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North Belfast Club, Wolfe Tones GAC are proud to announce that their new jerseys, featuring the logo of the Kevin Bell Repatriation Trust (KBRT) are now available to order through the club's website.
Profits from the sale of this jersey will be split between KBRT and youth development at Greencastle Wolfe Tones GAC.
KBRT was founded in 2013 after Newry native, Kevin Bell, was killed in tragic circumstances in New York. Kevin was a keen Gael, having played football for Newry Mitchells and Abbey CBS as well as being an accomplished Irish dancer and fluent Irish speaker.
KBRT aims to relieve the financial burden of families in Ireland, north or south, in repatriating the remains of relatives and loved ones who have died overseas in tragic or sudden circumstances. To date, KBRT has assisted in more than 1,000 repatriations.
The new jerseys are manufactured by McKeever Teamwear in Portadown, County Armagh.
Club Chair Stephen McCourt said “We were fortunate to have received funding from Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council which meant we didn’t need to seek a sponsor for new jerseys. This meant that we were able to highlight the vital work carried out by KBRT.”
Club PRO Tiarnán Millar said “KBRT does fantastic work, helping families across Ireland, north and south, regardless of background in their darkest hours; and it’s one that’s especially close to my heart given that Kevin and I were friends growing up”
The jerseys will be available to purchase through WolfeTonesGAA.ie until 23rd May.
Wolfe Tones GAC is based in the Greencastle district of North Belfast and was re-established in 2019. They play in the South Antrim League and Antrim Junior Championship.
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It has taken almost ten years to get there but on Sunday Down hurlers will finally fulfil their ambition to play in Division 2A. The challenge is to stay there according to proud Down manager and Newry Shamrocks man Ronan Sheehan.
Down make the trip to Tralee on Saturday for Sunday’s game against a much-fancied Kerry, before welcoming Carlow to Ballycran on Sunday, May 16, they then face away trips to Wicklow and Offaly, before the crunch home game against Meath on Sunday, June 13.
Last season’s promotion and finalist place in the McDonagh Cup confirmed that Down had outgrown 2B, but it’s yet to be seen if they are ready for Division 2A.
“I think we took immense satisfaction to win the league last year and get promoted and, in many ways, this is the big test ahead to see if we can consolidate,” said manager Sheehan.
“Probably for the past four or five years we have talked about Down hurling being in a division below where we thought we should be. But we are up here now, so I suppose the pressure is on us to prove that this is the level that we deserve to be at, and this is the level of hurlers that is within the county.
“The players and I are mindful of that and the management team are mindful that we are representing a proud hurling county and on Sunday when we pull on that red and black jersey, we will certainly be giving it everything we can to get a positive performance.”
The games are coming thick and fast and the challenge for Down hasn’t been greater in recent years. It would be fair to suggest that positive results against Wicklow and Meath should be enough to secure divisional status but first the Mourne men must take on the big guns and the Down boss doesn’t underestimate how tough it will be.
“There is a massive step up in quality,” said Sheehan.
“Carlow were playing Division One last year, where they played in Salthill and Nolan Park, but in a couple of weeks they’ll be coming to Ballycran, so that’s a huge step up.
“Kerry ran Antrim very close in the McDonagh Cup final last year and indeed in the league final as well and we know all about Offaly, we had a great day against them last year, but it is only a couple of years ago that they were playing for the McCarthy Cup and in Division One of the National Hurling League. So, it is a real step-up in quality and then we have Meath and Wicklow there as well, who are good teams.
“The quality of the opposition is at a different level to Division 2B where we would say Derry, Kildare and ourselves would have been above the other teams in that division. This year every single game is going to pose a challenge.”
Players such as Conor Woods, John McManus, brothers Eoghan and Daithi Sand, Pearse Og McCrickard and Newry’s Paul Sheehan are players that need to play on the bigger stage and while Danny Toner’s absence through injury is a massive blow, manager Sheehan has injected more youth into his squad, including Newry man Ruairi Campbell.
“We brought a couple of players in; Ruairi Campbell from Newry Shamrocks is another local lad,” said the Down manager.
