The transfer merry go round

The big news within the G.A.A. World at the beginning of 2013 pertains to the happenings of a number of clubs in the Middle of the county.

The Ballydurn/Newtown Club have split and are now going to be two separate clubs. Ballydurn are to become a sole hurling club while Newtown is to become a sole football club.

No hurling will be played in Kilmacthomas in 2013 and the players from the club will be throwing their lot in with either Clonea or Ballydurn while the biggest news appears to be that Kilrossanty will also be a sole football club as well in 2013 with players wanting to play hurling will be doing so with either Clonea or Ballydurn.

Ballydurn are the club that most will be looking to in 2013. The closing date passed for transfers last Friday evening and over the weekend it was confirmed that the mid county club will be getting no fewer than twenty one players.

Ten of these players will be transferring from Kilrossanty. The newly formed hurling club will receive eight players from Kilmacthomas, two from Clonea and one from Portlaw.

To see how this works out will be very interesting to see over the coming weeks and months.

Ballydurn won the eastern and county junior hurling championship in 2010 and while they were relegated back down from the Intermediate ranks at the end of 2011, they once more reached the eastern final in 2012 where they were well beaten by a strong Butlerstown side.

Where the newly transferred players will fit into the newly formed club will be interesting. Yes, some will be a plus to their first choice twenty or so players, but where it leaves the players that helped them to success in 2010 and to the divisional final in 2012 remains to be seen.

The G.A.A. is a very community or parish orientated organisation where great pride is taken when local’s line out for the club and even more pride is taken when they lead the club to success.

However, when players move into the club without moving to the area and take the place of a local it can lead to tension within the club. When twenty plus players move into the club expecting to get a game and add in the numbers already involved and also expecting to get a game, to say things could get interesting might be an understatement.

In Waterford City, there is also some moving around. The Saint Saviours Club are to get seven players, six of whom are transferring from neighbours Roanmore. Naomh Pól are to get six players.

John Mitchell’s are to receive seven players which includes last years Dr Harty Cup winning Captain Kieran Power who transfers from neighbours Kilrossanty at the third attempt. In hurling he will transfer to Clonea which will strengthen the side who are bound to be one of the favourites to win the Eastern Intermediate Hurling Championship this year.

The biggest transfer this year see’s John Dee transfer back to Portlaw from Mount Sion. The transfer of Niall Clifford from Ballyduff Lower to Ballygunner is one that could strengthen ‘The Gunners’. Over the past few years, Ballyduff Lower has lost a considerable amount of players and it will be interesting to see how they will fair without another of their most important players in recent years.

Another interesting transfer sees Thomas O’Brien move from Lismore to Tourin For a number of year’s he was very impressive playing with Blackwater Community School in the Dr Harty Cup but found it hard to break into the senior set up at Lismore. With Tourin there or there about in the Western Intermediate Championship over the past few years since winning the Junior Championship a few years back, his inclusion in a red and white striped shirt in 2013 could strengthen the side considerably.

The Brickeys have picked up five players for 2013 including David Ryan who has been part and parcel of The Nire and Fourmilewater teams in the recent past. If he was to line out in the Brickeys senior team in football and intermediate team in hurling, his experience could greatly help them over the coming weeks and months.

Meanwhile on the underage scene, two Kilrossanty players were given permission to line out with Clonea in the Minor Hurling Championship as Kilrossanty will not be taken part, while six Erins Own players were given permission to play with Gaultier in the Minor Football Championship as the Poleberry club will not be entering a team of their own in the competition.

