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FINALS DAY Week Two Report Girls Report - Week 1 Week One Report Holy Rosary Girls Report 2008 PREVIEW DAY FIVE, May 29th ALL STARS DAY FOUR, May 22nd DAY THREE - May 15th DAY TWO - May 8th DAY ONE - May 1st SCHOOLS LEAGUE PREVIEW Boys Finals Day Girls Finals Day All Stars 7, 8 & 9 Week Six Report Week Five Report All Stars 3 & 4 Week Four Report Week Three Report All Stars 1 & 2 Week Two Pictures Week Two Report Week One Reports Week One Results Match Days Competition Preview	South Belfast Schools League FINALS DAY The 7th year of the South Belfast News Schools League came to a successful conclusion on Tuesday, June 24th. Despite the rain in Cherryvale, the standard of play was impressively high and everyone went home happy. Cups were handed out to the winning teams and every single player was presented with a medal to remember the occasion. Tournament Organiser Ciarán O’Keefe from Bredagh thanked the sponsor for their invaluable help this year and throughout all seven years of the competition. He also paid tribute to the teachers for coaching and organising their players, and most importantly of all the boys and girls who provided such entertainment for all. "The tournament has been a great success with all the teams in the boys and girls Leagues displaying wonderful skills and providing great hope for the future of the game in the area", said Ciarán. Maria McCourt from the South Belfast News presented the star players with their county jerseys and a certificate. She also commented on the success of the football and hurling/camogie events. ROLL OF HONOUR Group 1 League winners – St Bernard's Football Blitz Finals Day Winners – St Bernard's Group 2 League Winners – St Matthew's Girls League Winners – St Joseph's, Carryduff Girls Blitz Finals Day Winners – St Bride's GROUP 1 RESULTS - BOYS FOOTBALL St Bernard's 2-1 St Joseph's 1-2 St Michael's 2-2 St Bride's 4-3 St Joseph's 4-5 St Michaels 1-1 St Bernard's 4-3 St Bride's 2-3 St Michael's 0-2 St Bernard's 3-4 St Joseph's 1-5 St Bride's 0-1 GROUP 1 REPORT St Bernard's retained the Group One title after three victories on Finals Day. They easily beat St Michael's, had a real scare against St Bride's and then won the crunch encounter with St Joseph's by just two points. The Carryduff boys were joint favourites to win the tournament and they opened the scoring against St Bernard's with a point, but a point from Sean McGourty and a goal from Ross Hannigan saw the Rosetta Reds in front at half-time by 2-1 to 1-2. Amazingly, there were no further scores in the second half when the St Bernard's defence, surperbly marshalled by Padraic Woods, kept the St Joseph's attack at bay. St Bride's matched St Bernard's for long periods of their contest with the strong running of James McGuinness a factor in the level scores at half-time, 2-0 to 1-3. A goal at the start of the second-half from St Bride's caused nerves to rise for St Bernard's but the defending champions rallied with goals from Ross Hannigan and Sean Blaney. St Bride's converted two late frees but could not bridge the gap. In their last game, St Bernard's overpowered a young and tiring St Michael's team. One of the best games on Finals Day saw St Joseph's eventually get away from a dogged St Bride's team. Nicholas Turkington shone at midfield, while Ryan Hamill reminded onlookers of Kerry star Kieran Donaghy with a superb display of high catching, which was one of the highlights of the overall tournament. However, St Joseph's goalkeeper Conor McCluskey suffered a broken wrist when stopping a high ball in the game against St Michael's. Conal Doyle and Emmett Curran were the best of the young players on a St Michael's making a late entrance to the League, while Conor Kelly led from the front. GROUP 2 RESULTS - BOYS FOOTBALL Holy Rosary 0-1 St Matthew's 1-0 Holy Rosary 2-4 An Droichead 2-2 An Droichead 0-0 St Matthew's 3-2 St Matthew's 2-1 Holy Rosary 1-1 An Droichead 0-2 Holy Rosary 0-2 St Matthew's 2-2 An Droichead 0-2 GROUP 2 REPORT Three teams played each other twice in Group 2 with defending champions St Matthew’s edging both of their contests with Holy Rosary. In the first game, the St Matthew’s goalkeeper Dominic Corr performed heroics to deny Christopher Carson three times before Sean Paul Conlon broke the deadlock with a great goal. Holy Rosary replied with a point from Michael Browne. In their second meeting, goals from Conor Ryan and Mark Herdman were decisive, while Gerard McDaid added two points. For the winners, P5 pupil Shaun Lyttle played really well for St Matthew's in midfield, Charlie McDowell played precision passes like Brian McGuigan despite the terrible conditions, and Dominic Corr collected the trophy after helping out in Finals Day by playing in goals and pulling off some great saves. Midfielder Anna McComb won an All Star jersey. Elsewhere in Group 2, Holy Rosary beat An Droichead in one of the best games, 2-4 to 2-2, with goals from Shay Campbell and Gary Lavelle. Points were added by Darragh King, Christopher Carson and Odhran Devlin from a long range free, while Mark Sykes and Eadaoin Ni Chaiarrain goaled for the Lower Ormeau team. GIRLS FOOTBALL A PUPIL’S PERSPECTIVE, by Rachel & Deborah from Holy Rosary P5 We played four gaelic matches and were unlucky to lose our first match with St Bride’s by one point. It started to rain during the St Michael’s game and it was quite tricky because the ball was slippy and the grass was skiddy and muddy. But, even though it was tricky, we won that game. Our third match was against the strongest team over the three weeks, St Joseph’s. We were leading in the first half we tired in the second half, but I think we did very well because we drew with them. By the time we played St Bernard’s everyone was very cold and a lot of the team got knocks, especially Caoimhe who tripped up and hurt her ankle. Charlotte McKee and Rachel Clinton were hit in the face, but all the players rallied to play very well. Kathryn Brown played great in nets, aided by her defenders Rachel, Rachel, Geraldine and Niaomi. All our players learned new skills and that we need to be fit and strong, and that it takes a lot of effort to win one game and draw another one. Oh and thanks to our mascot Harvey! After-match Quotes: “We got stuck in , it was great!” – Kathryn. “We played against very big people with very powerful kicks” - Aine. “At one point when we were playing St Michael’s it was very difficult because we were playing against someone I knew from Bredagh GAC camogie” - Medb. “The weather was very bad on the last week .We got free Red Bull. We played in Cherryvale. Jacqueline was the star player. Mr Cahill’s old soccer team mate Beefy brought our medals to school which was very nice of him” - Geraldine. “I enjoyed winning our matches and scoring a goal in the first week” - Wika. STAR PLAYERS Week Two Report Ten teams enjoyed Week 2 of the South Belfast News Schools League at Cherryvale when the rain thankfully held off until just after the last game. The standard of play was excellent as both the girls and boys groups gathered momentum from the first week. Newcomers St Ita’s began to find their feet with some great team displays and with their Player of the Week in boys football, Michael McGonigle. His team won two games on Pitch 2, comprehensively defeating Holy Rosary by 3-5 to 0-0 and St Bride’s by 2-3 to 1-0. Over on Pitch 1, St Bernard’s stole a march on old rivals St Joseph’s Carryduff by winning their battle by 2-3 to 0-4 and remaining unbeaten on the day. Their star performers were Ross Hannigan with his strong running in the centre, Sean Blaney with his tricky ball skills, and Padraic Woods with his superb fielding and tackling in defence. The Rosetta Reds also beat St Bride’s by 4-6 to 0-1 and St Ita’s when Sean McGourty fired over some great points to leave St Bernard’s top of Group A. St Joseph’s won their game with St Bride’s by 2-4 to 0-2 with a breakthrough goal in the second-half from Lorcan McGleenon when the pressure finally told. On the other pitches, Holy Rosary put up some brave performances and showed a commendable never-say-die attitude. Even when things are going wrong, you have to keep going. Goalkeeper Shay Campbell typified this spirit with a number of great saves, some from point-blank range, while in defence Fiontainn Quinn and Odhran Devlin both played consistently well. St Bride’s had some talented players on show in the boys league with Conor King dominant in midfield and scoring a great point against Holy Rosary. His partners in the middle were Enda Kelly-McCann, a playmarker with no fear, and Kealan McAllister who made some impressive catches. Robert Rea was the pick of the forwards, with great vision and ability to take on defenders and beat them. St Bernard's Ciara Blaney with the ball in the contest with St Bride's. Girls Report - Week 1 St Joseph's Carryduff won all of their games on Day One of the SBN League. Their toughest game was against a strong St Bernard's team, but Claire Milburn, making her debut in nets, pulled off a few super saves. Her strong kick-outs were hitting the midfield mark and were picked up by the stylish Claire McGinnity and the tenacious Amy Foy. Amy Hamill was a tower of strength in defence, ably assisted by the two Emmas on either side - Emma Norris and Tyrone supporter Emma Connolly. Rachel Moore and Fiona Smith made some great runs, while forwards Katie McKenna, Amy Murphy and the 'Twin Terrors' Eimear McGrady and Sinead Early were all on form, getting their names on the scoresheet. Sharpshooter Early scored a total of 1-8 on the day. Week One Report The first day of the 2008 South Belfast News Schools Football League was a great success with a superb turn-out on Tuesday afternoon, June 10th, and according to Tournament Organiser Ciaran O'Keefe, 'all of the games were played with great enthusiasm and in good spirit and with plenty of skill'. Five schools took part in the boys competition across two pitches so there were lots of games for the teams from St Bernard’s, St Joseph’s Carryduff, St Matthew’s, St Ita’s and Holy Rosary. Old rivals St Bernard’s and St Joseph’s Carryduff met twice with honours shared. The Rosetta Reds won the first contest by 1-1 to 0-1 with superb performances by their captain Ross Hannigan, Sean McGourty and Sean Blaney who scored some excellent points. St Bernard’s also had stars in Ryan Noble-Walker and defender Padraic Woods (PICTURED ABOVE CLEARING HIS LINES) who was virtually impossible to get past. However, the Carryduff boys bounced back from their first game defeat and from the loss of their captain Michael Keane because of illness to win the rest of their games, including revenge over St Bernard’s in the last match of the day. Goalkeeper Conor McCluskey was very assured between the posts, full-back Darragh Connolly was solid all day, midfielders John Leneghan, Nicholas Turkington and Pearse McCabe were outstanding, and in the forwards Lorcan McGleenon took some great scores. P6 player Cal Elliot also deserves a special mention on his first appearance for the school team, doing very well in defence. Highlights of the day for St Joseph’s were a splendid high catch by John Leneghan, a rasping drive by Nicholas Turkington into the top corner of the net and a