Death of a Déise Legend

There are few that can argue that down the years Waterford has not produced some of the finest hurlers that the game has ever seen.

In the thirties and forties men like John Keane, the Wares from Erin’s Own, as Willie Barron and Christy Moylan from the Dungarvan Club were amongst the finest to grace the game at the time.

Roll on a decade and another group of outstanding hurlers came to the fore. Names such as Martin Óg Morrissey, Seamus Power, Larry Guinan, Mick Flannelly, Johnny Kiely, Phil Grimes, Joe Harney, Austin Flynn, John Barron, Mick Lacey and Tom Cheasty were amongst those up and down the country that people spoke of.

In the 70’s and 80’s and other group of fine hurlers came along, all be it with little or no success on the National Scene compared to those that came before them.

Tom Casey, Mossie Walsh, Seamie Hannon, Pat McGrath, Jim Greene, Mick Connolly, Damien Byrne, Liam O’Connor, John Galvin, John Dalton, Declan Fitzpatrick, Noel Crowley, Kieran Delahunty, Shane Ahearne, Pat Ryan and Kieran Ryan were all fine hurlers.

Roll on the late 90’s and the turn of the new Millennium and another group of fine players came to the fore. Players like Paul Flynn, Fergal Hartley, Stephen Frampton, John Mullane, Dan Shanahan, Eoin Kelly, Ken McGrath, Tony Browne, Michael Walsh and Stephen Molumphy all became household names up and down the country and became idols to many, young and not so young alike.

Who Waterford’s finest hurler of all time is, is something that can never be agreed upon. Different era’s brought different players, and different styles of hurling.

One thing however is for certain, Frankie Walsh the last Waterford man to lift the Liam McCarthy Cup on the steps of the Hogan Stand was one of the finest.

When news of Frankie’s death broke on the morning of December 29 a widespread gloom hung over the G.A.A. Community not just in Waterford but right across the country.

Tributes began to flow in for Frankie from those that played with him and against him. From those that had the privilege of seeing him play and from those that knew him.

Born in 1936, Frankie was influenced from a young age by John Keane who was also a member of the same Mount Sion Club as Frankie. After his idol and other members of the 1948 All-Ireland winning team of 1948 brought the Liam McCarthy Cup to the Mount Sion school after winning the All-Ireland it influenced many, Frankie included to take up playing take up a hurley and aim to be as good if not better than those that brought the famous trophy to them to see at first hand.

 

In 1949, Frankie won a Street league medal and four years later he was part of the Mount Sion team that brought the Dr Harty Cup to Waterford for the first time.  The same year he was part of the Mount Sion club team that won a Minor Hurling championship.

Twelve months on he had broken into the Mount Sion senior team and was part of the panel that won successive finals between 1954 and 1961. In 1962 he was part of a Mount Sion team beaten in the County Final by Erin’s Own on a 5-7 to 1-4 scoreline at Walsh Park at the second attempt after the sides had earlier drawn 3-6 to 3-6.

Mount Sion with Frankie again in the team won three finals in a row between 1963 and 1965 and won titles again in 1969 and 1972. He was also in the Mount Sion team beaten in the 1966 and 1968 finals.

Frankie made his inter county debut between the championships of 1955 and 1956 and made his championship in 1956 when Waterford played Cork at Fermoy coming on as a sub but his first taste of Munster Championship hurling was a short lived one as he sustained a very serious head injury which required him to be taken back off.

In 1957 he was part of the Waterford Senior team that reached the All-Ireland final against Kilkenny but he and Waterford on the day had to settle for second best.

Two years on, he was named as Captain of Mount Sion and of Waterford. He guided Waterford to a Munster Final success. In the All-Ireland Waterford and Kilkenny finished all square, the last final up to 2012 to end in a draw, and in the replay Waterford came out on top.

Waterford did not get back to Croke Park again for an All-Ireland until 1963 when again Kilkenny provided the opposition and for the second time Waterford had to play second fiddle to the near neighbours.

In between the 1959 and 1963 finals there was some further success for Frankie and Waterford on the inter county scene. An Oireachtas Final was won in 1962 beating Tipperary in the final on a 4-14 to 3-12 scoreline at Croke Park. Twelve months on, Waterford beat Tipperary again in the home final of the National League, the prize for which was a trip to New York to take on a team from ‘The Big Apple’ in the final propper.

