BRIDE ROVERS GAA NOTES.

 EXTRA TIME SEMI WIN FOR JUNIORS. On a weekend when ten different Bride Rovers teams were in action across the County our Junior A Hurlers were the stars with a brilliant extra time win in the East Cork semi final. We had extra time also below in Aghavine in the Minor final replay but lost by three points. The Junior B hurler short three of the usual lineout were defeated by a strong Castlelyons side in their semi.  The under 12 and 13 footballers had great wins. The Tenth Theresa Walsh Memorial Hurling Tournament was a brilliant success -see Juvenile Notes. The Lotto Jackpot of €5000 was not win. We had a busy Executive meeting on Monday night. This week we bid adieu to Fr Seanie Barry who has returned to his Missionary work in Africa.

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Youghal claimed the Minor Division 1 hurling title after a gripping final against Bride Rovers was decided in extra time. The Rovers showed tremendous resilience throughout, but a decisive late goal and an outstanding save from the Youghal goalkeeper helped the winners prevail by 2-16 to 0-19.

Youghal made the brighter start, opening with three points before Shane O’Dowd and Matt Kenny responded to leave only one between the sides. Youghal added another score, but points from Cathal Barry, O’Dowd and Fionn Lynch moved Rovers one ahead. The momentum shifted again before the break, with Youghal recovering to take a three-point advantage into half-time.

Bride Rovers began the second half strongly and, with scores from Kenny and O’Dowd, surged into a 0-10 to 0-9 lead. Youghal then struck for the game’s first goal to move 1-10 to 0-12 ahead, but Rovers refused to yield. Mattie Kenny landed the equaliser before O’Dowd edged Rovers in front during injury time. With defeat looming, Youghal found a last-minute point to level the contest and force extra timeYoughal edge Bride Rovers after extra-time thriller in Minor Division 1 final

Youghal claimed the Minor Division 1 hurling title after a gripping final against Bride Rovers was decided in extra time. The Rovers showed tremendous resilience throughout, but a decisive late goal and an outstanding save from the Youghal goalkeeper helped the winners prevail by 2-16 to 0-19.

Youghal made the brighter start, opening with three points before Shane O’Dowd and Matt Kenny responded to leave only one between the sides. Youghal added another score, but points from Cathal Barry, O’Dowd and Fionn Lynch moved Rovers one ahead. The momentum shifted again before the break, with Youghal recovering to take a three-point advantage into half-time.

Bride Rovers began the second half strongly and, with scores from Kenny and O’Dowd, surged into a 0-10 to 0-9 lead. Youghal then struck for the game’s first goal to move 1-10 to 0-12 ahead, but Rovers refused to yield. Mattie Kenny landed the equaliser before O’Dowd edged Rovers in front during injury time. With defeat looming, Youghal found a last-minute point to level the contest and force extra time

Team & Scorers: S O’Flynn, E O’Connor, J Mannix, N Kelleher, R Barry, W Finnegan, J O’Sullivan, C O’Sullivan, J Walsh, S O’Dowd (0-10), S Dowling, F O’Flynn, R O’Callaghan (0-1), L Forde, J Buckley (0-1) Subs S Ahern, J Pratt, D Dooley, D O’Farrell

Our Junior B hurlers travelled to Lisgoold on Saturday to take on Castlelyons in the East Cork Semi-final. We were short a few regulars for various reasons, but hopes were still high that we would reach a final in our first year up at this grade with our 3rd team.

We started brightly and points from John and Seamus were in response to two early points from Castlelyons. Castlelyons got the next three points but Shane got two points either side of a another Castlelyons point leaving the score 6 points to 4 after 20 minutes.

Castlelyons got the next two scores but Shane accuracy from dead balls was keeping us in touch when he added two more before half time. Castlelyons did get the last two scores of the half and enjoyed a 5 point lead 11 points to 6 at the break.

The second half was following a similar trend to the first and despite great work by our defence Castlelyons were keeping the score board ticking over a more than us and had extended the lead out to 7 points (16 points to 9) by the 45th minute mark.

We enjoyed a very good spell for the next 5 minutes and three points in a row from Shane had the margin back to 4. We had briefly thought it was back to 3 points with another free but the ref waved it  wide and this seemed to kill our momentum and Castlelyons went on to score the next 4 points. We went looking for goals, but the Castlelyons defence was holding firm, Jason got a late consolation point, but it was Castlelyons that advance to the final on a final score of 20 points to 13. For a semi final it’s not good enough foe referee to have no linesmen or umpires.