superbly executed sideline kick from Pearse McCabe which sailed over the bar. Ryan Hamill and Ciaran Gillan turned in their most impressive displays for the school team to date and both showed a great eye for goal. The black-shirted St Matthew's looked very strong under the management of Bredagh senior footballer Fergus Coyle. Sean Paul Conlon is a utility player who operated effectively in both defence and midfield, scoring three wonderful points against Holy Rosary. Tiarnan Russell is a fearless defender who broke down numerous attacks, while Shaun Lyttle and Anna McComb dominated in 'Dan Gordon' style at midfield. St Ita's are the newcomers to the SBN Leagues and they too had an impressive midfield pairing in Michael McGonigle and Patrick McConnell. They caught high balls, sent accurate passes into forwards and took scores when they could. McConnell also scored one of the goals of the day against Holy Rosary, skilfully weaving through the defence and blasting the ball into the top left corner of the net. At the other end, the St Ita’s goalkeeper pulled off the save of the day when he stopped a piledriver from Carryduff forward Ryan Hamill at full stretch. This was of course in the new derby game between the two schools. Holy Rosary had their stars in Matthew McCambley, Fintan Quinn and Odhran Devlin who scored a couple of fine long range points. Michael Browne was strong in defence, capable of walking the ball out of crowded goal areas and delivering good passes to midfield, while a brave double save by their goalkeeper restricted St Joseph’s to a single score in the first half of their contest. The Sunnyside boys can take great heart from this performance and believe that they will get better and better over the next few weeks. St Joseph’s Carryduff squad: Conor McCluskey, Darragh Connolly, Michael Keane (captain), Michael Woods, Pearse McCabe, Nicholas Turkington, John Leneghan, Lorcan McGleenon, Ryan Hamill, Ciaran Gillan, Cal Elliot, Aodhan McManus, Daire Magorrian. St Matthew's squad (P7 unless otherwise stated): Goalkeeper - Deaglan Vernon. Defenders - Dominic Corr, Sean Paul Conlon, Tiarnan Russell, Jack McGuigan (P6), John Quinn. Midfielders - Anna McComb, Shaun Lyttle (P5), Gerard McDaid, Charlie McDowell. Forwards - Mark Herdman (P5), Danny McKee, Conor Ryan, Conor Cooper. Holy Rosary Girls Report by Caoimhe Gallen (P7) Our Player of the Week was Shauna (Watterson) because she found a new talent in a new position. Her normal position is defence, but Miss McCarroll tried her up front and she scored a number of goals and played really well. Charlotte (McKee) scored a lovely point from a hand-pass over the bar and was really strong, as was Jacqueline (Kelly) in midfield, winning lots of ball for our team and skilfully moving it on. Our goalkeeper Catherine didn’t let in a goal even though she’d never been a keeper before. The whole team had a good attitude and after losing the first match we all came back and tried our best in the remaining matches. It was especially good to see all the P5’s playing - Caoimhe and Aine were outstanding, and Vika made history by becoming the first Polish player to represent the school in Gaelic games. Holy Rosary squad: Caoimhe Gallen, Shauna Watterson, Naomi Moreland, Charlotte McKee, Jacqueline Kelly, Caoimhe McLaughlin, Medb Wills, Aine Wills, Catherine Brown, Geraldine McCabe, Rachel Clinton, Deboroh O’Neill, Wika Zakrzewska. 2008 PREVIEW Year Seven of the South Belfast News Schools League sees the continuation of a successful partnership between the weekly newspaper and Bredagh GAC. Together, they have given a tremendous boost to Gaelic games in the south of the city since 2002.   “The League started out with clubs just in the Bredagh area”, recalls this year’s Tournament Organiser Ciaran O’Keefe, “but now it takes in teams from Malone, Ballyhackamore, the Short Strand and Carryduff. This makes for some tremendous competition between the schools and it has raised the overall standard and profile of Gaelic games across two counties”.   While the Bredagh club runs the League each year, Ciaran recognises the importance of the South Belfast News sponsorship. “There’s an awful lot of superb voluntary work that goes into it but we also need financial backing to make it a success, from hiring pitches to buying medals for each player and prizes for All Stars”.   “Furthermore, the kids love to open the newspaper every Wednesday morning and see the terrific picture spreads from the previous week’s games in the League. This helps create a real buzz among the Primary School community”.    Last year, the headlines on Finals Day went to St Bernard’s, St Bride’s and St Matthew’s. The hero for St Bernard’s boys was Ross Hannigan when his kick from a sideline ball dramatically landed on top of the crossbar and rolled over for a point.   Ross also won an All Star and is this year’s captain of St Bernard’s. “I’m not sure if we’re as good this year”, he says, “but we could improve and get better as it goes on”.   St Bernard’s girls captain Emma Duffy agrees. In fact, she has a lot in common with Ross – they’re both 11 years-old, they’re both midfielders and they’re both big Tyrone fans!   “I’m related in some way to the Tyrone goalkeeper Pascal McConnell and I go there for holidays every year. I’m confident they’ll beat Down in the Championship replay!”   Three more All Stars from 2007 are back this year – Odhran Devlin (Holy Rosary - PICTURED ABOVE IN ACTION LAST YEAR), Lorcan McGleenon and Emer McGrady (St Joseph’s Carryduff) – while Ella Durkan (St Michael’s) won an All Star in 2006. She is following in the footsteps of older brother Tim who won an All Star in 2004 and another brother James who played in 2007.   “This is my third year in the Schools League and I’m still only P6!” says Ella (PICTURED ABOVE PLAYING IN THE 2007 LEAGUE), “I love playing in the games and I’ll be giving everything for our girls team”. Also from St Michael’s, Declan Lynas celebrates his 10th birthday this week and reckons that his school will be strong in both the football and hurling games. “We have Niall Smyth, Ruairi Rylands, Eoin McCafferty, George Horner, Daire McCumiskey, Cormac Meehan, Tiarnan O’Callaghan and more. They’ve all done really well with Bredagh and now they want to do well with their school teams”.   Over at St Matthew’s in the Short Strand, they have another Bredagh star in 9-year-old Shaun Lyttle and they’re dreaming of a third Schools League title in-a-row. Mr Coyle’s team have won Group B for the last two years and Tiarnan Russell is hoping they can keep up the winning habit. “We have a different team this year with two P5s – Shaun and Mark Herdman – and Anna McComb at midfield, Sean Paul Conlon, Dominic Corr and goalie Deaglan Vernon who’s also our captain”.   Up in Carryduff, Miss Early has her teams primed for the League with Amy Hamill captaining the girls. The tall P7, who has a twin brother Ryan on the boys team, will be helped by the ‘twin towers’ in attack – Sinead Early and Emer McGrady - as well as Clare McGinnity from famous Fermanagh stock. The dynamic Michael Keane will captain the Carryduff boys, helped by 2007 All Star Lorcan McGleenon.   Hurling and camogie are undergoing a revival at Holy Rosary where Anne Costello has been coaching. As a result, players like Naomi Moreland have been tempted to return to the game and she’s really looking forward to competing along with other dual stars Shauna Watterson and Caoimhe McLaughlin. The Sunnyside school will also play in the hurling blitz with Odhran Devlin a key player. His older brother Kaelan won the hurling Player of the Tournament a few years ago and has gone on to play in All Ireland Féile competitions with Bredagh. And in football, Holy Rosary boys have talented players such as Michael Brown and Christopher Carson, while the girls have Caoimhe Gallen and Charlotte McKee.   The hurling and camogie blitz is this Friday, while weeks 2 and 3 of the SBN Schools League for boys and girls football will take place in Cherryvale on the next two Tuesdays, June 17th and 24th. THE SOUTH BELFAST NEWS WILL HAVE PICTURES FROM THE LAUNCH AND FROM ALL THE GAMES, OUT EVERY WEDNESDAY. DAY FIVE, May 29th 2007 tournament organiser Marty Hannity thanked the South Belfast News for their invaluable sponsorship of the Schools League when he addressed the large crowd at the end of Finals Day. Marty welcomed Sports Editor Ed McGinley to make the presentations and he thanked 'the man above' for blessing the League with perfect weather over the five Tuesdays! Teachers, Bredagh coaches, parents, the City Council (for the use of the pitches), referees and Down coaches were all added to the 'Thank You' list, while last but not least was Marty's wife Cait for her versatile role as assistant organiser! Marty concluded his remarks by congratulating all of the children who took and he reminded them that 'it really isn't all about winning. Go back to your clubs and enjoy your football". The Bredagh coaches who helped out included regular referee Boyd Devlin, Eamon Mulvenna, Eugene Irwin, Sean Cunningham and Una McKay. PICTURES are courtesy of the SOUTH BELFAST NEWS. The paper on Wednesday will have much more of the same. OVERVIEW - it was 'double' day on Finals Day with three schools each collecting two trophies each. St Bride's boys stormed their way to the Blitz title with their 'A' team turning up this week while their girls team regained the Group One title after beating St Joseph's Carryduff in the final. St Matthew's made it a 'double double' by winning both titles in Group Two for the second year running, while St Bernard's boys and girls also won silverware. Their boys were fortunate enough to hold onto their lead at the top of the Group One League with a solitary point from their three games. That point came from a last-minute sideline kick from Ross Hannigan against Carryduff, the ball bouncing on top of the crossbar and rolling over for the point they needed. St Bernard's girls were rewarded for their hard work and progress by winning the Group Two title. RESULTS BOYS FOOTBALL Group One St Michael’s 3-3 St Joseph’s C’duff 1-1 St Bride’s 1-6 St Bernard’s 0-2 St Bride’s 1-4 St Michael’s 0-4 St Joseph’s C’duff 1-3 St Bernard's 1-3 St Michael’s 2-5 St Bernard’s 1-1 St Bride’s 3-3 St Joseph’s C’duff 2-0 Group One Table St Bernard’s -- 19 pts St Michael’s – 18 pts St Joseph’s C’duff – 10 pts St Bride’s – 7 pt Group One Report St Bride's made a nonsense of their position on the overall League table by winning all three games on their way to the Blitz title, which was up for grabs for results only on Finals Day. The Malone boys signalled their intentions right away by beating leaders St Bernard's by seven points. Conor Leonard inspired St Bride's from midfield, scoring a point from the sideline, while Sean McKernan was rock solid in defence. St Bride's had a closer contest with St Michael's and then accounted for Carryduff in their last game. That left St Bernard's and St Michael's to fight it out for the overall League title, which looked like going to a play-off until Ross Hannigan landed a free on top of the crossbar to claim a draw and his team's only point of the day from the game with Carryduff. St Michael's beat St Bernard's in the last game but it wasn't enough. They were