League finals & Championship news – update

 

League Finals:

The first of this years league finals was played on Sunday afternoon whenÓglencar/Manor claimed the first cup of the year with their 2 point win over Ballinaglera in the Division 3 decider.

The second league final of the year will be played on Wednesday night at 8pm in Páirc Seán and its the Division 2 header between Carrigallen and Dromahair.

A third league final will be played before the championship season commences in 2 weeks.  This time round its the Division 5 Final between Aughnasheelin & Carrigalln and its scheduled for Saturday at 6:30pm in Páirc Seán.  

 

Championship News:

Also note that Fixtures for SFC/IFC Rd 1 25-26/07-2009 will be issued following CCC Meeting of Thursday night next 16 Iuil. There is a possibility that Fixtures for 01-03/08-2009 may be confirmed following this meeting also.

 

 

 

 

 

14-Jul-09 by Brendan Doyle – PRO

Coaching News

Coiste Chontae Liatroma

Coaching news

Under 14 School of excellence

Our under 14 School of excellence will continue on Saturday next, July11th with the session taking place in Drumshanbo GAA grounds, commencing at 12.30pm. Players please note venue and time change All clubs are asked to make sure their players are present for this session. Only players born in 1995 are eligible.

Under 15 School of excellence

The next session for our under 15 school of excellence will be on Saturday July 18th. Players are asked to check next weeks notes for more info.

Under 16 Development squad

The under 16 development squad will continue preparations for up coming games with a session in Ballinaglera on Saturday next commencing at 10.30am. Bus routes and times as follows.

Ballinamore 8.30, Carrigallen 8.50, Aughavas 9.00, Cloone 9.05, Mohill 9.15, Masonite 9.25, Ck – on – Shannon 9.35, Leitrim 9.45, Ballinaglera 10.15.

Kinlough 9.00, Manorhamilton 9.20, Factory Turn 9.30, Drumkeerin 9.40, Drumshanbo 10.00, Ballinaglera 10.15.

Vhi GAA Cul camps 2009

Free place competition

The winner of the last free place on our VHI GAA cul camps is Jenevieve Brennan, Drumshanbo North, Cloone, Co. Leitrim. Congrats Jenevieve.

Leitrim GAA would like to thank Vhi for sponsoring the free places, John Connolly & the Leitrim Observer for running the competition and every body who entered the competitions over the last four week.

VHI GAA Cul camp registeration

Our first three camps started on Monday with big turnouts in Aughawillan, Ck – on – Shannon and Manorhamilton.

Places are still available on all our remaining camps but some camps are filling fast so please register a.s.a.p. Registration can be by application form or by means of the new on line system.

This new system can be accessed from the GAA website, www.gaa.ie or from the Leitrim GAA website simply by clicking on the VHI logo. To date the site is proving very popular with many parents opting for this method of registration. If however parents do not wish to use the new online system they can still fill out the paper application form and forward it direct to Thomas Keenan, Pairc Sean, Ck-on-Shannon. Which ever way you decide to book, can you please do so as early as possible as this will assist greatly with camp organisation. This years camps will commence on Monday 6th July and will follow the same format as last year.

06/07/09 – Aughawillan, Manorhamilton, Ck-on-Shannon.

13/07/09 – Kinlough, Drumshanbo, Mohill.

20/07/09 – Aughavas, Dromahair, Gortletteragh.

27/07/07 – Drumkeerin, Fenagh, Leitrim.

 

 

08-Jul-09 by Thomas Keenan

2 League Finals before the Championship

With the Championship just around the corner and on track for 3 weekends time the next two weekends are going to be taken up with league fixtures including 2 league finals.

Division 1 – Kiltubrid lead the way with Glencar/Manor and St Marys in close pursuit. Kiltubrid have led for some months now but they and Glencar/Manor have 8 played while 5 teams directly below have games in hand so it will be a very tight and interesting finish to the league which will not be completed this side of the club championship. Gortletteragh look to be in trouble at the bottom and Aughawillan, Melvin Gaels and Ballinamore/SOH will all be trying to avoid the other relegation place.

Division 2 – We have a Final here and it is scheduled for Wednesday week at 8pm in Páirc Seán. Carrigallen and Dromahair have been head to head all season and have been clear leaders for some time. 3 other fixtures will be played this weekend and Round 9 is the full round that remains to finish up the season and decise the relegation placings. Annaduff, St Marys, Cloone Drumkeerin and Glenfarne/Kilty are in the danger area.

Division 3 – Ballinaglera and Glencar/Manor are in the Final which will be played on Sunday in Páirc Seán at 2pm. Only one other fixture remains which is not needed to calculate relegation places and with that Drumkeerin and Annaduff will move down a division for the 2010 season.

