2001

Laune Rangers – 2001

 Laune Rangers won the Mid-Kerry ‘B’ Football Championship for the 15^th time.

Laune Rangers ‘B’ won the Mid-Kerry O Sullivan Cup.

Laune Rangers won the Co. Junior Football League Div. 2S for the 2^nd time.

Killorglin won the Co. Girls’ Community Games Football (U-12) competition.

Scoil Mhuire won the Co. Cumann na mBunscol Girls’ final for the 5^th year-in-a-row.

The Intermediate School won the O Sullivan Cup (Kerry Senior Colleges).

John Evans was manager of the Kerry U-21 football team.

James Coffey was re-elected as Joint-Treasurer of the Kerry Co. Board for the 29^th successive year.

Jerome Conway was re-elected as Vice-Chairman of the Kerry Co. Board for the 4^th successive year.

 

The ones that got away:

Laune Rangers lost the Mid-Kerry Senior Football Championship Final to Milltown/Castlemaine on the score of 0-9 to 0-8.

Laune Rangers conceded the Mid-Kerry Senior Football League final to Beaufort.

Laune Rangers ‘B’ team lost the Molyneaux Cup final to Austin Stacks ‘B’.

Laune Rangers lost the Co. Minor Football League to Waterville/Dromid.

The Intermediate School lost the Corn Uí Mhuirí Final to Coláiste na Sceilge.

Laune Rangers lost the Co. Girls’ Féile Peil na nOg final to Southern Gaels.

Mid-Kerry, captained by Sean O Riordan, lost the Co. U-14 Inter-Divisional Football Championship to East-Kerry after a replay.

Laune Rangers lost the Co. U-14 Div. 2B Championship final to Emmett’s.

Laune Rangers lost the Mid-Kerry U-14 ‘A’ Final to Beaufort, but won the ‘B’ final at the expense of Milltown/Castlemaine.

Laune Rangers lost the Mid-Kerry U-12 ‘A’ final to Beaufort but won the ‘B’ final at the expense of Milltown/Castlemaine.

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The AGM of Laune Rangers Club took place in Scoil Mhuire on Sat. 13^th Jan. 2001. 54 members attended. The minutes of the previous AGM were adopted on the proposition of Pat O Riordan, seconded by Liam Shannon. (The Secretary’s Report was given at the end of 2000). The report was adopted on the proposition of Bart Moriarty, seconded by James Ferris.

Pierce Prendiville gave the Treasurers’ Report and a detailed account of the financial state of the club. He, also, outlined future problems, which the club might encounter if other fund-raising methods were not sought, especially to obtain more land to prevent overuse of the JP O Sullivan Park. He also stated that more scrutiny should be kept on injury claims for which Bart Moriarty had outlined the procedure. In answer to a question from Joe Crowley re high bank charges (in relation to 12 pence per transaction on Direct Debits), it was stated that the matter had been under investigation and it was hoped that the matter would be resolved in the club’s favour. The Report was adopted on the proposition of Davy O Shea, seconded by Barry Harmon.

Pat Pigott gave an excellent Bord na nOg Report (it has been given at the end of 2000). The Report was adopted on the proposition of Declan Falvey, seconded by Shane O Sullivan.

The Chairman, John Clifford, thanked the officers for their excellent reports. He referred to the last year as not being the most successful on the playing pitch. He asked for more participation from parents, senior players and other people in Bord na nOg. He also stressed that the Chairman of the Co. Board was looking into the Parish Rule and, as the club had a problem with two clubs, it was important that the rule would be implemented. He asked members, not only officers, to attend club meetings to discuss Laune Rangers’ business – he called for less ‘pub-talk’. He was lavish in his praise for the Millennium Banquet and he thanked the organising committee. He thanked the sponsors, officers, members, players, trainers and selectors of all the teams. He had a special word of thanks for the retiring officers, Mary Griffin, Pierce Prendiville, Maurice Corkery and most of all for James Coffey who had served Laune Rangers since 1952.

The following officers were elected:

President – Paddy Crowley.

Chairman – John Clifford.

Vice-Chairmen – Pat Pigott and Jim Galvin.

Secretary – Michael Foley (proposed by Batty Foley, seconded by John Purcell)

Joint-Treasurers – Gerard O Connor and James Riordan.

PRO – John O Donnell.

Assistant PRO – Mike O Shea.

Registrars – Patrick O Shea, Johnny Galvin (proposed by Liam Shannon, seconded by Jams Ferris) and Pat O Riordan (proposed by Dan Moriarty, seconded by John Purcell).

Development Officer – Jerry Coffey.

Insurance Officer – Bart Moriarty.

Delegate to Co. Board – James Ferris.

Senior Selection Committee – James Sheehan (coach/trainer), Denis Cleary, Patsy Joy and Brian O Shea.

‘B’ Team Selection Committee – Eddie Birmingham, Mike O She, Kevin Cahillane and Sean Moriarty.

‘C’ Team Selection Committee – Danny Cahill (manager), Peter Byrne, Dominic Crowley and Jamie Clifford.

Minor Selection Committee – John Griffin, Maurice Corkery and Jerry Houlihan.

U-21 Selection Committee – Minor Selection Committee plus Shane O Sullivan.

The following motions were discussed:

1. ‘That a family membership rate of £25 be introduced, to cover both parents (full membership) and children U-16 years of age.’ Proposed by Pat Pigott, seconded by Declan Falvey. The proposer said that such a membership would eliminate the necessity to charge players U-16 years of age the £1 for the bus. The motion was passed.
2. ‘That officers may serve a maximum of three consecutive years in any position (amended to read ‘in one position’). All terms of office to be treated as commencing in 2001 for the purpose of the motion.’ Proposed by Pierce Prendiville, seconded by Bart Moriarty. The proposer said that it would give other people an opportunity to take up officerships in the club. The motion was passed.
3. ‘That, in recognition of his life-long service to the club, Séamus Ó Cofaigh be given honorary life membership of Fánaithe na Leamhna.’ Proposed by John O Donnell, seconded by Davy O Shea. The motion was passed unanimously and greeted with great applause.

A. O. B.

1. James Riordan spoke in favour of canvassing the entire parish for Direct Debit Lotto. The Chairman said that a committee would be set up at the first club meeting. A number of speakers aired their views on the lotto rebate system. Pierce Prendiville stated that a large number of people were doing voluntary work for the club whereas 24% of lotto money collected in 2000 was refunded in rebates. Davy O Shea was of the opinion that sellers would be lost if the rebate system was terminated. He suggested that sellers should reach a target before receiving a rebate. Shivaun O Sullivan said that lotto tickets should be sold at Puck Fair and all Mid-Kerry and Co. Championship games where possible.
2. The cost of fencing the pitch in the JP O Sullivan Park was discussed and the Chairman informed the meeting that it would cost in the region of £6,000. Joe Crowley asked if it was necessary, to which John Griffin replied that he had spoken to Pa Murphy prior to it going out to tender and he had enquired from the Co. Board, which stated that it was a requirement for Co. Championship games. Michael O Reilly remarked that a Munster Minor Football Championship game had been played in Beaufort.

4. James Ferris asked why any of the Senior ‘A’, ‘B’ or ‘C’ selectors were not part of the U-21 selection committee. John Griffin clarified the situation, stating that they had not refused him but, due to the uncertainty of the U-21 fixtures and the short space of time, he had discussed the matter with the Chairman and they agreed to ask Shane O Sullivan, who willingly gave of his time.
5. Barry Harmon said that having three Laune Rangers’ players winning All-Ireland medals and bringing ‘Sam’ back to Kerry was one of the happiest days of his life.

 

Munster Senior Club Football League

 

Rd. 1 at Kilcummin: Kilcummin 2-11; Laune Rangers 1-8.

Rd. 2 on Sun. 21^st Jan. at Cloon: Laune Rangers 2-4; Ballincollig 0-7.

The game was played in very good conditions. Laune Rangers’ team was largely experimental and there were some good performances. New full-forward, Podge Foley, showed great promise in only his second senior outing, winning possession consistently and distributing it well. He also managed to score 1-1 from play. The backs were also impressive, especially the halfback line of Noel Lynch, John Sheehan and Brendan Fitzgerald. Rangers led by 1-1 to 0-3 at halftime, Pa O Sullivan having scored the goal.

Ballincollig missed quite a number of chances throughout. However, the home defence had a lot to do with the missed chances, tackling keenly. Thomas McGillycuddy and Pierce Prendiville played well at midfield.

Laune Rangers: Shane Clifford, Mark Conway, Paul Costello, Damien Harmon, Brendan Fitzgerald, John Sheehan, Noel Lynch, Thomas McGillycuddy, Pierce Prendiville, Barry O Sullivan, Pa O Sullivan, John Murphy, Ross Sheehan, Podge Foley, Mike Frank Russell. Subs: Mark O Connor, Trevor Gannon, Cian Evans and Eoin Ferris.

 

Sun. 11^th Feb. in Mallow: Mallow lost to Laune Rangers.

 

Quarter-final on Sat. 13^th Oct. at St. Finbarr’s Ground: St. Finbarr’s lost to Laune Rangers.

That was a morale-boosting victory by just two points and just reward for the endeavours of the team. Barry O Sullivan was superb and was ably assisted by his brother and midfield partner, Pa O Sullivan. Pa Murphy and Johnny Lynch were also to the fore.

Laune Rangers: Shane Clifford, Noel Lynch, Eoin Ferris, Conor Falvey, Mark O Connor, Paul Costello, Pa Murphy, Barry O Sullivan, Pa O Sullivan, James O Shea, Johnny Lynch, Ross Sheehan, Colin O Connor, John Sheehan, Billy O Shea.

 

Semi-final: Bishopstown Laune Rangers.

 

Co. Senior Football Championship

 

Rd. 1 on Sun. 1^st July at Austin Stack Park: Kerins O Rahillys 1-8; Laune Rangers 0-11.

John O Dowd reported for the Kerryman and the following were extracts from that report: “After a very forgettable opening half (it took 15 minutes to register the opening score), the protagonists on duty at least raised themselves sufficiently in the second half to keep things interesting for the fairly sizeable crowd, although it could never be described as being close to a footballing classic. Laune Rangers, especially in the second half, had the most inspirational figures in John Sheehan, John Lynch and Billy O Shea and will know that had county star, Mike Frank Russell, been in top form, then victory would have been achieved by the Killorglin men. All in all, though, both teams will be happy enough at having an opportunity to show their best form in the replay because there is definitely plenty of scope for improvement, to say the least.

Laune Rangers were without the unavailable Brendan Fitzgerald, Brian Gannon and Billy O Sullivan. The first quarter was, in all honesty, absolutely abysmal. The passing was desperate, defences were completely on top, while the danger-men, Quill for O Rahillys and Russell for Laune Rangers, were really subdued, as Noel Lynch was holding Quill and Russell was playing too far out from goal (which he strangely did for a large portion of the game). At last, in the 15^th minute, we were taken out of our misery when Ger O Brien pointed a long-range free for O Rahillys to open the scoring after Billy O Shea had been accused of picking the ball off the ground. Things began to get a little bit better after that. John Lynch equalised for Rangers after a powerful burst down the centre of the field, but the Tralee men were soon back in front when Morgan O Shea, on a foray out of defence, placed his fellow back, Richie Houlihan, for a fine point in the 23^rd minute.

Then came the only goal of the hour when a poor free by John O Connor was knocked down into the path of Aidan Daly, who fed Declan Quill and his mis-hit shot for a point dipped wickedly over the head of Laune’s keeper, Shane Clifford, for a quite fortuitous but vital goal. The very influential John Lynch exchanged points with Quill before Billy O Shea and Mike Frank Russell completed the first-half scoring with lovely points to leave the Killorglin side trailing by just two points at the interval (1-3 to 0-4).

In fairness, it had been a half to forget, but things began to get better right from the start of the second period when O Rahillys split the posts through Quill after only 25 seconds, after he had done very well to get the better of his tenacious marker, Noel Lynch, who had played with Quill on last year’s Kerry minor team. However, there was a stronger sense of purpose about Laune Rangers in this half and, with Mark O Connor, Pa Murphy and the peerless John Sheehan in dominant mood in the halfback line, they began to play the better football and notched fine individual points from Pa O Sullivan and Billy O Shea to narrow the gap to the minimum after 35 minutes. Quill, who was making the most of what little ball came his way, fired over two frees before Rangers again hit back with points from Russell (45) and midfielder, Barry O Sullivan, to leave them trailing by 1-6 to 0-8 entering the last quarter.

The match was beginning to come to life at this stage, with Rangers looking the stronger as John Lynch’s arrival at midfield shut Mícheál Quirke out of the game and John Sheehan and Billy O Shea were inspiring their colleagues with great determined play. John O Connor missed a relatively simple free for O Rahillys before another mighty run upfield from John Sheehan ended with the centre-back  exchanging passes with Mark O Connor and then kicking a wonderful point to level matters again with 13 minutes to go. After Tom McGillycuddy and Russell had been off target, Rangers finally did go into the ascendancy with five minutes to go when Billy O Shea and Russell combined to put inter-national soccer player, Colin O Connor, through for a fine left-legged point.

The tension was a fever pitch and questions were now being asked of O Rahillys. However, they didn’t wilt and Quill was again their saviour when he got away with a push on his marker, before lofting over a beautiful point with his weak right foot. Then, with Mike Frank Russell playing like a fullback for Rangers in the closing stages, O Rahillys seemed to have stolen matters at the death when Ger O Brien showed great composure to fire over a ‘45’. We were now in injury-time. Could Rangers fight back for a deserved draw? They answered in the affirmative when their best forward, Billy O Shea, after a one-two with Pa O Sullivan, coolly slotted over a fine point with his left leg and we were heading for a replay. Not that there weren’t chances of a winner. Mike Frank Russell kicked a weak shot into Niall Hobbert’s hands in the O Rahillys goal and then John O Connor went up the other end and saw his left-foot attempt shave the post and go just wide. After all the drama in the closing stages, the referee’s whistle sounded and both sets of players and supporters went home happy to have another outing in the championship.

Laune Rangers will probably feel, on their second-half display, that they should have shaded it. John Sheehan, John Lynch and Billy O Shea were undoubtedly their star men. Sheehan was outstanding at centre halfback and it’s a pity he doesn’t seem to have interest in playing for the county because his physical strength and determination would surely be an asset to the Kerry panel. John Lynch, at wing-forward and then at midfield, was excellent all through and he certainly negated the influence of Mícheál Quirke, while Billy O Shea was back to his old self, with his non-stop running and also notching three lovely points from play. He showed that he still has much to offer. Elsewhere, Paul Costello, Noel Lynch, Mark O Connor and Pa Murphy tried hard in defence, both midfielders only played in patches, while Mike Frank Russell and subs, Ross Sheehan and Colin O Connor had their moments in attack. Pa O Sullivan seemed out of condition for Rangers, while Russell, despite his two points, was not really in the game and was continually too far away from the danger zone to cause heartache in the O Rahillys defence.”