very unlucky to come away empty-handed but the had heroes on the day in James Durkan, Daire McPeake and captain Niall Kelly who scored all three goals in the win over Carryduff. BOYS FOOTBALL Group Two Results St Matthew’s 6-1 St Joseph’s B’hack 0-1 Scoil an Droichid 2-4 St Joseph’s B’hack 0-0 St Matthew’s 4-4 Scoil an Droichid 1-1 Note: Holy Rosary did not play this week. Group Two Report Curtis McMahon from St Matthew's applied a spectacular finish in the decisive game of Group Two against Scoil an Droichid to finish their campaign in style. Coming in from the left, Curtis crashed the ball into the top far corner of the net. St Matthew's were always too good for their opponents and indeed for Group Two over the last two years, dropping only a few points on the way to their 'double double'. Group Two Table St Matthew’s -- 23 pts Scoil an Droichid -- 15 pts Holy Rosary -- 10 pts St Joseph’s B’hack -- 0 pts GIRLS FOOTBALL St Joseph’s C’duff 1-2 St Bernard's 0-4 St Bride’s 4-3 St Michael's 0-0 St Joseph’s C’duff 0-3 St Michael's 0-2 St Bride’s 2-6 St Bernard’s 1-1 St Bernard’s 0-4 St Michael's 0-2 St Bride’s 1-4 St Joseph’s C’duff 0-2 Girls Report A year is a long time in girls football at schools level! St Bride's players and their teacher remembered their defeats in the tournament in 2006 by a very strong team from St Joseph's Carryduff. They responded by working even harder than before to make sure they raised their game for the League in 2007. Their rewards finally came with victory over Carryduff to regain the title they last held in 2005. Three captains went up to claim the trophy from Tournament Organiser Marty Hannity after their success - Niamh Dunford, Niamh McCann and Julie Curran. St Bernard's were the other big winners, taking the Group Two title after a narrow win over an unlucky St Michael's team. Emma Duffy, Aisling McFarland and Catherine Conaghan were their trio of stars. St Michael's had a consolation in the All Star award for Zimbabwe-born Tandi Dube, who only started playing Gaelic Football during the Schools League. ALL STARS Four new All Stars were named at Finals Day -- Odhran Devlin (Holy Rosary), Fearghal Leyden (St Bride's), Proinsias Crickard (Scoil an Droichid)... ... and Thandi Dube (St Michael's), pictured above with Tournament Organiser Marty Hannity. The previous All Stars are Niamh Dunford (St Bride’s), Ross Hannigan (St Bernard’s) and Conal Kelly (St Matthew’s), Lorcan McGleenon (St Joseph's Carryduff), Declan Stewart (St Michael's), Joe McGrattan (St Josephs B'more)... ... Siobhan Cunningham (Holy Rosary - pictured above with Conor Laverty), Emer McGrady (St Joseph's Carryduff), Anna Holland (St Bernard's). DAY FOUR, May 22nd OVERVIEW - with one week to go to Finals Day some teams signalled their intentions with spirited displays while others kept their cards close to their chest. It was the usual tight affair in Boys Football Group One with no-one winning all of their games. That said, St Bernard's maintained their four-point lead at the top and are within touching distance of the League title. Points on the last day count towards the League and to the Blitz trophy so it's all down for decision on Tuesday, May 29th. St Matthew's made virtually sure of retaining the Group Two title, while in Girls Football it's all very close with teams improving all the time and most of them capable of beating one another. RESULTS BOYS FOOTBALL Group One St Bernard’s 2-0 St Michael’s 0-3 St Joseph’s C’duff 2-1 St Bride’s 0-2 St Joseph’s C’duff 3-2 St Bernard's 1-1 St Michael’s 1-3 St Bride’s 1-0 St Michael’s 1-3 St Joseph’s C’duff 0-5 St Bernard’s 4-2 St Bride’s 1-0 Group One Table St Bernard’s -- 18 pts St Michael’s – 14 pts St Joseph’s C’duff – 9 pts St Bride’s – 1 pt Group One Report One of the best things about the Schools League is the way players improve rapidly through the competition. Some of them may never have played Gaelic Football before or maybe they never got the chance to shine in their club but all of a sudden they play well for their school, grow in confidence and become heroes! One example of this is St Michael's goalkeeper Eoin McCloskey who starred in his team's defeat of St Bride's. Eoin made a superb double save and came out to clear the ball when faced by three forwards. Other unsung heroes for St Michael's were subs Tom Doherty and Daire Cumiskey. The Ravenhill boys also beat Carryduff by just one point after a thriller. Conor Costello's goal and points from Deccie Stewart and Niall Kelly (free) saw them home. St Bernard's had their own unsung heroes in their game with St Bride's. Conor Doran scored a goal and crashed another shot off the crossbar, while little Pauric Woods showed an eye for goal, as did Sean McGourty. The highlight of the game was a point kicked from a sideline ball on the half-way line by Ross Hannigan, with the ball bouncing over the bar. However in the last game St Bernard's surprisingly lost to Carryduff. Hannigan again gave them the advantage with a screamer into top corner of the net but Carryduff took over from there with a Lorcan McGleenon point sparking a comeback. St Joseph's showed that when they turn it on they can beat the best. Their most improved players are Diarmuid Magorrian, Michael Keane (in the blue boots!), Paul Moran and Declan McGoran. BOYS FOOTBALL Group Two Results St Matthew’s 2-2 Scoil an Droichid 2-0 Scoil an Droichid 2-3 St Joseph’s B’hack 0-1 St Matthew’s 2-2 Holy Rosary 2-0 Holy Rosary 1-8 St Joseph’s B’hack 0-1 Holy Rosary 1-5 Scoil an Droichid 1-2 St Matthew’s 4-3 St Joseph’s B’hack 0-1 Group Two Report The hero this week was Holy Rosary goalkeeper Sé Campbell. Wearing his favourite Armagh jersey, Sé made a series of brave saves in the game with St Matthew's. On one occasion he tipped a piledrive over the bar. Still, the Short Strand team won by two goals. Saoirse McFarland got one of them, pouncing on a rebound after a great save by Campbell. Group Two Table St Matthew’s -- 17 pts Scoil an Droichid -- 12 pts Holy Rosary -- 10 pts St Joseph’s B’hack -- 0 pts GIRLS FOOTBALL St Joseph’s C’duff 1-2 Holy Rosary 0-1 St Bride’s 3-1 St Bernard’s 1-0 St Bernard’s 0-3 Holy Rosary 0-2 St Michael’s 1-3 St Bride’s 0-3 St Joseph’s C’duff 1-2 St Bernard's 0-0 Holy Rosary 1-1 St Michael’s 1-1 St Bride’s 2-0 Holy Rosary 0-1 St Bride’s 0-0 St Joseph’s C’duff 0-0 Girls Report Imelda Walker, St Bernard's assistant coach, was full of praise for her team after three gruelling games. "I am so proud of them all. Eimear O'Prey is in P4 but she was brilliant, Catherine Colgan was terrific in goals, Caroline Caulfield was great in defence, and others like Megan Coll, Sarah Guerin, Hannah Scullion and Aine Donnelly played really well". Carryduff won two games to show that they are in the mood to retain their title. Amy Hamill played a stormer and the injured Sinead Early played through the pain barrier to help her team to victory. St Michael's continue to improve and they deserved a draw with Holy Rosary. Thandi Dube and Rosa O'Farrell were stars once again, while Anna Hollywood in defence, captain Bria Kane at midfield and Hayley McKeever in goals all stood out. For Holy Rosary, Shauna Watterson defended with grit, Lauren Shannon scored, Jacqueline Kelly fought for every ball and Charlotte McKee caught every ball! DAY THREE - May 15th OVERVIEW - Never mind the Haarlem Globetrotters at the Odyssey, the main attraction on Tuesday was the Schools League in Cherryvale! The pupils of St Bernard's were lucky enough to attend both events and they certainly enjoyed themselves in the afternoon, as usual. Their boys won both of their games to stay top of Group One, though the big story in Girls Football was a first win for St Michael's. RESULTS BOYS FOOTBALL Group One St Bernard’s 0-3 St Michael’s 0-1 St Bernard’s 0-4 St Joseph’s C’duff 0-3 St Michael’s 2-4 St Joseph’s C’duff 1-4 Note: St Bride’s did not attend this week. Group One Table St Bernard’s -- 14 pts St Michael’s – 10 pts St Joseph’s C’duff – 5 pts St Bride’s – 1 pt Group One Report This week's report is about one match - the see-saw thriller between St Bernard's and St Joseph's which ended in a narrow 0-4 to 0-3 win for the Rosetta Reds. They went behind in the first-half, trailed by 0-2 to 0-0 at the break, then levelled, then went behind again, then levelled again and finally won the game with a long-distance free from Dominic McConville. It was a terrific game, with the Carryduff boys deserving at least a draw. In particular, they had the Man of the Match in Number 12 Nicholas Turkington (pictured above). His accurate left boot curled over two lovely points in the first-half. St Bernard's were under realy pressure and needed some superb defending by Mark Patterson and Daniel Devlin, as well as a brilliant save by goalkeeper Christopher Ferry to keep them in the contest. In the second-half, Ross Hannigan fired over two points for St Bernard's. Lorcan McGleenon responded with another point for Carryduff, but the champions showed their character by winning the game with two points from McConville. BOYS FOOTBALL Group Two Results St Matthew’s 2-1 Scoil an Droichid 1-1 Scoil an Droichid beat St Joseph’s B’hack Holy Rosary 1-4 St Matthew’s 1-3 Holy Rosary 4-1 St Joseph’s B’hack 0-1 Scoil an Droichid 4-1 Holy Rosary 1-1 St Matthew’s 1-2 St Joseph’s B’hack 0-3 Group Two Report The most amazing piece of defending ever seen in the history of the Schools League came in the game between Holy Rosary and St Matthew's. It was a cracker of a game with the yellows taking a five-point lead and then hanging on to win by a point. They had lost the last six to St Matthew's so they defended desperately in the closing stages. At one point the ball broke near the Holy Rosary goal and it was driven low but Jamie McReynolds came from nowhere to block the shot on the line. The ball rebounded to another St Matthew's forward who looked certain to score but McReynolds somehow got up and dived full length across the goal to again prevent a goal! No wonder the Holy Rosary team celebrated at the end. St Matthew's responded by winning their other two games, including a close contest with Scoil an Droichid, who also won two games. Group Two Table St Matthew’s -- 11 pts Scoil an Droichid -- 10 pts Holy Rosary -- 6 pts St Joseph’s B’hack -- 0 pts GIRLS FOOTBALL St Michael's 3-0 St Joseph’s C’duff 2-2 St Bride’s 1-2 St Joseph’s C’duff 1-1 St Joseph’s C’duff 1-2 Holy Rosary 0-2 St Bernard’s 1-2 St Bride’s 0-3 Holy Rosary 3-5 St Michael’s 1-0 Holy Rosary 0-4 St Bernard’s 2-0 St Bride’s 4-3 St Michael’s 0-1 Report Thandi Dube was the hero for St Michael's girls team in getting their first score at this year's SBN Schools League. The Zimbabwe-born girl sent a rocket to the Carryduff net on only her second week playing Gaelic Football. The Ravenhill girls went on to record a famous morale-boosting win by 3-0 to 2-2; they really are getting better every week. Rosa O'Farrell was another new hero on his first ever time playing the sport, while Ella Durkan arrived from orchestra practice just in time to call the right tune for St Michael's on the football pitch! Other stars were Marie Therese Lavery (another newcomer), Anna Hollywood, Clare Lynas and goalscorer Meabh Downey. DAY TWO - May 8th OVERVIEW - This was another great day out for dozens of boys and girls from