Division 4 – Kiltubrid lead the way here with Leitrim Gaels first team close by. There was the distinct possibility of a final this weekend had Leitrim Gaels overcome Allen Gaels to remain in the top berths but that loss may be costly as the door is now open for Ballinamore to cause an upset and create a playoff situation should they win their remaining 2 fixtures. St Marys and Glencar/Manor are sweating at the other end.

Division 5 – There is only one direction to go in this division and thats up as the bottom teams dont have relegation to worry about. At the business end of this mammoth 14 team division Carrigallen and Aughnasheelin are flying and with 15 fixtures in total left to play they are almost safe. Friday nights game between Aughnasheelin and Allen Gaels will determine when the final will be played.  The boots will definitely be well worn after this division is played out as it contained 91 fixtures in total.

So two finals to look forward to before the Club Championship which is on schedule for the July 25th throw-in. The league situation never looked better for the time of year and the early start to the year looks to have paid off handsomely.

 

 

07-Jul-09 by Brendan Doyle – PRO

Ready for some League finals

Ready for some League finals…..

 

 

06-Jul-09 by Brendan Doyle – PRO

Al Qualifier – Leitrim v Longford

Leitrim 0-10 Longford 0-13

Leitrims brave bid to win their first ever SFC qualifier faded at Pairc Sean MacDiarmada tonight.  Spurred on by man-of-the-match Padraig Berry, Longford booked a prized place in the second round draw.

Both sides enjoyed spells of dominance in the first half. Michael Foley and Gary Reynolds starred as Leitrim pegged it back to 0-07 apiece at half-time.

But Longford, despite losing Kevin Smith to a red card, edged it in the second half with Berry, Paul and David Barden and Brian KavanÓgh leading them home.

In dry and near-perfect conditions, the games throw-in was delayed by 10 minutes due to crowd conjestion and when this novel clash got started, Leitrim grasped early control of the scoreboard.

Ger DennÓgan kicked Longfords first point, but the hosts cantered ahead thanks to scores from Michael Foley, Gary Reynolds and Philip McGuinness.

Reynolds kicked clear of the crossbar after Longford goalkeeper Damien Sheridan had managed to keep out a goal-bound shot from Philip McGovern.

Longford ended their barren spell in front of goal with points from Damien Masterson and Francis McGee and a subsequent white flag from full-forward Cian MimnÓgh sent them back in front at 0-06 to 0-05.

The ever-impressive Berry sandwiched a point in before the half-time whistle, replying to another Foley score and an entertaining half was brought to a close by a well-taken point by Carrigallen ace Reynolds.

The second half was just as competitive as the first but Longford, searching for their first Championship win under Manager Glenn Ryan, gradually stretched ahead.

DennÓgan and Foley both had wides before McGee also forced a free wide of the target, following a yellow card for Leitrim corner back Dermot Reynolds.

Reynolds full-back colleague Pat Gilmartin had an excellent game and was a rock for Leitrim on occasions, but he could do little as points from DennÓgan, McGee and Berry saw Longford push ahead.

Berrys score, coming off a brilliant solo run, was quickly followed by Paul Bardens first point of the evening and a superb point from Brian KavanÓgh, wide out on the left. Suddenly there were five points between the sides (0-12 to 0-07).

Foley reduced the arrears, dusting himself off to pop over a free, and the Leitrim management introduced Darren Duignan and James Holohan for the closing stages.

Ray Cox was also brought on and two successful frees from McGuinness, in between Kevin Smiths sending-off for a high challenge on Cox, set up an edge-of-the-seat finale.

Yet Leitrim could not muster another score. The scenario of being two points down with three minutes remaining will be played over in their players minds for the rest of the summer.

David Barden had the final say, Scóring a relieving point for Longford which proved to be the match-winner.

 

 

05-Jul-09 by SBPost.ie

Cannot make it to Carrick ?

If your unable to make it to Carrick on Sunday for the big game you can always follow the action with the various Media companies who will be broadcasting in various formats live from the grounds.

On Radio worldwide you can listen to local stations Shannonside FM and Ocean FM.  RTE Radio 1 are also covering the game.

You can also follow a text version thanks to Longford Leader by clicking here

 

 

04-Jul-09 by Brendan Doyle – PRO

Clarification regarding Qualifier Round 2 draw procedures

 

Earlier today a news item was released entitled "Novel ticket deals to entice fans ".  This item included news regarding the 2nd round Qualifier draw and the method of tossing a coin to decide home advantage which was to be perfomed at Mondays CCCC meeting.

