@BruidheanChaorthainn you were on about football being in a good place the other day. I meant to get back to you, but the developments over the weekend in the football championships say enough.
Junior A
Two teams withdrawn (Adare & NAP)
Two other teams have given walkovers
Premier Junior
1 team has given a walkover
Intermediate
Fr Caseys withdrew before it started
Glin gave a walkover to Mungret
Thatâs not good.
Shocking in particular to have two of the big 4 not even field a second team. Particular FC.
Wont be clear at all, in group 2/3 caherline and feenagh only teams with 100% win success soo far and if that goes out the window it could go down to the last few minutes of the very last round. Pats and feenagh is last round could be an epic. If Feenagh win that will be hard see them beaten and a double is on as no one is really challenging in football.
The eastern pallastinians had another game abandoned this evening. In Jun b hurling this time.
John Brudair(Dromcollogher-Broadford) Coach/Selector
Pat Donnelly (Feenagh-Kilmeedy) Coach/Selector
Stephen Kelly (Newcastle West) Coach/Selector
MicheĂĄl Cahill (Mungret St Paulâs) Strength and Conditioning/Coach
Against who?
Fedamore
A clatter of games on tonight and Friday as clubs look to avoid the festivities at the weekend.
Tonight
Patrickswell v Ahane (Killmallock)
Mungret v Adare (Askeaton)
Murroe Boher v Knockainey (Hospital)
Granagh/Ballingarry v Croom (Feenagh)
MASSIVE night in Group 1 of the Junior A championship
Ballybricken v Monagea (both undefeated so far)
Askeaton v Kilteely/Dromkeen (both Best of the Rest so far)
Group 2
Claughan v Templeglantine
Loser goes home match up.
With the added danger of being left below if the junior splits as it is supposed to
Askeaton will probably be hoping for Monagea to keep winning, while K/D will be hoping for Ballybricken to keep winning.
Iâm always an outsider but didnât want to embarrass myself any further but Iâm curious what festivities are on this weekend ?
EP
Weddings & EP
Do ye really have a wedding?
All supposed it was an EP excuse
We do. One of the OâMearas.
If theyâd left it on the weekend they would have had a walkover, or a walkover in all but name
A few weeks off, teams given a bit of a chance to lick their wounds after the first two rounds, if required, kick a bit of football if they are that way inclined. Also, those who were down fellas on J1s will all be back to full-strength now and injuries given that bit more time to heal up.
Senior A
Thursday August 31
Ahane vs Patrickswell @ 6.45pm in Kilmallock
Friday September 1
Kildimo/Pallaskenry vs Kilmallock @ 6.45pm in Newcastlewest
Saturday September 2
Doon vs Na Piarsaigh @ 6.45pm in Bruff
Both Ahane & the Well had great opening-round wins with both falling to defeats in the second round. The Well will definitely be the more disappointed with their second round loss; having beaten Na Piarsaigh, they would have expected to beat a Doon side who were hammered by Kilmallock. But they let it slip which means they still have work to do to get to the knockouts. This is one they will be expected to win but they canât afford any complacency. Their new signing, Evan Fitz, is expected to start this one having missed the first two rounds with injury. Donât think there will be any major surprises with the Ahane side, they will need Tom to deliver the same level of performance he delivered the first day if they want to win this one. I think the Well, having been caught the last day, should have too much for Ahane here. Patrickswell by 6.
We face Kilmallock tomorrow night in NCW. Weâll obviously be disappointed after losing our opening two games while Kilmallock are probably favourites to win the whole thing out after their displays to date. I believe Robbie Hanley and David Woulfe are back in the country; whether they have enough hurling done to start ahead of lads who have helped them to two wins already, I donât know. Paudie OâBrien also expected to be back from injury. Some of their younger players have been very impressive to date: Liam English in the full-back line, Killian Hayes around the middle of the field while Phelim OâReilly is absolutely flying in midfield. And then they have that threat in attack with the likes of Shane OâBrien, Houla, OisĂn OâReilly with both Robbie Egan & Gavin scoring vital goals already this year. Weâve had a tough start to life in the Senior A group but weâll give this one an oul lash anyway. We have a couple of people back in contention but also a couple of injury concerns so I guess they balance out. We need to deliver a 60-minute performance though, no good matching these teams for 45 minutes, they can blow you away in the remaining 15 minutes if you have lapses in concentration.