so many schools, even including the pupils and teachers from St Bernard's who took part in the League despite a Baker Day at their school. Now that's commitment! They were rewarded by their boys team holding onto top spot in Group One and by their girls recording three fabulous results. RESULTS BOYS FOOTBALL Group One St Joseph’s C’duff 1-2 St Bride’s 0-2 St Michael’s 2-0 St Bernard’s 0-2 St Bernard’s 3-0 St Joseph’s C’duff 0-2 St Joseph’s C’duff 3-2 St Michael’s 3-1 St Michael’s 7-3 St Bride’s 2-3 St Bernard’s 3-4 St Bride’s 1-1 Group One Table St Bernard’s -- 10 pts St Michael’s – 8 pts St Joseph’s C’duff – 5 pts St Bride’s – 1 pt Group One Report We predicted last week that St Michael's would improve and that's exactly what they did. With team captain Niall Kelly available from the start, the Ravenhill lads won two matches and came within a whisker of a clean sweep, only losing a thriller to Carryduff by a point, 3-2 to 3-1. St Michael's had already beaten St Bernard's with goals from Conor Costello and Ruairi Doyle (as pictured above), and they showed commendable spirit to bounce back from the Carryduff defeat with a whopping 7-3 to 2-3 defeat of St Bride's. Declan Stewart was simply unstoppable in this game, bagging at least four goals! Daniel Cunningham deserves credit as one of the emerging P6 stars in St Michael's, while a number of Carryduff players deserve credit for their considerable improvement from the first day. Jack Ferrin is becoming a strong and key defender, Nicholas Turkington and Mark Hynes are left-footed lynchpins, Michael Keane's Mayo dad must be proud of his stylish play, and Lorcan McGleenon did his talking with an eye-catching pair of yellow and grey boots! St Bernard's also showed their champions spirit by taking the last game of the day over St Bride's. All Star Ross Hannigan, wearing Number 5, showed some lovely touches and scored a goal from the sideline, while Dominic McConville rammed a penalty to the corner of the net to make sure of victory. This all meant that the top three teams each won two games and lost one, so St Bernard's stay top. BOYS FOOTBALL Group Two Result St Matthew’s 2-7 St Joseph’s B’hack 0-1 Group Two Report There is no doubt that the boys from Ballyhackamore are improving at a terrific rate. Even though the scoreline does not suggest it, they are starting to get the hang of the game and are giving a tremendous effort. Some are new to Gaelic Football and some are more used to other sports, but they all have guts and determination so watch them in future weeks! St Matthew's had too much guile on the day, with lovely little footballers like Charlie McDonnell creating and scoring great goals from half-forward. Special mention also goes to goalkeeper Daniel McDonnell and defenders Anthony McKeown and Philip Hill. Group Two Table St Matthew’s -- 7 pts Scoil an Droichid -- 6 pts Holy Rosary -- 2 pts St Joseph’s B’hack -- 0 pts GIRLS FOOTBALL St Bernard’s 1-0 St Joseph’s C’duff 0-3 St Bernard’s 2-1 St Michael's 0-0 St Bride’s 1-2 St Michael’s 0-0 St Bride’s 0-7 St Joseph’s C’duff 0-4 St Bride’s 0-1 St Bernard’s 0-2 Report What a performance by St Bernard's, and what drama in the last game of the day! Playing against a talented St Bride's team, the girls from Rosetta took a 0-2 to 0-0 lead in the closing stages when Anna Holland soloed upfield and fired over a superb point. St Bride's replied by launching one last attack in the very last minute. They went for goal and looked like getting it when a shot beat the St Bernard's goalkeeper, but defender Emma Duffy appeared from nowhere to somehow tip the ball over the bar and secure a great victory. Maybe Emma was inspired by the Tyrone jersey she was wearing! St Bernard's also drew with Carryduff and beat St Michael's to complete one of their best ever days in girls football. In one of the other top games, St Bride's won a high-scoring battle with reigning champions Carryduff, scoring an excellent seven points in the process. DAY ONE - May 1st Superb sunshine greeted the start of the sixth year of the South Belfast News Schools League on Tuesday, May 1st in Cherryvale. New Tournament Organiser Martin Hannity was delighted with the weather, the standard of football and the smooth-running of the first day of the SBN Schools League for 2007. "A lot of hard work went into planning the event weeks in advance so it was gratifying to see everything go so well", said a relieved Martin. "We had a team of helpers on the day from Bredagh and from County Down GAA Coaching staff, which helped enormously". RESULTS BOYS FOOTBALL GROUP ONE St Joseph’s C’duff 1-2 St Bride’s 1-2 St Bernard’s 2-5 St Michael’s 2-1 St Bernard’s 2-3 St Joseph’s C’duff 2-2 St Michael’s 1-4 St Joseph’s C’duff 1-0 St Michael’s 3-1 St Bride’s 1-3 St Bernard’s 4-0 St Bride’s 0-2 Table St Bernard’s -- 6 pts St Michael’s – 4 pts St Joseph’s C’duff – 1 pt St Bride’s – 1 pt REPORT Reigning champions St Bernard's picked up where they left off in 2006 by winning all three games on Day One. Led by captain Conor Francis (pictured above), the boys from Rosetta had a bit to spare in the victories over St Michael's and St Bride's, though they only edged out Carryduff by a single point at the end of a terrific battle. The excellent Dominic McConville intelligently set up the winning goal for Number 10, little Sean McGourty, who bravely drove the ball to the roof of the net. St Michael's also had a good Day One with two victories, with Conor Costello, Deccie Stewart and James Durkan all starring in the four-point defeat of St Bride's. The Ravenhill lads have shown that they have the talent to challenge St Bernard's this year. BOYS FOOTBALL GROUP TWO St Matthew’s 1-5 Holy Rosary 0-1 Scoil an Droichid 1-3 St Joseph’s B’hack 0-0 Holy Rosary 2-0 St Joseph’s B’hack 0-1 Scoil an Droichid 2-1 St Matthew’s 1-3 St Matthew’s 2-0 St Joseph’s B’hack 0-0 Scoil an Droichid 1-3 Holy Rosary 0-1 REPORT Scoil an Droichid (pictured above) were the surprise package with a 100 per cent record thanks to some very determined play. Oisin Smylie and Eadoin Ni Chiarrain were the expected stars, though great credit must also go to the rest of the team. Mark Sykes, Fionn Price and young Pearse Crane from P4 all deserve praise for their efforts in giving their school one of its best ever days at the Schools League. St Matthew's are still a strong force in this group, even though they lost their first game in two years to Scoil an Droichid. Captain Francis Rice and Pearse McCrory got the goals in the win over Ballyhackamore. St Joseph's battled really well and showed great potential for future weeks, with Rachel Barton, goalkeeper Paul Johns and Daniel Bell in defence all catching the eye. Table Scoil an Droichid -- 6 pts St Matthew’s -- 4 pts Holy Rosary -- 2 pts St Joseph’s B’hack -- 0 pts GIRLS FOOTBALL Holy Rosary 1-0 St Joseph’s C’duff 1-0 St Bride’s 3-3 St Michael’s 0-0 St Bride’s 3-2 St Bernard’s 0-0 St Joseph’s C’duff 3-1 St Michael’s 0-0 St Bernard’s 1-3 Holy Rosary 1-1 St Bride’s 0-5 St Joseph’s C’duff 1-0 REPORT There were some splendid performances over the six games with players from all teams impressing. There was 'double trouble' from the Holy Rosary pair of Aoife King and Siobhan Cunningham, ably assisted by Caoimhe Gallen and Charlotte McKee. The Sunnyside girls deserved a great draw with Carryduff, thanks to a goal by Sadhbh Breslin. St Michael's had some girls playing their first football match, yet they showed that they have the ability to make a big impression in the weeks to come. From goalkeeper Hayley McKeever right up to the forwards, St Michael's have bags of enthusiasm. Reigning champions Carryduff are again strong, though the only unbeaten team were St Bride's who have a new Schools League All Star in Niamh Dunford. However, it's not all about the star players. Niamh is the first to realise that every player in the squad is valued because they all try just as hard as her, so girls like Shannon Devlin and Aoife Lavery in the subs have an important role to play in the Schools League. SCHOOLS LEAGUE PREVIEW Boys Champions 2006 winning captain Stevie Dougal became the third pupil from St Bernard's to lift the Schools trophy, following in the footsteps of Conor McCloskey (2003) and Ben Scullion (2005). The 2007 captain is Conor Francis: “We are lucky to have good footballers, good teachers and a good team spirit in the school”, says Conor. The squad has been preparing for the start of the League extra practice after school. Girls Football The girls competition just gets better every year. St Joseph's Carryduff swept all before them last year but their rivals are determined to put up a better challenge this year. St Bride’s captain Niamh McCann says they are taking the League “very seriously after the disappointment of last year”, while St Michael’s captain Bria Kane is hopeful that her school team can improve dramatically in 2007. Carryduff will no doubt be strong again, especially with birthday girl Shannon Stronge as their captain. She turned 11 on Tuesday April 24, exactly one week before the start of the League. “My coach Mrs Early says I live up to my name because I am a strong player”, says Shannon who loves to play Gaelic Football and supports Armagh. However, she has higher expectations of her school team than for her favourite county as “it’s not looking good for Armagh at the minute”. Good Advice The SBN Schools League is organised and run by youth coaches from Bredagh GAC, though it benefits many boys and girls from different clubs in the south of the city and beyond. Teachers and pupils are asked to arrive at Cherryvale for the start of the League as promptly as possible so that the games can run smoothly. That way, children can be collected on time at the end of each week’s play. Bredagh also thanks Belfast City Council for their help with the pitches and of course the SBN for their invaluable sponsorship. It’ll be fun, it’ll be fast and it’ll be every Tuesday in Cherryvale. Pop along if you can to lend your support and remember it’s not all about winning – enjoy! BOYS TEAMS Holy Rosary Captain – Patrick O’Halloran Coaches – Mr McElroy, Mr Cahill Players to watch - Jamie McReynolds, Odhran Devlin It’s almost difficult to believe that Holy Rosary actually won the first year of the SBN League, back in 2002, because they haven’t been in serious contention in the last few years. 