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On Sunday 20 October the Shinken Shobu Ryu Judo junior squad stepped up for the Shinsei champions in the south Lake Leisure Centre, Craigavon. For many of their young Judoka this was their first opportunity to test their skills.
In the Mini mons which is the younger section Ziggy Magee and Amber Melling were on their competitive debut and showed their grit with Ziggy winning gold and Amber winning Bronze.
Stepping up to the Kyu grades the club had a team of 6 with a mixture of first and second time competitors.
Charlie Rafferty, Ellen Keenan, Kalal Magee, and Maria Burns-Kimberly received silver medals and to complete the team Carl Keenan, and Karl Law both lifted bronze.
Not to be outdone members of othe club's Masters team Paul McConville, Martin Fearon and Paddy McCambridge entered the prestigious Irish Masters on 26 October. Paul and Paddy both showed the determination and skills to fight their way through to secure gold. Martin returning after a hiatus returned with a very well earned silver medal.
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Newry seniors played host to Larne in the their second home game of the new season.
Despite the visitors proving too strong for the home side, there were positives to take from game with the welcome return of Cathal McNally, Sean McCaul and Cathal O’Neill. With a few more experienced campaigners looking set to make a return, in the next couple of weeks, Newry will look to build on the progress made over the last few games.
This was always going to be a season of rebuilding for the Blue and Whites with young players getting a chance to experience Seniors action until the return of seasoned campaigners in the coming weeks.
The season is now up and running and better days lie ahead.
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Newry RFC U12"s travelled to Lurgan for a friendly to accompany the U14s for their league game.
The Blue and Whites fielded 14 players all keen as mustard to get another game under them.
The first quarter started with a frenzy and Newry fronted up in spectacular fashion, all players got their tackles in and got involved. Newry ran out 7 tries to 1 up.
The 2nd quarter Lurgan began to hit their stride and offered stronger resistance but this sparked Newry to play their best rugby of the season.
Newry communication and pace out wide was too much for Lurgan, with Newry running out winners with 4 tries to 1.
Special mention to Ryan McLoughlin who scored his first try with a bullish run carrying 3 players over the line with him.
The 3rd quarter started with Newry going down by 2 tries very quickly, they had to dig deep and tackle hard to prevent further tries. The boys showed guts and determination to not go down further and managed to pull back a try, but ended up on the wrong side 2 tries to 1 down.
After some words of encouragement and a new game plan to combat Lurgan's power at the rucks, the Blue and Whites opted for quick ball and it paid dividends. Newry stuck to the game plan and moved the ball quickly. This was too much for Lurgan with Newry running out 4 tries to 1.
The Newry coaches were really proud of the boys and the way they handled the pressure and came back stronger.
Newry Under 14s narrowly lose out to strong Instonians
In another game of the weekend Newry RFC Under 14s came up against a strong instonians team but none the less Newry showed they were ready for the challenge despite missing a few key players.
The Blue and Whites started the game on the back foot as Instonians passed wide to beat the pressing defence.
Danny O'Hare and Liam Maginess showed their defending capabilities by knocking any player that came within touching distance.
Instonians scored 3 more tries before the break leaving Newry with and uphill task.
After halftime and a quick team talk captain Dara Laverty lead the Newry men out with his restart kicks proving too much trouble for Instonians as Harry Kelly and Carville stopped Instonians from building momentum.
Newry started winning more ball at the the breakdown resulting in more strong Newry attacks that were too strong for the defence allowing Liam Woods who can’t seem to stop scoring over in the corner for Newry first try.
Newry kept the pressure on scoring another 2 tries before to make a real contest of it.
Instonians rallied late on and scored the decisive and final try of the game to give the home side victory. Newry can hold their heads high after this gutsy performance and they can look to build on this for the rest of the season.
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Newry continued their winning streak with a trip to Shaws Bridge, for a replay of what was the Ulster plate final from last season against a talented Instonians side.
With both teams retaining most of their squads from their last meeting, which ended in both teams sharing the title, this was going to be a tough test away from home for Newry.
This was evident in the opening ten minutes, with both teams defences on top, making any sort of possession or territory difficult.
Instonians took the lead after a good kick chase which led to them regathring, then eventually scoring in the corner to lead 7-0.
The Blue and Whites responded almost immediately with captain Lorcan Comiskey, cleverly chipping the ball behind the Instonian defence from a scrum and dotting it down over the line to level the game.
Instonians continued to put Newry under pressure in their 22 and scored another try after good some good ball retention to lead 14-7. Despite the scoreline, Newry started to dominate possession and territory and as the hosts began to tire, Newry’s vice captain Joseph Mc Conville made a brilliant break from the halfway line, to pull Newry level 14-14.
Newry took the lead for the first time just before the break, after retaining the ball in the opposition half and earning a penalty. Ciaran Mather’s slotted the penalty to edge the Blue and whites ahead 14-17.