“Ruairi was on the panel three or four years ago but dropped off when he was on the fringes of the football squad, but he is back with us and we are delighted about that. A couple of the under 20 are in the squad now too such as Paudie Doran, Ciaran Watson, Matt McAreavey and I am really pleased to see those young fellas come up through the ranks.
“It will be a number of months before Danny Toner is back, and he is a big loss. And it is unfortunate that after all the service he has given that he will miss out on playing Division 2A.”
Down’s first game is against Kerry in Austin Stack Park on Sunday, May 9, at 1pm. They travel on Saturday to stay overnight in Tralee, while following the covid guidelines, which includes wearing facemasks while on the buses and players not sharing rooms.
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Here’s a wee tongue-in-cheek match report I did 24 years ago. It was about a match featuring Warrenpoint oldies versus Newry has-beens.
It went something like this.
Warrenpoint 4 Newry 2
They came, they saw ... and they returned to Newry with their tails between their legs.
In 1996 the slick city soccer stars of yesteryear travelled to Warrenpoint on a wave of hope - and a prayer from their loved ones (or in a few cases - their wives).
But the team, coaxed from retirement by joint selectors Tony Cunningham and Joey Larkin, saw their dreams shattered at Clonallan Park by John Boyle’s Warrenpoint warriors.
Though if the truth be told their 4-2 victory somewhat flatters the Point men. I have to say - in a totally unbiased manner - all their goals were offside.
The referee, the home-grown Warrenpoint whistler Mickey Cummins, was somewhat intimidated by the fierce partisan crowd.
The Seasiders also played a team of ringers, composed of outsiders or underage teenagers.
And the bumpy pitch didn’t suit the delicate skills of the Newry squad.
John Boyle’s side was gathered from all parts of the country and he even went across the shuck to entice Brian Fearon to play. On the Point team was Dubliner Johnny Bird and many Newry turncoats who showed themselves in poor light by doing what no self respecting Newryman (or John Fearon) would do … wear a Warrenpoint jersey.
By contrast the visitors were all Newry born and bred, apart from the old Shamrock’s warhorse Paddy Crossan, a man who jetted in especially for the occasion.
But to the game. In the first half the slick-moving Newry men created a bundle of chances and if former Youth International Dick Taylor had availed of a fraction of the opportunities that came his way the Newry team might have been home in a boat at the break.
As it happened Taylor did hit the net in the first half, rolling back the years to knock home a super right wing cross from old chrome-dome himself Aidan Carroll.
Shortly after the goal Taylor and Paddy McCamley had words, both men complaining the other hadn’t passed the ball. But it’s doubtful if either man ever passed the ball intentionally in their whole careers. Golden boy Taylor was notorious for failing to pass the ball in the 18-yard area. Whereas McCamley invariably failed to pass the ball no matter where he was on the park!
Anyway boss Larkin settled their argument by hauling off the feuding pair.
In the second half Tony Cunningham entered the fray and right away the substitution appeared to have worked. The player/manager flashed through an advancing (and advanced) Warrenpoint rearguard before burying a daisy-cutter into the corner, with keeper Johnny Bird a spectator. It was truly surprising that Cunningham could even see the target as the net-minder’s goal was shrouded in a cloud of Johnny’s famous Cheroot smoke.
That was Cunningham’s first kick and, apart from a clout from the boot of John Mallon, his last. Where he went to after scoring no one knows. People said he went down to the shore to paddle his feet. Who knows?
But with the grey-haired teenager Kieran Moore urging his team on, the Point hit back. A Stanley Weir corner kick on the right was punched into his own net, by the Newry net-minding legend Marty McCabe, via the head of Nicky McCaul. McCabe later said he felt sorry for the Seasiders and he only wanted to make a game of it.
That error of judgement though was the beginning of the end. Minutes later Collie Moore, from a blatantly offside position, slipped home the leveller. And when Weir put the Point in front the normally shy and retiring Paddy McCamley forcibly voiced his displeasure by questioning the official, roaring out:
“Mickey did you ever referee before?
