BRIDE ROVERS GAA NOTES.

“It’s Now or Never” for Cork.

 Twenty years is truly a long, long time and the summers have come and gone and yet the Liam McCarthy Cup has been absent and sorely missed in Cork. Sunday September the 11th 2005 was the last time the trophy named for the Ballygarvan man was raised high by a Cork Captain.  Nior labhair Sean Og o H-Alpin aon focal Bearla an thrathnona iontach sin -the Na Piarsaigh man  spoke eloquently in Irish that day. Since then we’ve seen the silver symbol of hurling supremacy visit  Kilkenny, Tipperary, Clare Galway and Limerick whilst the ‘Cork Famine’ goes on. Well to win it we must first get to the Final. So on Saturday next close on 50,000 Cork Fans will head to Dublin for the semi-final and a chance to win the All Ireland at last. We’d all been expecting Limerick to be there on Jones’ Road smarting from the Munster Final penalty shoot-out loss.  Ni mar a shiltear a bhitear -yes the inevitable doesn’t always happen.  So on Saturday Cork face Dublin in a novel semi final with the Rebels hot favourite but bookies don’t get to play in big hurling matches! People said Limerick were below par, off form, weary and ‘leggy’ -be that as it may fourteen man Dublin produced a display for the ages. Remember too in 2013 we beat the Dubs in the penultimate game but only by five points and only after Ryan O Dwyer was sent off on a second yellow card. People are saying ‘this is Cork’s All Ireland to lose’ just because Limerick are gone. The Dubs will be no pushover and if we get through Tipp or Kilkenny will be waiting in the very short grass in Croke Park on All Ireland Final Day.  First things first and here’s hoping our Rebel Hurlers will gain the victory in HQ on Saturday evening. We extend best wishes and best of luck to Brian and Eoin Roche and all their comrades as well as Pat Ryan and his management group. Throw -in on Jones Road is at 5 o clock so we’ll have to milk the cows early.  Safe travelling to all those going to Dublin.

HURLERS LOSE BUT QUALIFY FOR LEAGUE FINAL.

 There was a fine crowd present in Pairc na Bride for our Final Group game in the REDFM SHL Division 3. The Blues from Ballinhassig were the opposition. Before the throw in came the news that Courceys had been beaten by Blackrock which was a good result for us.  Saturday night game was a high-scoring contest with a total of 54 flags raised!   A goal and twenty seven points would normally be enough to win many a game but not on last Saturday night. It was a close encounter with never more than a few points between the sides. In the end Ballinhassig won on a scoreline of 3 23 to 1 27.  Now the dust has settled on the Group Stages of the various leagues -7 in all. We are in the Final of Division 3 where we will meet Newcestown in the decider. On the County Board Master Fixtures Plan the league Finals were provisionally down for this coming weekend. For obvious reasons these fixtures will not go ahead this Saturday or Sunday -alternative dates will have to be got.  The Finalists in the 7 Divisions of the County SHL are as follows

Div 1  Sars v St Finbarrs (Relegated; Kanturk, Carrigaline)

Div 2 Killeagh v Midleton (R; Eire Og, Fermoy)

Div 3 Bride Rovers v Newcestown (R; Mallow, Blackrock)

Div 4  Bandon v Inniscarra (R; Tracton, Youghal)

Div 5  Ballyhea v Aghabullogue (R;  Erins Own, Mayfield)

Div 6 Cloyne vGlen Rovers (R; Na Piarsaigh, Barryroe)

Div 7 Killavullen v Diarmuid O Mathunas (R; Kilshannig, Nemo Rangers).

 Our game against Ballinhassig was a tight affair throughout on a humid day in Pairc na Bride, and despite a late Daniel Dooley goal to bring the teams level with a handful of minutes to go, two late points from Ballinhassig saw the South East team prevail.

Team:      
A. Hayes, C. Hazelwood, O. Roche, T. O’Sullivan, J. Peters, J. Mannix, S. O’Connor, C. Tobin, C. O’Sullivan, A. Walsh, C. Barry, D. Barry, C. Ryan, P. O’Flynn, R. O’Connell. The League Final Fixtures have just come to hand. On Saturday week July 12th our Division 3 Final against Newcestown is down for decision in Pairc Tadhg Mac Carthaigh in Riverstown at 7pm.

CORK v DUBLIN IN 2017. As we look forward to Saturday we have fond memories of a Cork v Dublin game in Croke Park in August 2017. A great day for Bride Rovers when Brian and Eoin Roche were presented with the All Ireland Under 17 Championship Final Trophy after a great win over Dublin by 1 19 to 1 17, two points would do grand next Saturday evening!