The favourites tag is one that never sits lightly on the shoulders of any Waterford team and it was defiantly the case in this game as the host city side for much of the game were in front and Waterford had to hit some late scores to get a second bite of the apple.

After drawing 3-6 to 3-6, the replay was fixed for Nolan Park in Kilkenny and again the game proved to be a tight affair with Waterford coming out on top on a 3-10 to 1-10 scoreline.

Frankie’s last medal won in a Waterford Shirt was a Munster Championship medal won in 1963 where the Déise County ran out 0-11 to 0-8 winners over Tipperary.

In 2001 Frankie was honoured by the Munster Council when a ‘Hall of Fame’ Award was presented to him.

During the course of his Career he also played on Numerous Occasions for Munster in the Railway Cup, helping the Southern Province to five titles between 1957 and 1966, captaining the side to their success in 1960.

Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam

 

Some standout moments of 2012

Each and every one of us will have our moments each year that will stick out for us for some time to come.

Some of these memories will be good ones, others maybe not so good.

Listed below in no particular order are some of my G.A.A. highlights of 2012 both locally and nationally.

Game of the Year:

There are those that are actively trying to ensure that plans to introduce all county competitions in Waterford do not happen. I would ask these people to please think of what you are doing. I ask these people are they against all county competitions because they genuinely believe that they are not good for the future of the G.A.A. in Waterford or are you against them for personal reasons.

If those again all county competitions because they believe they would bring or are bringing the county in a backwards direction, can you do some careful thinking.

Please read county secretary Timmy O’Keeffe’s report to the most recent county convention. In the report the Clashmore man asks some very interesting questions and makes some valuable comments. In it he asks how come our senior champions each year are able to compete with the champions of other counties, but our Intermediate and Junior Champions cant. To me, and many others the answer is very simple, unfortunately not everyone can see the solution.

Those against the all county championships should look at the last two minor hurling county finals. In both years, the Minor ‘A’ Final was possibly the game of the year in all grades of hurling.

This year’s final was a classic. Dungarvan came out on top but just about, against a Saint Carthage’s team that fought right to the end.

If the competition was played on a divisional basis, one of these sides could not have made the final and what a travesty that would be.

This years minor ‘a’ county final was a final be-fitting any grade.

Throughout the field there were some outstanding performances for both sides. For Saint Carthage’s Seanie Barry in the goals was outstanding making at least two saves that any goalkeeper would be proud of. Stephen Bennett hit 2-9 of his sides tally, while for the Old Boro, the Curran Brothers, Cathal and Patrick had excellent games as did Ryan Donnelly and in the second half when the pressure was on at times Kevin Daly at centre back was a colossal.

Dungarvan controlled the opening minutes of this game. Cathal Curran hit a brace of points to give them the lead with under three minutes played.

Shane Bennett hit a free for Saint Carthage’s which was blocked in the Dungarvan goal mouth but the danger was not clear and Adam Flynn reacted quickest to react to bury to the net.

Cathal Curran and Shane Bennett swapped scores before Cathal Curran levelled from a free. Curran added a brace of points to give Dungarvan a two point advantage with twelve minutes played.

The same player extended Dungarvan’s lead to three points at the end of the opening quarter and it was beginning to look as if Dungarvan were going to win the game fairly easily.

Darragh Prendergast and Shane Bennett within seconds of each other hit points for Saint Carthage’s to bring Dungarvan’s lead down to one.

Points from Cormac and Patrick Curran extended Dungarvan’s lead with nine minutes of the opening half to play.

Stephen Bennett and Ryan Donnelly swapped scores with four minutes of the first half still to play. Patrick Curran and Stephen Bennett were next to trade scores and shortly afterwards Ryan Donnelly and Stephen Bennett did likewise.

Cathal Curran pointed two minutes from the half hour mark but seconds later a long range Stephen Bennett free went all the way to the net for a second Saint Carthage’s goal of the game.

Dungarvan finished the half the stronger of the two and retired leading 0-15 to 2-6 after Cathal Curran converted a brace of frees in added time at the end of the opening half.

Aaron Donnelly extended Dungarvan’s lead to four just after the restart. However, Saint Carthage’s in the minutes that followed proved to be the better of the sides. Stephen Bennett hit four points in a row to draw the sides level, but Dungarvan ended the third quarter leading by a single score after Patrick Curran put over a good score.