The second half was characterised with fantastic Newry defence and clinical attack. Conleith King marshalled the Newry attack well leading to Owen McWall deservedly scoring in the corner, after a number of good phases from the forwards to put Newry 17-24 up. With the game in the balance, Joseph McConville’s sealed the win with another great solo effort 17-31. A fine performance from Newry who have made a great start to the season.
Final score: Instonians 14- 31 Newry
Try scorers:
Lorcan Comiskey, Owen McWall, Joseph McConville x 2
Penalties/ Conversions:
Ciaran Mathers x 5
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Newry have made it two from two with a win at home against Belfast High School.
The Blue and Whites established dominance early on with strong carries from Captain Lorcan McComiskey, Joseph McConville and Owen McWall.
Newry looked dangerous with ball in hand, and it didn’t take long for Joseph McConville to score the first try of the game, after a couple of good carries by the forwards near Belfast High School line.
More tries followed with scores coming from Jacob Keenan, Bell and Lorcan McComiskey before the Belfast team replied with two of their own before half time.
The second half fell into a familiar pattern with Ciaran Mathers from none and Conleith King from ten controlling the pace and territory of the game.
Newry's forwards showed great physicality, punching holes that created space for the backs to use their pace and footwork to finish off moves well.
A strong performance from Newry Under 18s to maintain their 100% start to the season.
Final score: Newry 57 - Belfast HS 12
Try scorers: Joseph McConville x 3, Jacob Keenan x 2, Lorcan McComiskey x 2, James Bell, Owen McWall.
Conversions: Ciaran Mathers x 6
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Newry RFC U12s put in a series of battling performances under lights at the Bangor Blitz on Friday night past.
Against top opposition, the Newry lads came away with two memorable wins against Lurgan and Malone/Ballyclare and held their own, before losing by the narrowest of margins against stiff opposition in the form of Dromore and Bangor.
Overall the Newry lads can reflect on an excellent night's work.
It was a real team effort across all four tightly contested matches with the Newry boys playing some excellent attacking rugby and getting big tackles in when it mattered.
Every player got game time and based on these displays this bunch of Newry lads are going places.
The first test of the evening was against a well drilled Bangor outfit.
The home side were matched for most of the game with two tries apiece going into the closing stages, but Newry let their guard down and conceded two late tries in the final minutes. A draw would have been a fair result but the Newry lads learned from the experience and went on to shine in the remaining three games.
In the second game against Lurgan the Newry game plan came together and the blue and whites played like a team on fire to win the clash by three tries to two.
Again a real team effort from Newry but special mention must go to Harry Killen who scored his first try with a well placed hand-off.
The third game was the toughest test of the night against an excellent Dromore, who were arguably the best side Newry played on the night. Newry conceded two tries before they got going but they soon responded with tries of their own and let Dromore know they were in a game with strong tackles really knocking the opposition backwards. Despite a valiant effort Dromore managed another try to edge out the blue and whites.
Newry saved the best to last against Ballyclare/Malone in what was a real ding dong contest.
The best move of the night between Tom Cranney, Finn Laverty and Oran Hughes put Anthony Magennis in to go over the line. The move rounded off an excellent 4-2 win for the Newry lads, all of whom did the club proud.
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Newry City AFC have once again appointed Darren Mullen as their First team Manager replacing outgoing Manager Barry Gray. Yesterday, Sunday 6 October saw the club release statements announcing both the departure of their current manager and the appointment of Mullen.
In their first statement the Club announced that they have parted ways with Barry Gray. A Spokesperson said "We would like to place on record our thanks to Barry for all of his hard work at the club during a very difficult time on and off the pitch. Barry leaves with our best wishes."
A later statement announced that they have appointed Darren Mullen as First Team Manager along with Ray Byrne and Jervis McCaul as coaches.
Newry City AFC Chairman Martin McLoughlin commented “After a hectic weekend today became a day of change at NCAFC. Firstly, let me place on record our thanks to Barry, Mark and Ciaran for all of the hard work they have done during their tenure.
“I am well aware of the time that they have put in, in a bid to make the club a success and the sacrifices that they have made to try and make that possible. I have no doubt that circumstances beyond their control in particular injuries to key players has hindered their efforts.
“As a club our aim is to keep NCAFC in senior football and to challenge for league titles. Therefore, we feel it is crucial to appoint a successor who has knowledge of the league and especially the setup at the club."
The statement continued “With the excitement of our new 4g training facility nearing completion we are in a great position off the pitch but need the results on the pitch that have so far been avoiding us.
“From previous experience of Darren and his backroom staff I know they will be under no illusion about the task ahead and will be keen to get the job started.
Hopefully this change will give us the boost we need and we can restart our season from here.”
Speaking after the announcement Darren Mullen said “This has all happened very quickly but I had no hesitation in agreeing to help the club. They say you should never go back in football but Raymond Byrne, Jervis McCaul and I all have a huge emotional attachment to this club.
