U14 County Football team
This year 13 of our students were chosen as part of the U14 Tipperary football team which participated in the Jim Power Memorial Cup Tournament in Waterford on the 7 th October 2006. It was a great honour for the boys to wear their county jersey. The team was captained by Shane Fagan and the team consisted of the following students:
Paul Nolan, Jamie Peters, Billy Hewitt, Liam Glendon, Shane Power, Jonathan Ryan, Michael O’Sullivan, Shane Fagan, Shane Taylor, Dean Horton, Liam Carey, Liam Boland and Eoin Fitzgerald.
U18 ½ Football
The Munster Championship by Michael Feeney
The football season started off with the first round Munster Championship match versus Dungarvan C.B.S. In terrible conditions we managed to grind out a 1-11 to 1-8 victory. However, we knew we needed to improve if we were to progress to win a Munster title. Our next opponents were Milltown of Kerry. The tradition of Kerry football meant we weren’t taking this fixture too lightly. Again in dirty, wet conditions we narrowly won by a point on a score line of 2-8 to 1-10. It was still clear that we hadn’t peaked to the high level we knew we were capable of. Next came Douglas in the Munster semi-final. We knew Douglas had a strong team this year and were tipped for the Munster title. However we were quietly confident that the team this year was strong enough to see off this challenge. From the throw-in we knew we were in for a battle for every ball and every score. It was a scrappy game and we never managed to get out of first gear. As a result we ended up losing by a small margin of two points on a poor score line of 0-07 0-05. This was the hardest defeat I’ve ever had to take as a player. I wanted to bring home the Munster cup to the High School where it belongs but unfortunately it wasn’t to be. Douglas subsequently went on to win the Munster Championship.
The County Championship
The County Championship kicked off with the first round tie versus Nenagh. In horrible conditions we had a two-point victory over a very physical Nenagh side. After that came the challenge of Ballingarry. The game will be remembered for all the wrong reasons but it definitely brought us closer together as a team. We came out of this battle (literally!!) winners by 3-12 to 1-7. Then came the county final against our old rivals the Abbey C.B.S. in Dr. Morris Park under floodlights. This was our best performance all season by far. It was a bitterly cold December night but that didn’t affect the level of intensity. It was a nail biting game of football in which we came out victorious thanks to a last minute penalty save by Emmet Donlon. The final score was 9-8.
Review of season
To be chosen as captain of the High School senior football team has been the proudest moment of my sporting years and I must thank Mr. Gleeson and Mr. Allen for giving me the opportunity. I’m proud to be a High School student, proud to wear the black and red jersey of the High School and even prouder still to have led my teammates into the County and Munster Championship. Honestly, I don’t think I’ll ever forget this particular football team. We were all really good mates and we had an excellent team bond. Every one of us would have died for each other on that pitch such was our team spirit. I don’t think I’ll ever get over the fact that we lost to Douglas and that we’re not leaving the school with a Munster title. The one person that made us close as a team was Shane Gleeson. Shane was the most talented player that I’ve ever had the privilege of playing along side. Shane passed away in 2004 when we were in 3rd year. He was part of our group since first year and his death was the toughest time in all our years in the High School. This season, in our final year, Shane was with us in spirit all through the season and we thought of him in every game we played. Shane was the reason we all cared so much about the Munster Championship this year but unfortunately it wasn’t to be. We will never forget Shane and we will always hold a special place in our hearts for him.
I would like to thank Mr. Gleeson and Mr. Allen, our coaches this season. They wanted the Munster title just as much as we did and they put in an incredible effort and hard work into training and matches. I would also like to thank my teammates and wish everyone all the best for the Leaving Cert and the future. We can all hold our heads up high leaving the High School as County Champions and better footballers as a result!
God Bless.
U15 Football
Our under 15 footballers reached the Munster quarter final beating Listowel in the first round on a score line of 5-15 to 1-3. We played Abbey C.B.S in Cashel and we were beaten by a well-organised and prepared team.
U16 ½ Football
The Under 16 ½ team got off to a great start with a fantastic win over Listowel again. We met Glanmire Community School in the semi- final. This match was a very close encounter with both sides playing some very good football. Eventually we lost to Glanmire by a couple of points. While we were disappointed at the result this team played some excellent football throughout the campaign and hopefully next year we can advance further and win some more silverware.