Just as the fourth quarter commenced Dungarvan stretched their lead to four points after Cathal Curran finished to the net after some good work by Ryan Donnelly.

However, this score was quickly wiped out as Saint Carthage’s attacked from the restart and Adam Flynn finished a movement to the Dungarvan net for his second goal of the game.

Cathal Curran hit a brace of frees to give them a three point lead with seven minutes to play, but a brace of Stephen Bennett frees soon followed to leave one between the teams with four minutes to play.

Kieran Bennett brought the sides all square with just over a minute of normal time to play and the large crowd present were wondering if they would have to come back and have the two sides do it all over again.

Ryan Donnelly set up Aaron Donnelly for a Dungarvan goal with seconds of the hour to play, which looked as if it was going to hand Dungarvan the title, but two minutes into stoppage time Stephen Bennett hit his second goal of the game to level matters once more.

There was still time to play and in the time that remained it was Dungarvan that proved to be the hungrier of the two sides. Patrick Curran pointed with the help of the posts to give Dungarvan a one point lead the Old Boro followed it up with a Ryan Donnelly effort which secured for them their first championship success at this level since 1984.

Dr Harty Cup:

Compared to the four other hurling counties in Munster, Dr Harty Cup wins by Waterford teams in the competition are like hens teeth. Heading into 2012, just Mount Sion in the early 1950’s and De La Salle in 2007 and 2008 had won the competition, so when success comes it is to be savoured.

In February Colaiste na nDeise, a combination of Dungarvan C.B.S. and Saint Augustine’s College reached the final for only the second time. When they reached the final previously, Blackwater Community School fro Lismore were also in the combination.

Colaiste na nDeise winning the competition was done the hard way. After a defeat in their opening game back in October 2011 against Midleton CBS meant that if they were to reach the knockout stages of the competition they had to win their remaining league games against Saint Caimin’s from Shannon and Our Lady’s from Templemore.

Win the games they did meaning that when the draws for the knockout stages of the championship before Christmas they were in the hat.

Colaiste na nDeise were paired against Saint Flannan’s from Ennis in the quarter finals and were dealt a hammer blow before the game started when Kieran Power was sent off for and off the ball incident.

This meant that the other fourteen players that were on the field and any player sent on during the game would have to up their performance and they did and after sixty minutes they came out on top with a small margin to spare.

In the semi finals Colaiste na nDeise were paired with De La Salle at Fraher Field and for the second game running they had a player sent off before the game. First half goals from Michael Kiely and Michael Harney helped Colaiste na nDeise to a good first half lead and despite De La Salle coming more into the game in the second half, the group side were able to hold off for a deserved win.

In the final Colaiste na nDeise went into the game for the third game running as the underdog. Both Colaiste na nDeise and Nenagh CBS went in search of a first ever final victory and it was the West Waterford side that got off to the best start racing into an early lead.

They held the lead at the break and while they never lost it in the second half, they had to fight hard as Nenagh CBS came more into the game in the second thirty minutes.

Goal of the Year:

TG4 recently announced the result of their goal of the year competition in both hurling and football.

The fact that Wexford’s Ursula Jacob’s second goal in this years All-Ireland Senior Camogie final made the final cut was hardly a surprise to most. I have to admit that I am more than a little bit surprised at the amount of goals that were judged to be better in the public vote.

To me, the Orlart the Ballagh clubs players was if not the best goal of the year, it was defiantly in the top three.

Her goal just past the midway point in the second half was a magnificent one. Fiona Rochford was not long on the field of play having replaced Lisa Bolger. She sent in a high probing ball around the Cork goal which the advancing Cork full back and Wexford full forward missed, having gone over both of their heads. However the Wexford corner forward kept her eye on the ball like all good players should and was able to get to it before any other player on the field and gave it a slight flick to her right away from goal before striking a magnificent ground stroke high into the roof of Cork goal keeper Aoife Murray’s net.

There can be no doubting the ability of the Wexford sharp shooter. Here father Michael was Wexford’s first All-Star winner in 1972 and in the same year Breda (McCleane) played with Wexford in the Junior Camogie All-Ireland final. Her sister Helena is also in the Wexford Camogie panel while here brothers Michael and Rory have both played hurling for Wexford.

The Wexford player in the last few years has made a bit of a name for herself winning many honours including four Senior All-Ireland medals, three National League Medals, Six county titles, one Leinster Club medal, two Ashbourne Cup medals, two senior and one junior Colleges all-Ireland medals and two Féile na nGael medals.