Laune Rangers: Shane Clifford, John O Sullivan, Paul Costello, Noel Lynch, Mark O Connor, John Sheehan (0-1), Pa Murphy, Barry O Sullivan (0-1), Tom McGillycuddy, Johnny Lynch (0-2), Pa O Sullivan (0-1), James O Shea, Mike Frank Russell (0-2, 1 45), Podge Foley, Billy O Shea (0-3). Subs: Ross Sheehan for P. Foley, Colin O Connor (0-1) for J. O Shea, John Edmond Murphy for B. O Sullivan.

Kerins O Rahillys: Niall Hobbert, Barry O Shea, Ken Savage, Morgan O Shea, Timmy O Sullivan, Garret Walsh, Philip O Connor, Mícheál Quirke, Ger O Brien (0-2, 1 free and 1 45), Colin Magnier, John O Connor, Eugene McGrath, Declan Quill (1-5, 2 frees), Mark Fitzgerald, Damien Diggins. Subs: Aidan Daly for M. Fitzgerald (Inj.), Richie Houlihan (0-1) for P. O Connor (inj.), Brian Sugrue for R. Houlihan (inj.), Ger Molloy for D. Diggins, Stephen Wallace for T. O Sullivan (inj.).

Ref: Johnny Cahill (Rathmore).

 

Rd. 1 replay on Fri. 20^th July at J.P. O Sullivan Park: Laune Rangers 2-4; Kerins O Rahillys 0-14.

That was the Rangers’ first game in the new sand-pitch at the J.P. O Sullivan Park. John O Dowd again reported for the Kerryman and this is an extract from his report: “This was a much improved display by the Strand Road men, who dominated in virtually every sector of the pitch and their four-point winning margin was, without doubt, flattering to the home team, who were downright abysmal for most of the contest. Rangers, the poise that they showed in the first game evaporated completely virtually from the throw-in and it will have been a particularly galling evening for their supporters, who were looking forward to the opening of the newly developed pitch, which is a credit to the people involved.

The home team made sweeping changes for this contest with Peter Lyons, Pierce Prendiville, Colin O Connor, Brian Gannon and Ross Sheehan all making the starting fifteen. Rangers nearly, in fact, made the perfect start after only 25 seconds, when Ross Sheehan’s shot for a point deceived Niall Hobbert and came off the bar to the inrushing Colin O Connor, but the Kerry minor player sliced his opportunity well wide of the O Rahilly’s goal. The eventual winners opened the scoring in the third minute when a long free by Ger O Brien was allowed to bounce over the bar for a point that should not have been conceded by Rangers and, after Damien Diggins had an effort for goal well smothered by veteran keeper, Peter Lyons, the men from Killorglin equalised in the eighth minute when Mike Frank Russell tapped over a free after a foul on John Lynch. The defences on both sides were on top at this stage but it was noticeable that Michael Quirke was the leading protagonist on show in the midfield sector. John O Connor had O Rahilly’s ahead again with a pointed free and, after John Lynch shot straight at Niall Hobbert after a scything run through the Strand Road defence, Mark Fitzgerald took advantage of a poor kick-out to notch the first point from play in the 17^th minute. Russell and Declan Quill exchanged pointed frees before Laune Rangers, against the run of play, struck for their first goal in the 23^rd minute and it was all down to some terrible play in the O Rahilly’s defence. A sideline ball was kicked back to goalkeeper, Niall Hobbert, but his pass to a colleague was well intercepted by Ross Sheehan and, after Billy O Shea flicked the ball to Brian Gannon, the centre-forward put young Colin O Connor through on goal and he finished with aplomb, to give the Killorglin men the lead for the first and only time in the game.

Despite the setback, O Rahillys were not flustered and they had regained a one-point lead by the interval (0-6 to 1-2). The first-half ended very painfully for Rangers when defenders Paul Costello and Noel Lynch had a dreadful clash of heads, which resulted in Costello not appearing for the second half (with a broken nose) and Lynch getting some stitches over his eye. Fullback Costello was certainly badly missed after his departure.

Rangers were forced to make changes at the back with Pa Murphy moving onto Mark Fitzgerald in the corner in a switch which damaged Murphy’s attacking forays, even though he continued to perform with determination, something that many of his colleagues sadly lacked on the night. Two lovely points from play by the elegant Fitzgerald and the impish Damien Diggins got the winners off to a fine second-half start as Rangers continued to struggle at midfield and veteran Pierce Prendiville was replaced, with John Lynch belatedly switching from the wing. Russell pulled a score back with another pointed free for Rangers but O Rahillys were motoring steadily and Stephen Wallace and Mark Fitzgerald had the Tralee side four points up (0-10 to 1-3) by the 41^st minute. However, once Mike Frank Russell is on the pitch, anything can happen and the Kerry star kicked an absolutely sensational point in the 43^rd minute from out on the touchline and despite being well shadowed by Barry O Shea. It was a score that should have inspired the Killorglin men, but strangely they could not break out of the lethargy and inefficiency that had bedevilled them from the throw-in.

Quill pointed another free and substitute Stephen Wallace registered his second point from play as Rangers shot themselves in the foot with Tom McGillycuddy and James O Shea wasting great opportunities to bring their side back in contention. However, while Russell was on the pitch, there was still hope and the corner-forward lit up JP O Sullivan Park with a stunning goal in the 55^th minute when a booming clearance from Pa Murphy saw Russell get inside Barry O Shea, who misread the long ball. In one movement, Russell caught the ball, turned and let fly with a left-legged rocket that Niall Hobbert barely saw as it crashed into the back of the net. Not many players could have recorded a score like that but, then again, not many players are like Mike Frank Russell. Now, there were only two points between the sides and Pa O Sullivan joined the fray after being unable to start because of a hamstring problem. Was the momentum swinging to Rangers? No.  Mark Fitzgerald pointed a free for O Rahillys and then Declan Quill got the clincher in the last minute. That was game, set and match to the Tralee men.

For Laune Rangers, the game was an unmitigated disaster, especially in front of their home supporters. The Killorglin side never looked like they could win the game and the fact that they only scored one point from play in 60 minutes is indicative of the inadequacies of their challenge. The loss of the Hassett brothers has really hit the strength of their squad and, with Pierce Prendiville probably playing his last game too, it looks like that next few years are going to be a period of team-building for the Killorglin side. On the night, Peter Lyons had a fine game in goal. Paul Costello, Noel Lynch and Pa Murphy were the best of the defenders. John Lynch should probably have started at midfield and he gave it his all for the hour, while only Russell was a threat in attack, although Colin O Connor took his goal well. A fully fit Pa O Sullivan would have been an asset up front, while it was a surprise that his brother Barry didn’t start at midfield. Billy O Shea never got the freedom from Morgan O Shea, while John Sheehan was not able to inspire his colleagues like he did the first day and certainly didn’t benefit from a switch to corner-back in the second half.”

Laune Rangers: Peter Lyons, John O Sullivan, Paul Costello, Noel Lynch, Mark O Connor, John Sheehan, Pa Murphy, Pierce Prendiville, Tom McGillycuddy, Colin O Connor (1-0), Brian Gannon, Johnny Lynch, Mike Frank Russell (1-4, 3 frees), Billy O Shea, Ross Sheehan. Subs: Paul Russell for P. Costello (inj.), James O Shea for P. Prendiville, Barry O Sullivan for B. Gannon, Billy O Sullivan for R. Sheehan (inj.), Pa O Sullivan for C. O Connor, Podge Foley, John Edmond Murphy, Shane Clifford, Damien Harmon, Conor Falvey, Eoin Ferris, Darren O Riordan..

Ref: Connie Carroll (Legion).

 

Co. Club Football Championship

 

Rd. 1 on Sun. 29^th April at Glenflesk: Glenflesk 2-11; Laune Rangers 0-12.

That was a cracking game throughout. The winners asserted their control right through the opening half and led by two points (0-8 to 0-6) at halftime. Eric O Donoghue had opened the scoring with a point but Johnny Lynch had replied for Rangers. Then wing-back Paul Russell had burst forward to put Rangers ahead with a fine effort. The game, at that stage, had been evenly balanced with both sides carving out opportunities. Paud O Donoghue and Shane Dennehy had points for Glenflesk, while Pa Sullivan, from a free, had one for Rangers. Points by John Crowley, Damien McCarthy, Crowley again and Paud O Donoghue put the home side ahead 0-7 to 0-3 and it looked like that they would pull away. Rangers, however, had rallied with two points by Pa O Sullivan and one from Johnny Lynch to leave the minimum between the sides. John Crowley had the last score of the half.

After a cracking first half, very little separated the sides and the game continued in the same vein in the second half. Both sides were showing well for the ball in attack, while the respective defences were working hard to deny the attackers space. The teams exchanged scores through John Crowley and Pa O Sullivan. Timmy O Sullivan put Glenflask three points to the good but Rangers came back again and Pa O Sullivan, with a free, and a punched point by Podge Foley left the minimum between the sides going into the final quarter. Damien McCarthy and Mike Frank Russell exchanged points and then came the homes side’s two goals from Paud O Donoghue and Pat Dunn O Donoghue to settle the issue. Rangers tried hard to get back into the game but a point by Billy O Shea was their only reply.

Laune Rangers: Shane Clifford, Noel Lynch, John Sheehan, Mark O Connor, James O Shea, Paul Costello, Paul Russell (0-1), Johnny Lynch (0-2), Tom McGillycuddy, Billy O Shea (0-1), Brian Gannon, Pa O Sullivan (0-5), Mike Frank Russell (0-2), Podge Foley (0-1), Pierce Prendiville.

 

Co. Senior Football League Div. 1

 

Rd. 1 on Sun. 25^th March at Cloon: Laune Rangers 2-12; Dr. Crokes 1-11.

Inspired by new full-forward, Podge Foley, Laune Rangers opened the Lee Strand Co. League campaign with a four-point win over the Co. Champions, Dr. Crokes. They opened the brighter and led by 0-4 to 0-1 at one stage. Billy O Shea showed signs of a return to county form, with a dazzling display in his favourite roving role. Dr. Crokes started slowly but improved as the half went on with two points from Roland Neher and the halftime score was 0-8 to 0-4 in favour of the home team. Two points each from Pa O Sullivan and Podge Foley accounted for the difference.

Crokes began with a revival and, when Colm Cooper stole in for a punched goal, it looked bad for the Rangers. Mike Frank Russell regained the initiative for the Rangers when he put over a point. Podge Foley had other ideas, also, and, with two opportunist goals, set up by MF Russell, he renewed the home side’s cushion. Best for the Rangers were Paul Costello, Brendan Fitzgerald, John Sheehan, Billy O Shea, Podge Foley and Mike Frank Russell (in the second half).

Laune Rangers: Shane Clifford, Mark O Connor, Paul Costello, Mark Conway, Brendan Fitzgerald (0-1), John Sheehan (0-1), Noel Lynch, Pierce Prendiville, Johnny Lynch (0-2), Paul Russell, Pa O Sullivan (0-2), Thomas McGillycuddy (0-1), Mike Frank Russell (0-3), Podge Foley (2-2), Billy O Shea (capt.). Sub: James O Shea for P. Russell.

Ref: Brendan O Riordan (Scartaglen).

 

Rd. 2 on Mon. 16^th April at Listowel: Emmett’s 1-13; Laune Rangers 2-10.

In a match, played in dreadful conditions, Laune Rangers’ young charges earned a draw and indeed they were unlucky not to come away with a victory but for a controversial goal scored by Listowel’s corner-forward, Brian Scanlon. Noel Lynch gave another outstanding display in defence and he was ably assisted by fellow wing-back Paul Russell. Johnny Lynch carried some Sigerson Cup form to score two goals from his berth at midfield. He was more than a match in that sector for county player, Noel Kennelly. Up front, Mike Frank Russell scored some nice points, while Billy O Shea foraged throughout the pitch. Darren O Riordan made his County League debut, coming in for John O Sullivan in defence. The sticky pitch and long grass did not suit the youthful visiting team but they tried to the end for a win.

Laune Rangers: Shane Clifford, John O Sullivan, Paul Costello, Brendan Fitzgerald, Noel Lynch, John Sheehan, Paul Russell, Johnny Lynch, Pierce Prendiville, James O Shea, Pa O Sullivan, Thomas McGillycuddy, Mike Frank Russell, Brian Gannon, Billy O Shea. Sub: Darren O Riordan for J. O Sullivan.

 

Rd. 3 on Sun. 6^th May at Cloon: Laune Rangers 0-15; Sneem 1-12.

Colin O Connor started his first Co. League game and did very little out of the way. Johnny Lynch continued to impress at midfield and he scored three fine points from play, the first of those being a fine individual effort. Billy O Shea also played well, as he picked up a lot of loose ball in the first half. The game was delicately poised at halftime with Rangers leading by 0-9 to 0-8. Ronan Hussey scored a goal after the break, which put the home side under pressure but they responded well and indeed took the lead at one stage. John Sheehan was in brilliant form. Rangers were missing Mike Frank Russell and Podge Foley.

Laune Rangers: Shane Clifford, John O Sullivan, John Sheehan, Paul Russell, Noel Lynch, Paul Costello, Brendan Fitzgerald, Pierce Prendiville, Johnny Lynch (0-5), James O Shea (0-1), Brian Gannon (0-1), Thomas McGillycuddy, Billy O Shea (0-2), Pa O Sullivan (0-4), Colin O Connor (0-2). Subs: Pa Murphy, Ross Sheehan, Barry O Sullivan.

Ref: Johnny Cahill (Rathmore).

 

Rd. 4 on Tues. 15^th May at Milltown: Milltown/Castlemaine 2-10; Laune Rangers 1-9.

An exciting and close encounter swung Milltown/Castlemaine’s way midway through the second half when they caught the Rangers’ defence napping for substitute Fionán Kelliher to finish to the net. Laune Rangers dominated the early exchanges but missed easy chances with MF Russell and James O Shea both shooting wide with the goal at their mercy. A cracking goal by Johnny Lynch and points from Pierce Prendiville and Pa O Sullivan saw Rangers ahead by 1-2 to 0-2 after 15 minutes – Milltown’s two points coming from Ian Twiss. Derek Twiss and MF Russell exchanged points before Ian Twiss and Jason Giles closed the gap to a single point. At that stage, Milltown were in control at midfield and a sweeping move ended with Derek Twiss chipping the ball over the head of Shane Clifford to put his side in front. MF Russell cut the deficit to a single point on the stroke of halftime leaving the score at 1-5 to 1-4.

