Athea Utd.

by Pat Mulvihill

2011 ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

Athea Utd held its Annual General Meeting last Saturday night, June 25th in The Memorial Hall.

Secretary’s Report:

Looking back on the past season it wasn’t as successful as previous years with only two sides bringing home silverware, namely the U/17 who won the Desmond Cup with a fantastic 2-1 win over hot favourites Rathkeale while the Junior A’s won the Reidy Cup. Despite not winning at underage level all concerned are looking forward to next season and I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the managers for their work and dedication in looking after our various teams and thanks to all our players who played with pride for the club in 2010/2011.

On the junior front the A’s had an average season in the league but like the previous season reached two cup finals. We again got to the Reidy Cup Final where we atoned for the 2-1 loss to Glantine in 2010 with a 2-0 win over Ferry Rangers with goals from Darren Murphy (pen) and Pa Ahern with skipper Padraig Horgan being the player of the match. The A’s also got to the League Cup Final and were very unlucky to go down 3-2 to league winners Ballingarry after extra time. Scorers on the day for Athea were Tom Collins and Mike Reidy.

For the first time in the clubs history we entered a B team and the consensus is that this is a positive step for the club. Managed by Bobby Barrett the B’s started slowly but as the season progressed they began to improve and had some very good results and finished the season a very impressive third behind St Bens. Not alone that but the B’s also got to the Division 4 League Cup Final where they played Carrig Celtic and were the better side overall but didn’t convert some good chances and lost 1-0 to a late goal.

The U/17s were our only other side to taste success when they came from behind to win 2-1 against Rathkeale on May 14th with the goals coming from Kevin Murphy and Danial Daly with the latter also getting the man of the match award. This was a fantastic achievement considering that all the panel were all under sixteen bar one so well done again to all concerned.

The club was again well represented with a number of our players representing their leagues: Timothy Tierney and Sean Ryan were selected for the LDSL U/11 Academy, Ronan Hayes was involved with the Limerick Desmond U/12 Inter League squad and who also undertook a trip to England at Easter. Padraic Walsh was on the Kennedy Cup squad that played in UL from June 13th to 17th while Dylan Griffin was a regular starter with the U/15 Inter League panel.

The annual Limerick Desmond Schoolboys League Awards Night was held this year in at The Gables, Athea on May 21st and again Athea Utd were represented with two of our players picking up awards, Luke Gleeson was voted joint winner of U/8 Division 1 while Kevin Murphy picked up the U/16 Div 1 player of the year. Both were deserving winners after having great seasons and continues the trend of Athea Utd having Limerick Desmond player of the year winners since the inception of the awards five years ago.

Off the field we have as you know one of the finest training facilities at The Vales and which has again proven to be very popular with all our players. Not only that but the Desmond Schoolboys League have being regular visitors to The Vales for training sessions an I am glad to report that we have a number of players training with the Desmond Schoolboys League from U/11s up to U/15s in the season just ended. As well as that we have a regular number of outside groups availing of our training facility and this is very important in the off season in terms of revenue for the club. Speaking of revenue the club I’m glad to report finds itself in a very good position with a significant reduction in its loan debt over the past season. This is due to the rental of our astro pitch as well as income from our weekly lottery draw and I would like, on behalf of the club, to thank all our fantastic sellers who sell lottery tickets for the club every week.

Also at The Vales the extension to out clubhouse, which incorporates an upstairs meeting room, public toilets and a store room has being completed with the help of funding from the Dept of Sport.

We have quality facilities that we can feel proud but we will continuously look to improve and better what we have and this is as it should be.

OFFICERS ELECTED FOR 2011/12 SEASON –

Chairman: Tim O’Riordan. Secretary: Pat Mulvihill. Treasurer: Clare Ryan. Vice Chairman: John Geoghegan. Asst-Secretary: Mary O’Connor. Asst-Treasurer: Pa Walsh. PRO: Pat Mulvihill. Child Welfare Officer: Pat Hayes. Committee as above plus Paudie Lynch and Cillian O’Connor

FUNRAISING COMMITTEE –

Chris Hayes, Steven McEnery, Darren Murphy, Padraig Horgan, Cillian O’Connor.

MANAGERS FOR 2011/12 ARE AS FOLLOWS –

U/10s- Tim O’Riordan. U/12s- Mike O’Connell, David O’Connor & Roger Ryan. U/14s -Tom O’Connor. U/16s -Pa Walsh & TJ Reidy. Youths -Cillian O’Connor. Junior Bs- Bobby Barrett & Paudie Lynch.