Mná na Déise:

Waterford’s most recent successes at Croke Park have come courtesy of our Ladies Footballers and Camogie Players.

In the 90’s our Ladies Football team won five senior All-Irelands between 1991 and 1998 while out Camogie team contested three Junior All-Ireland’s in a row before eventually winning it in 2011.

In 2012, our most senior ladies teams can hold their heads very high, and can be assured that further success is just around the corner.

Our Intermediate Ladies Football team beat Tipperary to win this year’s Munster Final and went on to contest the All-Ireland final against Armagh at Croke Park in October.

While defeat was their lot, the side can hold their heads high. On the day they came up against what was a very good Armagh side who had played in the senior championship for a few years previous to this year and contested the Senior All-Ireland a year after they achieved their previous success to this year at Croke Park.

The side are back in training now for the 2013 championship and it appears that team manager Pat O’Brien and his selectors have added to their panel for the year ahead which will strengthen the team and will head into the 2013 campaign as one of the favourites to climb the steps of the Hogan Stand at the end of September.

The Counties Intermediate Camogie side can also be very proud of what they achieved in 2012. A number of the 2011 All-Ireland winning panel were not available for selection in 2012 meaning that some new faces were brought into the set up.

The team narrowly missed out on a place in the league final and in the championship they reached the All-Ireland semi final where they narrowly lost out to Galway.

If like the Ladies footballers, if the Camogie team can be added to for 2013, maybe getting back some of the 2011 panel that were not available in 2012, then its my belief that many of us could well find ourselves in Croke Park come mid September 2013, where hopefully the white and blue flags and banners will be raised very high come presentation time after the game.

Respect:

There is no doubting that the G.A.A. is one of the greatest sporting organisations in the world.

 

You can head to any G.A.A. Ground in the country and no matter what the rivalry there is between the teams that are taking part, you can see supporters from both sides sit side by side and the banter is fantastic.

The respect that G.A.A. Supporters show to each other is fantastic, but of course you will always get the one loose canon that will try and go against the flow.

This respect was very evident earlier this year when Kerry and Tyrone played in the All-Ireland qualifiers at Fitzgerald Stadium in Killarney.

The game was not one for the purist. Referee David Coldrick, had a very busy evening. He issued no fewer than sixteen yellow cards and one red card over the seventy plus minutes.

Kerry won the game 1-16 to 1-6 and after the game a bitterly disappointed Tyrone manager Mickey Harte was in no rush leaving his players leave the dressing rooms to begin the long coach trip up north.

When he did a plectra of Kerry fans had waited around the dressing rooms. Kerry folk know their football and they wanted to meet the man that guided the Ulster County to so much success in recent years and for younger supporters to get his autograph which he gladly obliged with.

The past year had not been easy for the Tyrone Manager who lost his daughter Michaela while on honeymoon in 2011. As Harte and the Tyrone team boarded the team bus, as it pulled out of Killarney, the assembled Kerry support showed support of Harte and all he had gone through by applauding the team as they set off.

Dr Harty Cup - Again:

Four members of the Sliabh gCua/St Mary’s G.A.A. Club (of which I am a member) were part of the Colaiste na nDeise team that won this years Dr Harty Cup winning team.

Eoin Kearns in goals, Tom Tobin and Kevin Sheehan in defence and Michael Kiely in attack all played a vital part in the side’s success with some outstanding performances throughout the competition.

From the ages of about five to seven, these players and a group of similarly aged players were brought to the Sliabh gCua Community Centre for two hours on a Friday evening where they were given an indoor hurley, helmet and a jersey. For about half an hour those present were asked to hit the ball of both sides, were asked to hook and block each other as they swung the hurley and then for over an hour were left play a game were rules were at a minimum putting into practice what they had learned earlier in the evening.

As the person that had a referees whistle close to my lips for the two hours or so, as these players got older to track their progress winning under 12, under 14 and under 16 county finals, getting selected to play with different county teams, winning a Junior Football Western and County Final with Sliabh gCua and having four of them win a Dr Harty Cup medal, does give you tremendous joy.

 

Senior Hurling and Football Club Rankings for 2012

 

 

With only days left in 2012, most clubs - especially the senior ones in both hurling and football have their plans for 2013 put in place.
 

