AHANE GAA CLUB NOTES
U21 B Football Championship
The U21 B Football Championship came to an end on Sunday afternoon in Cappamore. Ahane took on St Patricks in a repeat of Round 2 game which saw St Patricks come away with the win. This was the only game in the campaign that Ahane came out the wrong side of, so they were rearing for road on Sunday. The game was slow to start with both teams being very cagey. However, St Pats’ were making more of their time on the ball and were the stronger team in the first quarter. We had an early goal shot saved by the St Pat’s goalkeeper Cian O’Brien who is seriously talented and denied us on several occasions today again. Frist point of the game came in the 9th minute as St Patrick’s full forward Travis Quaid put the ball over from play. As the whistle blew for the 1st water break the score was Ahane 0-00 St Patrick’s 0-01. We had five wides in the first quarter, and they were killing us, but we started to settle into the game and straight from the water break we got a goal. Shane O’Grady made a blistering run up from wing back and took a serious shot at goal, but it came off the post. Thankfully it fell into the hands of Andy Rowsome who didn’t think twice before rattling the top corner and getting our first score and putting us two points up. St Patrick’s made life very difficult for us after we got the goal and we struggled to get another score. St Pat’s scored three more points after the goal, the points came from Travis Quaid and Kyle Mullins who scored one from play and one from a placed ball. It was a highly physical game and there were some heavy hits on both sides. Serious credit must go to Josh O’Keeffe, Brian Murphy and Peter O’Grady who had fantastic games in the full back line. St Patrick’s got one more point again from Mullins before the half time whistle was blown. Score was Ahane 1-00 St Patrick’s 0-05.
The second half got underway, and Luke O’Sullivan was called into action between the posts early on. He saved a bullet of a shot, and we cleared the ball. Peter O’Grady made two fantastic saves too as he put his body on the line to ensure St Patrick’s didn’t get a goal. St Patrick’s were still making more of their chances as Kyle Mullins popped over another point for them and the gap was three points. We got our first point of game in the seventh minute of the second half thanks to Mark Donnellan who scored the free. Andy Rowsome then added a point after fantastic work out the field by the lads. Pats proceeded to get another point from a free before Mark put over a free for us and the gap was only a point. The second water break saw the scores stand as Ahane 1-3 St Patrick’s 0-07. Peter O’Grady came back on the field just after the water break as he got a black card and was sinbinned. St Patrick’s got the first point of the final quarter as Travis Quaid put the ball over from play. Andy Rowsome added to his tally as he popped over a free and then got the all-important point to level the game. The Ahane crowd really started to be heard as the final few minutes of the game ticked by. They were most definitely heard when a passage of play that started with Andy Rowsome ended with Padraig Harnett who buried the ball! That means that Paudie has scored a goal or a point in every U21 game both hurling and football this year which is some record considering he played at centre back for the hurlers! We got two more stunning points to finish them game. Our last point came from Ronan Fox which sealed the win for us. An unbelievable final quarter from the lads, which saw them leave it all out on the field and came away with the win!
Huge thank you to all the lads for their time and effort this year, to their management team of David Kennedy and Mike Murphy thank you both for everything you have done this year! To Brian O’Mara on first aid who kept the lads up right and in one piece, thank you. Huge thank you to our sponsors this year for our U19 and U21 teams Peter Cunningham of SuperValu Castleconnell, thank you for your support it is greatly
appreciated! Finally, a huge thank you to all the supporters who travelled today and every day to see the lads play, it was fantastic to see!
Team: L. O’Sullivan; P. O’Grady, B. Murphy (C), J. O’Keeffe, S. O’Grady, K. Morrissey, T. Marsden; P. Harnett, A. Shanahan; R. Fox, A. Rowsome, G. Rowsome, P. Donohoe, E. Power, M. Donnellan.
Substitutions: C. Coulter, L. O’Mara (for M. Donnellan 2nd ½), E. Madigan (for T. Marsden 2nd ½ ) C. Slattery Wright (for P. Donohoe 2nd ½), C. Heffernan (for K. Morrissey 2nd ½), R. Magill, J. Kelly, M. Murphy, J. Donohoe, D. Hayes, A. Carroll, C. O’Sullivan, S. Quirke, A. Murrihy.