Then on Saturday, you have Doon versus NaP. Doon bounced back from an opening day hiding to pull off a great win against the Well. They had been written off in a lot of quarters, given their injuries but got a great victory. DOD is only arriving back from Japan tomorrow so what condition heâll be in on Saturday night, I donât know. Barry Murphy is expected to play after his injury but I believe Chris Thomas will not be playing. So it will likely be the same team that beat the Well, with the addition of Barry Murphy absolutely huge. Na Piarsaigh brought DaithĂ Dempsey on against us and I believe Alan Dempsey should also be back for this one after his wrist injury. That will help as they were clearly wary of burning any more players from their second team. I donât expect Will OâDonoghue to play in either of these two rounds and he remains a massive loss. Na Piarsaigh got the win against us, comfortably in the end, but werenât unbelievable at the same time. Doon were horrific and then impressive. I just think Doon have tests they will be more focused on in the last two games and this one is a shot-to-nothing really. I expect Na Piarsaigh to win this fairly comfortably; NaP by 8.
Senior B
Thursday August 31
Adare vs Mungret/St. Paulâs @ 6.45pm in Askeaton
Friday September 1
Ballybrown vs South Liberties @ 6.30pm in Fedamore
Garryspillane vs Monaleen @ 6.45pm in Caherconlish
The talk was that Declan Hannon would return tonight for this fixture but he is getting married next week. They are unbeaten without him, which would have been a major boost, as they really are not the same prospect without him involved. Mungret are similarly unbeaten although Adare getting out of the Ballybrown game with a draw is a huge result, whereas Mungret will feel their draw with the Bouncers is points dropped. Willie Griffin has, once again, been the main man for Adare; he scored a hat-trick the first day, another goal the last day and pulled out the big scores when they were under the cosh. Barry Duff has been Mungretâs main goalscorer but seem to have a more balanced attack than they had last year with Liam Lynch back from injury, Fintan Fitzgerald a bit of new blood. I think this will be very tight and find it hard to call, I know the bookies really favour Adare but I think a lot is dependent on Hannon. Without him, I think Mungret might pull off a shock but if heâs at 11, Adare should win. Iâll go with Mungret by 1.
No point dressing this up, Liberties are in serious, serious bother and itâs almost impossible to see Ballybrown doing anything other than winning handy. With the form Aidan OâConnor is in and a decent supporting cast (Luke OâConnor hit 0-3 from play the last day too), I would expect them to win by about 12.
A big blow for the Bouncers in that Calum Sheehan is now out for the year aswell, another blow to attack that was already down Eoinsie. Colin Ryan was their goalscoring hero the last day and, in fairness to Bryan Heavey, he has really shouldered the burden of responsibility and is popping up with vital scores from midfield. Monaleen had a no-show against Ballybrown but hammered Liberties as expected the last day. They are a weird team, I donât think they like playing teams like Garryspillane who are very good at playing games on their own terms. Is Calumâs injury a blow too far for Garryspillane? I expect Peter Morrissey or Shane Ryan to start in his place and, while theyâre not bad players, they wouldnât have his knack for getting scores and making life difficult for backs. Monaleen probably have more natural hurlers but I wouldnât be surprised if the Bouncers dog it out. Garryspillane by 2.
Premier Intermediate
Saturday September 2
Bruff vs Dromin/Athlacca @ 4pm in Kilmallock
Effin vs Glenroe @ 5pm in Kilfinane
Cappamore vs Newcastlewest @ 6pm in Kilmallock
Sunday September 3
Blackrock vs Na Piarsaigh 2 @ 2pm in Bruff
A first double header of the year in Kilmallock on Saturday? Could be worth a look. Bruff are the only 100% team left in the Premier Intermediate and, tbh, I would expect them to continue that on Saturday afternoon. D/A did get a good win against Effin but I saw them in the last round and wasnât overly impressed by their performance against NCW. I hear that Mike Reidy and Sean OâLeary may be back and they will certainly add something but Bruff have coped very well without Sean Finn and a lot of their younger men, from last yearâs U-19 county champions, are stepping up. Itâs good to have that influx of youth coming through and I think theyâll go four from four this weekend. Bruff by 5.
Glenroe got on the board in the last round with a victory over a side who were viewed as their relegation rivals, Cappamore. But now that they have two points, a semi-final place is not beyond the realms of possibility. But this is a must-win for them in that sense. Effin bounced back from a poor loss to D/A to beat Blackrock fairly comfortably. Even when Paddy OâDonovan didnât score from play, the likes of Pierse OâKelly, Tommy Quaid, RuairĂ OâConnor and Fergal OâConnor all scored heavily. And that wealth of scoring options is something a lot of teams at this level donât have. I donât think Glenroe have it, for example, and for that reason alone, I think Effin will this. Effin by 5.