Overall it was a great year for this team who gave some wonderful displays throughout the championship and proved that they were plenty good enough to compete at this level. We wish Castlelyons all the best in the Final against Youghal or Midleton

EAST CORK OIL  JUNIOR A HURLING CHAMPIONSHIP

Our junior A hurlers successfully saw off Carrignavar after a thriller of an East Cork Semi-final on Sunday evening. With a 5 o clock throw in there was fine crowd in attendance. This was a match were we never lead in normal time, but a late equaliser sent the game to extra time where we prevailed.

Carrig had started the better of the two teams and when they got the opening goal of the game on the 15th minute mark they had opened a 1-4 to 2 point lead with Matthew Kenny and Cillian Barry  getting our scores.

Dinny Fitz got a quick response to the goal with a long-range point and we followed this with three of the next 4 points (Two for Adam Hayes either side of one for Jack Mannix) to reduce the margin back to 2. Carrig then enjoyed a good spell where they responded with three points in row to extend out their lead to five once again but the lads never panicked and three points from Adam kept us in the game. Matthew Kenny got his second point of the half in response to another Carrig point to leave the margin just two at the break (1-9 to 10 points)

The intensity never dropped in the second half as both sides defended like their lives depended on it. Carrig got the opening two white flags of the half before Jack responded with his second. Adam got two more in response to another Carrig point but we were struggling to ever reduce the margin to less than two. Damian ‘Turkey’ Buckley  responded to another Carrig point and with 15 minutes left it was all to play for (1-13 to 14 points)

Shaun Knox replied to another Carrig point but they scored the next two points to retake their 4-point lead with 10 minutes remaining. Points from Cillian and Shaun had the gap back to 2 again before Carrig extended it back to 3 points with five minutes to play (1-17 to 17 points).

The lads kept going ‘when hot grew that fight those hearts grew more eager’ and two great points from Jack Mannix  had the margin back to the minimum heading into additional time. We seemed to have all the momentum but hit two wides and time was running out until Matthew scored his third point of the day, a superb score from an impossible angle, to level it up and to send the game to Extra time. Carrignavar 1 17 Bride Rovers 0 20.

Carrig got the opening score of extra time but Shuan responded with a point for us before great work from Jack set up Matthew who burst through on goal and cooly finished past the Carrig keeper to give us the lead for the first time in the game.  Shaun responded to another Carrig point but two points in a row from Carrig saw the lead back to minimum at half time of extra time.

Oran got the opening score of the second half before a Carrig point but points from Shaun and Matthew saw us into a 3-point lead with 5 minutes remaining. Carrig got 2 points either side of a pointed free from Shane O Dowd meant we were left defending a 2 point lead as Carrig went in search of a winning goal. Deep into added time in extra time one last effort was dropped into the square but we managed to clear it and had held on to win out on a final score of 1-26 to 1-24. The result means we qualify for the East Cork final for a second year in a row and will hopefully go a step further this year.

Team & Scorers: B Hogan, K Cotter, O Roche, T O’Sullivan, D Fitzgerald (0-1), L Collins, A Hynes, G O’Connell, B Knox C Barry (0 1), O Kielty (0-1), D Buckley (0-1), M Kenny (1-4), A Hayes (0-7), Jack Mannix (0-4) Subs E Cashman, R Prendergast, S Knox (0-5), S O’Dowd (0-1), Jordan Mannix

 The final is fixed for Sunday the 25th of October when we’ll take on a very good Killeagh side in Cloyne at 2.30. 

EAST CORK FINAL DAY-A SPECIAL OCCASION.

In the 1950’s, 60’s, 70’s, 80’s and 90’s the East Cork Championship was the highlight of every hurling summer. Maybe in recent years because so many Club’s ‘First Teams’ are in higher grades at County Level some of the glamour might be gone but winning the Jamesey Kelleher Cup is still very special. This years Final will be our 12th East Cork  decider (14th if one counts the replays of 1969 and 1973). We defeated Leeside in 1930 and 1932 and lost to Aghada in 1931 and lost to Cloyne in 1938 when ‘C.Ring’ was corner forward. In 1968 we beat Sars and defeated Carrigtwohill in a replay in 1969. We lost to Dungourney in 1972 and to Erins Own in a replay the following year. In 1997 Castlelyons beat us and won the County. In 1998 we defeated Dungourney below in Cobh and beat Ballinascarthy and Freemount to win the County. Cobh beat us last year and now we are back in the Final again.  There’ll be a great buzz of excitement around the parish for the next few weeks, mighty altogether.

