Club News & Fixtures For The Week.

Minor Footballers in Championship Action.

On Friday evening our Minor Football team are playing Cobh in the semi final of the East Cork Championship. This will be a very tough game to win, when we played Cobh away earlier in the season in a League tie the home side won well.

Friday’s game is fixed for Caherlag at 6.15.

Under 21 Replay.

Our u21 Hurling Championship game v Russell Rovers is fixed for Saturday week September 26^th in Lisgoold at 5pm. Though it was Russell Rovers got the equalizing score in the drawn game in Ballynoe two weeks ago we were haunted to survive in the Championship that night. We played second fiddle for the most of the game and it was only when Liam Ford’s free ended up in the net with a few minutes to go that we got ahead. There is no doubt but that to have any realistic chance of success in the replay we will have to show a vast improvement.

Senior Hurling League

Bride Rovers 3-15 Na Piarsaigh 1-15
Bride Rovers hurlers picked up 2 more points in the Red FM Senior Hurling League against Na Piarsaigh on a scoreline of 3-15 to 1-15. Played last Saturday in glorious sunshine, it was Na Piarsaigh who quickly raced into an early lead, 0-04 to 0-01 after 10 minutes but soon the Rovers began to settle with points from Barry Johnson & Stephen Boyce. A goal by Mike Kearney had the Rovers in front but soon Na Piarsaigh equalised and it was still level at half time, 1-08 each, with the Rovers points coming from Daniel Dooley, Sean Ryan & three from Barry Johnson.
A goal at the start of the second half by Daniel Dooley restored the Rovers lead. Further points from Dooley, Mike Kearney & Barry Johnson extended the Rovers lead & when Mike Kearney grabbed his second goal this put the Rovers 6 points in front and secure the win.
Team & Scorers: T.Broderick, A.Collins, B.O’Driscoll. J.Murphy, P.Walsh, L.Forde, B.Walsh, S.Boyce (0-1), B.Johnson (0-6), J.Pratt (0-1), M.Kearney (2-01), S.Pratt, S.Ryan (0-2), D.Ryan, D.Dooley (1-04). Sub; B.Cotter.

Junior Hurling League.

We were due to play Midleton in a Div 1 JHL game on Sunday morning but we received a walk over. We are billed to play newly crowned East Cork Champions in the JHL on this Saturday at 5pm in Rathcormac. The ‘Reds’ won their first title since 1964 recently.

Best of Luck U12’s.

We all wish the Club’s u12s hurlers the very best this Saturday in the Co. Championship. They have home advantage against the Carbery winners in Pairc na Bride on Saturday afternoon.

All Ireland.

Safe travelling to all going to the All Ireland Final this weekend in Dublin. It seems so strange to be looking forward to a Cork/Kerry game and it’s not in Killarney or the Park! Changed times indeed but that’s what the ‘back-door’ system has given us for the second time in recent years. Amazingly the Southern neighbours will be meeting for the third time in championship this year.

They drew in the Munster semi final in Killarney. The following Saturday then Cork, with home advantage showed their true potential when winning the replay. That’s all history now, as relevant as all the water that has flowed down the Mardyke by each Elm tree or as relevant as who won the Kerry National in Listowel during the week.

All bets are off. It’s a new ball game entirely. Previous meetings and results count for little on Sunday. All Irelands are two a penny when it comes to lifting the Sam Maguire down Kerry way whereas Leeside, Sam, though a native, is seen as an infrequent visitor. A member of the Cork 1945 winning team Paddy Cronin, a native of Ballingeary taught and lived here in Bartlemy in the early 1950’s. He became secretary of the GAA club in the parish in 1951. Nearly 40 years later I went to meet him in Dublin in connection with GAA research I was doing at the time.

Though Paddy was in ill-health for many years he was always so pleasant and good humoured. Though nearly two score years had passed since he’d helped Cork to win the All Ireland he still recalled that great year with pride and passion. Back in the 40’s the same as today Kerry were the yardstick for football counties. For Cork beating ‘the auld enemy’ was a major task each year and once the Kingdom were defeated the prospects looked bright. When Cork won in 1945 they were bridging a 34 year gap.

Amazingly ‘twould be a further 28 years til Sam returned Leeside again in 1973 and we’ve only won it twice since! Hopefully Sunday will see Cork once more become crowned as All Ireland Football Champions. In Manager Conor Counihan we have an outstanding GAA man who has served his parish, Club, Division and County with great distinction over many years.

All during Cork’s march to National League, Provincial Championship and hopefully All Ireland glory one man has been working away quietly in the background as the County Board Liason Officer with the team, our own Bride Rovers Clubman Gerard Lane. He has put in a huge amount of time and effort also. Go for it Rebels.