Club/Universities Blitz
Club/Universities Blitz
October 16, 2017
Mens and Ladies Club/Universities
Development 7’s Tournament
On Saturday the 14th of October, the Tír Chonaill Gaels club played host to a Club and Universities 7’s tournament for both Men and Ladies Gaelic football. The competition featured 4 men’s teams, St Marys (I) and (II), Kingston and Wembley and 6 women’s team, Round Towers, Father Murphys, Kingston, Glenrovers and St Marys (I) and (II) participated in a closely contested tournament with all teams providing a great spectacle for the on looking supporters.
Matches got underway at 11am with each match consisting of 6 fast paced minutes a half. There was one Men’s group with each team playing each other once. First was to play second in the group in the cup final and third and fourth place were to compete for the shield final. The Women’s group consisted of all six teams with the top four teams going through to the cup semi-final and fifth and sixth place competed in the women’s shield final.
The Men’s group got off to a blistering start, high scoring games occurring in almost every game with players having an eye for goal. The six minute halves encouraged fast paced free flowing games which the players enjoyed. Some excellent performances from all teams involved, kept the group close for the top two spots between both St Marys teams and Kingston going into the final round of fixtures. St. Marys (I) final game saw them beat a determined Wembley side to book their place in the Cup final with Wembley competing then for the Shield final. Kingston faced off with St. Marys (II) in the final game of the group to book their place in the Cup Final. Like the previous games, goals were plentiful in this close encounter. St. Marys (II) came through the game booking their place in the Cup Final at the expense of a resolute Kingston who were to face Wembley in the Shield Final. Wembley contested the Shield Final first against a Kingston still reeling from their previous defeat. Wembley began strongly with a few good early chances but Kingston’s quality came through as they finished very strongly to be victorious and win the Men’s Shield Final. Both St. Marys teams competed for the Cup Final.
The Women’s competition like the Men’s began at 11am as well. A lot of football was to be played to determine the Semi-Finalists of the Cup competition with each team having to play 5 games. Round Towers began strongly from the start and didn’t look like letting up winning all 5 of their group fixtures to finish off top of the group with a perfect record. Father Murphys played an excellent few games in the group to finish just behind Round Towers in second place with Glenrovers keeping pace with the front runners to book their place in the Semi-Finals in third place. The final three teams of Kingston and both St. Marys teams battled it out for the final spot in the Cup Semi-Final. All teams competed valiantly but the excellent scoring and skill level of St Marys (II) saw them progress and take the last Cup semi-final spot. Kingston and St. Marys (I) were to play in the Shield Final. The Cup semi-finals first with the draw pitting table toppers Round Towers against St. Marys (II) and Father Murphys against Glenrovers. Both games got underway at 1.20pm and like during the group fixtures, both matches were closely fought and had plenty of scores. Round Towers were too strong for a resilient St. Marys side and booked their place in the Cup Final. Father Murphys played out a brilliant game against Glenrovers and winning by a narrow margin, Father Murphys progressed to the Cup final to face a strong Round Towers side. Kingston and St. Marys (I) played out the Shield Final first. Goals became crucial in this game as Kingston prevailed winning the Shield Final by a margin of 2 goals. The Cup Final followed straight after with all players watching from other teams to see the conclusion of this closely contested Women’s tournament. The high skill levels from both teams led to a high scoring, free flowing game. The game was on a knife edge until the final three minutes when a very strong Round Towers side began to pull away from a tiring Father Murphys side who battled throughout but with no success as Round Towers won the Cup Final in a very enjoyable match.
The medal ceremony followed the final game at the clubhouse as food was provided to a happy crowd of players who all enjoyed hours of football. All teams received medals with Round Towers Women’s team and St. Marys (I) Men’s team receiving winner’s medals. Pictures below of each team receiving their medals.