BON VOYAGE FR SEANIE. On Monday Fr Seanie left Rathcormac on the first leg of his return journey to Africa. We wish him well as he resumes his Missionary work in Kenya.

CAR BOOT SALE. Thanks to all who helped out with the last Car Boot Sale in September There will be an extra Car Boot Sale in October on the Bank Holiday Monday the 26th, this is in addition to the sale on Sunday the 11th. Help is always wanted.   Thanks to those who help regularly, new helpers are always wanted. Even if you can give an hour -anytime from 7am on that Sunday or Monday morning it would be of great assistance.

FITZY’S 50.  Only just recently Club member, player, selector, benefactor, advisor and true Geen White and Gold stalwart Alan Fitzgerald marked five decades of existence. To reach this great age Alan was heard saying’ There’s eggs for ya now’ In fairness whether it’s boiled, fried, scalloped, scrambled or in an egg- nog Fitzy lives on practically a diet of eggs. This coming Saturday h will mark his coming of age and everyone in Bride Rovers wish him well for the next fifty years.

CONDOLENCES.  At Monday night’s meeting Votes of Condolence were passed to the Murphy and Arnold families, Bartlemy and the Ryan family Mondaniel. During the meeting we got the sad new of the death of Noel Molan of Mondaniel. A native of Ballygiblin Noel was great GAA follower and a mighty Bride Rovers supporter. He was a real character with a great  turn of phrase. May he rest in peace.

CONGRATS . Congrats to neighbours Ballyhooley and St Catherines on their great wins last weekend and best wishes in yere forthcoming Finals.

BRIDE ROVERS JUVENILE NOTES.
 
REBEL OG MINOR HURLING REPLAY.
 
Youghal 2-16 Bride Rovers 0-19 (after extra time)
Youghal claimed the Minor Division 1 hurling title after a gripping final against Bride Rovers was decided in extra time. The Rovers showed tremendous resilience throughout, but a decisive late goal and an outstanding save from the Youghal goalkeeper helped the winners prevail by 2-16 to 0-19.
Youghal made the brighter start, opening with three points before Shane O’Dowd and Matt Kenny responded to leave only one between the sides. Youghal added another score, but points from Cathal Barry, O’Dowd and Fionn Lynch moved Rovers one ahead. The momentum shifted again before the break, with Youghal recovering to take a three-point advantage into half-time.
Bride Rovers began the second half strongly and, with scores from Kenny and O’Dowd, surged into a 0-10 to 0-9 lead. Youghal then struck for the game’s first goal to move 1-10 to 0-12 ahead, but Rovers refused to yield. Mattie Kenny landed the equaliser before O’Dowd edged Rovers in front during injury time. With defeat looming, Youghal found a last-minute point to level the contest and force extra time.
Rovers carried that determination into extra time, with two Bobby Sweeney points pushing them ahead. The final turned dramatically at the death, however, when Youghal struck for a goal to move two clear. Rovers immediately created two goal chances after a dropped free, but both efforts were denied by the Youghal goalkeeper. Youghal added the final point to seal a dramatic three-point victory
 
Team: C. Somers, T. Cronin, M. Hynes, D. Walsh, C. Scanlon, D. Fitzgerald, D. Hurley, C. Barry, J. Walsh, S. O'Dowd, M. Kenny, M. Walsh, D. O'Farrell, L. Murphy, F. Lynch.  Substitutes: C. O'Donovan for L. Murphy, B. Sweeney for D. O'Farrell.   This was truly a gut-wrenching loss. We nearly had it won in Glenville and again on Thursday night at the end of normal time -we’ll never know where the four and a half minutes of added time came from. With Gary, Oliver and Finn all out injured on the sideline the display given by the team was just brilliant. Tough stations-we lost the Minor Final to Killeagh last year and now the same again.
 
