Sunday August 28
Senior Football Final
4:30 Galway v Wolfe Tones
The top two teams at the end of the group stage meet in the
final next Sunday. For Galway this is
their first time in a final since 1989 when the Brighton based club last won
the championship. Coincidentally, Wolfe
Tones are also waiting 27 years. Founded
in 1989 the Tones have never won a senior football championship, and are in
their third final in a row.
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| Jerry Troy and the Wolfe Tones looking for their first senior championship. |
In their regular season meeting the Tones came out on top, banging
in 5 goals, but a lot has changed since for both clubs. Galway have gelled and looked impressive in
the final 15 minutes in their semi-final with Donegal. After Donegal went ahead with a second half
goal Galway responded in kind, and then some.
Fielding a balanced team, Galway have some match winners in Michael Daly
(son of the famous Galway footballer from the 1980’s, Val Daly) and the home
based Kevin Cummins. With a lively half
back line that are willing to run all day Galway will keep the Tones on their
toes.
Wolfe Tones look serious in their quest to claim the senior
title, and have loaded up in that mission.
A team that can afford to leave Kildare’s Thomas O’Connor on the line
has some serious talent. Their last
outing left Connemara Gaels in the dust as Wicklow’s Leighton Glynn and
Louthman Andy McDonnell had their side humming.
The Tones took it up to a level seldom seen in Canton, and with a deep
bench and expertise on the line the Tones have the tools. They will have to bring it on Sunday though
as Galway are not likely to give away anything easy. This is a tough one to call, it could be
close all the way and the team that does not make the big mistake down the
stretch will be lifting the cup at about 6:00 Sunday evening.
Senior Hurling Final
2:45 Tipperary v Galway
Defending champions Tipperary reached the final by way of a
semi-final victory over Fr. Tom Burke’s at the ICC last Sunday. Galway won the North American Final the
preceding year, and with their juniors in Saturday’s final this is a big year
for the Brighton based hurling club as they are in the hunt for a senior and
junior double.
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| Tipperary's Mark Kavanagh in action versus Tom's. |
In the last outing between the teams in early August Galway
came out on top, tallying a haul of 26 points – impressive scoring. The defence is led by Corkman, Mark Ellis
while up front fellow rebel, Patrick White, has a keen eye for the posts. Darragh Murray is another lining out for the
Tribesmen who can split the posts from distance and Galway will not be hurting
for scores. Galway will have to cope
with the loss of Jamie Coughlin who returned to Ireland recently, with the star
forward in the lineup Galway would have had a distinct edge, but his loss evens
things up a little on the field.
Tipperary have a number of weapons in the Arsenal that could
turn the tide in their favor on Sunday, not least Nenagh man, Tommy
Heffernan. Heffernan has been a major
asset to Tipperary at corner forward this year, and farther out the field,
young Limerick stars Cian Lynch and Barry Nash have the skill to carry Tipp
forward. The Premier county side will be
looking to captain Cronin Dempsey the lead the charge against what will be a
very tough test. Most would probably
give Galway the edge on Sunday, but if Tipperary can knock them off their
stride early they have every chance.
Ladies Senior Football Final
1:00 Connacht Ladies v Boston Shamrocks
Boston Shamrocks already have the Orla Benson Cup in the
bag, as well as the junior football championship and will be looking for a
clean sweep of trophies when they face the Connacht Ladies Sunday
afternoon. For their part, the Connacht
Ladies are the defending ladies senior football champions and will not be in
any mood to see their rivals walk away with the cup.
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| Connacht Ladies Jane Ward. |
The Shamrocks have yet to be beaten and one more win will
return the club to the halcyon days of the 1990s and early 2000’s when they
dominated ladies football in the town.
The Shamrocks have a potent forward line spearheaded by Donegal native,
Aisleen Cunningham. Cunningham has
plenty of talent around her including Rebecca Mongan and Sara Jane McDonald,
and will keep the Connacht Ladies back line busy for the afternoon. With Leanne McCrystal in the middle of the
field, and veterans Cathy McEleaney and Brittany Maguire in defence the
Shamrocks look well positioned to carry the day,
Connacht Ladies have plenty of ammo with which to try and
deliver a second championship in a row.
Jane Ward is the first name that comes to mind, the Tyrone girl covers a
lot of ground and is a great finisher.
Local girl Aisling Kerr, along with Aisling Reynolds and Rose Boyce will
be doing their best to upset the Shamrocks early and make them pay for any
mistakes. Starving the Shamrocks
forwards of the ball will be the key to a Connacht victory as the defending
champions cannot afford to find themselves chasing the game early. Ladies finals in Boston have been known to
produce classics, we might see another one Sunday.
The weekend will also see three junior championships up for
grabs. At 11:30 on Sunday the Connemara
Gaels meet Donegal in the junior A football final. The Gaels have not been here for a while and
have a very talented team that should give Donegal a run for their money. A handful of players who last year lined out
for the senior team have transformed the Gaels’ juniors fortunes. Coleman Mulkerrins and Damien Doolan, along
with Niall Loughman in the middle of the field could be key for the Gaels,
along with Phil O’Sullivan at corner forward.
Donegal have youth an talent in their corner with Mark Canney at the
back, Dean Kelly in midfield, and up front Karl Archibald at center forward and
Cian Clinton on the wing will cause no end of headaches for the Gaels
defenders. An intriguing contest awaits.
Saturday will see two junior hurling finals contested. Junior A between Galway and new boys Offaly
will be an interesting encounter. Offaly
have plenty of talent in their lineup with Tommy Rigney and Andy McRedmond at
the back, and Stephen Brown, Jimmy Rigney and the dangerous James Kilmartin up
front. There are plenty of scoring
options for Offaly, however Galway can match their opponents in that
respect. The Beagh trio of Tommie
McKeown, Padraig Landers and John Moylan will have the tribesmen motoring their
their quest for the first of what could be a weekend double.
The junior C hurlers of Barley House Wolves from Concord NH
and Hartford CT, all homegrown players who took up the sport in recent years
will open the weekend’s action on Saturday afternoon. Hartford find themselves in the final for the
first time and face a Barley House Wolves will be looking to reclaim the cup
after losing out to Portland ME last season.
Finals Schedule (at the Irish Cultural Center, Canton Mass.)
Saturday August 27
3:30 Junior C Hurling Final:
Barley House Wolves v Hartford
5:00 Junior A Hurling Final:
Offaly v Galway
Sunday August 28
11:30 Junior A Football Final: Donegal v Connemara Gaels
1:00 Ladies Senior Football Final: Connacht Ladies v Boston Shamrocks
2:30 Boston Youth Board - U14 Feile Team parade
2:45 Senior Hurling Final:
Galway v Tipperary
4:15: Boston Youth Board - CYC parade
4:30 Senior Football Final:
Galway v Wolfe Tones
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