It’s will be a month or more till the draws for the county senior hurling and football championship will take place, but already those that have serious aspirations of lifting the Waterford News and Star Cup or the Conway Cup already who the what county champions they will be playing in the Munster Club Championships in October and November in 2013.

2012 was a year where something’s proved very predicable while there were also some surprises along the way. Here I rate how the clubs did in 2012 going on results in both the Championship and in the County Leagues. (The hurling league was not finished in 2012. If it was, there is the possibility that things could have finished ever so slightly different).

Senior Hurling:

The fact that De La Salle came out above the rest was hardly a surprise.

They were amongst the favourites from the off and were expected to be even more dangerous than in previous years, especially after former inter county hurler Jack Kennedy joined the club in January.

The Grace-dieu club made changes to their team in recent years. John Mullane played a lot of his hurling not in the corner where most would expect him to play but out in the half forward line and while he may not have featured as prominently on the score sheet as in other years, he proved to be very effective further out the field.

Playing Eoin Madigan in the half back line has worked a treat as has the moving of Stephen Daniels to wing back while Dean Twomey and Eddie Barrett in the middle of the field were very effective as well.

The Grace-dieu outfit have some work to do if they are to be climbing the steps of the Hogan Stand on Saint Patrick’s Day. They are not far off the mark, but we did see some frailties in their full back line in 2012 and if they can put this to right over the winter and early in 2013, then there is no reason why they cannot put back to back titles together for the first time.

Very little separated both Dungarvan and Fourmilewater in 2012. The Old Boro outfit reached a first county final since 1951 this past year, beating Fourmilewater in the semi finals.

Both clubs will be hoping to go a step or two further in 2013 and both have the ability to do so. Both will have learned a lot from 2012 and in the previous two or three years.

Dungarvan have a very young team. The average age of their starting team on county final day was around 21. The average age of the Fourmilewater team would be that little bit older, meaning that they have more players at their peak right now, or are just about to reach it or maybe have just past it.

However, they have some good talent to bring forward. The name of Jamie Barron is on the lips of many in the past year or two. In 2013 and beyond look out for the name of Conor Gleeson who promises to be an exciting talent. They also have some other good players coming through that won Minor, Under 21 and junior finals with the Ballymacarbry based outfit in 2012.

Dungarvan have at this point possibly all of the best of their underage players in their senior set up with the exception of Patrick Curran who many believe to be the best of the Curran Brothers. He will make the break through in the next year or two and when he does he will further strengthen the Old Boro.

It may come as a surprise to most that in 2012, Mount Sion are my fourth placed rated team.

They did not have the best of starts to the championship in 2012 loosing all three of their opening games which had people predicting a relegation battle for the Monastery Men but they came good at the right time recording two wins in their last two games in the league section of the championship to secure a place in the last eight of the competition where they played and beat an fancied Ballygunner side at Walsh Park. They also had a reasonable campaign in the County Senior Hurling League. Like many other clubs in Waterford within their team they have a nice sprinkling of experience and of youth, and if they can keep the panel together for a few more years and maybe add to it, we could see them back challenging to add to their record haul of County Senior Hurling Trophy’s.

Lismore are my fifth place team in 2012. They had a reasonable start to the championship and looked at one stage if they were going to top group one of the league with some ease. However, results fell away in the latter stages of the league section of the championship, but they did enough to secure a place in the last eight where they played De La Salle.

Against the eventual county champions they were minus four players from the starting team earlier in the year, and were given little or no chance of securing any kind of a result, with the loss of Maurice Shanahan through suspension coming as a massive blow.

However, the Heritage Town side put in a performance like we have not seen in a number of years from any side with Dan Shanahan and Ray Barry particularly impressive and in the end it took a late point from the city side to secure their place in the semi finals of the championship after sixty plus minutes of hurling.

In 2011 Ballygunner won the county championship and were unlucky not to have gone further than they did while representing the county in the provincial championship. They have built a team around the teams that won minor and under 21 championships in recent years.

However, throughout 2012 they were hampered with Injuries and with players having to leave the country at different times over the year.

They will be disappointed with their senior hurling championship campaign in 2012, but will take comfort that they secured another under 21 championship. They will be back again in 2013 and wont be far off the mark.

Ballyduff Upper’s seventh placed grading will possibly come as a surprise to most. They did struggle somewhat in the championship this year, but with a little bit of luck they could have finished considerably higher up with table than they actually did. They retained their senior status for 2013 with a relegation play off win over Dunhill, and in the County Senior Hurling league, they were not very far off the mark where they reached a semi final which unfortunately was not played.