“Do you know whether the ball is blew up or stuffed?
“It’s not glasses you need … it’s binoculars!”
And near the end turncoat John Fearon put the tin hat on a bad night for the Newry side, again scoring from an offside position.
And the less said about the Newry missed opportunities the better.
Isaac Burns kicked over from right under the bar. An impossibility. But somehow the wee man managed it.
Mick Sands then fell down exhausted after a lung-bursting four-yard run.
While Tony Bagnall shot over when scoring would have been easier. (In truth to this very day I can remember missing that sitter from 10 yards. I also actually remember not sleeping too well after that miss. Good job I was never talented enough to play in front of a big crowd or television cameras!)
Anyway best for the Point team were the elegant Paddy Dinsmore, the hobbling Johnny Bird, the deep-thinking Brian Fearon and the mooching Stanley Weir.
For Newry the pair of ex-Newry Town full backs Maurice McAnulty and Nicky McCaul reformed their sixties partnership as if they had been never separated. While Eddie Curtis, the babe of the team, matched the Point flying machine Mickey Courtney for pace. And Tommy Rafferty showed defender Jonsie Mallon some of his ancient skills.
And afterwards as the wine - and Grecian 2,000 in the showers - flowed, many memories from pre-war football days were relived.
Newry were intent on getting revenge at home but the second leg never took place. Indeed, it took all of six months before tortured legs and lungs got back to something resembling normality.
On a serious note; Newry Hospice benefited enormously from the fund-raising of the players but especially from the efforts of Tony Cunningham, Joey Larkin and John Boyle.
In closing I’d like to apologise for anyone I didn’t offend. I can assure you it wasn’t intentional.
Warrenpoint: Johnny Bird, Derek Smith, Paddy Dinsmore, Kieran Moore, John Mallon, Gerry Boyle, Frankie Heatley, John Fearon, Stanley Weir, Collie Moore, Mickey Courtney and Brian Fearon.
Newry: Marty McCabe, Nicky McCaul, Paddy Crossan, Hugh Carroll, Maurice McAnulty, Paddy McCamley, Dommie Trainor, Eddie Curtis, Aidan Carroll, Ronnie Taylor, Joey McAleavey, Isaac Burns, Mick Sands, Tony Bagnall, Tony Cunningham, Peter Cunningham and Tommy Rafferty.
If you like this wee story, you can find a lot more like it in Tony Bagnall’s book on the Carnbane League, entitled ‘Junior Football in the Newry Area.’
It’s the only book ever written about the Newry league. It tells the story, sometimes amusingly, about the heyday of the Carnbane League, from 1968 to 1996.
All the top teams are featured and indeed some of the less glamorous sides, sides that graced Jennings Park, Clonallan Park, The Pond Field, Carnbane Park, etc.
There are some unusually stories, such as the team that scored eight goals ... and still lost.
The team that won the AOH Cup on a corner kick, the day the referee got sent off, and the player who played legitimately in both semi-finals of the same cup competition.
‘Junior Football in the Newry Area’ is an enjoyable trip down memory lane. It’s about the great teams, the great players and the great matches from a bygone era.
The book too is full of pictures. And it’s sure to become a collectors’ item as there aren’t too many left.
The book was originally priced at £4.50 but is now on sale at just £3.
A nice wee stocking filler for that football-mad Newry soccerite.
If you would like a copy of the the book just contact Tony Bagnall on 07815787874 or send him an email on tonybagnall@mac.com
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Fixture dates have been announced for the 2021 Allianz Football and Hurling Leagues as well as rough fixture dates for the Championship. The Covid-19 pandemic has changed sporting fixtures beyond recognition in the past year. It's still not announced if spectators will be allowed at games.