2007 captain Patrick O’Halloran is hopeful that after-school practice will see them get back to winning ways. “We also have Odhran Devlin whose brother Kealan was a good player for the school a few years ago”, adds Patrick. St Bernard’s Captain – Conor Francis Coacb – Mr McTaggart Players to watch – Dominic McConville, Conal Gormley, Thomas Gallen Captain Conor Francis has great memories of last year’s competition when he helped the school become the first to win the SBN Cup back-to-back: “I remember having fun, being very happy and scoring a goal”. St Bernard’s have lost quite a few of their history-making squad but they still have former All Star Dominic McConville among another strong squad of players. St Bride’s Captains – Caolan McGarvey Coach – Mr Duffin Players to watch – Feargal Leyden, Sean McKernan New captain Caolan McGarvey reckons that injuries took their toll on his school’s chances last year, but he’s full of confidence this time round. “We have Fergal Leyden who can whack the ball 500 metres and is very skilful. And, Sean McKernan is a great man-marker”. Caolan accepts that he might be exaggerating a little bit about Fergal’s ability but the point is well made – watch out for St Bride’s! St Joseph’s Ballyhackamore Captain – Aljoe Francline Coach – Mr Donnelly Players to watch – James Keane, Joe McGrattan, Euan Carson The boys from Ballyhackamore have always played their games in the Schools League in the right spirit and that is sure to continue with manager Mr Donnelly, captain Aljoe Francline and vice-captain Euan Carson. It really isn’t all about winning, it’s about doing your best and enjoying the competition. Mind you, they did pick up a trophy as well a couple of years ago, The rest of the squad is: Sean Shuttleworth, John Smith, Corrin Penman, Mark McGrattan, Michael Campbell, Paul Thomas Johns, Joe Thomas Johns, Chelsea Braga, Daniel Bell, James Foy, Karl McEvoy, Rachel Barton and Niamh McGuire. St Joseph’s Carryduff Captain – Mark Hynds Coach – Mr Baines Players to watch – Mark McGoran, Nicholas Turkington, Jack Ferran “My job as captain means encouraging the rest of the players to do well” says Mark Hynds, who has also captained the school soccer team and is aware that the girls team won their League in 2006. “We need to improve because our boys team has been slipping a bit for a few years”. He rates Mark McGoran as a good defender, Nicholas Turkington as a good attacker, and says Jack Ferran “isn’t afraid”, while he himself will play in midfield. St Matthew’s Captain – Francis Rice Coach – Mr Coyle Players to watch – Curtis McManus, Philip Hill, Robert Allen, Conal Kelly, Pearse McCrory 2006 All Star and captain Francis Rice is back for St Matthew’s but he knows that it will hard to better last year’s team because they didn’t lose a single game. “I would like to do the same again because we won two cups. We have more good players and Mr Coyle is a good trainer”, says Francis who will be playing in the Schools League for the third successive year. Án Droichead Captain – Eadaóin Ni Chiarráin Players to watch – Prionnsais Crickard, Oisin Ó Smaolaigh. Tiarnan Ni Chiarráin You can be sure that 10-year-old Eadaóin Ni Chiarráin and her older brother Tiarnan will give everything for their team in the games coming up. They are committed players and quite similar in speed and ability, though Eadaóin reckons that Tiarnan is “a bit taller” than her. Lorcan Ó Smaolaigh is not at the school any more but his brother Oisin is sure to be a key player, as will Prionnsais Crickard. St Michael’s Captain – Niall Kelly Coach – Mr Duggan Players to watch – Aidan Donaghy, James Durkan, Ruairi Doyle, Conor Costello, Donal O’Kane Captain Niall Kelly remembers playing in the Schools League four years ago when “they were all massive” but now he’s the leader of the team. The 11-year-old is backed up by Bredagh team-mates like Aidan Donaghy, Declan Stewart, Conor Costello and Donal O’Kane. “Some good players have left the school but we still have a lot of good players in the squad”, says Niall. GIRLS TEAMS The 2006 Girls Football All Stars Holy Rosary Captain’s Call – Caiomhe Gallen is “really pleased” to have been made captain of the school team because “we have lots of good players”. Aoife King and Siobhan Cunningham are just two of them. They were excellent in the League last year and are both still at the school. St Bernard’s Captain’s Call – Aislinn McFarland reckons that St Bernard’s chances are good this year because they have “more gaelic players than before and they are all from Bredagh”. She picks out Ellen McGourty and Hannah Scullion as two of their best players. St Bride’s Captain’s Call – Niamh McCann is delighted to have been picked as leader by Miss Joyce but she feels that the team really has three captains – herself, Niamh Dunford and Julie Curran. “The other two girls are brilliant and they will help me out all the time. Also, Abigail Carlton’s dad has been helping with some coaching so we will be ready”. St Joseph’s Carryduff Captain’s Call – Shannon Stronge thinks her school has “a great team and are capable of bringing the cup back to St Joseph’s”. She admits they are a bit small but says they are still strong with good players like Sinead Early, Emer McGrady and Niamh Gorman. They also have Amy Hamill, Eimear Rooney, Katie McGuigan, Emma Papafio, Laura Reid, Anna Jackson, Claire McGinnity, Katie McKenna and Katie Magorrian. St Michael’s Captain’s Call - Bria Kane is hoping that some dual stars from the school’s camogie team, like Anna Hollywood, and the three Downey sisters will help the team improve on last year. Eimear is the eldest of the Downey girls still at the school, while the twins, Meabh and Ciara, are now in P5. Ella Durkan is another key player for St Michael’s, who are coached by Miss Mullan. Boys Finals Day Tuesday, June 13th - the Group One League winners were St Michael's, the Group One Cup winners were St Bernard's, and the double champions in Group Two were St Matthew's. The Player of the Tournament in Group One was Michael Robinson (pictured above), while Francis Rice took the award for Group Two. They were both presented with All Stars jerseys, as were four others - Lorcan Smylie (Scoil an Droichid), Gerard Whyte (St Michael's), Niall Quinn (St Bride's) and Caolan Schiable (Holy Rosary). RESULTS Boys Football Group One St Joseph's 3-4 St Bride's 3-2 St Bernard's 1-8 St Michael's 2-5 St Bernard's 3-2 St Joseph's 1-0 St Michael's 1-6 St Bride's 0-5 St Joseph's 2-4 St Michael's 1-2 St Bernard's 2-5 St Bride's 1-2 Table from Finals Day only (for the Cup) St BERNARD'S 5 pts St Joseph's Carryduff 4 pts St Michael's 3 pts St Bride's 0 pts Final Overall Table (for the League Shield) St MICHAEL'S 20 points St Bernard's 15 pts St Joseph's Carryduff 11 pts St Bride's 9 pts REPORT Finals Day has become one of the best days in the entire Bredagh calendar for drama, intensity and high-quality performances from the best Primary School footballers in South Belfast. This year was no different as the opening matches set the tone. First, St Bride's came from seven points down to edge ahead of St Joseph's and then lose to a last-minute goal, 3-4 to 3-2. 'The Battle of the Bredagh Boys' - St Michael's and St Bernard's fought out a superb draw in the second match. Joe Shields smashed a penalty to the net for St Michael's but St Bernard's took their points well and looked to be 'in the zone' on Finals Day, no doubt inspired by the first appearance of the season on the sideline by manager Mr McTaggart. Incredible Energy - the Rosetta lads then had to go straight into another tough encounter against St Joseph's. It was a crunch game as the Carryduff boys had already picked up two points and could have taken advantage of St Bernard's tiredness from the previous match. However, that counted for nothing as Player of the Tournament Michael Robinson drove his team forward with incredible energy. He was all over the pitch, blocking one minute in defence and then setting up Stevie Dougal for a cracking goal at the other end. Michael got a goal himself and Stevie added a second to complete a very impressive victory. The whole team deserves credit - Niall Fitzpatrick, Lorcan McMullan, Conor Francis, they were all excellent. Dramatic Finish - St Michael's had to beat St Brides to remain in contention for the cup and this they did, by four points. The last two games were then played at the same time on adjoining pitches - St Bernard's had to beat St Bride's and St Michael's had to beat Carryduff to force a play-off. At half-time, both games were close. In the second-half, St Bernard's pulled away to win but St Michael's faded and lost to Carryduff. Tribute to Mr Donnelly - the Cup belonged to St Bernard's for the second year in-a-row and the third time in five years - a tremendous achievement and a great credit to their teachers, parents and Principal Mr Dessie Donnelly, who is set to retire. At the presentation of awards, Bredagh tournament organiser Jerome Quinn paid tribute to Mr Donnelly for his support of the Schools League and for doing so much to promote camogie, hurling, girls football and boys football in his school. 'The rewards were clearly seen last week at the Girls Finals Day and again today with the boys taking the cup again'. History for St Michael's - the Ravenhill Road boys may have been pipped at the post on Finals Day but they had the major consolation of becoming the first team from St Michael's to win a football trophy in the Schools League. They were the best attenders over the seven weeks through driving rain, stormy weather and finally the sunshine. Led by inspirational captain Joe Shields, a two-time All Star, and new All Star Diarmaid Kielty, they picked up points along the way to have an uncatchable lead on Finals Day. They still managed an excellent win over St Bride's and a draw with St Bernard's in one of the best matches of the whole League. The St Michael's boys showed that they were worthy winners of the Shield. Goalkeeper Gerard Whyte, who had to take over the previously excellent Jack Carlin when he got injured, won an All Star for his efforts, while Conor Costello, Ruairi Cumiskey, Declan Stewart and Niall Kelly were just some of the names who played themselves into the history books. PICTURES ARE COURTESY OF THE SOUTH BELFAST NEWS - MANY MORE BRILLIANT PHOTOS WILL APPEAR IN THE PAPER ON WEDNESDAY. Boys Football Group Two St Matthew's 4-3 Scoil an Droichid 0-1 Holy Rosary 4-5 Scoil an Droichid 2-6 St Matthew's 3-4 Holy Rosary 1-2 Note: St Joseph's Ballyhackamore did not take part Final Table St Matthew's 24 pts Scoil an Droichid 15 pts Holy Rosary 12 pts St Joseph's Ballyhackamore 0 pts Report - never has one team dominated a section in the Schools League by as much as St Matthew's did this year. Managed by Bredagh senior footballer Fergus Coyle, they never dropped a point and duly claimed the double of Cup and Shield. Captain Richard Gowdy proudly collected the trophies while new All Star Francis Rice was named Player of the Tournament for Group Two. ROLL of HONOUR (updated) BOYS FOOTBALL SBN Group One Cup Winners 2002 - Holy Rosary 2003 - St Bernard's 2004 - St Brides 2005 - St Bernard's 2006 – St Bernard’s SBN Group One League Winners 2004 - St Brides 2005 - St Bride's 2006 - St Michael’s SBN Group Two Cup Winners 2002 - Holy Rosary 2003 - St Bernard's 2004 - St Matthew's 2005 - St Joseph's, Ballyhackamore 2006 – St Matthew’s SBN Group Two League Winners 2005 - St Joseph's, Ballyhackamore 2006 – St Matthew’s GIRLS FOOTBALL SBN Cup Winners 2004 - Scoil and Droichid/St Josephs, Ballyhackamore (amalgamation) 2005 - St Bernard's 2006 – St Joseph’s Carryduff (Group One), Holy Rosary (Group Two) SBN League Winners 2005 - St Bride's SBN All Stars 2003 - Daniel Kelly (St Joseph's), Donal McKegney (St Michael's), Jack Duffin (Holy Rosary), Michael Magee (St Michael's), Conor McCloskey (St Bernard's), Jamie Cleary (Holy Rosary), Michael McGabhann (Scoil an Droichid), Niall Wright (St Bernard's), Peter Mooney (St Bride's), Patrick Doherty (St Matthew's). 