NOTE 1: At the moment we don’t have a manager for the U/8s or the Junior A’s so if anybody is interested in managing either of these teams for next season they can give their to the club secretary. Alternatively they can attend our managers meeting which will take place within the next two weeks and advertised in our club notes.

NOTE 2: Any person wishing to play junior soccer with the club next season can give their name to Bobby Barrett.

AN POST FAI SUMMER SOCCER SCHOOLS 2011

The time has come again to make plans for the 2011 Summer Soccer Schools which will again be sponsored by An Post and will be known as An Post Summer Soccer Schools 2011. This years programme will run nationwide from July 4th to August 25th at venues the length and breath of the Republic of Ireland.

The Athea Utd camp will again be held at The Vales and will run from Monday July 25th to Friday July 29th. The cost to go on the camp is €89 but for those who attended the camp at The Vales in 2010 their will be a €5 reduction thus making the cost €84.

Bookings: The cost per participant is now €99 as the early booking date of June 15th has elapsed. Personalisation of playing kits will be €10 extra irrespective of when bookings are made. So the advice is to book your place on the camp before June 15th if possible.

Family Discount: For parents wishing to book one or more of their children on the same mainstream camp the following discounts will apply – For the first child you pay the full amount, for a second brother or sister you get €10 off and for any other siblings attending the same camp you get €20 off for each additional sibling(s) attending the same camp.

Jersey Personalisation: Personalisation costs an extra €10. Please note all personalisation requests must be received at least two weeks in advance of attending your designated Summer Soccer School.

Important Notice: For child protection and welfare reasons the personalised jersey name cannot be the child’s first name or any name inferring or hinting towards the child’s first name. Nicknames are also not permitted under any circumstances. If first names or nick names are submitted the child’s surname will be used.

What You Get: On the first day of each camp all participants receive their Umbro FAI gear, football & backpack unique to An Post FAI Summer Soccer Schools.

Footnote: Just a reminder for players that were registered and played with the club in the past season 2010/11, the club will be refunding €30 to parents/guardians. The refund will be paid a couple of weeks after the camp has finished.

IMPORTANT NOTICE RE SAFETY, SECURITY & CHILD WELFARE

The An Post FAI Summer Soccer Schools are one of the most enjoyable and safest places for your child to be. We endeavour to ensure the highest standards of safety, security and child welfare and we draw parents/guardians attention to the following points-

1. All coaches are Garda-vetted

2. All coaches are background reference checked

3. All Head Coaches receive First Aid training

4. First Aid kits available on site at every camp

5. Participants supervised at all times

6. Top quality coaching

7. All coaches on every An Post FAI Summer Soccer School are qualified & FAI accredited

8. All coaching overseen by a Head Coach experienced and qualified up to UEFA A level

9. High ratio of coaches to participants

10. Innovative coaching techniques, drills & activities in line with UEFA guidelines

11. Suitable for children of all levels, beginners & more experienced players

To book your place log on to www.summersoccerschools.ie or call 1890 653 653. The co-ordinator for the Athea Utd camp again is Pat Mulvihill and he can be contacted on (087)7934417 and Pat will be only be too happy to give you any information or advice on the summer soccer school programme.

LOTTERY RESULTS JUNE 27th

The results of our lottery draw for Monday, June 27th at Batt’s Bar are as follows – Jackpot was €7900. Numbers drawn were 3, 7, 12, 28.  No Jackpot winner.

Lucky Dips to Joan Cleary, Athea. John, Leah and Louise Geoghegan, Athea. Caroline O’Connor, Ballylongford. Lucy Ann Ahern, Abbeyfeale. Eileen Piggott, Abbeyfeale.

Sellers Agatha, Ita McMahon.

New Jackpot will be €8000 on Monday, July 4th at The Gables.

Coidte na nÓg

by Jacqueline O’Connor

Matches:
Wednesday 22nd of June:

U-8 Blitz:

On Wednesday evening last, it was our turn in the Hogan cluster to host a blitz in Páirc na nGael. There were 7 teams in total from Gerald Griffins, Feohanagh/Castlemahon and Askeaton/Ballysteen and with over 80 children togged out it was going to be a busy evening for all concerned. All the boys and girls played three matches each and gave a hundred percent for their respective teams and for the huge crowd that had travelled to Athea. Everyone really enjoyed it as there was some fantastic football played on the three pitches that were marked out on the night. This was a very well organised blitz and all the children got well deserved treats when all the matches were finished. We would like to thank our referees on the night Tim O’ Riordan, Turlough O’ Brien, David O’ Connor & Paul Curry. Training continues this Friday evening in Páirc na nGael at 6:30pm.

