Eamon Fitzgerald looks forward to a big weekend for IT Tralee’s hurlers…
THE IT Tralee Senior Hurling team will travel to Waterford this Friday to take part in the Fitzgibbon Cup Finals weekend.
IT Tralee will play in the Ryan Cup semi-final against Ulster University on Friday at 3pm.
This game will take place at the Waterford IT GAA pitch. This year the IT Tralee team are managed by former Kerry and Limerick goalkeeper Tadhg Flynn and he is assisted by Clare man Gearoid O Doherty aswell as Tralee Parnells duo Mark Ryall and Brian Shanahan.
So far this year the team won the the Division 2 League which was played before Christmas. In the final they defeated Fridays opponents Ulster University by the bare minimum.
Continued below…
This year the Ryan Cup was divided in to two groups of three with IT Tralee, Athlone IT and Queens University Belfast all being drawn in to group B.
IT Tralee were drawn to play against Athlone IT in round 1 of the competition whom they defeated on a scoreline of IT Tralee 3-15 to Athlone IT 0-03.
In round 2 IT Tralee defeated Queens University Belfast by 2-13 to 0-08. This meant that IT Tralee would finish top of the group and face the runner up in group A.
IT Tralee will go in to the semi-final against Ulster University in a confident mood as a result of these two victories. However, Ulster University are sure to be well organised and ready for the IT Tralee challenge.
They can call on a host of Antrim senior hurlers most notably Ryan Elliott, Paddy Burke and Gerard Walsh.
IT Tralee will be looking to their six Kerry senior panellists Jason Diggins & Gavin Dooley (Causeway), Fionan Mackessy (St. Brendans), Michael Slattery (Abbeydorney), Michael Leane (Ballyheigue) and Adam O Sullivan (Crotta O’Neills) to guide them to victory.
They also have Shane Nolan (Crotta O’Neills) and Cathal Kearney (Ballyduff) aswell as former Limerick All Ireland u21 winners Darragh Kennedy and Josh Adams available to them.
If IT Tralee are victorius on Friday they will then play the winners of the other semi-final between Athlone IT and competition favourites GMIT in the Ryan Cup final.
This game will take place on Saturday at 12.30pm and will once again be played at the Waterford IT GAA pitch.
This game will be played as the curtain raiser to the Fitzgibbon Cup final between UCC and Mary Immaculate College, Limerick. Best of luck to all involved!
• Eamon Fitzgerald is the IT Tralee GAA Games Development Officer