2004 - Daniel Nolan (St Bernard's), Tim Durkan (St Michael's), Ciaran Fitzpatrick (Holy Rosary), Ronan McGrady (St Bride's), Glen King (Holy Rosary), Anna Finnegan (St Bride's), Ciara McGuire (St Joseph's), Sammie Jo Boyle (St Matthew's), Seán Mac an Bheanta (Scoil an Droichid), Ciaran Vernon (St Matthew's), Damien Connolly (St Joseph's), Gearóid McComb (Scoil an Droichid), Joe Shields (St Michael's), Niall Boyd (St Bernard's), Maria Sykes (Scoil and Droichid), Natasha Corvan (St Matthew's), Cathy Short (Holy Rosary), Sarah Deazley (Holy Rosary), Ben McCaughey (St Michael's), Kealan Devlin (St Michael's), Peita McAllister (St Michael's). 2005 - Emer Murtagh (St Michael's), Eadaíon Ní Chiarráin (Scoil an Droichid), Rachel Goldsmith (St Bernard's), Mary Carson (St Bride's), Aine Donnelly (Holy Rosary), Peter Lavery (St Joseph's B'hack), Rory Flanagan (St Bride's), Ben Scullion (St Bernard's), Declan Magee (St Michael's), James Lavery (St Joseph's, C'duff), Richard Gowdy (St Matthew's), Seán Mac an Bheanta (Scoil an Droichid), Eamonn Kelly (Holy Rosary), Gemma Mullan (St Michael's), Joe Shields (St Michael's), Dominic McConville (St Bernard's). 2006 - Meabh Downey (St Michael's), Seamus McCann (St Joseph's Carryduff), Catriona Montague (St Bride's), Diarmaid Kielty (St Michael's), Fiona White (St Bernard’s), Niall Fitzpatrick (St Bernard’s), Conor Gibson (St Joseph’s Ballyhackamore), Siobhan Cunningham (Holy Rosary), Cliodhna Devenny (Scoil an Droichid), Éadoin Ni Chairrain (Scoil an Droichid), Sarah McCoy (St Bernard’s), Jessica Foy (St Joseph’s Carryduff), Ciara Downey (St Michael's), Ella Durkan (St Michael's), Caitriona McVeigh (Scoil an Droichid), Eimear Downey (St Michael's), Lorcan Smylie (Scoil an Droichid), Gerard Whyte (St Michael's), Niall Quinn (St Bride's), Caolan Schiable (Holy Rosary) PICTURED ABOVE, Michael Robinson (St Bernard’s), Francis Rice (St Matthew’s). Girls Finals Day Tuesday, June 6th - fantastic weather made for a wonderful spectacle in Cherryvale as six different school teams served up sunshine football on Finals Day. St Joseph's Carryduff are the new Group One champions after they beat St Bernard's and St Bride's in some style. They justified their favourites tag and played excellent football to bring the first girls trophy to the school. Team captain Ciara Crosbie lifted the cup to loud cheers from a large crowd of girls, boys, teachers and parents who had come down from Carryduff to support the team. Holy Rosary (pictured above) won Group Two after beating Scoil an Droichid and St Michael's, albeit narrowly. They scored five points against Scoil who only managed a goal from new All Star Éadoin Ni Chairrain. The massively improved St Michael's then beat Scoil as well to set up a grand finale. They led at half-time but Holy Rosary were driven forward by Shauna Leitch, Aoife King and Siobhan Cunningham. Eventually, the Sunnyside girls came good on the sunniest of days to claim the Shield which was collected by captain Niamh McKinney. All Stars - St Michael's had the consolation of picking up All Stars for the Downey girls Ciara and Eimear to complete a family set. Another pocket rocket, Ella Durkan, also won one of the specially made jerseys. Tournament Organiser Jerome Quinn explained that the All Stars were aimed at both rewarding the best players and encouraging others who had improved on weaker teams throughout the League. "We had P4s playing this year and giving a superb account of themselves, particularly at St Michael's. They are the future of the League in the next few years". There was also an All Star for Caitriona McVeigh from Scoil an Droichid. Never mind Charlie's Angels, here's Ed's Angels! SBN Sports Editor Ed McGinley with the new All Stars. From left, clockwise - Meabh Downey, Éadoin Ni Chairrain, Sarah McCoy, Jessica Foy, Ciara Downey, Ella Durkan and Eimear Downey. Players of the Tournament - St Joseph's Carryduff had the League's outstanding performer on Finals Day and throughout the competition in Jessica Foy. Along with Ciara Crosbie, this deadly duo were simply the best! Jessica was presented with an All Star jersey while the Player of the Tournament in Group Two had joint winners in Sarah McCoy (St Bernard's) and Éadoin Ni Chiarrainn (Scoil an Droichid). Sarah's long kicks and dynamic running were a feature of the Girls League this year, while Éadoin's skilful runs and spectacular goals won her a second All Star in two years. Group One Results St Joseph's Carryduff 4-2 St Bernard's 2-1 St Bride's 1-1 St Bernard's 1-1 St Joseph's Carryduff 3-2 St Bride's 0-3 Group Two Results Holy Rosary 0-5 Scoil an Droichid 1-0 St Michael's 3-1 Scoil an Droichid 1-1 Holy Rosary 1-3 St Michael's 1-1 Final League Table St Joseph's Carryduff 20 pts Holy Rosary 14 pts St Bride's 12 pts Scoil an Droichid 9 pts St Bernard's 7 pts St Michael's 7 pts Special Guest - Ladies Football Development Officer Una McKay from the Ulster Council handed out posters and goodies after praising all the girls for their efforts in the League. She told the girls that they could go on from here to play for their club and county all over Ireland and even in America, as she had done. Thanks - Jerome Quinn thanked Una, the Down Coaching Officers who refereed the games, parents and teachers for perservering even on the terribly wet days of the League, Trevor from the City Council for putting out the goalposts, the sponsors for their superb spreads in the newspaper, and of course the players for their enthusiasm and good behaviour which made the 2006 League a lot of fun and a great success. All Stars 7, 8 & 9 St Bernard's won two awards this week - Fiona White... ...and Niall Fitzpatrick... ... as well as Conor Gibson from St Joseph's Ballyhackamore. Week Six Report Tuesday, May 30th - a great day for St Bernard's as their boys took full points in Group One and they claimed two new All Stars in Fiona White and Niall Fitzpatrick. The weather was kind though some teams were missing for various reasons. Boys Football Group One St Bernard's beat St Bride's St Bride's beat St Michael's St Bernard's beat St Michael's Note – St Joseph’s did not play this week St Bernard's are back with a bang! After missing a few weeks recently, the 2005 Blitz champions showed that they are in the mood to retain their title in two weeks time. Referee and Down footballer Conor Laverty described their first-half display against St Bride's as one of the best he's seen in the entire competition this year. With Conor Francis sweeping up at the back, Lorcan McMullan spraying visionary passes through the midfield in the style of Brian McGuigan (Conor's words!), and Niall Fitzpatrick helping himself to a brilliant 3-4, St Bernard's were just too hot to handle. Niall ended up winning an All Star jersey, though it could have gone to any one of several outstanding players. Michael Robinson was their best performer in the defeat of St Michael's, while last year's All Star Dominic McConville (still only P6) made a terrific contribution which included a goal against League leaders St Michael's. The Ravenhill Road boys were handicapped by only having eight players to call on at the start because of a clash of fixtures with a soccer match. When the cavalry arrived, Declan Stewart and Joe Shields kicked superb points, but it wasn't enough and St Michael's ended the day without a point. St Bride's took three points from their win and they will of course be at full strength for Finals Day on June 13th. By the way, Conor Laverty said that one of the reasons he chose Niall Fitzpatrick for an All Star was his attitude on the pitch. That means he didn't give any back chat! Boys Football Group Two Scoil an Droichid beat St Joseph's B'hack Note – St Matthew’s and Holy Rosary did not play this week With only two teams available this week, St Joseph's and Scoil an Droichid played three 15-minute games. The Ballyhackamore boys continue to show great heart and enthusiasm even though they were beaten on the day. Their reward was an All Star jersey for team captain Conor Gibson, though they all deserve great credit. Lorcan Smylie was in red-hot form for Scoil an Droichid as they showed that they may just give St Matthew's a run for their money on Finals Day. Girls Football St Bride's 6-2 St Bernard's 4-1 St Michael's 8-4 Scoil an Droichid 7-0 Note – St Joseph’s and Holy Rosary did not play this week Two evenly-contested contests made for great viewing and both sets of players gave guest referees Simon Francis and Paul Boyd Junior no problems! The St Bride's-St Bernard's encounter flowed from end-to-end with Catriona Montague and Sara Toner scoring goals for St Bride's one minute and then new All Star Fiona White and Sara McCoy replying at the other end quickly after. Sara was a powerful midfield force with strong running, long kicks and great passing, while Fiona showed a touch of class in front of goal to round defenders and find the net. St Bride's though had the stronger all-round team with Celia Durkan excellent in defence and Julie Curran dangerous in the forwards, where she scored a fine goal. In the second match, St Michael's and Scoil an Droichid had a fabulous tussle with an amazing fifteen goals in the game. Éadoin was once again the star performer, though St Michael's tackled back in waves to try and block her way to goal. The Downey twins were like little terriers and Ella Durkan was everywhere, so things kind of evened themselves out and there wasn't much in it at the end. It's all set up nicely for Girls Finals Day next Tuesday, when St Joseph's and Holy Rosary will be back. Week Five Report Tuesday, May 23rd - there was a full turn-out in Cherryvale and some great football played between and during the showers! A record 19 games were played between 14 teams across four pitches and they were all of a high standard, which was a credit to all of the players and their teachers/coaches. Boys Football Group One St Michael's 2-5 St Joseph's C'duff 3-2 - a draw St Bride's 4-2 St Bernard's 2-1 St Bride's 2-2 St Joseph's C'duff 0-1 St Joseph's C'duff 1-2 St Bernard's 0-2 St Bride's 4-2 St Michael's 1-3 St Michael's 2-2 St Bernard's 0-5 St Bride's won all of their games in another very competitive day's football in Group One. But despite picking up six points, the Malone Road boys are still well behind pacesetters St Michael's who earned three points from their games and have built up an unassailable lead. A hard-fought draw with Carryduff and a narrow 2-2 to 0-5 defeat of St Bernard's did the trick for them. Inspired by new All Star and player/manager Diarmaid Kielty, this team has a never-say-die attitude which they hope will make them the first team from their school to win the League. Another factor has been the outstanding displays in goals by Jack Carlin. Boys Football Group Two St Matthew's 3-2 Holy Rosary 1-0 Scoil an Droichid 3-2 St Joseph's B'hack 1-2 Holy Rosary 4-2 Scoil an Droichid 3-0 St Matthew's 5-2 St Joseph's B'hack 0-0 Holy Rosary 1-1 St Joseph's B'hack 1-0 St Matthew's 3-2 Scoil an Droichid 0-0 Despite missing a few key players, St Matthew's again dominated Group Two with three wins and only one goal conceded. In fact, Mr Coyle's team hasn't dropped a single point in the competition so far and are certain to claim the League title. There's also the cup to won on Finals Day and there are signs of improvement from Holy Rosary who picked up four points. This included a dramatic one-point win over a battling St Joseph's team who were unlucky not to