Ian Twiss opened the second-half scoring with a free. Mike Russell replied for Rangers but Ian Twiss again pointed for Milltown. Play swung to the other end of the field and Billy O Shea burst through to point for Rangers. Derek Twiss pointed to put two points between the teams before Mike Russell, first from a free and then from a ‘45’ saw the sides level at 1-8 each at the three-quarter stage. The home side’s response was instant with Fionán Kelliher outpacing the Rangers’ defence to find the net. From the kick-out they again attacked and Gavan Wrenn put them four points ahead. Jim O Connor, in the Milltown goal, pulled off as fine save from Mike Russell and Pa O Sullivan and Ian Twiss exchanged points to give the home team a deserved victory.

Laune Rangers: Shane Clifford, John O Sullivan, John Sheehan, Mark O Connor, Noel Lynch, Paul Costello, Pa Murphy, Johnny Lynch (1-0), Pierce Prendiville (0-1), Tom McGillycuddy, Brian Gannon, James O Shea, Pa O Sullivan (0-2), Mike Frank Russell (0-5), Billy O Shea (0-1). Subs: Colin O Connor for P. Prendiville, Damien Harmon for M. O Connor, Ross Sheehan for J. O Shea, Billy O Sullivan for B. Gannon.

 

Rd. 5 on Sun. 10^th June at Cloon: Austin Stacks 3-11; Laune Rangers 2-6.

Stacks dominated that game from the throw-in. Laune Rangers, as well as missing Mike Frank Russell, were also missing a number of other players and, consequently, some new faces were seen on the Killorglin team. Dara Long and Wayne Quillinan opened Stacks’ account inside the first few minutes. The Tralee side was in total control at that stage and cemented its position when Dara Long flicked a pass from Donal McEvoy to the net. Ross Sheehan pointed for Rangers, after some good work by Conor Falvey, to open their account but Billy Sheehan and Dara Long had points and a goal by the former gave the ‘Rockies’ a considerable lead. Their forwards were haunting the home defence as Stacks totally dominated midfield. Further points by Long ( 2 frees), Finbar Smith and John Peter O Neill saw Stacks ahead by 2-8 to 0-2 at halftime (Rangers second point was scored by Ross Sheehan).

Rangers got a boost on the resumption when referee, Tommy Gilligan, awarded a penalty for a foul on Ross Sheehan and Brian Gannon drove the spot-kick to the net and gave the home side some hope. Stacks replied within minutes though, when Mike Finn cut through the Rangers’ defence to score a glorious goal and put his team back in control. Rangers then had their best spell of the game with points from Ross Sheehan and Podge Foley before they were awarded a second penalty for a foul on Conor Falvey. Brian Gannon goaled to leave Stacks ahead by 3-8 to 2-4 at the three-quarters stage. However, the Tralee men dominated the rest of the game and had a succession of points from Donal McEvoy, Billy Sheehan and Dara Long (2 frees). John Edmond Murphy replied with two late points for Rangers.

Laune Rangers: Shane Clifford, John O Sullivan, Paul Costello, Brendan Fitzgerald, John Sheehan, Pa Murphy, Conor Falvey, Johnny Lynch, Pierce Prendiville, Ross Sheehan (0-3), Billy O Shea, James O Shea, Brian Gannon (2-0, penalties), Podge Foley (0-1), John E. Murphy (0-2). Subs: Tom McGillycuddy for P. Prendiville, Damien Harmon for P. Murphy, Barry O Sullivan for J. O Shea.

Ref: Tommy Gilligan (Valentia).

 

Rd. 6 on Sun. 8^th July at Gallerus: An Ghaeltacht 1-12; Laune Rangers 1-8.

Rangers were without Mike Frank Russell and lost Pa O Sullivan with an injury shortly after the start. Having trailed by seven points at halftime, the visitors, aided by a very strong north-easterly breeze, made a very bold bid to recover some lost ground in the third quarter and, with nine minutes left, they had narrowed the gap to just two points. That recovery period was spearheaded by the energetic and very impressive Johnny Lynch – top scorer with 6 points – two of which were scored within a three minute spell after the restart. It was Lynch who initiated the attacking movement, which led to the penalty when hard-working Tom McGillycuddy was fouled in the 40^th minute and the spot-kick was blasted to the top left-hand corner of the net by Colin O Connor to leave only 3 points between the sides.

However, when the home side needed someone to steer them away from the danger zone, they could rely on their two best players, Marc Ó Sé and Robbie Mac Gearailt. The youngest of the Ó Sé clan, who lined out at wing-back, was in sparkling form throughout, scoring two excellent points in the opening half and, when the going got tough in the final quarter, he was a major driving force and won a vital free, which Mícheál Ó Sé converted. Likewise, Robbie Mac Gearailt showed his mettle when the occasion demanded it. For the most part, he was a class above the rest and, in the absence of his more illustrious colleagues, he provided the necessary leadership qualities.

The only goal from play came in the 6^th minute. Following a good attacking movement, Tomás Ó Conchúir went for a point from 21 yards out but the ball dipped under the crossbar, catching Rangers’ goalkeeper, Shane Clifford, off guard for a rather easy goal. The home side had the cool and lively breeze at their backs as they went into an early lead, when Mícheál Ó Sé pointed from a free and, less than a minute later, Robbie Mac Gearailt raised the second white flag. Laune Rangers were dealt a severe blow in the third minute when their ace-attacker, Pa O Sullivan, was forced to terminate his participation in the proceedings due to a hamstring injury. His talents were badly missed in a forward-line that depended too much on the efforts of Johnny Lynch. A point by Tomás Ó Muircheartaigh and that goal by Ó Conchúir put Gaeltacht ahead by six points with as many minutes gone. Mícheál Ó Sé was again on target from a free before Johnny Lynch opened Rangers’ account from a free kick in the 13^th minute. Lynch was beginning to cause problems with his penetrative runs down the left wing and, on one occasion in the 17^th minute, he was fouled and pointed the resultant free himself. Points by Marc Ó Se and Sean Ó Conchúir increased the home team’s lead. There was a final exchange of points between Robbie Mac Gearailt and Paul Russell to leave the halftime score at 1-8 to 0-3.

The Rangers powered their way into contention in the third quarter, a period when the boys from the West scored only a single point, as Johnny Lynch imposed his will on the game and on the score-board, receiving good support from his brother, Noel, and Paul Costello in the fullback line, Tom McGillycuddy – he produced a very good second half – and John Sheehan in the halfback line. A good point from substitute John Edmond Murphy, following Colin O Connor’s penalty, reduced the gap. There was a brief melee in the middle of the field but two yellow cards from referee, Tommy Sugrue, had a cooling effect on the situation and order was quickly restored. Rangers’ final score came from Johnny Lynch.

Laune Rangers: Shane Clifford, John O Sullivan, Paul Costello, Noel Lynch, Mark O Connor, John Sheehan, Pa Murphy, Tom McGillycuddy, Pierce Prendiville, Johnny Lynch (0-6), Pa O Sullivan, Paul Russell (0-1), Colin O Connor (1-0), Billy O Shea, Podge Foley. Subs: Billy O Sullivan for P. O Sullivan (inj.), John E. Murphy for P. Russell, Damien Harmon for P. Foley.

Ref@ Tommy Sugrue (St. Pat’s, Blennerville).

 

Rd. 7 on Sun. 22^nd July at Kilcummin: Kilcummin 3-10; Laune Rangers 1-14.

That was a highly entertaining game. Both clubs were without their county players, Mike McCarthy and Mike Frank Russell. The travelling side opened the scoring with a Pa O Sullivan point in the first minute but Donal O Dwyer had Kilcummin on level terms in the 5^th minute. Rangers lost their wing-forward with a facial injury and he was replaced by Brian Gannon, who went on to have an excellent game in the corner, causing the home defence serious problems. Paul O Donoghue lofted over a point minutes later, but Pa O Sullivan brought his side back on equal terms from a close-range free after Gannon was fouled. Consecutive scores saw Kilcummin race into a two-point lead but Rangers replied with points from Pa O Sullivan and Podge Foley to leave the sides level on 0-4 each. Then, in the 17^th minute, Donal O Dwyer set up Sean O Leary for a superb goal for the home team. Laune Rangers fought back with a well-worked point by Podge Foley and two Pa O Sullivan frees to leave the sides all square at 1-4 to 0-7. In the final few minutes of the half, both sides struck for goals. Sean O Leary collected a good pass from Donal O Dwyer to score his second goal. Then, minutes later, Laune Rangers were awarded a free. Pa O Sullivan took it quickly to Brian Gannon who crashed the ball to the Kilcummin net. Sean O Leary had a point for the home side to close the scoring for that half.

Both sides swapped points after the resumption, Pa O Sullivan from a free following a foul on Brian Gannon, Paul O Donoghue for Kilcummin in the 35^th minute and a point by Barry O Sullivan in the 40^th minute for the visitors. Pa O Sullivan had the teams level with 15 minutes remaining with a pointed free. Then Kilcummin had points by Paul and Eamonn O Donoghue before Michael O Connor collected a line ball on the edge of the square, rounded Peter Lyons and crashed the ball to the net. Rangers did reply with two points from Pa O Sullivan but Kilcummin held out for a deserved two-point victory.

Laune Rangers: Peter Lyons, John O Sullivan, Eoin Ferris, Paul Russell, Mark o Connor, John Sheehan, Pa Murphy, Tom McGillycuddy, Barry O Sullivan (0-1), Colin O Connor, James O Shea, Johnny Lynch, Pa O Sullivan (0-10), Podge Foley (0-3), Billy O Shea. Subs: Brian Gannon (1-0) for C. O Connor (inj.).

Ref: Donie Sheehan (Gneeveguilla).

 

Rd. 8 on Sat. 28^th July at Killorglin: Laune Rangers 2-11; Rathmore 2-12.

That loss to Rathmore moved Laune Rangers a step closer to relegation. With both sides missing their county players, the home side took the early initiative with an early goal by Billy O Shea. However, the East-Kerry side got into its stride and Jerry Murphy scored a goal halfway through the first period to put his side right back in the game. Brian Gannon scored a first-class goal to leave the home team ahead by 2-6 to 1-5 at halftime.

The second half was more or less 50/50 until the last few minutes when Rathmore’s experience showed up trumps against their much younger opponents and they finished with a flourish to secure the points. Arising out of being sent off in that game, Eoin Ferris was suspended for 4 weeks for striking an opponent (Jerry Murphy was also sent off and duly suspended).

Laune Rangers: Shane Clifford, John O Sullivan, Eoin Ferris, Paul Russell, Mark O Connor (0-1), John Sheehan, Pa Murphy, Johnny Lynch (0-1), Barry O Sullivan (0-2), Billy O Shea (1-0), Tom McGillycuddy (0-3), James O Shea (0-2), Brian Gannon (1-2), Podge Foley, Colin O Connor. Subs: Noel Lynch for J. O Sullivan, Billy O Sullivan for C. O Connor.

Ref: Brendan O Riordan (Scartaglin).

 

Rd. 9 on Sat. 25^th Aug. at Castleisland: Desmonds 1-12; Laune Rangers 0-14.

That was a pulsating and keenly contested game, with both teams missing their county players. Rangers almost got the perfect start in the first minute as Pa O Sullivan rattled the crossbar following a four-man passing movement. In the second minute, the same player opened the scoring with a pointed free, as he was fouled going through. A fisted point by Michael Broderick was Desmonds’ response. Both teams were using the short-passing game to good effect but marking was tight by both sets of backs.

Kevin Lynch put Desmonds ahead but, as play transferred to the other end, Pa O Sullivan sent the ball over with a 30m shot under pressure from an in-form Kenneth Dillon. Desmonds piled on the pressure. Mossy O Connell floated in a lovely ball. Desmonds full-forward Darby Buckley went high and fisted the ball to the net. Laune Rangers’ reply was swift as Pa O Sullivan, who was roaming all over the field, pointed from close in. Desmonds went further ahead as Kenneth Dillon set up Ciarán O Sullivan for a point. Kevin Lynch made it 1-5 with a pointed free in the 14^th minute. Pa O Sullivan kept Rangers in touch with a point in the 17^th minute. A two-man attack by Ciarán O Sullivan and Kevin Lynch stretched Rangers to the limit in the 18^th minute but, as Lynch shot low for the corner, Laune Rangers’ goalie, Shane Clifford, made a wonderful save at point-blank range. Kevin Lynch and Colin O Connor exchanged points. The last scores of the half came from a pointed free by Pa O Sullivan and Kevin Lynch in the 27^th minute. Barry O Sullivan replaced John Moriarty, as Rangers tried to curtail the midfield dominance of Kenneth Dillon. The first half concluded with Desmonds leading by 1-7 to 0-6.

Barry O Sullivan made a huge difference at midfield for Laune Rangers in the first five minutes of the second half. It was all Laune Rangers and their first attack was similar to the first half as Ross Sheehan hit the upright but he recovered the rebound to score a point. However, Desmonds’ backs held firm. Colin O Connor reduced the lead with a pointed free in the 6^th minute. Pa O Sullivan and Ciarán O Sullivan exchanged wides as Rangers tried frantically to get a goal. Ciarán O Sullivan made it 1-8 to 0-8 as the game reached the midway stage of the half. As the battle raged at midfield, the breaks came to Rangers and three hard-won points by Pa O Sullivan, Paul Costello and Colin O Connor had them on level terms in the 20^th minute. Pa O Sullivan put Rangers ahead for the first time a minute later as he blasted the ball over the bar when a goal looked on. The lead, however, was short-lived as Dan Walsh pointed from 20m. The remaining minutes were played at a frantic pace, but Kenneth Dillon had three wonderful, under-pressure catches. Ciarán O Sullivan put Desmonds ahead with 4 minutes remaining. Martin Horgan increased the lead with a fine punched point. Barry O Sullivan and Paul Costello, in a one-two move, set up Paul Russell for a point. Pa O Sullivan, on the stroke of 30 minutes, equalised once more but, in added time, Darby Buckley sent the ball between the posts for a hard-earned Desmonds’ win.

Pa O Sullivan was outstanding for Laune Rangers and, along with Paul Costello, Barry O Sullivan, Ross Sheehan and Colin O Connor, they gave Desmonds a hard time.