HEALTHY CLUB MENTAL HEALTH NIGHT.  ‘Ahead of the Game’ – Under16 Mental Health Night
Our Healthy Club, in conjunction with the GAA’s Ahead of the Game programme, hosted a very successful mental health awareness night for our U16 players last Tuesday night. We were delighted to have 24 players and 20 parents and coaches attend.  Thank you also to all the Under 16 coaches who encouraged and supported the full team to attend. It was fantastic to see such strong engagement with what is such an important topic for our young players.
A special thank you to Saoirse and Laura, who facilitated the evening and created a safe and open environment for everyone to participate and have honest conversations around mental health and wellbeing.
Thank you to Johann Scollard, the Bride Rovers Children’s Officer who gave up her time to be present on the evening.
The feedback from both players, parents and coaches has been incredibly positive.
It was a really worthwhile evening and we hope it encourages our young players and their families to continue talking openly about Mental Health, looking out for one another and knowing that it’s okay to ask for help.
 
THERESA WALSH Memorial Tournament 2026
On the 10th anniversary of Theresa Walsh’s passing, we were delighted to welcome such a large crowd to Pynes for the annual Theresa Walsh Memorial Tournament. This year’s tournament featured both a Cup and, for the first time, a Shield competition, giving plenty of playing opportunities to all involved. Matches were 24 minutes long, with 12 minutes a side. The Cup competition featured Bride Rovers, Lisgoold and Castlelyons, while the Shield featured Bride Rovers’ second team, Whitechurch and Ballycastle Gaels.
SHIELD COMPETITION.Congratulations to Ballycastle Gaels, who made a little bit of history by becoming the first winners of the Theresa Walsh Memorial Shield after defeating Whitechurch in the final. Our second team gave everything they had throughout the day. Coming up against first teams from other parishes was always going to be a challenge, particularly with a number of our Under 13 players having played in a tough Football League  final earlier that morning. Congratulations to our Under13s on their victory over St Nicks, and a special word of thanks to the players and management for their cooperation in turning around so quickly for the tournament.

CUP COMPETITION Bride Rovers came out on top in the Cup competition. We began with a win over Lisgoold before following that up with a victory over Castlelyons. That set up another meeting with Lisgoold in the final, with Bride Rovers finishing the day as winners of the Theresa Walsh Memorial Cup.Well done to every one of our players across both teams. There was a huge effort put in throughout the tournament and it was great to be able to give so many players meaningful game time. Congratulations also to Jack Fitzgerald of Bride Rovers, who was named Player of the Tournament. Following the final, Brendan Walsh spoke on behalf of the Walsh family about what the tournament means to them and the importance of the day to both the family and Bride Rovers. On the 10th anniversary of Theresa’s passing, it was particularly fitting to see such a large gathering in Pynes to remember her. Days like this take a lot of work and there are many people to thank. A huge thank you to Denis Ahern and his grounds team for having the pitches in such excellent condition, and to James Birmingham and Pat O’Driscoll for refereeing the games throughout the tournament. Thank you also to all the club volunteers who helped out with the many jobs that needed doing. Thank you to Whitechurch, Ballycastle Gaels, Lisgoold and Castlelyons for travelling to Pynes and helping to make the day what it was. A special thank you must go to all of our Under14 parents. The amount of food provided was fantastic, but just as important was the time given before, during and after the tournament to set everything up, look after our visitors and clean up afterwards. Without that help, days like this simply don’t happen. Thank you also to Liam Barry and everyone at Fermoy Print for printing the special tournament programme for the 10th anniversary, and to the Walsh family for being so helpful in the run-up to the day and for providing the many photographs included in the programme.
Our thanks also to John Arnold for forwarding the Bride Rovers News from 2016, from around the time of Theresa’s passing. It was lovely to be able to include some of that history as part of this year’s programme. Finally, a big thank you to the entire Under 14 coaching team for the work that went into organising and preparing for the tournament. The Theresa Walsh Memorial Tournament is an important day for the Walsh family and for Bride Rovers. Ten years on from Theresa’s passing, it was great to see so many players, parents, coaches, supporters and members of neighbouring clubs gathered together in Pynes in her memory. Well done and thank you to everyone who played a part in the day. The Rovers Captain Noah Collins is a great, grandson of Dan Pyne a great sporting stalwart in our parish in former years. Likewise Jack Fitzgerald has a long sporting pedigree-his great, grandfather Patrick (Pad) Fitzgerald from Fort Richard, Bartlemy was fonder member of the Bride Rovers Club in 1928.

SPONSORS; The Bride Rovers GAA Club sponsors are Fermoy Print & Design, Rathcormac Tyres, Gerard Gubbins Construction and Veolia -please support our sponsors whenever you can.