“Results haven’t been good but I believe the squad that’s there is a lot better than the current league position shows. The fans have always been brilliant but we need to start giving them something to sing about. As a group we will be working hard to get Newry City back where they belong and that work starts this Tuesday night.”
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Despite hanging up her football boots on a couple of occasions in the past, Down stalwart Michaela Downey once again found herself gracing the local scene in the Mourne County earlier this year.
An All-Ireland junior football championship winner with Down at Croke Park back in October 2000 alongside her sister Aoibheann, Downey had initially opted to retire from all levels of football as a player in 2016. She subsequently returned to club action with the Newry-based St John Bosco four years later, but a serious bike accident in the early months of 2021 saw her once again placing ladies football on the back burner.
Yet the start of 2024 saw Downey being selected on an Ireland Masters side for an International Rules Series against Australia and this gave her the appetite for another club football comeback. While Bosco weren’t in a position to field an adult team in the current season, she did line out in the colours of the nearby Clonduff – who she had previously represented under similar circumstances.
At 44 years of age, she played a pivotal role in helping Clonduff to reach the semi-final stage of this year’s Down intermediate football championship, where they eventually lost out to Saul.
“My boots had been nailed to the wall for a good few years. Then when I got the opportunity this year to play with the Masters International Rules, I thought ‘you know what, I could give this another go’ and enjoyed my time playing. So I thought ‘I’m going to have another go at it’.
“I was very lucky that in Clonduff this year, there was about five or six girls around the same age as me that went back to play this year. They’re maybe not 43 or 44. I’m 44 now, but there’s five of them were over 40, put it that way. Just 40 or 41 and I would have played with them way back in 2006.
“Unfortunately we got beaten in the championship semi-final, but we did very well considering we were in the intermediate championship. You were playing against teams that were really in a higher league than you. On another day we actually could have beaten the team that beat us, but they were better on the day.”
This year’s Masters games weren’t the only times that Downey had donned the green jersey as back in 2006 she was part of an Ireland squad that earned an emphatic 173-33 aggregate victory over Australia in an international rules series that was held at Kingspan Breffni in Cavan (first test) and Dublin’s Parnell Park (second test).
Playing alongside household names such as Rena Buckley, Caroline O’Hanlon, Cora Staunton and Sinead Aherne, Downey featured prominently in what is the only ladies international rules series to have been played to date - excluding this year’s Over 40s encounters.
“I was privileged to get playing at that time because you were playing with the likes of Cora Staunton and all the Cork girls that I had been looking up to, and would never have the opportunity to play against them because obviously Down weren’t playing at the same level that they were playing at. That was a fantastic opportunity,” Downey recalled.
Interestingly, the manager of the Ireland team for that particular series was current GAA President Jarlath Burns. Two years later, Downey would take up a position as a teacher at St Paul’s High School in Bessbrook, Co. Armagh – where Burns served as principal until taking up his current post with the GAA at the beginning of 2024.
The school also counts a number of players on the current Armagh men’s senior panel (including Burns’ son Jarly Óg) amongst their list of past pupils and this ensured there was a prestigious visitor to St Paul’s for the beginning of the new term.
“Talking to Jarlath, he’s always insisting he’ll come back to St Paul’s. It was brilliant that time, I wasn’t working in St Paul’s at that time, but it was two years later then I got a job in St Paul’s, so I’ve known Jarlath a long time.
“GAA is the main sport for boys and girls, it’s a big school. The boys, obviously there is a lot of Armagh players, we had Sam Maguire in the first week we were back. We had 14 past players and quite a lot of them boys I taught.
“Because they were all the one age group, they all played in a MacRory Cup final in 2013 and they were beaten by St Pat’s, Maghera by a point. All of those boys would have been in the one team. Then obviously all won an All-Ireland there with Armagh. As much as I’m a Down woman, I was delighted to see them win.”
What is perhaps most remarkable about Downey’s longevity is the fact that she played in the very first game that the Down ladies footballers competed in – an All-Ireland ‘B’ Championship encounter with Galway on October 8, 1995.
Yet while Downey supplemented an All-Ireland junior final win against the same county five years later with a TG4 All Star award in 2008 – “to win that was fantastic and Down don’t win too many awards like that” – she has also accumulated multiple Down senior championship crowns with both Clonduff and Bosco down through the decades.
Although she hasn’t yet made a decision about potentially carrying her playing career into 2025, the prospect of once again representing the latter club is something that Downey would find enticing.
“I enjoyed my time and I’ll have to wait and see. Personally, I would love it if the Bosco were to get up and running again at an adult level. If they did that next year, it would be a very young team and if I thought I could help them or assist in any way by playing with them, to try and give them a wee bit of experience, then I would give it a go,” Downey added.
“Whether or not that’s possible, I don’t know. I’ll never say never again because I’ve stopped playing that many times and my boots are still on. People won’t believe me if I say I’m quitting now! That I’ve definitely quit for good.”
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