Laune Rangers: Shane Clifford, Noel Lynch, Eoin Ferris, Paul Russell (0-1), Mark O Connor, Paul Costello (0-1), Pa Murphy, John Moriarty, John Sheehan, James O Shea, Tom McGillycuddy, Ross Sheehan (0-1), Pa O Sullivan (0-9, 2 frees), Podge Foley, Colin O Connor (0-2). Sub: Barry O Sullivan, Damien Harmon.

Ref: Connie Carroll (Legion).

 

Rd. 10 on Sun. 30^th Sept. at Strand Road: Kerins O Rahillys 0-12; Laune Rangers 1-5.

Kerins O Rahillys went two points clear after 6 minutes with a point each from frees from John O Connor and Declan Quill. Garrett Walsh made a great blocking save from a shot by Johnny Lynch. They went 4 points ahead with a free by John O Connor and one from play by Stephen Wallace, before Pa O Sullivan and Johnny Lynch got a point each for Rangers. Just before halftime, Mike Frank Russell passed to Thomas McGillycuddy for a great goal. John O Connor pointed to leave the teams level at the break, 0-5 to 1-2.

After the restart, Niall Hobbart made a very good save from Mike Frank Russell. Damien Diggins pointed to put the Tralee side ahead. The game ebbed and flowed with both teams exchanging scores. For O Rahillys, John O Connor, Ger O Brien, Aidan Daly and Garrett Walsh scored points, while Pa O Sullivan scored all of Rangers’ second-half points.

Laune Rangers needed to win that game and for other results to go their way in order to avoid the drop to Div. 2.

Laune Rangers: Shane Clifford, John O Sullivan, Eoin Ferris, Noel Lynch, Mark O Connor, Paul Costello, Pa Murphy, John Moriarty, Johnny Lynch (0-1), James O Shea, Tom McGillycuddy (1-0), Ross Sheehan, Pa O Sullivan (0-4, 2 frees), Mike Frank Russell, Colin O Connor. Subs: Paul Russell for J. O Sullivan, Barry O Sullivan for J. Moriarty, Podge Foley for C. O Connor.

Ref: Danny Enright (Tarbert).

 

Rd. 11 on Sun. 23^rd Sept. at Killorglin: Laune Rangers 0-10; Dingle 1-13.

The result might have meant nothing to either side but that clash produced a good game. Both teams were under-strength and they gave some up-and-coming players a run-out. The home side started well with points by Johnny Lynch, Pa Murphy and Ross Sheehan inside the first six minutes. The visitors got on the score-board when David Devane pointed from play at the 9^th minutes but Pa O Sullivan replied from a free two minutes later. The last quarter of the half belonged to the winners with points from David Devane, free, Fintan Ashe, Devane again from a free, Padraig Curran (play), Devane (free) and Sean Geaney (play) to leave them 0-7 to 0-4 in front at halftime.

The same pattern emerged in the second half with Rangers dominant in the early stages, then Dingle taking over. The early scores came from Rangers with a Pa O Sullivan free, substitute Dara Burns from play, Johnny Lynch from play and Pa O Sullivan (free). That left the home side 0-8 to 0-7 in front after eight minutes. Dingle came back and Jack Ferriter levelled matters when he pointed from play for Dingle in the 40^th minute. Sean Geaney gave Dingle the lead three minutes later. The final quarter was played in semi-darkness. Barry O Sullivan pointed a free in the 45^th minute but Dingle again took control. Devane, with two further points from frees, put Dingle in the driving seat. Then, three minutes from time, Aidan O Neill wrapped things up with a fine goal for Dingle. Colin O Connor and Trevor Gannon raised white flags for the Laune men before the final whistle sounded.

Best for the Rangers were Eoin Ferris, Pa Murphy, Pa O Sullivan, Ross Sheehan, Dara Burns and Barry O Sullivan.

Laune Rangers: Shane Clifford, John O Sullivan, Eoin Ferris, Damien Harmon, Mark O Connor, Paul Costello, Pa Murphy (0-1), John Moriarty, Pa O Sullivan (0-3, frees), James O Shea, Barry O Sullivan (0-1, free), Ross Sheehan (0-1), Colin O Connor, Podge Foley, Johnny Lynch (0-2). Subs: Shane O Sullivan for J. O Sullivan, Trevor Gannon (0-1) for J. Lynch, Pa Sheehan for M. O Connor, Dermot Houlihan for P. Murphy, Dara Burns (0-1) for J. O Shea.

Ref: Donie Sheehan (Gneeveguilla).

 

Laune Rangers ended the league in 11^th place with 4 points from 11 games and were relegated to Div. 2.

 

Molyneaux Cup

 

Rd. 1 on Fri. 3^rd Aug. at Killorglin: Laune Rangers ‘B’ defeated Austin Stacks ‘B’.

Rd. 2 on Fri. 17^th Aug. at Mitchels’ Field: John Mitchels ‘B’ 0-4; Laune Rangers ‘B’ 4-12.

Rd. 3 on Fri. 24^th Aug. at Killorglin: Laune Rangers ‘B’ defeated An Ghaeltacht ‘B’.

Semi-final on Mon. 29^th Oct. at Keel: Laune Rangers ‘B’ defeated Kerins O Rahillys ‘B’.

 

Final on Sun. 18^th Nov. at Milltown: Austin Stacks ‘B’ 2-10; Laune Rangers ‘B’ 0-10 (AET).

A goal in each period of extra-time clinched that final for Austin Stacks ‘B’. The game itself did not rise to any great heights and Laune Rangers should have done the business in normal time. They played the better football for the majority of the hour and, apart from the last five minutes, Stacks looked a beaten side.

Veteran John F. O Brien opened the scoring with a 4^th minute point after receiving an inch-perfect pass from Derry O Sullivan. Stacks equalised with their first real attack, when Seamus Smith pointed. Rangers continued to dominate with Darragh Burns and Jason Griffin tormenting the Stacks’ defence. In the 17^th minute, Stacks’ goalkeeper, Jonathan Conway, made a fine double save to deny Pat Leahy. John Ahern had given Rangers the lead prior to that with a well-taken point and a goal at that stage would surely have put the Killorglin side on the road to victory. As it was, there was a 16-minute barren spell without a score before Martin Courtney pointed a free to restore parity. Pa Sheehan had the last say of the half and his point left Rangers ahead by 0-3 to 0-2 at the break.

On the resumption, Rangers introduced Joe Healy and he made a big impression, contributing four fine points from play. He and Pa Sheehan stretched the Blues’ lead to three points in the first five minutes of the second half and again a lengthy scoreless period ensued before another Seamus Smith point kept Stacks in contention. However, they were finding it hard to breach a strong Laune Rangers’ rearguard and, with eight minutes left, another Joe Healy point put a goal between the sides (0-6 to 0-3). That was to be their last score in normal time and gradually Stacks upped the tempo of the game. Timmy Lynch pointed and Alex Donovan reduced the margin to a single point. Again Stacks pressed and, with time almost up, Timmy Lynch again split the posts to bring the game into extra-time.

Again Rangers had the brighter opening but proceeded to leave Stacks in contention by kicking four wides in succession. They were to pay for those unconverted chances. Martin Courtney, with a pointed free, gave Stacks the lead for the first time in the game and then came the first of Stacks’ goals. They had been awarded a ‘45’, which was flighted goal-wards and up rose promising midfielder Kieran Donaghy to punch to the net. Terence Houlihan answered with a point for Rangers but Mike Hogan restored Stacks four-point lead at the end of the first period of extra-time (1-8 to 0-7).

Joe Healy, with two early points, kept Rangers in with a shout. Martin Courtney put three between the sides before Stacks struck for the crucial match-winning score. Anthony Moriarty was hauled down in the small parallelogram and the referee had no hesitation in awarding a penalty. Martin Courtney blasted the ball low past the despairing Tony Lyons to edge his side six points clear. With legs tiring, there was no way back for the Killorglin lads. Darragh Burns did add a point but that was nullified by another Courtney points and six points still separated the sides at the final whistle. Redmond Fitzgerald, Pa Sheehan, John F. O Brien, Eoin Ferris, Darragh Burns, Jason Griffin and substitute, Joe Healy, were the pick of the Rangers’ team.

Laune Rangers ‘B’: Tony Lyons, Redmond Fitzgerald, Cian Evans, Damien Harmon, Pa Sheehan (0-2, 1 free), John F. O Brien (0-1), Brian Curran, Eoin Ferris, Conor Falvey, Terence Houlihan (0-1), John Ahern (0-1), Pat Leahy, Darragh Burns (0-1), Derry O Sullivan (capt.), Jason Griffin. Subs used: Joe Healy (0-4) for Darragh Burns, Ger Purcell for Jason Griffin, Geoffrey O Mahony, Tom Crowley. John Moriarty had broken a leg in a motor-cycle accident the previous week and was a huge loss.

Ref: Dermot Clifford (Fossa).

 

Co. Senior Football League Div. 5

 

Rd. 1 on Sun. 25^th March at Scartaglin: Scartaglin 2-8; Laune Rangers ‘B’ 1-11.

Geoffrey O Mahony wisely put a penalty-kick over the bar in the last minute to level the scores. At one stage in the game, Laune Rangers had trailed by six points against a physically stronger home team. The young team showed great heart to come back and level the scores. Best for the Rangers were John Moriarty, John Ahern, Morgan Foley and all the forwards.

Laune Rangers ‘B’: Tony Lyons, Brian Curran, Joe Hayes, Damien Harmon, Terence Houlihan, John Moriarty, Conor Falvey, John Ahern, Morgan Foley, Ger Purcell, Pat Leahy, Geoffrey O Mahony, Joe Healy, Barry O Sullivan, Derry O Sullivan (capt.).

 

Rd. 2 on Sat. 14^th April at Cloon: Laune Rangers ‘B’ 3-8; Kilgarvan 4-5.

 

Rd. 3 on Sat. 5^th May at Brosna: Brosna defeated Laune Rangers ‘B’.

Rd. 4 on Sat. 12^th May at Fossa: Fossa 0-11; Laune Rangers ‘B’ 1-13.

Arising out of being sent off in the above game, Ger Purcell was suspended for 4 weeks for striking an opponent.

 

Rd. 5 on Mon. 4^th June at Cloon: Laune Rangers ‘B’ 0-16; Ballydonoghue 0-8.

Best for the Rangers were Joe Hayes, Conor Falvey, John Moriarty in defence, and forwards Barry O Sullivan, Geoffrey O Mahony and Darragh Burns.

Laune Rangers ‘B’: Tony Lyons, Damien Harmon, Joe Hayes, Redmond Fitzgerald, Terence Houlihan (0-1), John F. O Brien, Conor Falvey, John Moriarty (0-1), Eoin Ferris, Darragh Burns (0-1), Barry O Sullivan (0-8), Geoffrey O Mahony (0-2), Trevor Gannon (0-2), Derry O Sullivan, Billy O Sullivan. Subs: John O Sullivan (0-1), Paul Griffin, John Ahern.

 

Rd. 6 on Sat. 16^th June at Renard: Renard 1-10; Laune Rangers ‘B’ 2-6.

Rd. 7 on Sat. 7^th July at Cloon: Laune Rangers ‘B’ 1-12; Kerins O Rahillys ‘B’ 1-4.

Rd. 8 on Sat. 21^st July at Killorglin: Laune Rangers ‘B’ 2-15; Ardfert 0-3.

 

Rd. 9 on Sun. 29^th July at Cloon: Laune Rangers ‘B’ 1-12; Derrynane 0-7.

Billy O Sullivan and John Moriarty were in great form, while Karl Griffin returned after a long absence due to work commitments. The team started very brightly and were 1-2 to 0-0 ahead after a few minutes, Billy O Sullivan scoring a goal with a trademark finish and John Ahern scoring a wonder-point from the right wing. Rangers led by 1-5 to 0-4 at halftime and they never looked like losing the initiative in the second half. There were top performances in defence with Conor Falvey, Redmond Fitzgerald and Pa Sheehan to the fore.

 

Rd. 10 on Sun. 12^th Aug. at Tuosist: Tuosist lost to Laune Rangers ‘B’.

Rd. 11 on Sat. 22^nd Sept. at Cloon: Laune Rangers ‘B’ Asdee.

 

The ‘B’ team finished in third place in Div. 5 of the Co. League, with 18 points from 12 games..

 

Barrett Cup

 

Rd. 1 on Wed. 22^nd Aug. at Milltown: Milltown/Castlemaine ‘B’ drew with Laune Rangers ‘C’.

Rd. 1 replay on Fri. 24^th at Cloon: Laune Rangers ‘C’ 1-17; Milltown/Castlemaine ‘B’ 0-8.

After a tight enough first half, Rangers’ skill and ability shone through in the second period to record a scintillating victory. The defence stood firm throughout with outstanding performances from Eddie Birmingham, Karl Falvey and Mark Healy. A blend of experience, in the shape of Michael O Reilly, and youth in the shape of Tim O Regan, at midfield, supplied plenty of ball to the forwards where Paul Griffin, Liam Foley, Aidan O Connor and Trevor Gannon were on fire.

Laune Rangers: William Byrne, Eddie Birmingham, John O Donnell, Karl Falvey, Robert Moriarty, Mark Healy, Andrew O Reilly, Michael O Reilly, Tim O Regan, Paul Griffin, Liam Foley, Aidan O Connor, Mikey Griffin, Trevor Gannon. Sub: Donncha Curran.

 

Quarter-final on Fri. 31^st Aug. at Killorglin: Laune Rangers ‘C’ Austin Stacks ‘C’.

 

 

Co. Junior Football League (Div. 2S)

The group consisted of Derrynane ‘B’, Cromane ‘B’, Dromid ‘B’, Dr. Crokes ‘C’, Glenbeigh/Glencar ‘B’, Fossa ‘B’, Kenmare ‘B’, St. Michael’s/Foilmore ‘B’, Renard ‘B’, Valentia ‘B’, Skellig Rangers ‘B’ and Laune Rangers ‘C’.

 

Rd. 1 on Fri. 11^th May at Killorglin: Laune Rangers ‘C’ 1-11; Kenmare ‘B’ 0-13.

Rd. 2 on Fri. 18^th May at Dromid: Dromid Pearses ‘B’ lost to Laune Rangers ‘C’.

Rd. 3 on Fri. 25^th May at Killorglin: Laune Rangers ‘C’ 0-15; Derrynane ‘B’ 0-5.

 

Rd. 4 on Fri. 1^st June at Portmagee: Skellig Rangers ‘B’ 1-5; Laune Rangers ‘C’ 2-11.

