division)!

Liam Griffin rounded off the scoring with another pointed free after Jack O’Keeffe had been fouled, giving us a 12-point victory. It was a fine performance, but we will need to reach another level next weekend in a county semi-final as we take on Garryspillane, a side very experienced in the knockout stages! Well done to all involved; the management team of Chris Sexton, Damien Gillane, Pat Enright, Jim Maher, Paudie Daly, Éanna McGarrigle and Alan Fitzgerald have done a great job thus far and we wish them all the luck heading into next weekend’s semi-final! Brendan O’Shea became our 22nd player to make an appearance in Championship this season, again showing the importance of panel depth as we have had a number of injuries this season! It was also great to see Mikey Dillon get his first Championship start of the season; Mr. Versatility himself is well-known for his ability to fill in in a number of positions and this time, he slotted into the full-back line when there was a vacancy and did a great job! For a man who made his debut in 1995, it is a credit to the man that he is still delivering for his club all these years later! Keep an eye on social media and the Team App for details of next week’s County Semi-Final!

Team: John Chawke; Mikey Dillon, Kevin O’Connell, Luke O’Keeffe; Robert McKeogh, Lorcan O’Leary, Keel Moloney; Conor Staff (0-1), Peter Nash; Kyle Hayes (1-5), Ruairí Maher (0-3), Barry O’Connell (1-2); Jack O’Keeffe, Cían Hayes (0-1), Adam Butler (0-1, free)

Subs: Darren O’Connell (1-0) for Adam Butler (38 mins); Liam Griffin (0-3, 0-2 frees, 0-1 sideline) for Barry O’Connell (47 mins); Shaun Barry (1-0) for Kyle Hayes (54 mins); Adrian Garvey for Cían Hayes (58 mins); Brendan O’Shea for Mikey Dillon (60 mins)

 

JUNIOR A FOOTBALL CHAMPIONSHIP QUARTER-FINAL: Kildimo/Pallaskenry 3-6 Ballybrown 1-11. A late goal from Darren O’Connell saw us defeat our neighbours Ballybrown in the quarter-final of the Junior Football Championship. It means that we have once again proceeded to the County Semi-Final; a stage further than last year but a stage at which we fell in both 2015 & 2016. It’s good to be back in a semi-final, but Ballybrown made us work hard for the victory. We lost Tony McCarthy to a black card in the first half, which was a massive blow but we rallied well in the second half and again, it was our ability to get goals that proved crucial; Liam O’Sullivan also keeping up his run of goalscoring form. It was a tightly-contested battle as you’d expect from a match between neighbours and we just about did enough.

Well done to all involved, to the management team of Noel McCarthy, Killian O’Leary and Sean Cuddihy for leading us to a semi-final! We are now in a semi-final in both codes, something only two other sides in the county can claim and is a great achievement, with largely a very similar panel! This semi-final is due to take place on Tuesday, October 9 in Mick Neville Park against Fr. Casey’s at 8pm. Hope to see our supporters there to help the lads get to a County Final!

COUNTY MINOR HURLING SEMI-FINAL: Kildimo/Pallaskenry 0-16 Croagh/Kilfinny/Rathkeale 2-16. There was disappointment for our minor hurlers on Wedesday night, as they were knocked out of the Minor Hurling Championship by a well-organised and skilful Croagh/Kilfinny/Rathkeale, who had previously won the West Championship. After a great win in the City/South Final, we were hoping to bring home a second Minor A title in three years but sadly, it was not to be. Again, goals proved the difference in Rhebogue as our opponents managed to get two while preventing us from raising any green flags. It was a disappointing end to the season, but at least we did pick up some silverware along the way and showed there is some great talent in the parish and the future is certainly bright! Well done to the management team of John Barry, Brian Butler, Liam Hayes, Brian Barry and Alan Fitzgerald for all their efforts and we still a Football Championship Semi-Final to look forward to!

U-13 FOOTBALL COUNTY FINAL: Kildimo/Pallaskenry 2-8 Oola 2-4. A fantastic result for our U-13 footballers who are County Champions after a victory over Oola in Ballyneety on Sunday! We took the lead right from the beginning, and a goal early in the first half helped us on the way. Our young footballers never let up and fired in a second goal before the break and we led by 9 points at the break. We knew Oola would come back in the second half, and although they got two goals of their own, we defended very well and were well-deserving victors. It’s always fantastic to win a County title, so congratulations to all the players, a really super team! Thanks and well done to the management team of Billy O’Sullivan, Paul Browne and Kieran McMahon for their efforts this year and masterminding the victory!

HURLING ACADEMY: The Cois Sionna Credit Union in association with the Bord na nÓg in both Kildimo/Pallaskenry and Askeaton/Ballysteen/Kilcornan are restarting their Hurling Academy this week! It starts next Friday, October 12 in Kilcornan astro pitch, and will continue for 8 weeks, costing only €10!

The academy is open to all boys and girls within the common bond of Cois Sionna Credit Union. There are three age categories: U-14s (those born in 2004, 2005 or 2006); U-12s (those born in 2007 or 2008) and U-10s (those born in 2009 or 2010). U-14 academy will be on from 6pm-7pm weekly; U-10s from 7pm-8pm and U-12s from 8pm-9pm.

Cian Hedderman leads this academy initiative and will be ably assisted by coaches from the clubs within the Cois Sionna Credit Union district. Registration begin 30 minutes before the session starts on Friday night; registration forms can also be found on our social media pages or sourced from Cois Sionna Credit Union.

MOTHERS AND OTHERS FOOTBALL TRAINING: Mothers and Others football training continued in Pallaskenry this week. This is just a bit of craic, non-competitive but a chance to get fit and enjoy the social aspect of football in the community. New members are welcome! Please contact Maria Allen if interested.

PITCHSIDE SIGNAGE: Pitchside advertising for the 2018/2019 season is now available; with the chance to sponsor the club in either or both Kildimo and Pallaskenry GAA grounds. Cost includes professional 8x2ft steel sign in full colour; for more details, please contact Niall Kelly ([email protected]) or John Chawke ([email protected]).

CLUB SHOP: Our online club shop has a number of new items including the new team jerseys, as well as a wide range of training gear. Please see the club website, Facebook page or Team App for the link to the online shop.

TEAM APP: For all the up to date club news, fixtures, training schedules, club shop, club documents, log into the Club’s Team App, available to download to your smart phone on iPhone and Android.

CLUB LIMERICK DRAW: Sadly, we had no winners in the September draw after some success in the first few draws of the year. However, there are still three draws to go for 2018, with a subscription costing €10 per month. The CLUB Limerick Draw is a vital factor in the success of our County teams, it raises much needed funds for all our clubs to the tune of €400,000.

Kildimo/Pallaskenry GAA are very fortunate to have a great number of young and senior players represent our club on the intercounty scene. The CLUB Limerick Draw will also help the development of the Gaelic Grounds and Mick Neville Park, to make it a centre of excellence with four full-size pitches including synthetic pitch, flood lighting & ball alley. Each month there will be 30 Guaranteed Cash Prizes with a top prize of €12,000 & a star car prize in December worth €25,000. You can play online or contact any club member below, or call / e-mail Siobhan in the Limerick GAA Office 061-335516 / [email protected]. If you would like to take part, please contact Trish O’Dowd, Tom O’Connell, Tony O’Brien, Sean Cuddihy, Niall Kelly where you can pay upfront or pay monthly to be in with a chance to win!

 

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