claim their first point. Girls Football Holy Rosary 0-3 St Michael's 0-0 Holy Rosary 4-5 Scoil an Droichid 1-1 St Michael's 4-2 Scoil an Droichid 3-2 St Bernard's beat Holy Rosary St Bride's 1-7 St Joseph's C'duff 1-6 St Bernard's 2-2 St Bride's 0-0 St Bernard's 1-5 St Joseph's C'duff 1-1 St Bernard's showed a remarkable improvement to beat top dogs St Bride's and St Joseph's, though the latter two were understrength this week. Sarah McCoy and Aisling Boyd were among the stars for St Bernard's as they returned from a two-week break with a vengeance. They look like coming good at the right time, as they did in 2005 when they won the Cup on Finals Day. Everyone Beware! Meanwhile St Michael's girls enjoyed their very first win, which was a just reward for all their hard work. Two new All Stars.. .. were presented with their jerseys - Siobhan Cunningham from Holy Rosary (above) and Cliodhna Devenny from Scoil an Droichid (below). Many thanks to Bredagh coaches Marty Hannity and Eamon Mulvenna for their invaluable help with the running of the 19 games. All Stars 3 & 4 The latest 2006 South Belfast News All Stars jerseys were presented after Week Four on Tuesday, May 16th. The winners were Catriona Montague from St Bride's, pictured above, and Diarmaid Kielty from St Michael's, pictured below. Week Four Report Tuesday May 16th - the heavens opened right at the start of Week Four and made for very difficult playing conditions, but the games went ahead and there was some tremendously competitive football in both the girls and boys Leagues. The players, supporters and mentors from all teams deserve immense credit for playing and watching through the driving rain. After a while, they didn't seem to notice how wet it actually was! In the Girls League, St Bride's showed a remarkable improvement from previous weeks to give runaway leaders St Joseph's Carryduff their toughest game yet. The Malone Road belles made light of the conditions and were led superbly by team captain Caitriona Montague, whose individual display won her a new All Star jersey. As the game went on, the St Bride's team got better and better, with great heart and skill shown by Sara Toner, Celia Durkan, Sara Smart and Rachel Flynn. St Joseph's still managed to win the game with another towering performance from captain Ciara Crosbie and of course Jessica Foy, Aimee Lavery and Aine Kerr. In the Boys League, only Group One was in operation this week but the action was of a very high standard and all three games were very close. St Michael's continued their good run of form with a win over St Bride's and a hard-fought point against Carryduff. The latter game needed a last-minute free to save the day. St Joseph's had already beaten St Bride's (by just one point) and were closing on a clean sweep when the equaliser came. Joe Shields and new All Star Diarmaid Kielty were the most influential players for the Ravenhill Road school but the whole team showed a steely determination to remain unbeaten. They look like the best team ever to come out of the school and have plenty of up-and-coming talent with stars such as Niall Kelly, Ruairi Cumiskey, James Durkan and Ruairi Doyle. They all had to thank goalkeeper Jack Carlin for an outstanding display between the posts. With just three weeks to go, things are hotting nicely in the Schools League, though the same cannot be said of the weather conditions so far!. Boys Football St Joseph's Carryduff beat St Bride's (by a point) St Michael's beat St Bride's St Michael's drew with St Joseph's Carryduff Girls Football St Joseph's Carryduff beat St Bride's St Bride's beat St Michael’s Week Three Report Tuesday, May 9th - in stark contrast to last week, the League was blessed with glorious sunshine and terrific football right across Cherryvale. Boys Football, Group One On the back corner pitch, St Michael's beat Carryduff in a full-pitch encounter by 7-9 to 5-7. This was a cracking game with St Joseph's taking command early on and St Michael's hitting back with a 20-yard screamer to the roof of the net from Joe Shields and two close-in goals by poacher supreme Conor Costello. The scores flowed in a high standard game which was a credit to both sets of players. St Bernard's and St Bride's did not compete this week. Boys Football, Group Two St Matthew's again reigned supreme with three wins. They beat Holy Rosary by 4-3 to 1-3 and also beat Scoil and Droichid and St Joseph's. Holy Rosary showed great improvement to get close to St Matthew's and to pick up points from a draw with Scoil an Droichid and a narrow win over St Joseph's by 1-1 to 1-0. In the final game, Scoil an Droichid beat St Joseph's. Girls Football, Groups One and Two Carryduff were again very strong in a one-sided game against St Bride's, while the action in Group Two was most entertaining. The three teams were a good match for one another and the games were therefore close and exciting. Holy Rosary pair Aoife King and Siobhan Cunningham played superbly well in their 1-4 to 0-0 victory over St Michael's. The Sunnyside girls then lost to Scoil an Droichid by 3-0 and 0-2, while in the third game Scoil an Droichid had another win by 2-3 to 1-3 over St Michael's. Ella Durkan from P4 is starring for St Michael's. PICTURES are COURTESY of the SOUTH BELFAST NEWS - they have 4-page picture spreads on the Schools League every Wednesday. All Stars 1 & 2 The first of the 2006 South Belfast News All Stars jerseys were presented after Week Three on Tuesday, May 9th. St Michael's pocket dynamo Meabh Downey caught the eye of Co Down Coaching Development Officer John Morgan in Group Two, while Seamus McCann from St Joseph's Carryduff had a brilliant game in defence for his team in Group One against St Michael's. Week Two Pictures Action from St Joseph's Ballyhackamore against St Matthews. Joe McGrattan of St Joseph’s has one hand on the ball, watched by team-mate Sean Shuttleworth. St Bernard’s Dominic McConville with the ball and faced by Seamus McCann from St Joseph’s Carryduff. PICTURES COURTESY of the SOUTH BELFAST NEWS - they have 4-page picture spreads every Wednesday in their paper. Week Two Report Tuesday, May 2nd - It was more like Winter than Summer at Week Two of the South Belfast News Schools League in Cherryvale. Gale force winds and driving rain made for difficult playing conditions for the 150 bravehearts. Pitches had be to realigned because of the danger of goalposts falling over and the County Down coaches (Conor Laverty, Marcus Miskelly and John Morgan) had to earn their money by taking impromptu warm-ups and training drills. Some games were played but they eventually had to be abandoned for the day and all results were considered null and void. Still, the usual enthusiasm was very much on show, with all of the boys and girls performing brilliantly in their matches. Note was taken of the best displays as the 2006 South Belfast News All Stars jerseys will be handed out shortly. The first few to be presented will be judged on performances so far. The competition organisers would like to thank all of the teachers and parents were perservering in the conditions, as well as Bredagh Coaching Director Marty Hannity and Belfast City Council. Week One Reports BOYS FOOTBALL Champions St Bernard's needed a last-gasp equaliser from Lorcan McMullan to avoid defeat by St Michael's in a thrilling encounter on Week One of the SOUTH BELFAST NEWS SCHOOLS LEAGUE. With time almost up and the Rosetta Reds trailing by a point, Lorcan got the ball from a sideline free and fired the ball over the bar to make it 1-7 apiece. However, the star performer for St Bernard's was undoubtedly Michael Robinson who showed his Bredagh coaches that he may have a future as a forward! Michael kicked some superb scores in both the opening victory over Carryduff and in the draw with St Michael's. Similarly, Diarmaid Kielty scored goals for the Ravenhill Road school in their three-point win over Carryduff and he punched the ball to the net in the drawn game. Over in Group Two, St Matthew's stormed their way through their three games to take full points. They scored a total of 13-9 and only conceded 1-4 so they look like very strong contenders already for the 2006 titles. Christor Devlin and Curtis McMahon started the rout with two goals each in their opening victory over Scoil an Droichid. The Scoil recovered really well to win their next two games, while Holy Rosary got off the mark with a win over Ballyhackamore. GIRLS FOOTBALL Down captain Benny Coulter refereed Group One and was very impressed by the girls from St Joseph's Carryduff. Goals from Aine Kerr, Ciara Crosbie and Jessica Foy saw the purples beat St Bernard's in their first match. They followed by beating St Bride's and finished with a narrow win over a combined team in a challenge game. Elsewhere, Eadaoin Ni Chirrain starred for Scoil an Droichid in their two victories, while Holy Rosary enjoyed a narrow win over St Michael's. P4 star Ella Durkan scored the only goal for St Michael's, who should be stronger in weeks to come. Week One Results BOYS FOOTBALL Group One St Bernard's 4-6 St Joseph's Carryduff 0-5 St Michael's 4-3 St Joseph's Carryduff 2-6 St Bernard's 1-7 St Michael's 1-7 Group Two Scoil an Droichid 2-1 St Josephs's B'hack 0-0 St Matthew's 4-1 Holy Rosary 1-3 Holy Rosary 1-2 St Josephs's B'hack 0-3 St Matthew's 4-3 Scoil an Droichid 0-0 St Matthew's 5-5 St Josephs's B'hack 0-1 Scoil an Droichid 1-3 Holy Rosary 0-2 Note: St Bride's boys did not compete this week. GIRLS FOOTBALL Group One St Joseph's C'duff 3-7 St Bernard’s 0-0 St Bride's 0-5 St Bernard's 0-1 St Joseph's C'duff 1-7 St Bride's 0-2 St Bride’s 2-3 Holy Rosary 0-0 St Joseph’s C’duff 1-2 The Rest 1-1 Group Two Holy Rosary 1-1 St Michael's 1-0 Scoil an Droichid 2-1 Holy Rosary 1-1 Scoil an Droichid 1-2 St Michael’s 0-0 Match Days Tuesday, April 25 - Boys and Girls Football Tuesday, May 2nd - Boys and Girls Football Tuesday, May 9th - Boys and Girls Football Tuesday, May 16th - Boys and Girls Football Tuesday, May 23rd - Boys and Girls Football Tuesday, May 30th - Boys and Girls Football Tuesday, June 6th - Girls Football - Finals Day Tuesday, June 13th - Boys Football - Finals Day A Schools League for Hurling and Camogie is being planned for later in the year. Competition Preview St Bride’s captain Rory Finnegan says his team is ‘hungry to win’ this year, Rory McFlynn has taken over the captaincy at St Joseph’s Carryduff from his brother Conor and wants to go one better than him by winning the League, while St Michael’s look strong with two-time All Star Joe Shields and Diarmaid ‘The Rock’ Kielty. Make no mistake… the teams are up for it this year! CHAMPIONS St Bernard’s won the Finals Day Blitz competitions last year in both boys and girls football, but they recently received a setback when their coach, Mr Kieran ‘Mourinho’ McTaggart, was injured. However, boys captain Stephen Dougal remains confident because they have Michael Woods fresh from being the star in their school play and he is also a star on the pitch. Holy Rosary captain Caolán Schaible is modest in his ambitions as he ‘doesn’t want to lose every match’, while St Joseph’s Ballyhackamore have Patrick Nunez who is new to Gaelic Football, and the An Droichid star could be Prionnsais Crickard because he’s very fast. GIRLS FOOTBALL In the