Laune Rangers ‘C’: Raymond O Sullivan, Timmy Moroney, Conor Falvey, Robert Moriarty, Terence Houlihan, John F. O Brien, Brian Houlihan, Michael O Reilly, Liam Foley (capt.), Barry O Sullivan, Alan O Sullivan, Darragh Burns, Peter Lyons, Eddie Birmingham, William Byrne. Subs used: Cian Evans, Patrick O Connell, Colm Conway and John O Sullivan.

 

Rd. 5 on Fri. 8^th June at Killorglin: Laune Rangers ‘C’ defeated Cromane ‘B’.

Rd. 6 on Fri. 15^th June at Renard: Renard ‘B’ 1-9; Laune Rangers ‘C’ 0-13.

Rd. 7 on Fri. 22^nd June at Killorglin: Laune Rangers ‘C’ St. Michael’s/Foilmore ‘B’.

Rd. 8 on Fri. 29^th June at Derrynane: Derrynane ‘B’ Laune Rangers ‘C’.

Rd. 9 on Fri. 6^th July: Laune Rangers ‘C’ 3-10; Valentia ‘B’ 0-8.

Rd. 10 on Fri. 13^th July at Cloon: Laune Rangers ‘C’ defeated Dr. Crokes ‘C’.

Rd. 11 on Fri. 20^th July at Glenbeigh: Glenbeigh/Glencar ‘B’ Laune Rangers ‘C’.

 

Semi-final on Mon. 30^th July at Direen: Laune Rangers ‘C’ 2-7; Kenmare ‘B’ 2-6.

Rangers trailed for most of the game, until the final few minutes. Kenmare, fielding a very strong side, held a tight grip on the game in the first half. They led by five points at one stage but a John Ahern goal brought the Rangers back into the game. The defence was in good form, to such an extent that Kenmare, despite all their possession, only succeeded in getting five scores in that half and they led at halftime by 2-3 to 1-2.

A rousing halftime speech by manager, Danny Cahill, seemed to inspire the boys in blue and Barry O Sullivan and Eoin O Sullivan seemed to come into their own at midfield and half-forward. Despite that improvement, the outlook seemed grim as Kenmare still led with a few minutes to go. Then a fine fisted goal by Alan O Sullivan put the Killorglin men right back in the match and they finished with a gallop.

Laune Rangers ‘C’: William Byrne, Timmy Moroney, Karl Falvey, Cian Evans, Redmond Fitzgerald, John F. O Brien, Pa Sheehan, Barry O Sullivan, Liam Foley (capt.), John Ahern, Alan O Sullivan, Eoin O Sullivan, Ger Purcell, Eddie Birmingham, Trevor Gannon. Sub: Michael O Reilly.

 

Final on Fri. 3^rd Aug. at Glenbeigh: Laune Rangers ‘C’ 4-12; Cromane ‘B’ 2-5.

Cromane were really up against it from the beginning against a strong Laune Rangers team. Barry O Sullivan was superb at midfield. Trevor Gannon had Rangers’ opening score and that was followed by a goal from Liam Foley. Indeed, Rangers had 2-3 on the board, a goal by Eddie Birmingham and two points by Alan O Sullivan, before Cromane could register its first score, a point in the 15^th minute from a free by Maurice O Shea. Brian O Sullivan came off the bench and scored a goal for Cromane but further points from Pa Sheehan and Liam Foley left the winners ahead by 2-5 to 1-1 at halftime.

The Rangers’ forwards were in great form, with Eoin O Sullivan and Eddie Birmingham outstanding. Barry O Sullivan and Michael O Reilly dominated midfield and the backs were rock solid, John Francis O Brien keeping Maurice O Shea scoreless from play. Trevor Gannon was the two-goal hero.

Laune Rangers ‘C’: William Byrne, Conor Falvey (0-1), Cian Evans, Timmy Moroney, Redmond Fitzgerald, John F. O Brien, Pa Sheehan (0-1), Michael O Reilly (0-1), Barry O Sullivan (0-2), Liam Foley (capt.) 1-1, Alan O Sullivan (0-1), John Ahern, Eoin O Sullivan (0-2), Eddie Birmingham (2-0), Trevor Gannon (1-1). Sub: Dara Burns (0-2) for L. Foley, Donncha Curran, Colm Conway, Paul McKenna, Robert Moriarty.

Cromane ‘B’: JM Foley, Pa O Shea, Noel Foley, Teddy O Shea, Francis Casey, Colm Joy, Danny O Sullivan, Conal Kelly, Kieran O Callaghan, Damien Joy (0-1), Maurice O Shea (0-1), Sean Costello (1-0), Jerome Houlihan, Clinton Griffin, Paul P. O Sullivan. Sub: Brian O Sullivan (1-3) for D. Houlihan.

Ref: Brendan Twiss (Callanfercy).

 

Mid-Kerry Senior Football Championship

 

Semi-final on Sun. 28^th Oct. at Milltown: Laune Rangers 2-13; Beaufort 0-5.

That game was played in glorious sunshine. Ian O Shea opened the scoring with a point for Beaufort in the 5^th minute. Laune Rangers cancelled that out when Barry O Sullivan pointed a free.  In the 8^th minute, a quick free by Rangers was collected by Billy O Shea, who flicked the ball to Colin O Connor and the corner-forward shot to the net. Rangers went on to lead at halftime by 1-3 to 0-4.

In the second half, John Sheehan stormed into the game and was involved in just about every move that Rangers made. They piled on the pressure and had a brace of points before clinching victory with a goal by Johnny Lynch in the 49^th minute. John Lynch had been put in possession by Paul Costello, who had made a good run through the Beaufort defence. That made it 2-9 to 0-4 and Beaufort’s only score of the second half came in the 54^th minute – a point by Ian O Shea. Man-of-the-match – John Sheehan.

Laune Rangers: Shane Clifford, Noel Lynch, Eoin Ferris, Conor Falvey, Mark O Connor, Paul Costello, Pa Murphy, Barry O Sullivan (0-9), John Sheehan, Brendan Fitzgerald, Johnny Lynch (1-0), Ross Sheehan, Colin O Connor (1-0), Billy O Shea, Mike Frank Russell (0-4). Subs: James O Shea for J. Lynch, Thomas McGillycuddy for B. Fitzgerald, Shane O Sullivan for C. Falvey, Daragh Burns for C. O Connor.

Beaufort: Michael Moriarty, Robert Doyle, Jimmy Doyle, Martin Breen, Jeremiah Doyle, Mícheál Foley, Donal Coffey, Gary McGrath (0-1), Cormac O Shea, Eanna O Malley (0-1), Kevin O Brien, Pa Doyle, Donal Hartnett (0-1), Ian O Shea (0-2), Vincent O Donoghue. Subs: Peter Keane for Jeremiah Doyle, Raymond Kelliher for M. Foley.

Ref: Michael Murphy (Callanfersy).

 

Final on Sun. 4^th Nov. at JP O Sullivan Park: Laune Rangers 0-8; Milltown/Castlemaine 0-9.

Two injury-time points by Ian and Derek Twiss saw Milltown/Castlemaine defeat Laune Rangers in the final – the first time since 1962 that the men in green managed to defeated the men in blue in the Mid-Kerry Senior Championship Final. Few believed that they could achieve the win after the impressive Barry O Sullivan had given Laune Rangers a lead of 0-8 to 0-7 in the 58^th minute. However, referee Brian O Sullivan, officiating in his first Mid-Kerry SFC final, gave Milltown/Castlemaine the chance to launch a rescue operation by playing five minutes of injury-time and they grabbed it with aplomb. Derek Twiss’ equalising point was kicked from the sideline on the stand side of the field and the ball sailed over the bar, when everybody expected it to land in the square. Milltown/Castlemaine were not happy to settle for a draw and Ian Twiss charged through in the 4^th minute of injury time and wisely opted for a point when a goal was on – it proved to be the match-winning point. Seconds later, the referee’s final whistle was the cue for delirium among the green supporters and players alike.

There had been ominous signs for Milltown/Castlemaine from the start, as first Sean Burke had to cry off with an injury, although he made a huge impact at full-forward when he was introduced as a sub in the 40^th minute. They also lost wing-back William Harmon to a rib-injury in the 8^th minute. Rangers were gutted that they had let a lead slip so late in the game and they weren’t happy either with their shooting, which yielded an unhealthy tally of 12 wides, compared to just seven for the victors. They weren’t happy either that they only held a two-point lead at the break. They had been much the better side in the opening 30 minutes but went in 0-5 to 0-3 in front. It should have been more. Milltown/Castlemaine hadn’t scored from play in the opening period and hadn’t looked menacing. Laune Rangers, on the other hand, seemed to hold all the aces. Paul Costello was solid at centre halfback, Johnny Lynch and Barry O Sullivan had the upper hand at midfield, while Johnny Lynch, at centre half-forward, ran the show in the first half. In the fullback line, Noel Lynch and Eoin Ferris weren’t giving a sniff to Ian Twiss and Joe Daly. The scores didn’t come, however.

Johnny Lynch gave the Rangers the lead in the 3^rd minute when he finished a superb move involving Paul Costello, Billy O Shea and John Sheehan. Rangers then proceeded to dominate the play for the next 10 minutes but couldn’t convert possession into scores. They were winning all the breaks and Milltown/Castlemaine’s ploy of leaving Ian Twiss inside with Joe Daly to feed off the big man’s breaks wasn’t working. Most of the time, they kicked the ball away needlessly. Rangers were beginning to slip into cruise control at that stage but wides by Billy O Shea and Mike Frank Russell, who had a very quiet game, were mere samples of what proved to be their ultimate downfall.

Milltown finally got off the mark in the 11^th minute with a Derek Twiss free after a foul on his brother Ian. In the 13^th minute, a high ball from Barry O Sullivan into the Rangers’ full-forward line deceived Milltown’s Alfie Giles and left Mike Frank Russell with a sight of goal but he shot quickly and the ball went agonisingly inches wide of the left hand post. Three minutes later, Milltown/Castlemaine looked to be in for a goal but Ian Twiss slipped at the crucial moment but he was deemed to be fouled as he regained his feet and Derek Twiss duly converted the resultant free to put the men in green ahead for the first time, 0-2 to 0-1. Rangers responded superbly and by the 26^th minute they had forged into a two-point lead, 0-4 to 0-2, with three unanswered points. First Barry O Sullivan swung over his first score of the game in the 20^th minute with a sublime right-footed point from a free on the town side of the field. Four minutes later, he tapped over a much easier free after Johnny Lynch had been taken down on the 21-yard line at the end of a superb 50-yard solo-run. Billy O Shea completed a superb purple patch for the Killorglin side in the 26^th minute when he received a pass on the run from Colin O Connor and tapped over to make it 0-4 to 0-2. Derek Twiss pegged one back from a free for Milltown/Castlemaine in the first minute of injury time before Barry O Sullivan wrapped up the first half’s action when he landed his first point from play after being set up by Mike Frank Russell (0-5 to 0-3).

The victors must have known that they had under-performed as they began the second half eager to rectify the mistakes of the first. Within five minutes they were level with points from the magnificent Fionán Kelliher and another free from Derek Twiss. Barry O Sullivan regained the lead (0-6 to 0-5) for Laune Rangers in the 42^nd minute with a fabulous free from just inside the 50-yard line on the stand side. But by now, the tide had definitely turned. Milltown/Castlemaine had introduced Sean Burke to full-forward. In the 48^th minute, Ian Twiss lobbed a high ball into the square and, as Burke connected with his fist from ten yards out, it looked to be a certain goal. However, the crossbar intervened as Shane Clifford made a despairing dive. Burke, while on his knees, also fisted the rebound towards the goal but Shane Clifford made a fantastic instinctive save while still on the ground and the ball bobbled wide off Burke.

A minute later, Derek Twiss levelled the scores for the 4^th time with a free before Milltown/Castlemaine almost breached the Rangers’ rearguard again. Fionán Kelliher cut in along the end-line but his punch across goal was met with a weak effort from substitute Gavin Wrenn and Shane Clifford had no trouble mopping up. Another Derek Twiss free in the 54^th minute gave his side the lead for the first time since the 20^th minute and the scent of success. Mike Frank Russell sullied that scent when he burst into life three minutes from time when he struck for his first score of the game after playing a neat one-two with Billy O Shea. A high ball from another Barry O Sullivan free was not dealt with confidently by the Milltown/Castlemaine fullback line and the breaking ball fell invitingly for Laune Rangers’ substitute Darragh Burns but his snap shot was brilliantly saved by Jim O Connor. The attempted clearance though only went as far as Colin O Connor who was fouled straight in front of the posts and Barry O Sullivan seemed to have given Rangers their 14^th title in 16 years when he converted. Milltown/Castlemaine, however, had other ideas. In those final fraught and anxious minutes, two moments of brilliance from the Twiss brothers clinched their first Mid-Kerry SFC title since 1989. That was the first time  since 1962 that Milltown/Castlemaine had beaten Laune Rangers in a Mid-Kerry Senior Championship final.

Laune Rangers: Shane Clifford, Noel Lynch, Eoin Ferris, Conor Falvey, Mark O Connor, Paul Costello, Pa Murphy, Barry O Sullivan (0-5, 4 frees), John Sheehan, Brendan Fitzgerald, Johnny Lynch (0-1), Colin O Connor, Pa O Sullivan, Billy O Shea (0-1), Mike Frank Russell (0-1). Subs: Darragh Burns for P. Murphy (inj.), Tom McGillycuddy for P. O Sullivan, James O Shea for C. O Connor. It later transpired that Pa Murphy had fractures one of his legs.

Milltown/Castlemaine: Jim O Connor, Alfie Giles, Paudie McCarthy, Johnny Giles, George McKenna, Damien Murphy, William Harmon, Mike Burke, Linus Burke, Derek Twiss (0-7, frees), Jason Giles, Fionán Kelliher (0-1), Martin Burke, Joe Daly, Ian Twiss (0-1). Subs: Joe McAuliffe for W. Harmon (inj.), Sean Burke for Jason Giles, Gavin Wrenn for J. Daly.

Ref: Brian O Sullivan (Cromane).

Mid-Kerry Senior Football League

 

Rd. 1 on Sun. 1^st April at Cromane: Cromane 1-11; Laune Rangers 2-9.

Cromane opened with some magnificent points by Donncha Walsh. Midway through the half, Cromane led by 0-5 to 0-1 but a goal from full-forward Podge Foley brought the men from the Laune back into the game. The scores were level at halftime (1-8 to 2-5).