The tossing of a coin method mentioned in the article is no longer valid following the notification sent out by Croke Park this afternoon regarding the use of 4 bowls and the NEW method to decide home and away status:

 

 

"Just to clarify the draw will take the following structure:

Bowl 1 – Provincial Semi-Final Losers.

Bowl 2 – 1 st Round Qualifier Winners.

Bowl 3 – Home or Away

Bowl 4 – Dump bowl for County Slips.

A capsule will be drawn from Bowl 1, it shall remain closed and be placed in Bowl 3.

A Capsule will be drawn from Bowl 2, it shall remain closed and be placed in Bowl 3.

The capsules in Bowl 3 are stirred well, one is drawn and opened. This is the home team of tie 1.
The remaining capsule is drawn and opened and this becomes the away team in Tie 1.

The opened capsules and slips are placed in the Dump bowl and this procedure continues until all ties are decided."

 

 

03-Jul-09 by Brendan Doyle – PRO

Novel ticket deals to entice fans

HOME ADVANTAGE for the second round of the All-Ireland football qualifiers will be decided by the toss of a coin, following Sunday evenings draw in Croke Park. While home advantage for this Saturdays first round of matches was based on the first team drawn from the bowl, the second round draw will consist of two bowls – the eight first round winners in one bowl and the eight beaten provincial semi-finalists in the other.

Therefore, the GAAs Central Competition Control Committee (CCCC) will toss a coin to determine which of those teams gets home advantage when they meet on Monday to confirm the throw-in times and venues for the eight second round games, which are all due to be played on Saturday week, July 11th.

Whichever team does win the toss is automatically entitled to home advantage, provided the CCCC deem their home ground is suitable for the fixture.

All eight first round games go ahead this Saturday: Donegal against Carlow, Monaghan against Armagh, Meath against Waterford, Wicklow against Fermanagh, Wexford against Offaly, Louth against Tipperary, Down against London, and Leitrim against Longford.

The usual period of extra-time will also be played if necessary, and provided replays are avoided, these eight first-round winners will then face off against one of the eight teams beaten in the provincial semi-finals: Kerry and Clare, from Munster; Roscommon and Sligo, from Connacht; Derry and Cavan, from Ulster; and Laois and Westmeath, from Leinster.

The draw itself will take place on TV3 shortly after 6pm on Sunday, following their live coverage of the Leinster senior hurling final between Dublin and Kilkenny.

If a first replay is required the draw will go ahead as scheduled, but with the second round game affected postponed until the following Saturday.

The GAA has also finalised admission prices for all of this weekends first round qualifiers, with entry to the stands, like last year, costing €20, while admission to terraces has been reduced by €5 to €10.

A further effort to maintain the positive attendance figures for the remainder of the championship saw the GAA yesterday launch a new range of ticket packages to cover the closing stages of both the football and hurling championship.

Six deals – five of which are new – are being offered which are aimed at allowing followers of football and hurling to combine quarter-final and semi-final games. The Hurling Heaven, package priced at €90, includes tickets for one hurling quarter- final and two semi-finals. The Football Feast offers fans tickets for two football quarter-final days and both semi-finals, and costs €99. That works out at less than €25 per match and, on last years ticket prices, offers savings of €35 and €60 respectively.

Other offers include a quarter and semi-final package covering one quarter-final and a semi-final, costing €65, and a Dual Deal for the quarter-final and semi-final stages of both the football and hurling championships priced at €175.There are also Club Pass and Group Pass offers.

The packages were announced by GAA president Christy Cooney at the opening of the new Ticket Shop on Lower Dorset St in Dublin, close to Croke Park.

"We have been very happy with attendances at our games to date this year," said Cooney, "but we have said all along that in these challenging times we would continue to review our ticketing arrangements in an effort to offer our members and followers value for money . . .

"We have attempted to cater for different types of GAA supporters by offering combined football and hurling deals and a variety of options and we are confident followers of our games will take up deals that will provide excellent live entertainment at an affordable price."

 

 

03-Jul-09 by IrishTimes.ie – Ian O Riordan

Leitrim Senior Football Team – announced for Longford game

The Leitrim Senior team and panel to play Longford on Saturdays Qualifier encounter in Carrick is listed below. Note that Players numbered from 17 to 24 are listed alphabetically by first name as is the practice for all Senior team announcements for 2009.