Abbeyside in 2012 were the draw specialist. Three of their five games in the league section of the championship finished in draws and they and many others will be wondering what if they had scored one more point in these three games, how would their year have finished. They faired slightly better in the league, winning two of their five games. The loss of players owing to work problems have hampered them somewhat in 2012, but for the year ahead if they can put out to near as full strength team as possible in each game, they wont be far off the mark.

Passage is a side that are a little puzzling at times. They struggled somewhat after coming up from Intermediate for a few years but looked to be a side moving in the right direction having reached the semi finals of the championship in recent years. They may depend on their big guns more than other clubs playing in the senior championship and it showed in 2012 as both Noel Connors and Eoin Kelly missed out on playing important games for the club. Had they been in a position to field a full strength side would things have been different? We will never know now.

Roanmore since coming up from the Intermediate grade have managed to fight off relegation each year which in itself is an achievement, but now is the time for them to stand up and be counted. Three years after coming up to Senior Dungarvan contested a county senior hurling final. Will Roanmore do it in 2013? Personally, I can’t see it happening, and if they were to fight off relegation again in 2013 it will be seen as an achievement for most. However, if the draws for the championship were to prove kind to them, then they could well reach the last eight of the competition, but for this to happen they will depend a lot on Gavin O’Brien and you have to wonder is it fair to put so much pressure on a young players shoulders to see them through.

In 2012, Tallow were very disappointing. They reached the county final in 2011 where they were well beaten by Ballygunner. They were moving in the right direction but in 2012 appeared to move backwards a lot. Questions will have to be asked of the management team over the course of 2012. Some of their placing of the team was very interesting to say the least, with players often associated with playing in defence and doing so successfully asked to play further out the field. The ability of Thomas Ryan is unquestionable. In some of their games, he struggled for some reason to get into the games, and you have to wonder why he was not asked to take a few frees to build up his confidence. Losses through injury, to Aidan Kearney in particular also had an effect on the team. If they manage to turn things around in 2013, there is no reason why they can’t be ranked much higher this time next year as there is plenty of ability to be found along the banks of the Bride.

That Dunhill finish as the lowest ranked team is hardly a surprise. They did manage to beat Mount Sion in one game and went close in a number of others, but they were a side that were always going to struggle. They lost a number of players that helped them win the Intermediate Championship twelve months ago through emigration and retirements. They also depended a lot on Eamon Murphy and Shane Casey at times and when clubs kept a close eye and the duo, scores were hard to come by.

The number of clubs that struggle after coming up from intermediate is alarming. In recent years we have seen too many clubs who come up drop down at the first time of asking, and if they do manage to avoid the drop, then it is only just. Maybe now is the time for clubs and those involved in the G.A.A. at different levels to seriously consider where we are at. A cull in numbers contesting the senior hurling championship is a must. Bringing the Intermediate and Junior championships to be run on an all county basis with possibly an Intermediate and Junior Premier championship has to be considered seriously. Until we do we will be asking ourselves all sorts of questions for years to come.

Senior Hurling Ranking 2012 (based on Championship and League result):

1:         De La Salle

=2:      Dungarvan

=2:      Fourmilewater

4:         Mount Sion

5:         Lismore

6:         Ballygunner

7:         Ballyduff Upper

8:         Abbeyside

9:         Passage

10:       Roanmore

11:       Tallow

12:       Dunhill

 

Senior Football:

There was a change to the format in the senior football championship in 2012. The three groups of four or five used in recent years was dispensed with and instead there were two groups of six.

While there was a change of format in the championship, the actual standard of play was very poor overall. The big three once again reached the semi finals and you have to wonder with the present system how long more will this remain to happen.

2012 saw nothing separate Stradbally and The Nire. In the league stages the Nire finished with five wins from five games, while Stradbally finished with four wins from their five games.

The question was asked going into 2012 how would Stradbally fair. There is a perception that they are an aging team, but in truth, because so many of the team came together from a very young age, they are not as old a team as most say they are and could be around for some few years to come.

There were also people wondering how they would do without Sean Ahearne leading them from the sideline. Under Pat Curran we saw how they would do. At the back very little changed. They remained as hard as ever to break down, while in attack we saw a little more of them than we have in recent years and they managed to kick final scores that they could only dream about in previous years.