The visitors had the aid of the wind in the second half. Former Kerry star, Billy O Shea, came on and turned the game in Laune Rangers’ favour. Brian Gannon kicked some great points but the game still went down to the wire. Cromane goalie, Pat Duffy, brought off three great saves. A minute from the end, with Rangers leading by one point, Tomás Hayes had a great chance of an equaliser but he blazed wide from 20 yards. Rangers were missing Mike Frank Russell and Pa O Sullivan, while John Sheehan and Billy O Shea did not start the game – the latter came on in the second half and helped to turn the game in Rangers’ favour. Best for the Rangers were Podge Foley, who contributed two goals, John Ahern and Brendan Fitzgerald. Some of the younger players seemed jaded after their exertions for the ‘B’ team against Glenbeigh on the previous night, in a challenge game.

 

Rd. 2 on Sun. 22^nd April at Beaufort: Beaufort 1-6; Laune Rangers 1-15.

That was an inspiring victory against an under-strength Beaufort side. The game was decided by a strong Rangers’ midfield, of Tom McGillycuddy and Pa O Sullivan. The latter opened the scoring with two pointed frees and already they looked impressive in all parts of the field. Kevin O Brien replied for Beaufort. Rangers’ goal in the 10^th minute came when a shot from minor star, Colin O Connor, came back off the post for Brian Gannon to lash the ball to the net and put Rangers four points ahead. The Killorglin boys continued to dominate with some excellent football and their defence worked hard to close down the Beaufort attack. Further points from James O Shea and Pa O Sullivan had Rangers ahead by 1-4 to 0-1 after 15 minutes. However, Beaufort then replied with points from Denis Moriarty and Eanna O Malley. Rangers, who were dominating midfield, with Tom McGillycuddy outstanding, were sending plenty of ball to their forwards and they added further points from Noel Lynch and Brian Gannon to lead at halftime by 1-6 to 0-3.

Colin O Connor and Ian O Shea exchanged points before Pa O Sullivan and John Ahern put Rangers ahead by 1-9 to 0-4 after 45 minutes. Eanna O Malley pointed for Beaufort, only for John Edmund Murphy to reply for Rangers after a storming run up-field by John Sheehan. Colin O Connor then curled over a glorious point from the right-hand sideline for the winners, who were rampant at that stage. James O Shea, Brian Gannon with two cracking points and Podge Foley had Rangers ahead by 1-15 to 0-5 when Ronan Spillane scored Beaufort’s consolation goal with time almost up. Podge Foley had the final say with a point.  In defence Paul Costello, Paul Russell and Noel Lynch were outstanding, for Rangers. Pierce Prendiville, selected at corner-forward, played as a third midfielder and gave another age-defying display. Pa O Sullivan was Rangers’ man-of-the-match, ably assisted by Brian Gannon, John Edmund Murphy and 17-year-old debutante, Colin O Connor.

Laune Rangers: Shane Clifford, John O Sullivan, Paul Costello, Darren O Riordan, Noel Lynch (0-1), John Sheehan, Paul Russell, Thomas McGillycuddy, Pa O Sullivan (0-4), James O Shea (0-2), Brian Gannon (1-2), John Edmund Murphy (0-1), Colin O Connor (0-2), Podge Foley (0-2), Pierce Prendiville. Subs: Pa Murphy for J. O Sullivan, Mark O Connor for D. O Riordan, John Ahern (0-1) for P. Prendiville.

 

Final on Mon. 6^th Aug. at Milltown: Beaufort w/o; Laune Rangers scr.

Laune Rangers refused to play, claiming that they were entitled to the services of Mike Frank Russell for the final. He had been unable to play on that date due to the replay in the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Quarter-final, Kerry versus Dublin. The club had informed the Mid-Kerry Board of its claim but that Board had insisted that the game should go ahead. As the Beaufort team and the appointed referee had travelled to Milltown, the Chairman of the Board awarded the title to Beaufort.

 

Mid-Kerry O Sullivan Cup

 

Rd. 1 on Wed. 15^th Aug. at Cromane: Cromane 2-8; Laune Rangers ‘B’ 3-7.

Trailing by three points at halftime, Rangers rallied well to win by two points. Best for them were Redmond Fitzgerald and Damien Harmon in defence, Barry O Sullivan and man-of-the-match John Moriarty at midfield, Billy and Derry O Sullivan and John Ahern in attack. Special mention must be given to substitute, Jason Griffin, who got a real poacher’s goal near the end.

Laune Rangers ‘B’: Tony Lyons, Cian Evans, Damien Harmon, Redmond Fitzgerald, Pa Sheehan, John F. O Brien, Joe Hayes, Barry O Sullivan, John Moriarty, Darragh Burns, Billy O Sullivan, John Ahern, Geoffrey O Mahony, Derry O Sullivan, Trevor Gannon. Subs: Jason Griffin, Ger Purcell, Brian Curran, William Byrne.

 

Semi-final on Fri. 31^st Aug. at Cromane: Laune Rangers ‘B’ defeated Beaufort.

 

Final on Sun. 1^st Oct. at Cromane: Laune Rangers ‘B’ 2-6; Keel 0-4.

That game was played in rained-soaked Cromane and Keel proved to be a big disappointment against Laune Rangers’ second string team. It must be said that the weather played havoc with the game and, at one stage during the second half, it looked as if the game would not reach completion such was the ferocity of the driving rain and a hurricane-like wind.

Laune Rangers had the advantage of the fierce wind in the opening half and two points from Billy O Sullivan plus another from Terence Houlihan put them into an early lead before Terry O Sullivan opened the Keel account with a point in the 13^th minute. In a low-scoring half, Keel centre half-forward, Mikey O Connor, made it 0-3 to 0-2 before wing-forward Aidan Foley had to leave the field with a shoulder injury after an accidental clash with his opponent in a race for possession. Derry O Sullivan then missed a great chance of a goal for Rangers after being set up by his brother, Billy, before another Rangers’ point, this time from Darragh Burns, made it 0-4 to 0-2 heading for the break. Then, right on the stroke of halftime, came a killer blow for Keel. Rangers were awarded a free around the middle of the field and delivered it long to the edge of the square where goal-poacher supreme, Billy O Sullivan, was on hand to gather and dispatch to the net. That made it 1-4 to 0-2 in favour of the town side at halftime.

As in the first half, Terry O Sullivan opened the scoring for Keel when play resumed, this time within a minute. However, even with the assistance of the gale-force wind, that was to be Keel’s only score until three minutes from the fulltime whistle, when they got their fourth point. Derry O Sullivan kicked a point for Rangers, but then the weather deteriorated dramatically and few, either on or off the field, would have minded if referee Brendan Twiss had called a premature end to proceedings. He didn’t and the few battle-hardened supporters who endured the elements had to wait a full 20 minutes for the next score. And it was the score that made victory certain for Laune Rangers as Jason Griffin latched onto a long ball by Derry O Sullivan and crashed it to the net. Keel could do little from there on to prevent a Blues victory. Kieran Foley and Derry O Sullivan exchanged late points to bring an end to the match.

Rangers were best served by Redmond Fitzgerald, Eoin Ferris, John F. O Brien, Barry O Sullivan, Darragh Burns and the full-forward line of Jason Griffin, Billy and Derry O Sullivan. Eoin Ferris was chosen as man-of-the-match.

Laune Rangers ‘B’: Tony Lyons, Redmond Fitzgerald, Eoin Ferris, Damien Harmon, Pa Sheehan, John F. O Brien, Conor Falvey, John Moriarty, Barry O Sullivan, Terence Houlihan (0-1), John Ahern, Darragh Burns (0-1), Billy O Sullivan (1-3), Derry O Sullivan, capt. (0-1), Jason Griffin (1-0). Subs: Tom McGillycuddy, Pat Leahy, Gerard Purcell, Brian Curran (all played).

Ref: Brendan Twiss (Milltown/Castlemaine).

 

Mid-Kerry ‘B’ Football Championship

 

Rd. 1 on Tues. 24^th April at Cloon: Laune Rangers ‘B’ Milltown/Castlemaine ‘B’.

Rd. 2 on Tues. 1^st May at Keel: Keel ‘B’ Laune Rangers ‘B’.

Rd. 2 on Tues. 8^th May: Laune Rangers ‘B’ Glenbeigh/Glencar ‘B’.

Rd. 3 on Tues. 22^nd May: Laune Rangers ‘B’ defeated Cromane ‘B’ by 4 points.

Final on Tues. 12^th June at Milltown: Milltown/Castlemaine ‘B’ 1-6; Laune Rangers 1-11.

 

Co. U-21 Football Championship

Due to a change of regulation by the Kerry Co. Board, club teams were not allowed to participate in the Co. U-21 Football Championship. Some Laune Rangers players opted to play with Mid-Kerry.

 

Rd. 1 on Wed.. 4^th July at Listry: East-Kerry defeated Mid-Kerry by one point.

 

Mid-Kerry U-21 Football Championship

 

Rd. 1 on Tues. 26^th June: Laune Rangers defeated Glenbeigh/Glencar.

Semi-final on Tues. 10^th July at Cromane: Laune Rangers 0-11; Milltown/Castlemaine 1-8.

Semi-final replay: Laune Rangers 0-8; Laune Rangers 1-5.

Semi-final 2^nd replay on Fri. 3^rd Aug. at Cromane: Milltown/Castlemaine 3-6; Laune Rangers 0-9.

 

Duhallow U-21 Football Tournament

That invitation competition, which had commenced in 1987, was played for by the 10 best teams in Cork and Kerry.

 

Rd. 1 on Sun. 14^th Oct. at Knocknagree: Laune Rangers 1-13; O Donovan Rossa, Skibereen 2-9.

Two late, late points by inside forwards, Tom Crowley and Trevor Gannon, turned a rip-roaring match in favour of Laune Rangers and they pipped the Cork side by one point. The game opened with the Killorglin men facing the stiff breeze but it was clear that they meant business and they opened the scoring when their ever-consistent midfielder, Barry O Sullivan, pointed his first free in the opening minutes. That was answered by a fine point by Kevin Cotter, followed by a converted free from very dangerous full-forward Conor McCarthy. Barry O Sullivan levelled the scores with another free before Trevor Gannon gave the Killorglin side the lead at the end of the first quarter. It was nip and tuck in the second quarter and Laune Rangers were leading by a point when O Donovan Rossa midfielder William Walsh took a neat pass from Conor McCarthy and kicked a spectacular goal from 14 yards. That enabled the Cork side to lead by 1-6 to 0-7 at halftime.

The contest really heated up in the third quarter as Barry O Sullivan pointed two long-range frees off the hand in quick succession to bring the sides level and then full-forward, Tom Crowley, gave Rangers the lead. However, Rossa midfielder, Kevin Cotter, shoved over an equalising point and then, in the 42^nd minute, came another goal for the Cork side. Centre half-forward, David Williams, was taken down in the ‘square’ and McCarthy coolly converted the spot-kick low to the keeper’s right. The initiative was then with Rossa, but Rangers responded magnificently and had a penalty themselves inside three minutes, which impressive wing-forward, Ross Sheehan, put away to level the game at 2-7 to 1-10. Another superb free from Barry O Sullivan off the hands gave Rangers the lead only for McCarthy to level matters again. It was then Rossa’s turn to go in front through two superbly taken frees.

At that stage, Laune Rangers pulled out all the stops and their halfback line of Noel Lynch, Paul Costello and Brian Curran, as well as midfielder Tom McGillycuddy, drove forward in search of late scores. They were successful in their efforts and the scores were superbly converted from long range by Tom Crowley and Trevor Gannon, the winner coming three minutes into stoppage-time in a very exciting contest. Best for a most determined Killorglin outfit were the halfbacks, both midfielders, with Barry O Sullivan being the star, while Ross Sheehan, Dermot Houlihan and Tom Crowley were the main instigators up front.

Laune Rangers: Shane Clifford, Darren O Riordan, Conor Falvey, Damien Harmon, Noel Lynch (0-1), Paul Costello, Brian Curran, Barry O Sullivan (0-7, 6 frees), Tom McGillycuddy, Dara Burns, John Ahern (0-1), Ross Sheehan (1-0, pen), Dermot Houlihan, Cian Evans, Trevor Gannon (0-2). Sub: Tom Crowley (0-2), Gerard O Sullivan (twin).

Ref: Joe McCarthy (Boherbue).

 

Quarter-final on Sun. 18^th Nov. at Boherbue: Dohenys 1-8; Laune Rangers 2-4.

Dohenys settled to their task with Fergal Lyons scoring a point in the first minute. However, Laune Rangers found their feet and rocked the Dunmanway side in the fifth minute when a sweeping move the length of the field saw Colin O Connor take a pass from Tim O Regan to find the net. Two long range points from Fergal Lyons and John Collins tied matters (0-3 to 1-0) at the close of the first quarter. Sean Farr pointed Dohenys ahead but they squandered many other scoring chances. Laune Rangers weathered the storm and countered with a splendid goal in the 25^th minute. Piercing play by Darragh Burns set up John Ahern to billow the net and push Rangers ahead by 2-0 to 0-4 at the break.

Rangers made an enterprising start to the second half and held the greater urgency through the influence of Damien Harmon, Darren O Riordan, John Ahern and Cian Evans. Barry O Sullivan pointed a free before Dohenys stemmed the tide with a Sean Farr pointed free. Rangers responded with a Tim O Regan punched point to extend the advantage to 3 points (2-2 to 0-5) by the end of the third quarter. Sean Farr pointed a free and then Michael O Regan finished to the net and Dohenys proceeded to pile on the pressure with a neat point by Farr. Again Rangers came back through a Barry O Sullivan pointed free to reduce the leeway to the minimum. The sides swapped points before the finish from Farr and Barry O Sullivan but Dohenys held on for the win.

Laune Rangers: Shane Clifford, Damien Harmon, Conor Falvey, Darren O Riordan, Noel Lynch, Paul Costello, Brian Curran, Tim O Regan (0-1), Barry O Sullivan (0-3, frees), Colin O Connor (1-0), John Ahern (1-0), Darragh Burns, Cian Evans, Tom Crowley, Trevor Gannon.

Ref: Joe McCarthy (Boherbue).

 

Co. Minor Football Championship

 

Rd. 1 on Thurs. 26^th July at Finuge: Feale Rangers lost to Laune Rangers.

Quarter-final on Wed. 1^st Aug. at Gallerus: An Ghaeltacht 0-11; Laune Rangers 2-14.

 

Semi-final on Tues. 14^th Aug. at Austin Stack Park: Rathmore/Glenflesk 1-8; Laune Rangers 0-8.