Division One North - Football
Round 1
Sunday 16 May 3pm Monaghan v Armagh (Brewster Park)
Round 2
Saturday 22 May 7pm Armagh v Tyrone (Athletic Grounds)
Round 3
Saturday 29 May 7.30pm Armagh v Donegal (Athletic Grounds)
Division Two North - Football
Round 1
Saturday 15 May Mayo v Down
Round 2
Sunday 23 May Down v Meath
Round 3
Sunday May 30
Westmeath v Down
Division 2A Hurling
Round 1
Sunday 9 May Kerry v Down
Round 2
Sunday 16 May Down v Carlow
Round 3
Sunday 23 May Wicklow v Down
Round 4
Sunday 6 June Offaly v Down
Round 5
Saturday 13 or 19 June Down v Meath
Division 3A Hurling
Round 1
Sunday 16 May 1pm Armagh v Longford (Athletic Grounds)
Round 2
Saturday 22 May 2pm Sligo v Armagh (Markievicz Park)
Round 3
Sunday 30 May 2pm Monaghan v Armagh (Inniskeen)
Round 4 bye
Round 5
Saturday 19 June 2pm Armagh v Tyrone (Athletic Grounds)
Championship
Preliminary Round: Down v Donegal
Quarter Final: Armagh v Antrim, Derry v Preliminary Round Winner
Championship begins June 26/27 with Final scheduled for July 31/Aug 1
Note - Please double check dates due to current circumstances!
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Armagh footballers Jemar Hall and Blaine Hughes believe that taking on the big guns Tyrone and Donegal in the national league will be formidable preparation for the Ulster championship clash against Antrim.
Both have targeted an Ulster championship final this year and it can be argued the draw looks more favourable than the task Down face, but having returned to collective training, for the first time this year, earlier in the week, the immediate focus is on the national league.
The Sports Team met up with Blaine and Jemar at their impressive new H & H gym on the Quarter Road in Camlough. The Orchard duo have been running an online fitness platform H & H but with the restrictions being lifted next week the gym will be officially opened for classes, personal training and team training as well as personal workouts.
Jemar Hall is entering his sixth season with Armagh, while Blaine is starting his fifth and they were both delighted to make the return to training.
“It was good to get back and it was just good to have the craic with the lads first of all,” said Hall.
“It is good see everyone and train with a ball in my hands rather than training on my own. It is good to get back as a team and get the collective sessions done because we have a limited time with the first game coming so soon and I am really looking forward to getting back this weekend.
“There’s camaraderie and you need to have that culture in your team, and you have to have that because it is just good to see the lads and have a bit of slagging.
“Four weeks, it doesn’t give you much time to get ready, but I suppose everyone is in the same boat. “We just have to work with the time we have and spend it wisely. It will get us set up for the Ulster championship as well, it will get us playing all the top teams. We have played them all before and they are all going to be tough games, so we are going to have to get stuck in from the word go.“There’s no holding back.”
Goalkeeper Hughes agrees that the limited time frame will help sharpen minds.
“Especially after getting back to training on Monday night, I would say collectively our aim would be to stay up in division one as an overall goal and then try and get to an Ulster final as it is something that we haven’t been able to do in recent years.”
Armagh will play Monaghan, Tyrone and Donegal in Division One North, with Kerry, Galway, Dublin and Roscommon in Division One South of the National League. It is not the Division One they had aimed to be playing as the new format means that the Orchard team will miss out on playing Dublin and Kerry.
While not ideal Hall says his team-mates want to focus on the games ahead and believes that the time has come for Armagh to be beating the so-called big guns.
“Playing all those top teams was one of our goals but that is just the situation we are in this year and we can’t dwell on it too much because we have to focus on winning the few games we have in order to stay in division one,” Hall said.
“Hopefully if we do that this year then we will be able to play those teams next year.
“The aim would be to stay up because we only have a limited number of games and I suppose if you win a couple of games, you don’t know where you are going to go. I know it’s a cliché saying it, but we really have to take one game at a time. If we don’t win our first few games, then we could be in a relegation battle. It is the top two teams, or the bottom two teams play each other so we could be in a semi-final contest or a relegation battle and they are fine margins.
“Having come from Division Three through Division Two there comes a time when you have to beat one of the big teams in a big game. It is only a matter of time, but we have to stay focused, and we can’t get too excited if we win one game in the league. Even if we beat Monaghan, we can’t be thinking that we are on a roll, we just have to stay focused on the next game. We need that big breakthrough game so hopefully it comes soon.”