In 2012, The Nire played the best brand of football and many neutrals hoped that they would not only reach the county final but to win it because the standard of football they played at times was very good.

The fact that both sides reached the county final was not a surprise. Neither was it a surprise that after sixty minutes of football that the sides could not be separated and even after the replay, the sides were still all square with both sides having lost key personal with injuries during the course of the game and it needed a late David Grey point to win the game for the Cove Men.

Battles between these two have become the norm in recent years and heading into the future, I expect both to be there or there about for some time to come.

One club moving in the right direction is Kilrossanty and there is a line of thought that if the monopoly of the big three is to be broken it is Kilrossanty that will do they. They have been lead by John Kiely with the past few years and he is stetting his stall on the team. They won the County Senior Football league in 2012. They have also won the Phelan Cup in recent years and in 2013 will be looking to make a big impression in the championship.

Ballinacourty are a side that you right off at your pearl. They did not have the best of years in 2012 but they did do enough to reach the county semi finals where with of luck could have beaten Stradbally and they also reached the League final where they had to give second best against Kilrossanty. They have unquestionable ability in their squad and if they can get to field as near as many of their best players throughout 2013, they will be not far off the mark.

Clashmore are another club moving in the right direction and are closing in on the top three. They have some fine young footballers most notably in Brian O’Halloran and Tadhg Bourke and some experience in the likes of Sean Fleming, Cillian and Karl O’Keeffe, Kieran Connery etc. Most people would love to see them make the break the dominance of The Nire, Stradbally and Ballinacourty and they are not far from doing so.

An Rinn are one of the most consistent teams in the county in the last few years. Early in the championship they always seem to do well and reach the last eight fairly easily, but when it comes to the knockout stages, something seems to turn on them. 2013 is going to be a very big year for the club. Some of the players that helped An Gaeltacht to win the 2011 minor championship will be a year older and will be approaching their prime years. They also will be hosting the Comortas Peile which is a big even in the Gaeltacht areas across Ireland.

Ardmore are another club that manage to reach the knockout stages of the championship each year with some ease, but apart from qualifying for the county final a few years back now, have failed to progress as far as they would have liked. They have some good footballers in the Ardmore area, most notably the Prendergast brothers and the Hennessy brothers and cousins. Will 2013 be the year that sees them advance further than in recent years? It’s hard to see it, but some favourable draws and you never know what could happen.

Between 1992 and 2001, Rathgormack appeared in five county senior football finals, winning back to back finals in 1995 and 1996 and added a third in 1999. Since then however, as many of the players that contested these finals called time on their careers at the top grade of football in the county, their fortunes have somewhat changed. However, in recent years, we have seen the wheel to turn once more and hopefully it will be only a matter of time before it turns full circle. The winning of Under 14, Under 16, Minor and Under 21 County Finals in recent years can only be good for the club in the long term. They have some very good players coming through from these teams and if they can all knit together, then it’s only a matter of time before we see them vying for the Conway Cup once more.

For all too long now, Saint Saviours have been keeping Gaelic Football alive in Waterford city. It looked as if De La Salle would join them as a senior club for 2013 towards the end of this year but it was not to be. The Ballybeg outfit have struggled somewhat in the league in recent years, often finding them short of key players at different stages of the year, but always seem to do well in the secondary competitions.

Brickeys are a side that have made little or no impact since coming up from the Intermediate championship in 2006, but have been doing enough to keep their place in the senior grade for the following year which to seem is seen as success. They have some fine footballers, but it’s hard to see them anywhere in the near future contesting the latter stages of the championship, but they did win an Under 21 ‘B’ Championship this year which might be the catalyst to pointing them in the direction that they would want to be heading.

In 2012, so much was expected of Gaultier, but in the end they disappointed. There best result was a win in their last league game of the championship against Saint Saviours while in the senior football league things faired no better. They have some fine footballers in the Barony. Let’s hope that 2013 will be a much better year.

It might not be the most popular thing to ask, but the question as to be asked. Was there a team in the Senior Football Championship in recent years than Dungarvan in 2012?

For the past few years they had been there or there about in the Intermediate Football Championship and when they won it in 2011 against John Mitchells under the lights at Fraher Field, they were worthy winners and many were hoping that with the talent they had in the team that they could be as good in time as they were in the late 80’s and early 90’s when they won three county finals in a row and were unlucky not to have won even more. In 2012, all their eggs were put in one basket, their hurling one and as a result Football in the Old Boro suffered. They were relegated at the end of the championship which was no surprise, but its fair to say that Dungarvan could well find themselves back up playing senior football again in the very near future where hopefully the experience of this year will stand to them and that they will retain their senior status for a much longer spell that they just have experienced.