Just when it seemed inevitable that the game would end in a draw, up stepped Damien Casey and Michael O Riordan with three points in the last few minutes to propel Rathmore/Glenflesk into the final and break Laune Rangers’ spirits after a fiercely competitive, but generally sub-standard, semi-final. It was ironic that Rathmore’s O Riordan was to finish up the hero because he had been completely snuffed out by the best player on the field, Laune Rangers’ Aidan Lynch. Overall, a draw probably would have been the fairer result considering how evenly matched the teams were. Laune Rangers were obviously devastated at missing out on a county final appearance but it was the inability of their key attackers, Colin O Connor and Ross Sheehan, to transfer plenty of possession into meaningful contributions on the score-board that ultimately led to their downfall. O Connor, in particular, saw an amount of the ball but his finishing left quite a lot to be desired, especially in the second half.

The key moment and the only goal came in the 15^th minute when Damien Casey rounded his man and bore down on goal. He seemed to hesitate as he tried to round the Rangers’ goalkeeper, Shane Clifford, and, though he was impeded, a soft penalty was awarded, which Shane O Neill slotted home. That put the winners two points up but, with Mark Healy and Tim O Regan doing well at midfield, Laune Rangers had reduced the deficit to the minimum at the interval (1-2 to 0-4).

The second half was tit for tat all the way through, with both teams showing great commitment and determination, and it looked like they would have to do it all over again until the final flurry by the East-Kerry combination. Best for the Rangers were Aidan Lynch (man-of-the-match), Darren O Riordan, Dermot Houlihan, Mark Healy, Tim O Regan, Francis Russell (first half), Ross Sheehan and Colin O Connor (both in patches).

Laune Rangers: Shane Clifford, Jonathan McCarthy, Aidan Lynch, Paul O Connor, Michael Doyle, Darren O Riordan, Dermot Houlihan, Mark Healy, Tim O Regan (0-2, 1 free), Francis Russell (0-2), Seamus Foley, Peter Slattery, David Coffey, Ross Sheehan (0-2, 1 free), Colin O Connor (0-2, 1 free).

Ref: Pat Sheehy (Clounmacon).

 

Co. Minor Football League

Laune Rangers were in Div. 1A with Kilcummin, Beaufort, Waterville/Dromid, Dr. Crokes and Milltown/Castlemaine.

 

Rd. 1 on Sat. 24^th March at Cloon: Laune Rangers 1-16; Kilcummin 0-6.

Rd. 2 on Fri. 30^th March at Cloon: Laune Rangers 8-9; Dr. Crokes 0-4.

As the score suggested, that was a very one-sided game. Outstanding for the winners were Mark Healy, Muiris Crowley and Colin O Connor.

 

Rd. 3 on Fri. 6^th April at Dromid: Waterville/Dromid 2-9; Laune Rangers 0-7.

Rd. 4 on Fri. 13^th April at Cloon: Laune Rangers 2-11; Beaufort 1-9.

Rd. 5 on Fri. 20^th April at Milltown: Milltown/Castlemaine 1-9; Laune Rangers 1-14.

Play-off on Fri. 4^th May at Cloon: Laune Rangers 1-10; Beaufort 1-4.

Semi-final on Sat. 12^th May at Blennerville: Laune Rangers defeated Dingle.

 

Final on Sat. 19^th May at Beaufort: Waterville/Dromid Pearses 1-10; Laune Rangers 1-9.

Played in excellent conditions, both teams served up a thrilling and exciting final, showing some great skill and talent in the process. Declan O Sullivan, Dromid, and Seamus Foley exchanged points in the opening minutes. The Rangers’ midfield pair of Mark Healy and Tim O Regan were winning good possession, but the team did not capitalise on this territorial advantage with scores. A Tim O Regan free did put them one point ahead but, a minute later, Waterville/Dromid equalised with a point by Alan O Shea and a point from a free by Donal Ger O Sullivan put them into the lead. The teams were level at three points each and then Colin O Connor, collected a good short pass from Ross Sheehan and sent to the net. The same player, gathered a poor clearance out of defence, and put his side four points ahead. But, six minutes before halftime, Thomas Curran drove the ball to the Laune Rangers’ net after taking a great pass from Declan O Sullivan. Denis Carroll and Donal O Sullivan then pointed from play and Colin O Connor pointed for Rangers to leave the teams level at 1-5 each. Just before halftime, Donal O Sullivan scored two points for the South-Kerry side to edge them in front at halftime (1-7 to 1-5).

Declan O Sullivan and Denis Carroll stretched the lead after the restart, a lead which they retained throughout a very keenly-contested second half. They defended well and their goalkeeper, Ciarán Banks, made an excellent save midway through the half. The closing minutes were filled with tension, intensity and excitement, as both teams gave their all and it was Waterville/Dromid with their noses in front at the end. For Laune Rangers, Shane Clifford, in goals, Aidan Lynch and Jonathan McCarthy in defence, Mark Healy and Tim O Regan at midfield, and Seamus Foley and Colin O Connor in attack were best.

Laune Rangers: Shane Clifford, Jonathan McCarthy, Aidan Lynch, Sean Kirschoffer, Muiris Crowley, Darren O Riordan, Paul O Connor, Mark Healy, Tim O Regan (0-1), Francis Russell, Seamus Foley (0-1), Michael Doyle, Dermot Houlihan, Ross Sheehan (0-1), Colin O Connor (1-6).

 

Mid-Kerry Minor Football Championship

 

Semi-final at JP O Sullivan Park: Laune Rangers 1-7; Beaufort 1-10.

Laune Rangers, having played with the wind, led by 0-6 to 0-4 at the interval. The conditions were very slippery.

 

Tralee District Board Minor Football Championship

 

Rd. 1 on Sun. 25^th Nov. at Connolly Park: Austin Stacks 1-13; Laune Rangers 1-2.

 

Co. U-16 Inter-Divisional Football Championship

 

Quarter-final: Mid-Kerry 4-12; East-Kerry 1-13.

With just about five minutes left to play, East-Kerry led by six points and looked set for victory. However, helped by three quick goals, Mid-Kerry turned the deficit into an eight-point winning margin.

 

Semi-final on Sun. 21^st Oct. at Farranfore: Tralee 2-12; Mid-Kerry 1-11.

 

Co. U-16 Football Championship Div. 2

Mentors – Joe Hayes, Brian Gannon, Liam Clifford and Colm Conway. The team was sponsored by the Fishery. Div. 2 consisted of Ardfert, Kilcummin, Churchill, Laune Rangers, Desmonds, Rathmore and Glenbeigh/Glencar.

 

Rd. 1 on Tues. 26^th June at Kilcummin: Kilcummin 2-4; Laune Rangers 2-8.

Rangers started well and eased into a 1-3 to 0-1 lead with a point from Damien O Neill and 1-2 from Jerry Coffey. Kilcummin battled well but Rangers pulled away in the second half with the help of a penalty from Jerry Coffey. The defence withstood a strong surge from the home side, with Brendan Ahern and captain, Jody Riordan standing firm.

Laune Rangers: John Houlihan, Gearoid Clifford, Brendan Ahern, Tomás Curran, Eoin O Mahony, Jodie O Riordan (capt.), Dáire Clifford, Alan Tobin, Stuart Delaney, Aidan O Sullivan (0-1), Damien O Neill (0-2), Michael Ledwith, Jerry Coffey (2-4, 1 pen, 3 frees), Jonathan Carey, Darragh O Shea. Subs: Maurice Foley (0-1) for M. Ledwith, Eamonn Carey, Brendan O Shea, Gary Cahillane, Killian Cotter, John McKenna (inj.).

 

Rd. 2 on Mon. 2^nd July at Castleisland: Desmonds 3-8; Laune Rangers 2-11.

Rangers began slowly but stormed into the game with a great goal by Damien O Neill. Further scores by Aidan O Sullivan, Jerry Coffey and Jonathan Carey saw Rangers lead at halftime by 2-4 to 1-5. In the second half, Rangers played well and pulled clear of the Desmonds, only to be pegged back near the end. It took a brilliant score from a ‘45’ by Jerry Coffey to force a draw.

Laune Rangers: John Houlihan, Edward Looney, Brendan Ahern, Tomas Curran, Eoin O Mahony, Jodie O Riordan, Dáire Clifford, Stuart Delaney (0-1, free), Kieran Crowley, Aidan O Sullivan (0-2), Damien O Neill (1-0), Michael Ledwith, Jerry Coffey (0-5, 3 frees, 1 ‘45’), Jonathan Carey (1-1), Darragh O Shea (0-2). Subs: Alan Tobin for M. Ledwith, Eamonn Carey, Maurice Foley, Brendan O Shea, Gary Cahillane, R. Dunlea, John McKenna (inj.).

 

Rd. 3 on Mon. 9^th July at Killorglin: Laune Rangers 1-15; Churchill 2-4.

Having played against the breeze, Rangers trailed at halftime by 1-2 to 0-3, having missed a penalty. However, a superb second-half saw them cruise to a home win. Good scoring from all the forwards and Trojan work from midfield and defence, including a pile-driver of a goal by Stuart Delaney, paved the way for success.

Laune Rangers: Liam Clifford, Tomás Curran, Brendan Ahern, Eoin O Mahony, Dáire Clifford, Jodie O Riordan, Alan Tobin, Stuart Delaney (1-0), Kieran Crowley, Aidan O Sullivan (0-1), Damien O Neill (0-2), Michael Ledwith (0-2), Jerry Coffey (0-4, 1 free, 1 ‘45’), Jonathan Carey (0-3), Darragh O Shea (0-3). Subs: Maurice Foley for D. O Neill, Brendan O Shea, Gearoid Clifford, John McKenna (inj.).

 

Rd. 4 on Mon. 23^rd July at Glenbeigh: Glenbeigh/Glencar 1-8; Laune Rangers 0-5.

Laune Rangers: Liam Clifford, Tomás Curran, Brendan Ahern, Gearoid Clifford, Alan Tobin, Jodie O Riordan, Eoin O Mahony, Stuart Delaney, Kieran Crowley (0-1), Aidan O Sullivan, Maurice Foley, Michael Ledwith, Jerry Coffey (0-2, 1 free), Jonathan Carey (0-1), Darragh O Shea (0-1). Subs: R. Dunlea for M. Foley, Gary Cahillane for A. O Sullivan, Eamonn Carey, Brendan O Shea, John McKenna, John Foley, David Fleming, Vincent Costello.

 

Rd. 5 on Mon. 30^th July at Killorglin: Laune Rangers 2-5; Rathmore 1-9.

Rangers wasted many chances in the first half, after which they trailed by 1-5 to 0-1. Playing much better in the second half, they went into the lead with goals by Jonathan Carey and R. Dunlea. However, Rathmore responded well and went on to win by the narrowest of margins.

Laune Rangers: John Houlihan, Tomás Curran, Brendan Ahern, Gearoid Clifford, Eoin O Mahony (0-1), Jodie O Riordan, Alan Tobin, Kieran Crowley (0-1), Jerry Coffey, Aidan O Sullivan, Stuart Delaney (0-1), Michael Ledwith, Gary Cahillane, Jonathan Carey (1-0), Darragh O Shea (0-1). Subs: R. Dunlea (1-1) for G. Cahillane, John McKenna for G. Clifford, Eamonn Carey, Brendan O Shea, David Fleming (inj.), Vincent Costello (inj.).

 

Rd. 6 on Mon. 6^th Aug. at Killorglin: Laune Rangers 1-11; Ardfert 0-8.

Laune Rangers: John Houlihan, Dáire Clifford, Brendan Ahern, Tomás Curran, Eoin O Mahony, Jodie O Riordan, Alan Tobin, Stuart Delaney (0-1), Kieran Crowley, Aidan O Sullivan (0-2), Jerry Coffey (1-7, 6 frees), Michael Ledwith, R. Dunlea, Jonathan Carey (0-1), Darragh O Shea. Subs: Damien O Neill for M. Ledwith, Gary Cahillane, Eamonn Carey, Brendan O Shea, John Foley, David Fleming, John McKenna, Vincent Costello (inj.).

 

Semi-final on Mon. 20^th Aug. at Spa: Rathmore 2-7; Laune Rangers 2-6.

After beginning brightly with a goal from Darragh O Shea, Rangers allowed Rathmore back into the game and trailed at halftime by 1-1 to 2-5. However, Rangers battled gamely in the second half and pulled the deficit down to a single point through a goal by substitute Damien O Neill. Rangers continued to push for the equaliser but time ran out on them.

Laune Rangers: Liam Clifford, Tomás Curran, Brendan Ahern, Dáire Clifford, Eoin O Mahony, Jodie O Riordan, Alan Tobin, Stuart Delaney (0-1), Kieran Crowley (0-1), Aidan O Sullivan, Jerry Coffey (0-3, 1 free, 1 pen.), Michael Ledwith, R. Dunlea, Jonathan Carey (0-1), Darragh O Shea (1-0). Subs: Damien O Neill (1-0) for A. O Sullivan, Gary Cahillane, Eamonn Carey, Brendan O Shea, John Foley, David Fleming, Gearoid Clifford, John McKenna, John Houlihan (inj.), Vincent Costello (inj.).

 

Mid-Kerry U-16 Football Championship

 

Rd. 1 on 28^th March at Cloon: Laune Rangers 1-9; Milltown/Castlemaine 3-9.

Rd. 2 on 5^th April at Cromane: Cromane Laune Rangers.

Rd. 3 on Wed. 11^th April at Rossbeigh: Glenbeigh/Glencar 2-14; Laune Rangers 3-4.

Rd. 4 on 18^th April at Cloon: Laune Rangers Beaufort.

Rd. 5 on 25^th April at Cloon: Laune Rangers Keel.

 

‘B’ Competition

Preliminary Rd. on Mon. 27^th Aug. at Cloon: Laune Rangers defeated Keel.

Semi-final on 19^th Sept. at Cromane: Glenbeigh/Glencar defeated Laune Rangers

 

Tralee District U-16 Football Championship

Group ‘A’

Rd. 1 on 27^th March at Killorglin: Laune Rangers 0-10; Na Gaeil 1-10.

Rd. 2 on 4^th April at Boherbue: John Mitchels Laune Rangers.

Rd. 3 on 10^th April at Connolly Park: Austin Stacks Laune Rangers.

 

Co. U-15 Urban Football League

Laune Rangers were in Group A with Austin Stacks, Dingle, Kerins O Rahillys and Dr. Crokes.

 

Rd. 1 on Fri. 6^th July at Killorglin: Laune Rangers Kerins O Rahillys.

Rd. 2 on Fri. 20^th July at Killorglin: Laune Rangers Dingle.

Rd. 3 on Fri. 27^th July at Connolly Park: Austin Stacks Laune Rangers.