I saw Cappamore in a challenge recently and was not impressed. I know they nearly beat Na Piarsaigh and probably should have but not seeing that out may have completely fucked their year. NCW had a very poor start to their campaign, for a side who were seen as the overall favourites, but bounced back in style in the last round with big performances from Bryan Nix, Brian Hurley and Eoin Hurley. They can still get more from underage county stars like Ethan Hurley and Con Hayes and, to be honest, I think they will. From what I saw of Cappamore, I just canât see how they beat a side like NCW if NCW turn up. I donât think theyâll lie down, theyâll battle away but just lack that real quality. NCW by 7.
Bruff kept NaP2 at armâs length in the last round and I think they may be hoping that the four points they have will be enough to stay up. Technically, they are in with a great chance of a semi-final spot but unless they have a few more players to bring in (potentially with the Dalys and Alan Dempsey yet to have played), itâs hard to see them getting enough points despite a good start. Blackrock were beaten by Effin the last day, having ground out two wins before that. I expect them to do enough to get the win against NaP; Blackrock by 3.
Intermediate Group 1
Saturday September 2
Kilmallock 2 vs Pallasgreen @ 4pm in Hospital
Bruree vs Knockaderry @ 6pm in Feenagh
Sunday September 3
Croagh/Kilfinny vs Hospital/Herbertstown @ 2pm in Ballyagran
Pallasgreen have got plenty of red cards so far but they also have a win on the board and thatâs the most important thing. Kilmallock are winless and it does look like that game against Hospital/Herbertstown could basically be a relegation play-off of sorts. Pierce Connery still hasnât played senior and with the likes of Hanley, Woulfe, OâBrien and Graeme to return for their seniors, itâs unlikely that they will lose many more from their Intermediate team. However, they have already lost a fair few and Pallasgreen did enough to get the win the last day. If they keep the head, they should win here. Pallasgreen by 6.
Knockaderry got a massive victory against Kilmallock but were then well-beaten by C/K. Bruree have two wins from two and already have a +21 score difference. That shows how comprehensive both victories have been and I expect them to do something similar here. Knockaderry missed Condon the last day and if he is back, that will do something to curb the influence of Sam Cronolly but Bruree had a nice range of scorers the last day and just look too well set up to not win this one fairly comfortably. Bruree by 10.
And, much like Bruree, C/K have racked up two big wins and have their eyes on much bigger prizes. H/H are another of the winless sides and itâs very difficult to see this going any way but a comfortable C/K win. H/H look better on paper than they are in reality, I think, whereas C/K are just a very strong team. Cian OâCarroll might do a lot of scoring but they are very strong at the back and do have other dangermen like Jack Lenihan & Seamus Hickey. C/K by 12.
Intermediate Group 2
Thursday August 31
Croom vs Granagh/Ballingarry @ 6.30pm in Feenagh
Knockainey vs Murroe/Boher @ 6.30pm in Hospital
Sunday September 3
Feohanagh vs St. Kieranâs @ 1pm in Newcastlewest
Very hard to see G/B not beating Croom comfortably. A side who have dished out two hammerings to date and racked up massive scores against a Croom side who are struggling. Their loss to Kieranâs by seven points was a bit of a shock and itâs hard to see them having turned it around enough to get a victory here. With Luke Flynn, Sean OâConnor, Cathal OâKeeffe, Paudie Murphy, etc. all in form, I expect another big win for G/B. G/B by 13.
An absolutely huge game between Knockainey and Murroe/Boher tonight, with the loser effectively out (or at least in big bother) and the winner in a very good position. Both have lost once already and both bounced back in week 2. Knockainey have a mixture of the older brigade like Kirby, Finch, Cleary, Walsh, etc and the younger guns like the Reales and Mikey OâGrady. Padraic Barron in the middle of the field has been in serious form so far, racking up a lot of scores. M/B have, largely, a very young team but Seanie Tobin made his return after an absence of a few years the last day, coming off the bench, while Paudie McNamara is also back fully involved this year. Still, if they want to win, they will need the likes of the Nicholas brothers, both Mikey Ryans and Finn Hourigan to deliver big performances. This is a very hard one to call, canât think there will be much in it but Iâll go M/B by 2.
With doubts over Seamie Flanaganâs fitness, Kieranâs do have a chance against Feohanagh. They didnât really lay a glove on Murroe/Boher and outside of Ian Mackessy and Eoin McEnery lack serious threat in their forwards. If Flanagan is gone, and if Mike Fitzgibbon isnât available, Feohanagh arenât exactly blessed with scorers either. Iâll back Feohanagh to edge it but I would not be surprised if Kieranâs won a dogfight. Feohanagh by 2.