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The town was alive with the sound of laughter! In what was one of the most anticipated days in the mist of covid-19, Monday 12th April was like Christmas morning all over again! With restrictions easing, training permitted and schools back, our club coaches and mentors of all groups and sports opened the gates to the excited young (and not so young) of the club who wanted nothing more than to feel the turf, hold the hurl and appreciate the smell of the O’Neill’s leather again! With Pairc Liam Ui ir, Milltown and St.Marks all being utilised all week it was as if a collective weight had been lifted from the entire community. Many thanks to players, coaches and parents for the continued observance of covid measures and regulations.
In football, with the exception of the very youngest footballers all age groups returned to training this week. With boots, water bottles, cones and whistles dusted down it was all systems go, when the eagerly anticipated return finally arrived.
Our ladies football teams made their way back onto the pitches to get back into action. Judging by the numbers seen at all training sessions, the ladies were keen to get back & stuck into preparations for competitive action, once permissible. Whilst there was clearly some rustiness with the skills & fitness levels will need work, the enthusiasm certainly has not been diminished during the break. Great to see all the ladies back on the grass, with smiles on their faces.
The Senior & U17 Hurlers were first to break the imposed fast of lockdown & an absence from playing/training since the end of last summer. The U9s, U13s & U15s followed suit on Tuesday & Wednesday, with a good turnout, numbers at training were encouraging. Although all these teams were eager to get back & enjoyed being able to take to the Hurling fields and train with their friends & team mates, it was evident that everyone was just relieved & in need of getting back to some sort of normal active lifestyle. The most jubilation came from the excited U7’s who were back training on Friday, the excitement was palpable and encouraging for years ahead. A great deal of work has yet to be done with all age groups but with large numbers at u7’s and the seniors playing two championships this year (the 2020 JHC was curtailed due to the 2nd lockdown), there will be plenty to keep the coaches busy in 2021.
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A wee cycling story that concerns a person in the news.
In the early nineties lots of cyclists did the Maracycle – a 100-mile trip from Belfast to Dublin on the Saturday and the return journey back to Belfast the next day.
I, along with a few local riders, joined a big group leaving Belfast. We saw these two guys in front of us, who were obviously posers as they were clad in all-yellow gear. We stepped up the pace and passed them - but almost right away the chancers jumped to the front again.
Someone said: ‘Let them stay there … sure they’ll take us all the way to Dublin.’
So we let them stay at the front.
The pace was steady and everything was fine until we came to our own Dublin Road hill, on the other side of Newry.
As we climbed I began to struggle for breath and was having trouble staying with the yellow-clad posers.
But they seemed to be in no trouble at all. And despite the steep incline, and under no pressure, they continued to talk and joke.
Halfway up the hill I looked around and our big group had splintered all over the road with only two or three of us able to keep the yellow men in sight.
With a lot of trouble we got to the top and I moved up to talk to the pair of leaders. ‘Do you do the Mayacycle every year?’ I asked them.
I couldn’t believe it when they answered: ‘What’s the Maracycle?
‘What you’re doing today.’ I replied.
They explained: ‘No we are not doing the Maracycle. We were riding a crit in Belfast last night and we’re only out to loosen up our legs. Our team bus is to pick us up in Dundalk.’
Further questions, and we discovered the pair were members of the Banana-Falcon professional cycling team and they were in fact Chris Lillywhite, the best sprinter in Britain at the time, and Shane Sutton. Yes the same Shane Sutton who is currently at the centre of the Sky performance-enhancing drugs story along with Richard Freeman.
But in truth I don’t think Shane Sutton or Chris Lillywhite would have needed testosterone, corticosteroid or EPO to stay in front of our ragged Maracycle group on the Newry hill!
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The NI Executive have confirmed that structured outdoor training for sports organisations, in groups of up to 15 people (including coaches), can resume from today 12 April and the GAA have set out their guidelines.