 

1 Enda Lyons
2 Michael McGuinness
3 Pat Gilmartin
4 Dermot Reynolds
5 Gary Reynolds
6 John McKeon
7 Barry Prior
8 Gary McCloskey
9 Shane Canning
10 Michael Foley
11 Declan Maxwell
12 Philip McGuinness
13 David O Connor
14 Tomás Beirne
15 James Glancy

16 Noel Gill
17 Adrian O Flynn
18 Barry McWeeney
19 BrendanÓgallagher
20 Brendan Guckian
21 Colm Clarke
22 Damien ODonnell
23 Daniel Beck
24 Darren Duignan
25 Darren Sweeney
26 DeclanÓgilhooly
27 James Glancy
28 James Holohan
29 Paddy McGowan
30 Ray Cox
 

 

 

 

 

 

02-Jul-09 by Brendan Doyle – PRO

Coaching News

Under 14 School of excellence

Our under 14 School of excellence will continue on Saturday next, July4th with the session taking place in Ballinaglera GAA grounds, commencing at 10.30am. All clubs are asked to make sure their players are present for this session. Only players born in 1995 are eligible.

Under 15 School of excellence

The next session for our under 15 school of excellence will be on Saturday July 18th. Players are asked to check next weeks notes for more info.

Under 16 Development squad.

All members of the under 16 development squad should note that the meetings with Oliver Cummings, postponed last weekend, will take place this Friday evening and Saturday morning. All Players are asked to please attend at the same times they were allotted for last weekend.

Vhi GAA Cul camps 2009

Free place competition

Congrats to the lastest winners of free places at this years Vhi GAA cul camps. Shane O Brien, Cornamuckla, Corriga, Aughavas and Tom Mc Cabe, Derrycullinan, Drumkeerin.

Don t miss your last chance at winning a free place on your favourite Vhi GAA cul camp in this weeks Leitrim Observer.

 

VHI GAA Cul camp registeration

Places are still available on our camps but some camps are filling fast so please register a.s.a.p. Registration can be by application form or by means of the new on line system.

This new system can be accessed from the GAA website, www.gaa.ie or from the Leitrim GAA website simply by clicking on the VHI logo. To date the site is proving very popular with many parents opting for this method of registration. If however parents do not wish to use the new online system they can still fill out the paper application form and forward it direct to Thomas Keenan, Pairc Sean, Ck-on-Shannon. Which ever way you decide to book, can you please do so as early as possible as this will assist greatly with camp organisation. This year s camps will commence on Monday 6th July and will follow the same format as last year.

06/07/09 – Aughawillan, Manorhamilton, Ck-on-Shannon.

13/07/09 – Kinlough, Drumshanbo, Mohill.

20/07/09 – Aughavas, Dromahair, Gortletteragh.

27/07/07 – Drumkeerin, Fenagh, Leitrim.

 

 

02-Jul-09 by Thomas Keenan

28th Feile Peile na nÓg in Kildare this weekend

Host clubs and volunteer officers throughout Kildare are busy putting the final touches to plans for the arrival of 160 visiting teams and Uachtarán na hÉireann Mary McAleese ahead of the 28th Féile Peile na nÓg, which takes place this weekend, Friday 3rd to Sunday 5th July.

All 32 counties of Ireland will be represented and clubs from New York, Brittany and Britain will be involved in an event that returns to Kildare for the first time since 1988.

Prime among the festivities will be the opening parade through the streets of Newbridge on Friday afternoon, featuring all of the competing teams as well as a host of well-known marching bands. President McAleese will be in attendance to review the parade alongside GAA President Criostóir Ó Cuana, as well as President of Cumann Peile Gael na mBan, Pat Quill, and former Roscommon footballer Lt Gen Dermot Earley. MC for the parade will be RTÉ commentator, Micheál Ó Muircheartaigh.

GAA President Criostóir Ó Cuana said: "It has been impossible to ignore the real buzz that is detectable around the county of Kildare over the course of my visits to schools and clubs in recent weeks and I think everyone lucky enough to be involved with the Féile Weekend can expect a competition to rival any."

Erica Roseingrave, Public Affairs and Communications Manager of Coca-Cola HBC, said Coca-Cola were "delighted" to be the title sponsors of the 2009 finals, and that "Coca-Cola HBC would like to wish the organising committee officials, clubs, participating teams and everyone associated with the finals the very best of luck over the coming days."

 

 

30-Jun-09 by Brendan Doyle – PRO

Ticket arrangements for qualifier – UPDATED

Please note that this weekends qualifier game is cash at the turn stiles except for the stand which is ticket only.   Any one interested in purchasing tickets should put their order in with their club secretary immediately and the tickets will be distributed to all club secretaries on Wednesday night.

Stand – €20*

Terrace/Sideline – €10

Student/OAP – €10

Under 16 s -FREE

 

*  €10 concession only for OAP s on Stand tickets

 

 

 

29-Jun-09 by Brendan Doyle – PRO