 Transfer List in Full:

 

To Ballydurn:

Gerry Kirwan            from Clonea

Kevin Dee                   from Clonea

David McNamara     from Portlaw

Tony Power                from Kilmacthomas

Gary Kiely                 from Kilmacthomas

Michael Dee               from Kilmacthomas

Brian Hallahan         from Kilmacthomas

Caolan Kiersey           from Kilmacthomas

Evan Joy                    from Kilmacthomas

Sean Cleary                from Kilmacthomas

Bobby Power              from Kilmacthomas

Michael Kirwan        from Kilrossanty

Alan Quinn                from Kilrossanty

Patrick Kiely              from Kilrossanty

Eoin Cummins           from Kilrossanty

Jim Maher                  from Kilrossanty

Michael Walsh           from Kilrossanty

Philip Iannotta          from Kilrossanty

Joey Veale                  from Kilrossanty

Mark Hayes               from Kilrossanty

David Power              from Kilrossanty

To Saint Saviours:

Donal O’Connor        from Roanmore

Seamus Mullally       from Roanmore

Conor Reidy               from Roanmore

Mark Walsh               from Roanmore

James O’Connor         from Ballyduff Lower

Michael Merrigan      from Roanmore

James O’Byrne           from Roanmore

 

To Clonea:

Paul Keating             from Kilrossanty

Kieran Power from Kilrossanty

Eoin Houlihan          from Kilrossanty

To Naomh Pól:

Glenn Cassidy                        from Erins Own

Tomás Barry              from Roanmore

Graham Robinson      from Roanmore

Richard Barry                        from Butlerstown

Odhan O’Sullivan      from De La Salle

Jason Shore                from De La Salle

To Bunmahon:

Finbarr Power           from Stradbally

Charles McKeown     from Old Parish

To Old Parish:

Sean Power                from Ardmore

James Salmon            from Ardmore

Richard Stillwell       from Ardmore

Christopher Foley      from An Rinn

Dwayne Houlihan     from An Rinn

To Gaultier:

Bernard Brannigan   from Roanmore

Peter McKenna          from Tramore

To Roanmore

Brendan Gallagher    from Kill

To Fenor

Sean Finn                   from Tramore

John Flynn                from Dunhill

Nicholas Shanahan    from Dunhill

Anthony Whelan       from Dunhill

 

To Portlaw:

John Dee                     from Mount Sion

To Lismore:

Pat Hennessy             from Melleray/Glen Rovers

To John Mitchells

Kieran Power             from Kilrossanty

Tommy McGrath       from Kilmacthomas

John O’Rourke           from Ballyduff Lower

Paul Weldon              from Kilmacthomas

John Kirwan             from Rathgormack

John O’Keeffe                        from Rathgormack

Robert Hahessy          from Rathgormack

To Shamrocks:

Richard Murphy        from Clashmore

To Newtown:

David McNamara     from Portlaw

To Ballyduff Lower:

Emmett Power           from Kilmacthomas (F) from Clonea (H)

Billy Laffan               from Portlaw

To Ballysaggart:

Kayne Cunningham  from Ballyduff Upper

To Kilrossanty:

Sean Delahunty         from Abbeyside/Ballinacourty

Padraig Cooney          from The Nire

Eamon Cooney           from The Nire

Sean Cooney               from The Nire

To Brickeys:

Niall Collins              from Dungarvan

Philip Coffey              from Kilrossanty

Alex Lai                     from Dungarvan

Emmett Gaffney        from Old Parish

David Ryan                from Fourmilewater (H) The Nire (F)

To Abbeyside/Ballinacourty:

Michael Raher            from Kilrossanty

To Melleray/Glen Rovers:

John O’Dwyer           from Abbeyside/Ballinacourty

Patrick Cummins       from Lismore

To An Rinn:

Peter Marriott           from Kilrossanty

To Tourin:

Tomás O’Brien           from Lismore

To Kilgobnet:

Eoin Morrissey          from Brickeys

To Ferrybank:

Graham Coady           from De La Salle

To Ballygunner:

Niall Clifford             from Ballyduff Lower

Juvenile Transfers:

Sean and Michael Devine                  Naomh Brid to Dungarvan

Tomás Kiely and Pat Walsh             Brickeys to An Gaeltacht

Rian Reddy                                         Dungarvan to Naomh Brid