Training:
U-6’s, U-8’s & U10’s: Training continues for the U-6’s, U-8’s & U10’s this Friday evening 1st of July from 6:30pm to 7:30pm in Páirc na nGael.

U-12’s: Training for the U-12’s continues this Wednesday evening 30th of June at 7pm in Páirc na nGael. Players are asked to be at the field for 6:50pm.

U-14’s: Training for the U-14’s continues Tuesday evening the 5th of July at 6:30pm in Páirc na nGael. Players are asked to be at the field for 6:20pm.

Fixtures:

Thursday 30th of June:

U-12’s: Athea U-12’s are at home to Glin on Thursday night 30th of June at 6:45pm. Players are asked to be at the field for 6:20pm.

Monday 4th of July:

U-16’s: Athea U-16’s are away to St. Kieran’s on Monday night 4th of July at 7:30pm. Cars will be leaving the village at 6:45pm.

Wednesday 6th of July:

U-13’s: Athea U-13’s are at home to Ballybrown on Wednesday night 6th of July at 7:30pm. Players are asked to be at the field for 7:10pm.

GAA Vhi Cúl Camp:

Vhi GAA Cúl Camps provide boys and girls – between the ages of 6 and 13 – with an action-packed and fun-filled week of activity during the summer holidays which revolves around maximising enjoyment and sustaining participant involvement in Gaelic Games. The Cúl Camps will run from Monday to Friday, 10.00am to 2.30pm. The cost of the camp is €55 for the first child, €45 of the second child and €35 for third and forth child. You can now book on line at www.vhiculcamps.gaa.ie or contact Jacqueline for more information. Anyone who has their form completed can return it to Jacqueline by Thursday 30th off June.

Coiste na nÓg on line:

You can now view all our notes, fixtures, results and pictures of Athea Coiste na nÓg on the Athea GAA website. Just go to www.atheagaa.com and click on the ” Coiste Main Page” for all the latest news and information on the Club.

Athea U-6's who played against Fr. Casey's on Sunday of last week with their coaches Mike Buckley & Michael Donovan

Athea U-8's who played against Fr. Casey's on Sunday of last week. Also in the photo are their coaches Derek Byrne, Sean O' Shea & John Hunt

 

Fr. Casey’s U-8’s who played against Athea U-8’s on Sunday of last week in Athea. Also in the photo are their coaches Denis O’ Sullivan, Liam Quirke & Mike Foley

Athea G.A.A.

County Intermediate Championship Round 3.

Athea 3 09 Gerald Griffins 0 09.

We recorded an impressive win over arch rivals Gerald Griffin’s last Friday night in Tournafulla. Despite the atrocious weather conditions during the day, the pitch in Tour was in perfect order. We dominated midfield from the start and were rewarded with an early goal from  ‘Man of the match’  Jamie Collins.  The same player was fouled 5 minutes later and Gerard Ahern made no mistake from the resulting penalty. We lead at the break 2 03 to 0 03, all our points coming from the booth of Pa Ahern.

We controlled the second half and Kevin O’Keeffe ended the game as a contest when he scored from close range midway through the half. This was an excellent team display, Jason Quille proved an able deputy for the absent Timmy Enright in goal. Mike Ahern continues to roll back the years at corner back, he was well supported in the full back line by Padraig Reidy and Matt Tierney who must have pushed Jamie Collins close for  the man of the match award. Mike Reidy did an excellent marking job on Brian Scanlon while at centre back Martin Chawke was a commanding presence. Denis Greaney making his championship debut at 17 was excellent. The Collins brothers Tom and Ger dominated midfield from start to finish. Up front our forwards were excellent, Morgan O’Connor won a huge amount of ball. Kevin O’Keeffe scored 1 02, Gerard Ahern ran the second half from wing forward. Darren Murphy also making his debut showed serious pace, skill and handling ability. Jamie Collins was magnificent as was Pa Ahern who, despite carrying an injury, scored 6 points. The subs used, Paul Collins, Brian Ahern, Conor Mullane, Brian McKenna and Sean McGrath all made significant contributions. Other panel members on the night included Conor McGrath, Podge  Hogan, Michael Matthews, Emmet White, Sean Ahern and Mark O’Connor. We also hope to have Timmy Enright, John Cotter, Neilus Hunt and Tomas Mullane available for selection shortly. Our final two games in the group are against Cappamore and Mountcollins.

Fixture:

Minors

Cois Sionna v Feale Rangers on Friday, July 1st at 7.30 p.m. in Athea.