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U9 boys football tournament in Co. Longford
23 October 2006
Click Here for photos of the trip>>
The Castleknock U9 squad was invited up to Newtownforbes, Co. Longford last Saturday to take part in a Mini-tournament with three other teams from the area. 25 players and 23 parents set off from Tir Na nOg that morning full of energy (well the boys were anyway). We arrived in Newtownforbes at noon all ready to take on anything and anyone.
Normally the U9s play 9-a-side matches, but today it was full a 15-a-side team that we fielded which was a new experience for the players and the mentors. Also a point and a goal were both just worth one point per score.
Game One; Castleknock v. Clonguish
Our first match was against the home team Clonguish, who showed themselves to be a very strong team and pressed us hard right from the start of the match. Castleknock held them off well, with Cian O Neill and John Kindlon battling hard for every ball in midfield, and some great tackling by Mark Owens and Liam Mulroney at the back. The home team went ahead when they scored their first point after 5 minutes, and added goal three minutes later. Castleknock came back with a great run from half-forward Ryan Mc Donnell whose shot went just inches wide. Clonguish kept the pressure on and scored a great point from a free kick 30m. out. Our lads kept going and our No.14 Emmett Gallagher made space for himself, only to have his shot saved by the local goalkeeper Liam Casey. Another point and a goal for Clonguish without reply meant that Castleknock went in at half-time trailing 2-3 to 0-0, which didn’t reflect all the work that the Castleknock lads had put in over the first 15 mins.
The mentors tried to get the lads to forget about the half-time score and concentrate on the second half. A word from our “Motivation Mentor” Cian Mullins gave the lads great encouragement and our aim was to at least outscore the opposition in the second half. Castleknock won the throw-in and Gavin Keane saw his long range shot go just the wrong side of the upright. Then, still in the first minute, Emmett Gallagher got our first score, a well-taken point. Castleknock kept attacking, and Clonguish defended well, but Ryan McDonnell managed to squeeze another point over the bar for us. The local team tried to get on the scoreboard but Conor Gibney and Luke McDonald combined well to keep them at bay. The game was end to end for the next few minutes. We had another couple of chances that we didn’t convert, then Clonguish came back at us and got two scores in quick succession. The game ended 2-5 to 0-2. But the boys didn’t feel too bad because they knew that they had picked their game up, and drawn the second half.
Game Two; Castleknock v. Grattens
Our second match was against Grattens, another team from Longford. Castleknock got off to a flying start with John Carrie and Cian Doogan combining well and keeping the Grattens goalkeeper busy in the first few minutes. Our half-forward Evan McDermott was fouled 20m. out and he scored the opening point from the free kick. Cian Doogan followed up with a brilliant individual goal. The play was all in the Grattens half as Liam Walsh and Barry Neville kept the balls going into our forwards helped out by some great fielding by Robin Martin. This resulted in Castleknock scoring again courtesy of Jamie Bradshaw, who was determined to get on the score sheet after registering a couple of wides earlier. The first half ended with Castleknock ahead 1-2 to 0-0.
In the second half Castleknock didn’t ease off and kept going for scores whenever they got the chance. Ryan McDonnell took a clean catch from a kickout and sent it right back over the bar. Some great team play by Matthew Gallagher, Cian Barbour and Sean Kennedy meant that our goal was never really threatened. We went on score another few points including a fantastic score by midfielder Aaron O’Gara who had hit the bar earlier in the half. We went on to win the game by 1-8 to 0-0.
Game Three; Castleknock v. Gortlettragh
Our last group game was against Gortlettragh from Leitrim. It looked like we were on a roll. Our “Mr. Motivator” Cian Mullins prepared the boys well because Emmett Gallagher, Barry Neville and Cian Doogan each scored a goal within three minutes. Gortlettragh weren’t beaten yet and Castleknock had to defend and Stephen McGinnell, Seamus McCartney and Quahir Waissee working well together and clearing the lines. Gortlettragh scored a goal, which gave them some encouragement, but again Castleknock lads Mark Owens and Liam O Driscoll tackled and blocked to stop any more scores in the first half. Our midfielders took control of the game and won every ball that came into them. Some great passing saw Barry Neville, Liam Walsh, Cian Barbour and Gavin Keane work well together, meaning Castleknock went in at half-time leading 6-3 to 1-0 The scores included an unstoppable shot by John Kindlon from the sideline.
The second half was a bit tighter with the teams trading scores, and Castleknocks David Fahy, playing very well up front with Matthew Gallagher. Gortlettragh were improving, but our defence held out helped by midfielders Aaron O’Gara and Barry Neville. The Leitrim side pulled back 2 points in the last few minutes, but Castleknock won by 6-5 to 1-4. This meant that we qualified for the A Final where were to play Clonguish again, as the top two teams went through.
A-Final; Castleknock v. Clonguish
We fancied having another shot at the home team, who had already beaten us earlier that day. Unfortunately, the first half went along the same lines as the opening match. We gifted them a few early scores by giving away some silly free kicks, which they converted easily. Liam Mulroney and Mark Owens defended well in close, but the opposition were able to score from distance. The first half finished Castleknock 0-0 Clonguish 2-4.
Again, all we could ask the lads to do was to try and tighten up the play and try and get a few scores back. Our lads fought for every ball and we kept the play in the oppositions half and created chances to get back into the game. The Clonguish keeper Liam Casey (Man of the Match) had another great game and nothing was getting by him. We did score a couple of points but Clonguish matched us with another two points. The match finished Castleknock 0-2 Clonguish 2-6.
The boys were very disappointed finishing second, as each one of them played their heart out. We had asked a lot of them to play 4 games in a row, but not one of them complained or asked to be substituted.
Parents, mentors and players would all like to thank Clonguish for the hospitality shown to us on the day. An event like this takes a lot of organisation and we would hope to be in a position to invite Clonguish down to Castleknock in the near future.
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