Girls League, St Bride’s will again be strong contenders especially as Cliodhna McGrady is ‘tough because she’s got brothers’, while St Michael’s captain is known as ‘Lightning’ Lucy Mullan, but St Joseph's Carryduff look to to be the strongest of all after their Week One performances. Holy Rosary have Catriona ‘Treeny’ Beeny, St Bernard’s have netball star Aideen Murphy and Carryduff have three ‘Meghans’ on their team. SUPPORT Bredagh GAC, organisers of the Schools League, would like to thanks to all of the captains and teachers for their cooperation. It’ll be fun, it’ll be fast and it’s every Tuesday in Cherryvale. Pop along if you can to lend your support and remember it’s not all about winning – enjoy! BOYS TEAM PROFILES Holy Rosary Boys Captain – Caolán Schaible Manager – Mr McElroy Player to watch – if you watch Kieran (Cleary) you’ll learn he’s really fast and a whole-hearted defender. He’s a hard tackler and good at clearing the ball My team – Calum’s nickname is ‘Sheep’ and he’s good at saving shots. If our team learn to play together and train hard it will become hard to beat us Aims – put more effort into our matches, enjoy and don’t lose every match Players - Calum McSorley, Ryan Devlin, James Clinton, Jamie McReynolds, Patrick McCarney, Kieran Cleary, Caolán Schaible, Conor Maneely, Patrick O’Halloran, Alex McConaghy, Odhran Devlin, Matthew McCamley, Lee Hallan, Matthew McNally, Barry Linden St Bernard’s Captain – Stephen Dougal Manager – Mr McTaggart Player to watch – Lorcan McMullan because he’s strong and hard My team – Michael Woods is a good actor on the pitch and off the pitch! Aims – Stephen would like to repeat last year when he scored the goal to win the Blitz Players – Lorcan McMullan, Michael Woods, Nicholas McCafferty, Stephen Dougal, Michael Deery, Conor Francis, Dominic McConville, Conor Gormley, Conor Dunlop, Niall Fitzpatrick, Michael Robinson St Bride’s Captains – Rory Finnegan and Cathal Conway Manager – Henry Duffin Player to watch – Marc Campbell because he is good at catching and passing the ball. He is a great midfielder. My team – we have a great team because they are well motivated and hungry to win. Rory Finnegan and Gerard Henvey are great characters. Aims – to win the League for the third year running Players - Gerard Henvey, Niall Quinn, Rory Finnegan, Cathal Conway, Marc Campbell, Kevin McGovern, Feargal Leyden, Jack McGrath, Michael Shannon, Conor McKaigue, Jarlaith McCotter, Jack Cassidy, Niall Dorman, Gareth Mulholland, Sean McKernan, John Keenan St Joseph’s Ballyhackamore Boys & Girls Captain – Conor Gibson Manager – Conor Donnelly Players to watch – Joy Stacey because she’s a tough and pacy defender. Also Patrick Nunez is a strong player even though he’s new to Gaelic football, and Conor Gibson is a nippy forward. My team – Euan Carson is the goalie, we won the Group Two Blitz and League last year Aims – to defend our titles and to have fun Players – Conor Gibson, James Cropper, Patrick Nunez, Kyle Retrato, Joy Stacey, James Foy, James Keane, Joe McGrattan, Aljoe Frankline, Paul Thomas Johns, Sean Shuttleworth, John Smith, Euan Carson, Carl McEvoy St Joseph’s Carryduff Captain – Rory McFlynn Manager – Mark McGrath Player to watch – Seamus McCann because he tackles ferociously About my team – Rory McFlynn wants to go one better than his brother Conor who was last year’s captain, Rory McDonnell is known as ‘Big D’ for obvious reasons, Michael McGrath is not the manager’s son Aims – To win the League Players – Rory McFlynn, Michael McGrath, Seamus McCann, Ciaran Hynds, Ronan McGrady, Cormac Rafferty, Sean McGonigle, Dominic Lavery, Ryan McKee, Conor McGeough, Rory McDonnell St Matthew’s Captain – Richard Gowdy Manager – Mr Fergus Coyle Player to watch –Christopher McGuinness for his Owen Mulligan dummy My team – Conor Prior is faster than a greyhound, Darren Cunningham is a goalkeeper in the Bruce Grobelaar mode, and Richard Gowdy is a great defender Aims – to make up for losing last year’s Group Two Final in a sudden death play-off Players – Curtis McManus, Philip Hill, Richard Allen, Adam Brady, Christor Devlin, Christopher Montgomery, Conal Kelly, Darren Cunningham, Richard Gowdy, Conor Prior, Christopher McGuinness, Stephen Bennett, Francis Rice Ciombhan Curran Án Droichid Boys & Girls Captain – Lorcán Ó Smaolaigh Manager – Niall Loughran Player to watch – Prionnsais Crickard because he’s very fast My team - we have a mixture of P5s, P6s and P7s from different clubs and some great boys and girls players Aims - to play with pride and courage! Players - Ruairi, Caolán, Fintan, Joshua, Ciaran, Éadaoin, Caitriona, Cliodhna K, Cliodhna, Aine,Saorlaith, Oisin, Naomi, Tiarnán, Daniel, Jamie-Leigh, Orfhlaith C, Orlaith, Fionn, Ryan, Proinsias, Aimeé, Ciara, Cliodhna, Lorcán. St Michael’s Boys Captain – Joseph Shields Manager – Miss Mullan Player to watch – Joe Shields because of his accuracy My team – Diarmuid Kielty is ‘The Rock’ because he is rock solid at the back Aims – to win the League for the first time Players - Joe Shields, Diarmuid Kielty, Gerard Whyte, Niall Kelly, Ruairi Cumiskey, Aidan Donaghy, James Durkan, Ruairi Doyle, Jonathan McMurray, Conor Costello, Jack Carlin, Anthony McManus, Daniel Mulvenna, Donal O’Kane GIRLS TEAMS Holy Rosary Captain – Niamh McKinney Manager – Mr Cahill / Mrs O’Donnell Players to watch – Genny and Shauna because they both show skill and are improving all the time My team – we have Shauna ‘Leitchy’, Catriona ‘Treeny’ Beeny, Katherine ‘Wilko’, Genny ‘Berhaugus’ and Sarah is ‘Sazza’ Aims – to have fun, improve and win Players – Niamh McKinney, Genny Kerr, Shauna Leitch, Kathryn Wilkinson, Sarah Maxwell-Kelly, Catriona Smith, Oonagh Stewart, Eliza Heathwood, Fodhla Gallagher, Siobhan Cunningham, Lauren Shannon St Bernard’s Captain – Catherine Conaghan Manager – Mr McTaggart Player to watch – Sara McCoy because she’s really fast and she scored the winning goal last year My team – Aideen is tall and good at catching the ball, she’s good at netball too Aims – to win the Blitz again Players – Aideen Murphy, Sara McCoy, Aisling Macklin, Catherine Black, Catherine Conaghan, Fiona White, Briona Collins, Aisling Boyd St Bride’s Captain – Caitriona Montague Manager – Otterin Joyce Players to watch – Sara Toner because she is a good back and Celia Durkan because she is great in defence My team – Sara Smart is a great goalkeeper, Cliodhna McGrady is tough because she’s got brothers, and Helen is small but good at getting the ball out to a player Aims – to win both the League and Championship Players – Sarah Toner, Caitriona Montague, Sarah Smart, Rachel Flynn, Theresa Cullan, Celia Durkan, Niamh Woods, Helen Morgan, Nuala Bogue, Niamh McCann, Niamh Dumford, Julie Curran, Shannon Duke, Cliodhna McGrady St Joseph’s Carryduff Captain – Ciara Crosbie Manager – Mary Early Player to watch – Jessica Foy because she has a deadly left foot My team – just shout for ‘Meghan’ because we have three of them Aims – we are geared up for this! Players – Ciara Crosbie, Meghan Murtagh, Megan Connery, Meghan Doherty, Orla McKay, Jessica Foy, Aimee Lavery, Aine Kerr, Ellen Hagan, Aoife McCrory, Clare McKnight, Emma Boyd, Ciara McMahon St Michael’s Captain – Lucy Mullan Manager – Miss Mullan Players to watch – Paula, Liadh and Lucy because they have played in the League before My team – ‘Killer’ Liadh, ‘Goldilocks’ Christine, Paula ‘Golddigger’, ‘Lightning’ Lucy Aims – to win 3-5 matches Players – Christine Gargan, Liadh White, Paula McKay, Eimear Downey, Bria Kane, Orla Melott, Anna Hollywood, Hailey McKeever, Rosa O’Farrell, Katie McVeigh, Lucy Mullan. 2005 REVIEW If you’ve never got along to see a day of the South Belfast News Schools Leagues, you are missing out! Tuesday afternoons in Cherryvale in the Summer term are a blur of activity with upwards on 145 girls and boys playing Gaelic games. The standards are very high and the drama is as good as Croke Park itself. Add the sheer enjoyment of the players, teacher and spectators, and you have great entertainment. A new development was the introduction of a Girls Football League competition every week, alongside the two pitches given over to the Boys League. This worked brilliantly with terrific contests, not least on Finals Day when a Paul Doran-inspired St Bernard’s upstaged pacesetters St Michael’s and St Bride’s, though the latter took the overall League honours. Holy Rosary were Group Two winners. Finals Day in the Boys Football League was even more dramatic with extra-time required in both sections before St Bernard’s pipped St Bride’s, St Michael’s and new boys St Joseph’s Carryduff to the title. St Joseph’s Ballyhackamore took the honours in Section B ahead of Holy Rosary, St Matthews and Scoil an Droichid. An important development was the participation of the schools in Co Down Cumann na Bunscoil Blitzes for the first time. This was agreed after meetings in three schools with Bredagh personnel, and saw St Michael’s girls and boys footballers, as well as hurlers and camogs (see picture above), attending days in Downpatrick and Annsborough. Arising from this, several players got to play at half-time in Ulster Championship matches, including Deccie Magee, Tim Durkan, Ronan McKegney and Niall Irwin. Some of the schools also played in Co Antrim competitions. The hurling/camogie blitz saw St Michael’s retain both cups with captain and top scorer Niall Irwin leading the way with six superb goals. Down manager John Crossey selected Joe Shields for an All Star jersey, to add the football All Star he won in 2004. Holy Rosary competed well with Eoghan Curran catching the eye, while Ciaran McFarland and P5 Dominic McConville were best for St Bernard’s. In the Camogie League, Mary Holland lifted the cup for St Michaels and Gemma Mullan won an All Star. John Crossey (refereeing in the picture above) was assisted by Conor Lavery and Lisa McCrickard, and he has become a regular visitor to all of the schools, which is an invaluable service. Thanks also to Belfast City Council Support for Sport their backing, and to Deirdre Fitzpatrick for help in raising funds. Of course, there’s no way it could all happen without the South Belfast News. The Leagues have grown in tandem with the newspaper over the last four years, and their fabulous coverage has been central to our development. ALL STARS Specially-designed jerseys were presented to the 2005 winners: Peter Lavery (Ballyhackamore), Rory Flanagan (St Bride's), Ben Scullion (St Bernard's), Declan Magee (St Michael's), James Lavery (Carryduff), Richard Gowdy (St Matthew's), Seán Mac an Bheanta (Scoil an Droichid), Eamonn Kelly (Holy Rosary), Emer Murtagh (St Michael's), Eadaíon Ní Chiarráin (Scoil an Droichid), Rachel Goldsmith (St Bernard's), Mary Carson (St Bride's), Aine Donnelly (Holy Rosary), Gemma Mullan (St Michael’s) and Joe Shields (St Michael’s). Schools Fixtures/Games Played in 2005 April 12th - Boys & Girls Leagues – 16 games April 19th - Boys & Girls Leagues – 14 games April 26th - Boys & Girls Leagues – 17 games May 3rd - Boys & Girls League – 14 games May 10th - Boys & Girls League – 12 games May 17th - Boys & Girls League – 19 games May 24th – Boys Football Finals Day – 14 games May 31st – Girls Football Finals Day – 10 games June 7th – Hurling & Camogie Finals Day – 9 games Total – 125 games