A GAA spokesperson said "Having GAA activity return to our fields is a positive and most welcome development but we remain in a pandemic and there is an onus on everyone to minimise risk and to play their part in ensuring that all protocols are observed. By doing this we will ensure that there is no further undue delay in our desire to ensure a full return to GAA activity at the earliest possible opportunity."
It's a cautious first step on the pathway out of lockdown and the following on-pitch group numbers apply;
Adults (18+) – one group size limit 15 on the pitch
Age 13-18 – maximum two groups of 15 on the pitch (no mixing of groups)
Age 12 and below – maximum three groups of 15 (no mixing of groups)
Contact training should be kept to a minimum and the playing of matches is not permitted.
It is essential that both Executive and GAA protocols are observed at all times in particular clubs should ensure that they;
An updated version of the GAA Return to Train/Play guidance is being finalised by the GAA’s Covid Advisory Group and this will be issued to clubs in the near future.
Inter-county senior training is scheduled to re-commence on Monday 19th April.
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Newry City AFC manager Darren Mullen can’t wait to get back to the training pitch this Tuesday, 13 April.
Like so many other sports teams throughout the district it will be the first time they will train as a collective this year as government restrictions eases.
Mullen’s target for Newry City is promotion back to the Premiership, in the meantime he is still hoping that championship clubs will be granted elite status and the Ballyholland man can foresee an all-Ireland football league as well as summer football.
Having signed a to-year deal in February he has been busy securing the services of players, with many re-signing and the recent signing of former Warrenpoint Town star Philip Donnelly, just shows Mullen’s intentions. But first he has to get back to the Showgrounds.
“We are back on Tuesday night for our first training session, so I will be just glad to get back onto the pitch,” Mullen said.
“We have kept in touch through social messaging and zoom classes, but you can’t be sitting on your hands in terms of next season so that work is always on-going, so I have been having discussions with coaches and the players throughout the pandemic, so I think everybody will be delighted just to kick a ball on Tuesday night.
“We had Engine [player Darren King] and Stevie Lawless doing zoom classes and they have been terrific, we have even done yoga and quizzes and that type of thing to vary it a bit, but it is hard to beat kicking a ball about the pitch and having a bit of banter out on the training pitch again. That is something that we have all missed, so we are looking forward to it.
“It is a year lost for those fellas in not only fitness but general well-being and meeting up with everyone and to get some sort of normality. It has affected everybody in a lot of ways in all walks of life, but in footballing terms it is a year lost for us.”
There has been nothing to suggest that next season won’t start around the normal time of August and Mullen is planning ahead but he doesn’t want the elite status to become an issue again.
“There is still our fight for elite status, we still haven’t been given it,” said Mullen.
“The last thing we want is a similar thing to happen again because we are not deemed Elite. We have asked NIFL [Northern Ireland Football League] for another meeting and we will wait and see what happens from that.”
“When you look outside of football, people are getting vaccinated and with the over 40s being able to book vaccines now, so you would like to think by the time we come around to the start of the league in the summer that the vast majority of people will have had their jab and we can get back to some sort of normality.
“We have been very careful when it comes to sanitising players coming in and the equipment and players getting their temperatures checked, so we would like to think that we would be set-up for the new season.
Mullen backs the idea of playing Irish League football during the summer, especially if other variants of the Covid virus become prevalent in the winter, but says it has to done in the right manner and certainly warrants further discussion. And he sees an all-Ireland league as a possibility in the future, but he wants the so-called smaller clubs to be looked after.
“There is certainly an argument for it, and I know Kieran Lucid had put forward proposals before,” Mullen said.
“When you look at other leagues in different countries like some of the Scandinavian leagues, they are full time and are making a lot of money out of it and in some point in time that has to happen, but it has to be done in a manner so that other teams are not cut off or left stranded.
“It can’t be an elite environment that will have a detrimental effect on other teams, possibly like ourselves. You like to see elite teams in any country but not so there is a massive gap between top and bottom.”
Darren also took on the management role of Ballyholland camogs last year, they won the Down intermediate championship in his first season in charge, and he is looking forward to another season with the women.
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