AHANE GAA CLUB NOTES
U21 B County Football Championship
We are at the business end of the U21 B Football Championship as we played our Semi Final against Claughaun on Friday evening in Maguire’s Field UL. On a chilly enough evening, a large crowd gathered to support the lads as the game got underway at 8:45pm. First scores came within the first four minutes, and they were both for Claughaun. Claughaun started far quicker, and they called our keeper Luke O’Sullivan into action early on in the game too as he had to make the save from a well taken shot. Ten minutes in and we kicked over our first point after savage work rate out the field, Evan Power popped it over, this was closely followed by a Peter Donohoe point to level up proceedings. We started to push on and in the fifteenth minute Padraig Harnett made a run through the defence and took his shot on goal, but the Claughaun keeper pulled off a mighty save and the ball went over the bar instead of under the bar. Scores at the first water break were Ahane 0-03 Claughaun 0-02. Following the pattern of the first fifteen, Claughaun started the quicker and got two points on the bounce to go one ahead. The moment of magic for Ahane came in the twenty ninth minute, as Shane O’Grady dispossessed the Claughaun player and started the counterattack. He made the run up from defence with Paudie running off his shoulder, Shane and Paudie put a great sequence of passes together between them before Paudie got the ball in front of goal and made no mistake in slotting it home, much to the delight of the Ahane supporters. The goal seemed to wake us up again and Mark Donnellan got three points on the bounce as the half time whistle was blown. Half time score was Ahane 1-06 Claughaun 0-04.
Claughaun got the first point of the second half, but we settled quicker into the second half than we did the first, we got a goal opportunity two minutes in but again credit where it is due the Claughaun keeper made a good save. Andy Rowsome got on the breaking ball and popped it over. Andy Shanahan then decided he wanted in on the scoring action and fired over two beautiful points. Claughaun got the first of two goals from a dropping ball in from a free. As the second half went on tensions began to rise and they boiled over on a couple of occasions, one of these occasions resulted in Evan Power needing a new jersey as his was ripped down the middle. There were several yellow cards dished out over the half too. As we did numerous times our attack started way back in the corner back. Peter O’Grady defended the ball well and managed to dispossess the Claughaun player, we worked the ball through the lines, and it ended with Mark Donnellan who got the final score before the water break. Second half water break score was Ahane 1-10 Claughaun 1-05. We got two more points after the water break and it was the Rowsome brothers who got them for us, first Andy and then Gavin. We lost Josh O’Keeffe to a black card which left us down to fourteen men for the duration of his ten-minute sinbin. Claughaun used the extra man to their advantage and got a goal from a free and then two more points. With the game going into injury time there was only two points between us, and it was nail biting time of the supporters. Gavin put us three ahead again and Josh O’Keeffe came back after his ten minutes in the bin and Claughaun lost a player to a black card. Claughaun were then awarded a free which they put over the bar and we were back to the dreaded two-point lead. The final score of the game came from Andy Shanahan as he floated over a great point. The long-awaited full-time whistle was blown, and we won by three points! Full time score Ahane 1-14 Claughaun 2-08. The lads are now in the county final next weekend with details to the confirmed.
Team: L. O’Sullivan; P. O’Grady, B. Murphy, J. O’Keeffe, S. O’Grady, K. Morrissey, T. Marsden; P. Harnett, A. Shanahan; R. Fox, A. Rowsome, G. Rowsome, M. Donnellan, E. Power, P. Donohoe.
Substitutions: E. Madigan for P. Donohoe (2nd ½), L. O’Mara for E. Power (2nd ½), C. Slattery Wright for G. Rowsome (2nd ½).
PWC All Stars 2021
Huge congratulations to all 12 of the Limerick Senior Hurling lads who won an All Star but especially our own Tom Morrissey who is named at wing forward! Hard luck to Dan Morrissey, he’ll forever and always be an All Star here in Ahane and we are so proud of both Tom and Dan for all they have achieved. Heroes forever in Ahane!
Lotto
Jackpot: €9500
Numbers Drawn: 9,14,32,34
No Jackpot Winner
Draw
€200 Cormac Hassett
€150 Tony O’Grady
€120 PJ & Theresa O’Gorman
€120 Donal Morrissey
€120 Tom & Mary Ryan
€120 John & Elaine Lynch
€120 Shane McSweeney
€120 Joseph Murphy
€120 Cormac O’Callaghan
€120 Dan & Laura Firth
Prosecco
Niall Moran
Post Primary Hurling
Well done to our club lads Ronan Butler, Jack Cosgrove, John O’Connor, Conor Ryan and Sean Lucey who were part of the Ardscoil Ris U15 team who won the inaugural Clare Post Primary U15 Hurling Final on Thursday evening.
Third Level Hurling
Wishing Kevin Morrissey and his TUS Midwest teammates the very best of luck in their Fitzgibbon campaign! We are also wishing Padraig Harnett & Ciarán Barry and their UCC
teammates the very best of luck in their Fitzgibbon campaign! Fantastic to see the club being represented at third level.