AGM 2021
We held our AGM on Sunday evening, again this year it was a different AGM than we were used to with a limited crowd in the hall and a large number joining us online. 2021 has been another year where we have had to deal with COVID and all that comes with it, but 2021 has been another great year for our club! In terms of on the field, we retained our Senior status after a fantastic performance against Ballybrown. We fielded a Junior A Hurling team and a Junior B Hurling team meaning for the first time in fifteen years we fielded three teams between Senior and Junior. Our U19 hurlers got to a County Quarter Final and our U21 footballers at the time of writing at into a County Final. At underage level we saw the U17’s do well in both codes and saw them win a U17 Football Division 2 Shield. Our U15’s also had a very successful year winning the Feile B Hurling. There were great numbers at U6, U7, U9 and U11 training which is fantastic for the future of the club. Our U13’s did well in their games and training throughout the year too and again there was good numbers at the sessions which bodes well for the club going forward! Off the field, the club started 2021 with a win as we competed in the MyLife Every Step Counts Challenge and finished top of the leader board. This was fantastic initiative and gave people a reason to get up and out of the house and doing some exercise during the lockdown. Huge thank you to Linda O’Connor and Ann Ryan Carey for being the driving force behind the MyLife Every Step Counts Challenge in the Club. On a fundraising note, we held our Golf Classic again this year and it was a huge success, so thank you to everyone who got involved in that either through playing or sponsorship, your support and generosity is greatly appreciated. Ciarán Barry and our Senior team held a Last Man Standing fundraiser, which again was very successful. Once again, this year we held our Club Lotto which was again very successful, a huge thank you to our hard-working Lotto Committee, our Lotto Collectors and to all those who have supported our Lotto this year. On behalf of the club, we send our congratulations to the Camogie Club for winning the Senior League and the Minor A Championship this year, it was great to see silverware coming back to the club. Congratulations also to all in the Ladies Gaelic Football Club who celebrated 15 years of the club being in existence this year, a credit to all their hard work and dedication over the years that the club is still going from strength to strength. We are proud that at a club level, the three organisations can work together and support each other. There would be no club without the volunteers and the people who take on coaching and managing roles so we would like to thank all those on the committee, the sub-committees, all our fantastic COVID Supervisors, all our mentors from U6 the whole way to Senior, and anyone who has helped out in the club in any way shape or form over the last year we thank you all for your time and dedication to the club. Thank you to Mary Hassett, Linda O’Connor, Sarah Sheehan and all in Bord na nOg for their continued hard work and help in 2021. A special word of thanks to Noreen Byrnes who walks both
pitches at least twice a week to collect any rubbish or litter left behind, a job that goes mostly unseen but a job that is so important and we want to take this opportunity to thank Noreen for all her hard work. Huge well done to all those who have represented the club on Inter County Teams in 2021. It has been fantastic to see you all represent the club, yourselves and your families so well. Since our last AGM Limerick have won two All Irelands and Tom and Dan have brought back three All Stars to the club. A phenomenal achievement and we are beyond proud of them. Thank you to all our sponsors for their continued loyalty and support this year in what was again another tough year for businesses. We appreciate your support massively. Thank you to Unity Credit Union for their sponsorship of our Senior Team and to Peter Cunningham in SuperValu Castleconnell for sponsoring our U19 and U21 teams. Again, your support is greatly appreciated by all in the club! Finally, on behalf of the club we would like to wholehearted thank both Colm Barry our outgoing Chairperson and Carol Condon our outgoing Treasurer for all they have done for the club over their five-year term. What Colm has done for the club over the last five years is incredible, he gave his absolute everything to Ahane GAA and we were so lucky to have him as Chairperson of the club. Carol worked day and night as club treasurer and was such a huge driving force behind our very successful Night at the OsKaRs fundraiser in 2019. Carol always had the clubs’ best interests at heart as did Colm and they both undertook their roles with such professionalism and dedication that sometimes you would forget that these were volunteer positions and not their full time job. The club is in a far better place because of them both.
Huge thank you to all our outgoing officers for all their time, work, and dedication to the club.
Committee 2022
President: Louie Quirke
Vice President: John Meskell
Vice President: John Ryan
Chairperson: Donal Morrissey
Secretary: Tony Harnett
Treasurer: Shane Clifford
Vice Chairperson: Michael Murphy
Assistant Secretary: Ann Ryan Carey
Assistant Treasurer: Carol Condon
PRO: Emer Kenny
Registrar: Leanne Callinan
Child Welfare Officer: Aoife Quigley
Health & Well Being Officer: Sean Carey
County Board Delegate: Colm Barry
Football Board Delegate: Michael Murphy
East Board Delegate: Colm Barry
Players Members: Tommy Clifford & Robert Kelly
Irish Officer: Denis Kelly
Bord na nOg Officer: Mary Hassett
Coaching Officer: Phelim Macken
Christmas Wishes
On behalf of us all here in Ahane GAA Club we would like to wish you and your families a very Merry Christmas. We hope it is a happy and safe one for you all!
PHOTOGRAPH : Ahane Under 21 Football team that won the County Under 21 ‘B’ Championship Final when defeating St Patrick’s on Sunday 19th. December.