WEEKLY CLUB LOTTO.

UNDER 14 Hurling & Football.  The under 14’s have no action this week just continued training in prep for finals upcoming 

We have one league hurling game to play v Killeagh and one football league v St.  Catherine's in the next two weeks. Then  we are into the championship football semi and hurling Final scheduled for the first two weeks in September.

1965 HURLING ACTION. Sixty years ago Bride Rovers were back in East Cork Championship action after an absence of three years. Entered in the B grade League and Championship the team found it tough going early on in the year. In the league there were three very heavy defeats losing to Erins Own by 10 13 to 2  4, to Whites Cross by 7 10 to 1  2 and to Castlelyons by 14  3 to 2 2- the games against Carrignavar and Sars were a bit better losing by  4 5 to 4  3 and by 5 7 to 2 10.  In June the following players ‘who had not yet played’ were contacted and asked to come training Tom Heskin Desert, Paddy

 Murphy Mondaniel, Brian Canniffe, John O Brien, Gerald O Sullivan, Sean Cotter, Garda Donal O Sullivan, Tommy Barry, Eddy Heskin, Denis Canty and Billy O Connell. Training seriously commenced in advance of the first round if the JBHC v Dungourney which was fixed for August 22nd.

ROVERS PLAY WITH DUBLIN!  It was in the month of May in the year 1935 and Dublin were playing Waterford in the National Hurling League in Croke Park. For reasons unknown several of the ‘regular’ Dublin panel of the time didn’t turn up for the game. The Dublin selectors though they might be unable to field a team so one of the selectors came out onto the sideline. He spotted Paddy and Billy (Liam) Barry - both Bartlemy born men, another Willie Barry from Mallow and a Keating man from the Crokes Club in the Stand. All four were playing Club Hurling in Dublin at the time -the three Barrys with the Civil Service Club. ‘Lads will ye tog out for the game?’ well the four had no problems but of course had no gear with them ‘We’ll sort that out’ they were told. In they went to the dressingroom, out they came , played with Dublin -and Dublin won the game  5 5 to 1 6! Billy and Paddy Barry were both sons of Patsy Barry NT and Ellen Arnold and were born in Hightown in 1907 and 1914.   (It was Billy Barry that wrote our Club Anthem ‘Bride Rovers’ Abu)

1975 – FIFTY YEARS AGO. June of 1975 was a sad month for the Bride Rovers Club. What with the death of Club Chairman David John Barry, then the under 21 Football team losing to St Theresa’s (Castlemartyr) by 2 10 to 0 1. Then on Sunday June 22nd our Junior A hurling team- beaten East Cork Finalists in 1972 and 1973 and semi finalists in 1974, lost heavily to St. Catherines on a scoreline of 2 10 to 2 2. Missing from the A Grade team that day was Fachtna O Driscoll who had suffered a very serious injury in a practise match. Later that year Fachtna recovered and was part of the B grade team captained by Pat O Connor that ended the season on a high note. Victories over  Carrigtwohill,  Dungourney, and St Catherines  saw us through to the semi final. We beat Cobh by 4 10 to 3 9 in the semifinal and then at the end of October we defeated St Itas in the Final by 1 8 to 1 5. It was a huge boost to the Club. At present plans are afoot to have reunion of the 1975 team in August.   

WATERFORD MINORS WIN. I suppose if Cork weren’t to win it it’s great to see Waterford taking the Minor Hurling Title. At Thurles on Saturday night the Decies boys were deserved winners over Clare. The team is coached by Tommy Ryan of Tallow and Seamus Hannon of Ballyduff Upper is a selector. Well done to all concerned with a superb display.

Team & Scorers: A Hayes, N Kelleher, A Buckley, E O’Connor, K Cotter, L Collins, C O’Sullivan, R O’Callaghan, C Barry, F O’Flynn, J Pratt, C O’Riordan, C O’Sullivan-Swalbe, S Knox, B Knox Subs J Mannix, C O’Dowd

Our Junior A hurlers welcomed Millstreet to Páirc na Bride on Sunday morning for a hurling challenge match. This as a lively game with very little between the sides game and there was rarely more than a point or 23 between the teams for the whole 60 minute.

The sides were level 11 points a-piece at half time with Shaun getting the lions share of our scores but helped by Cormac, Ryan, Jason and Cameron with two. It was Cameron got the second half off to a great start for us when he goaled nearly straight from the restart. Millstreet got the next 1-1 to retake the lead. Both teams then went score for score for nearly the rest of the game and on the 60th minute mark we lead by 1-21 to 1-20 when a great run from Conor was finished to back of the net by Cormac to leave us winners on a final score 2-21 to 1-20.