.
Seniors:
Goals win games but tonight’s game could be better described as turnovers win games as we lost out to Laune Rangers by a six point margin, 2-11 to 1-08 in Strand Road in our opening league game.
Laune Rangers, with the stiff breeze to their backs had the opening score on 3 mins when Fiachra Clifford pointed from play but it was the next score that epitomised the first half pattern when we lost possession in our own half of the pitch, resulting in a last ditch leg block bringing a penalty which was duly dispatched to the net by John Tyther.
Chucky, operating at wing forward had our first point of the half from a free, which was negated immediately by a Fiachra Clifford dead ball point before Barry John again from a free brought the margin back to 3 points.
Eoin Clifford, outstanding all through, then set in motion a move from defence and was on the receiving end of a pass some 30 metres from goal before pointing from play.
We were a further two points down as the clock ticked into the red but again, under pressure we conceded possession resulting in Daire Cleary racing clear to find the net, bringing a half time deficit of 8 points, 2-05 to 0-03. Our third point again came from Chucky who pointed well from a “45” into the wind.
Conor Hayes and Gazza entered the fray for the second half and though we enjoyed a bit more possession around the middle through Tom Hoare and Jake Foley, we continued to struggle for scores and indeed it was the boys from the Laune who garnered the first score of the 2nd half.
We continued to chase the game but a 10th minute black card for Chucky added to our woes and the Killorglin boys saw the game out comfortably despite us scoring 1-01 in added time, the goal from a Chucky penalty following a foul on Ross O’Callaghan.
Tonight was a steep learning curve for many of our players with many experiencing division 1 football for the first time; Laune Rangers were more cohesive, more conservative in possession and will be very happy with their opening outing.
We next play Kilcummin away next weekend.
Team: Rob O’Connor, Darragh McElligott, Donagh Buckley, Seán Collins, Stephen Nix, Ross O’Callaghan, TJ Heaphy, Tom Hoare, Jake Foley, Chucky, BJ Keane, Shane McElligott, Conor O’Sullivan, Sam McCarthy, Gearoid Dillane.
Subs used: Conor Hayes, Gazza, Padraig Griffin & Daniel Bowler.
The game was preceded by the launch of our new PA system and a beautiful rendition of Amhrán na bhFiann by our under 14 ladies player Sennait Foster. We would like to thank Jason Teahan of Teahan Pro Audio and Lighting for installing our new system.
Last Man Standing:
The final round of the national league on the weekend proved to be a nail biting finish for our top 10 with James Godley, from Kilmoyley being our eventual winner – James was tied with Fergus Kerin prior to the final round but Fergus’s goose was cooked early on Saturday night when Cavan failed to beat Fermanagh.
James had chosen Dublin as his final pick and they duly delivered when thumping Tyrone in Croke Park – James was closely followed by Norma O’Connor who also picked Dublin and John Bingham who plumped for Derry.
Remarkably, the top 3 all purchased their entries from our senior goalkeeper Rob O’Connor! Thanks Rob.
We thank everybody for their entries and congratulate James who will pick up his winners cheque of €500 later in the week.
Golf Classic:
Our fundraising golf classic takes place this coming Friday March 29th in Tralee GC.
The organizing committee have been working hard behind the scenes gathering teams and tee sponsors and the response has been nothing short of remarkable.
We will have a full complement of participating teams plus over 100 tee sponsors – we would like to thank all those who have contributed to our efforts.
In addition to the foregoing, there will be a raffle held on the weekend for a weekend for two people in the Skellig Hotel on a bed and breakfast basis plus an evening meal; Benners Hotel, Tralee have also very kindly come on board with one nights bed and breakfast and an evening meal in their hostelry in Castle St.
Tickets are available from committee members, The Klub and Jimmy’s Foodstore – tickets for these great prizes are available at €20 each or 3 for €50.
Juvenile Academy Notes:
Juvenile Academy continued Sunday morning in Tralee Sports Complex. It was great to see so many in attendance from U5 s up to U10s. Everyone enjoyed their session with their coaches both inside and outside despite the damp conditions. We will train again next Sunday 31st March in Tralee Sports Complex at 9am. Looking forward to seeing you all then. New members are always welcome to join our club.
Bring a friend:
We are running a little initiative where everyone that brings a friend who is a new member to Academy will be entered into a draw for themselves and their friend for a full Kerins O’Rahillys Kit and Football. Keep an eye on our social media for more info.
Clubzap:
It is vital that all members download clubzap and add Kerins O’Rahillys to their account. Clubzap will be used for all communication regarding each age group from U5s upwards. If you are having any difficulty with joining clubzap please ask one of our committee members on Sunday mornings to assist you and we will be happy to help. Or contact us through any of our social media outlets.
Registration: We kindly ask that all Juvenile Members have fully paid registration before 31st March. If you need any assistance or have any queries please contact us through any of our social media platforms or ask a coach/committee member at training. We are happy to help.
Minors:
Round 4 of the county league took place on Sunday afternoon in Templenoe. Poor weather didn’t make an already slippery pitch any better but both sides adjusted as best they could in an entertaining opening half.
NA Fianna started brightly with the opening 2 points of the game while our own shooting was a bit off.
However Dara Murphy pushed us ahead with a cheeky chip to the net in the opening quarter. We traded 3 scores each, ours coming from Nick, Michael and Nick again from a free before Dara evaded 3 tacklers to finish the half on a high, 1-4 to 5 points in our favor.
The opening 10 minutes of the second half were tense with lots of mistakes on both sides, before the turning point of the game as a black card each and a red for us left us with an uphill battle.
NA Fianna rattled off 10 points with the extra man as space opened up. While Sean O’Mahony and the excellent Breandàn Meehan tried to drive us out from the back we struggled to get any ball into the dangerous Nick and Dara.
Nick added 2 late frees and a point from play to leave the score 1-7 to 15 points in favor of NA Fianna.
Next up is our final league game against table toppers Ballyduff next Monday evening. Thanks to the boys and all the parents who made the long trip to South Kerry on Sunday.
Man of the Match: Breandàn Meehan
Thank you to the coaches from each group for sending in your notes.
U16 Girls:
After a relaxed week last week this week our U16’s started with training in the Astro pitch in CBS on Tuesday evening the weather was bad but our girls showed their strength by showing up in force.
It was great to have Robert O’Connor from the senior team down to give our goalie Molly a session on kick outs and shot stopping.
Our gym work is still going strong even with small numbers on Friday. The quality of the session remained high. A lot of hard work put in by the girls with core strength and general maintenance work.
It was great to have our injured Donna present while she is nursing a sore knee.
We played our first game of the season early on a wet and windy Sunday morning.
The girls played Finuge /St. Senans on their home ground captained on the day by our one and only Fiadh Mc Carthy.
We started nervously going behind early but once we settled we proved too strong in the end winning well. It was great to see all our hard work for pre season and 5k runs paying off on Sunday, great to start the season with a win.
Congrats to our vice chair Declan and his management team on Kerry ladies qualification for the National league final following their win over Galway in Killarney on Sunday. They will face off against Armagh in the final on April 7th.
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