Senior Football Ranking 2012 (based on Championship and League result):

=1:      Stradbally

=1:      The Nire

3:         Kilrossanty

4:         Ballinacourty

5:         Clashmore

6:         An Rinn

7:         Ardmore

8:         Rathgormack

9:         Saint Saviours

10:       Brickeys

11:       Gaultier

12:       Dungarvan

 The above has been edited. Before the edit, if a mistake in a name caused offence to anyone, I sincerly apologise.

 

Lots of activity on second and third level education scene in the New Year.

Draws for teams involved in second and third level G.A.A. Competitions from the Waterford area were made over the past few days, all of which will take place early in the New Year.

The final of the Fitzgibbon Cup in 2013 will be hosted by the GMIT in early March.

13 teams will take place in this year’s competition split into four groups. One group of four teams and the other three groups contain three teams with two teams from each group advancing to the knockout stages of the competition.

This years hosts for the finals weekend along with University College Cork, NUIG and Mary Immaculate College have all been drawn in group one. Waterford Institute of Technology are drawn in group two along with Institute of Technology Carlow and Cork Institute of Technology.

UCD, Limerick Institute of Technology and DCU are all drawn in group three while UL, St. Pats/Mater Dei and Dublin Institute of Technology are in group four.

First round games will take place on January 31 with the games in the second round taking place the following Wednesday and the third round of games on the Tuesday which follows.

The winners of WIT’s group will play the runners up of group three at the WIT while the runners up of WIT’s group will play the winners of group one away in the quarter finals. The semi finals of the competition will take place on March 1 with the finals taking place twenty four hours later.

It has also been confirmed recently that the Waterford Institute of Technology will host the 2013 O’Connor, Giles and Lynch Cup semi finals and finals on March 15 and 16, with the final of the main competition been shown live on TV for the first time in its history.

WIT will be participating in the Giles Cup competition and will be hoping to record a second win in the competition since 2011 and to reach its third final since 2010.

This will be the first time that the Waterford College will host the finals of this competition. However, hosting the finals of major competitions is not something new to the college having staged the Fitzgibbon Cup successfully in 1993, 2000 and 2011 and also have hosted the Ashbourne Cup in 2005 and 2012.

Twelve teams will play nine games over the weekend with over 500 players expected to take part in the three competitions. In addition upwards of between two and three thousand supporters are expected to visit the Carriganore venue over the weekend.

On Thursday evening last the draws for the quarter finals of this years Dr Harty Cup took place.

Waterford had two teams in the draw hat, and the big news from a Waterford perspective is that the county are assured of having one team in the semi finals after the holders Dungarvan Colleges were paired with Blackwater Community School from Lismore.

The winners of this game will play either Thurles CBS or Castletroy who knocked De La Salle out of the competition recently in the semi finals, while the second semi final is going to see the winners of the Our Lady’s from Templemore and Midleton CBS game take on the all Limerick quarter final clash between Ard Scoil Ris and Doon CBS.

The draws for the quarter finals of the Munster Senior ‘B’ Colleges competition for the Corn Pádraig was also made on Thursday last.

There is the possibility with there could be lots of West Waterford interest in the final as Dungarvan CBS and Pobal Scoil na Tríonóide from Youghal who often include a number of players from the Clashmore, Grange and Ardmore areas of the county were kept apart in the quarter finals and in the semi finals.

Dungarvan CBS were drawn against Coláiste an Rísigh from Ennis in the last eight of the competition and the winner of this game will play the winners of the Kilmallock and Rochestown College quarter final game in the semi finals.

The remaining quarter finals see Saint Josephs from Tulla take on Borrisoleigh in one of the last eight games and there is an all Cork quarter final when Pobal Scoil na Tríonóide take on the Patrician Academy with the winners of these two last eight clashes taking on each other in the semi finals.

Meanwhile there was some good news for Waterford in the Ladies Football on the Colleges scene when Blackwater Community School from Lismore beat Ard Scoil na nDeise from Dungarvan on a 2-8 to 1-10 scoreline to qualify for this years Munster Senior Football final at a date and venue to be confirmed.