Rd. 4 on Fri. 3^rd Aug. at Lewis Road: Dr. Crokes Laune Rangers.

 

Co. U-14 Football Inter-District Championship

 

Rd. 1 on Mon. 28^th May: Eoghan Rua lost to Mid-Kerry.

 

Quarter-final on Wed. 6^th June at Blennerville: Mid-Kerry 1-15; West-Kerry 2-9.

Semi-final on Mon. 11^th June at Glenbeigh: Mid-Kerry 1-16; South-Kerry 1-6.

Mid-Kerry: Liam Clifford (Laune Rangers), Liam O Sullivan (Beaufort), Padraig Hartnett (do.), John Sheehan (Laune Rangers), Michael Dennehy (Beaufort), Jerome Dowd (Keel), James O Reilly (Beaufort) 0-1, Wayne Coffey (Milltown/Castlemaine), Denis O Shea (do.), Michael Hallissey (Beaufort) 0-3, Sean O Riordan (Laune Rangers) capt., John Griffin (Keel) 0-1, Padraig Doyle (Beaufort) 0-9, Mike Quirke (Laune Rangers) 0-1. Subs: Donal O Neill (Keel) for J. Dowd, Stephen O Shea (Keel) for D. O Shea, Ivan Houlihan (Glenbeigh/Glencar) 1-0 for J. Griffin, John M. O Reilly (Cromane) for M. Hallissey, James Foley (Keel) for P. Hartnett.

 

Final on Sat. 30^th June at Austin Stack Park: Mid-Kerry 4-11; East-Kerry 3-14.

This was a game of epic proportions. East-Kerry held the bare minimum advantage as the game entered injury-time but, with the final attack of the game, up popped captain, Sean O Riordan, to save the day for the defending champions with an invaluable point to carry the game to a replay.

Mid-Kerry: Liam Clifford, Rodi Healy, Kevin Sheehan (Keel), Michael Dennehy, John Sheehan, Liam O Sullivan, Padraig Hartnett, James O Reilly (1-2), Wayne Coffey (0-1), Denis O Shea (1-0), Michael Hallissey (1-0), Sean O Riordan (1-2) capt., John J. Griffin, Padraig Doyle (0-5), Michael Quirke (0-1). Subs: Donal O Neill for W. Coffey, James Foley for M. Dennehy (inj.), Stephen O Shea for R. Healy.

 

Final replay on Sat. 14^th July at Fitzgerald Stadium: East-Kerry 2-17; Mid-Kerry 3-9.

Mid-Kerry: Liam Clifford, Kevin Sheehan, Liam O Sullivan, Padraig Hartnett, John Sheehan, Rodi Healy, Donal O Neill, James O Reilly (1-1), Wayne Coffey, Sean O Riordan (capt.) 0-1, Michael Hallissey, Michael Dennehy (0-1), Denis O Shea (0-1), Padraig Doyle (2-5), Michael Quirke. Subs: Colm Hayes (Milltown/Castlemaine), Stephen Moriarty (Keel), Ivan Houlihan (Glenbeigh/Glencar), Jerome O Dowd.

 

Co. U-14 Football Championship Div. 2B

Mentors – Patsy Joy, James Riordan and Eamonn Carey. Laune Rangers were in Div. 2B with Ardfert, Finuge, Kilcummin, Spa and Ballydonoghue. The team was sponsored by Flynn’s Bus-hire.

 

Rd. 1 on Sat. 31^st March at Ballydonoghue: Ballydonoghue 3-2; Laune Rangers 2-10.

After a dismal first half during which they scored only one point, Rangers improved ten-fold in the second half, scoring 2-9 without reply. Best on the night were Gary Flynn (capt.), Shane Crowley, midfielders Sean O Riordan and John Sheehan, Luke Dunlea, JJ Foley, Rodi Healy, Sean Joy and Ricky O Connor.

 

Rd. 2 on Mon. 2^nd April at Cloon: Laune Rangers 1-18; Finuge 0-1.

Rangers played with the wind in the first half and led by 0-9 to 0-0 at halftime, thanks to six points from the captain, Gary Flynn. Even against the elements in the second half, the home side continued to dominate and ran out easy winners. Best on the night were Gary Flynn, Sean O Riordan, JJ Foley, Rodi Healy, Ricky O Connor, Brian Hayes, Timmy Brosnan and substitute, Colin O Dwyer.

 

Rd. 3 on Mon. 23^rd April at Cloon: Laune Rangers Spa.

Rd. 4 on Mon. 30^th April at Ardfert: Ardfert 2-10; Laune Rangers 2-10.

That was a top-of-the-table clash and it was a tough encounter. Scores from Luke Dunlea, Colin O Dwyer, Shane Crowley and a goal by Sean O Riordan gave Rangers a 1-6 to 1-5 interval lead. A second-half goal by the excellent Luke Dunlea and further points from Sean O Riordan and Shane Crowley seemed to put Rangers on their way but Ardfert kept battling away and were rewarded with a share in the spoils. A disallowed goal for a square infringement deprived the visitors of victory. Best for the Rangers were Luke Dunlea, Sean O Riordan, Shane Crowley, Ricky O Connor, Rodi Healy and Liam Clifford.

 

Rd. 5 on Thurs. 3^rd May at Kilcummin: Kilcummin 2-4; Laune Rangers 2-13.

A poor opening half saw Rangers trail by 1-3 to 0-4 at halftime. The scores were got by Sean O Riordan (2), Shane Crowley and Luke Dunlea. A massive improvement in the second half saw Rangers pull away from their opponents with two goals by Shane Crowley, and points by Daniel Naughton (2), Luke Dunlea (3), Rodi Healy (2), John Sheehan and Sean O Riordan.

 

Semi-final on Wed. 9^th May at Caherslee: Laune Rangers 4-8; John Mitchels 1-9.

 

Final on Sat. 12^th May at Austin Stack Park: Listowel 1-18; Laune Rangers 3-9.

That was a real ding-dong battle, with the North-Kerry side eventually winning through, thanks mainly to the scoring exploits of their two marksmen, Shane Brosnan and Sean McCarthy. Between them they contributed the grand tally of 1-14 and that really broke the hearts of a gallant Rangers’ side, which contributed handsomely to what turned out to be a keenly contested final.

Listowel gained the early initiative and led at halftime by 0-10 to 1-3, the goal coming from Sean O Riordan. On the restart Colin O Dwyer scored another goal to put pressure on the eventual winners but the point-taking prowess of Brosnan and McCarthy helped Listowel to keep their noses in front. Five minutes from time, Listowel struck for their only goal and the contest seemed settled. However, Colin O Dwyer scored his second point to send the game to the wire and it took late-late points to seal victory for the North-Kerry side. Best for the Rangers were Colin O Dwyer, John Sheehan, Pascal O Brien, Michael Quirke, Liam Clifford and Sean O Riordan.

Laune Rangers: Liam Clifford, Brian Hayes, Simon Brosnan, Pascal O Brien, Ricky O Connor, Rodi Healy, Timmy Brosnan, Luke Dunlea, John Sheehan, JJ Foley, Shane Crowley, Michael Quirke, Colin O Dwyer (2-2), Daniel Naughton (0-2), Sean O Riordan (1-5). Subs used: Laurence O Connor and Mikey O Sullivan.

Ref: Ger Lynch (Ballymacelligott).

 

Co. Féile Peile na nOg

The competition was played on a blitz format. Laune Rangers were grouped with Beaufort, Dingle and Legion.

 

Sat. 21^st April at Beaufort: Legion failed to show on the day.

Rd. 1: Laune Rangers 2-4; Dingle 0-5

Rd. 2: Beaufort 0-10; Laune Rangers 0-6.

Rangers led at the three-quarter stage but a late flourish by the home side saw them through and they went on to represent Kerry at the All-Ireland Féile in Tipperary.

 

Mid-Kerry U-14 Football Championship

 

Rd. 2 on Wed. 30^th May at Milltown: Milltown/Castlemaine 0-2; Laune Rangers 1-11.

Rd. 4 on Wed. 13^th June at Cloon: Laune Rangers defeated Cromane.

Rd. 5 on Wed. 20^th June at Cloon: Laune Rangers lost to Keel by 4 points.

 

Semi-final on Wed. 4^th July at Beaufort: Laune Rangers 2-11; Keel 2-9.

Playing against the breeze, Laune Rangers resisted the first-half Keel pressure and, thanks to two goals by Shane Crowley, led at halftime by 2-3 to 0-5. Rangers tagged on early scores in the second half but were rocked by two goals by Keel. However, the winners held their nerve and good play by Sean O Riordan and John Sheehan, at midfield, and JJ Foley, Liam Clifford and Shane Crowley in attack, saw them through.

Laune Rangers: Stephen O Donoghue, Laurence O Connor, Simon Brosnan, Pascal O Brien, Michael Quirke, Rodi Healy, Ricky O Connor, Sean O Riordan, John Sheehan, Shane Crowley, Liam Clifford, JJ Foley, Colin O Dwyer, Luke Dunlea, Brian Hayes.

 

Final on Wed. 8^th Aug. at Keel: Beaufort 2-17; Laune Rangers 1-5.

After a very good first half, at the end of which they led by 1-4 to 0-3, Rangers eventually had to succumb to a superior Beaufort team.

 

‘B’ Championship

Preliminary Rd: Laune Rangers defeated Cromane.

 

Final on Fri. 28^th Sept. at Keel: Laune Rangers 3-15; Milltown/Castlemaine 1-7.

Starting brightly, Rangers roared into a 2-7 to 0-1 lead at halftime, with goals from Liam Clifford and JJ Foley. Although Milltown/Castlemaine rallied in the second half, Rangers had too much in the tank and ran out comfortable winners.

Laune Rangers: Sean Joy, Pascal O Brien, Simon Brosnan, Laurence O Connor, John Sheehan, Rodi Healy, capt. (0-1), Michael Quirke, Luke Dunlea (0-3), Sean O Riordan (1-5), JJ Foley (1-0), Liam Clifford (1-3), Shane Crowley, Gary Flynn (0-2) capt., Colin O Dwyer (0-1), Ricky O Connor. Subs: Brian Hayes for S. Brosnan, David Pigott for L. O Connor, Mikey O Sullivan for C. O Dwyer, Fergus O Riordan for S. Crowley.

 

Tralee District Board U-13 Football League

 

Final on Sun. 11^th Nov. at Strand Road: John Mitchels 3-7; Laune Rangers 1-11.

 

Co. U-12 Football Championship

Mentors – John O Dwyer, John Quirke, Diarmuid O Sullivan and Shane O Sullivan. Laune Rangers were in Group A with Austin Stacks, Dingle, Listowel, Ardfert and Gaeltacht. The team was sponsored by FEXCO.

 

Phase 1

Rd. 1 on Sun. 29^th April at Gallerus: An Ghaeltacht 2-9; Laune Rangers 4-19.

Rd. 2 on Sun. 6^th May at Killorglin: Laune Rangers 7-14; Listowel 3-8.

Rd. 3 on Fri. 11^th May at Connolly Park: Austin Stacks 2-2; Laune Rangers 3-10.

Laune Rangers: Timmy Lynch, Jeremiah O Callaghan, Jason McCarthy, Shane O Connor, Liam Clifford, Peter Crowley, Luke O Shea, Eamonn Looney, Daniel Horgan, Kevin Flynn, Christopher O Riordan, Stephen Healy, Shane McSweeney, Daniel Clifford, Paudie Murphy.

 

Rd. 4 on Sun. 20^th May at Killorglin: Laune Rangers defeated Ardfert.

Rd. 5 on Sun. 27^th May at Dingle: Dingle lost to Laune Rangers.

 

Phase 2 Group A

Laune Rangers were grouped with Kerins O Rahillys, Austin Stacks, Asdee/Ballylongford, Dr. Crokes and Beaufort.

 

Rd. 1 on Sun. 10^th June at Strand Road: Kerins O Rahillys Laune Rangers.

Rd. 2 on Sun. 24^th June at Killorglin: Laune Rangers Dr. Crokes.

Rd. 3 on Sun. 1^st July at Killorglin: Laune Rangers Austin Stacks.

Rd. 4 on Sun. 8^th July at Ballylongford: Asdee/Ballylongford Laune Rangers.

Rd. 5 on Sun. 15^th July at Cloon: Laune Rangers defeated Beaufort.

 

Mid-Kerry U-12 Football Championship

 

Rd. 1 on Wed. 4^th July at Killorglin: Laune Rangers defeated Milltown/Castlemaine.

Rd. 2 on Wed. 11^th July at Killorglin: Laune Rangers Glenbeigh/Glencar.

Rd. 4 on Wed. 25^th July at keel: Keel Laune Rangers.

Final on Aug. 14^th at Keel: Beaufort 3-12; Laune Rangers 0-11.

Laune Rangers: Alan O Connor, Jeremy O Callaghan, Daniel Clifford, Cathal Clifford, Shane O Connor, Peter Crowley, Liam Clifford, David Coffey (Dunmaniheen), Chris O Riordan, Daniel Horgan, Shane McSweeney, Paudie Murphy, Sarah Healy, Kevin Flynn, Colm O Shea.

 

‘B’ Championship

Semi-final on 17^th Sept. at Milltown: Laune Rangers defeated Cromane.

Final on Sat. 6^th Oct. at Keel: Laune Rangers 4-12; Milltown/Castlemaine 1-9.

Having started slowly, Rangers were in arrears by one point at halftime. However, second –half goals by S. Healy and two from Daniel Clifford saw them to a comfortable win. The trophy was presented to the captain, Luke O Shea, by John Cahillane, Chairman Bord na nOg Chiarraí Lár.

Laune Rangers: Tony Lynch, Shane O Connor, Jeremy O Callaghan, Jason McCarthy, Luke O Shea (capt.), Peter Crowley, Liam Clifford, Eamonn Looney, Shane McSweeney (0-1), Chris O Riordan, Kevin Flynn (1-9), O. Horgan (0-1), Colm O Shea, Daniel Clifford (2-1), Pa Knightley. Subs: S. Healy (1-0) for P. Knightley, Cathal Clifford for J. McCarthy, David Coffey for L. Clifford, Tadhg Curran for S. O Connor, Padraig Murphy for D. Clifford.

 

U-10 Football

Mentors – Iraneus Looney, Donal Pigott and Brian O Shea.

 

Sat. 30^th June at Lewis Road: Dr. Crokes v Laune Rangers.

The team played very well and showed great promise.

 

Mid-Kerry Blitz on Sat. 15^th Sept. at Keel:

‘A’ Competition (9-a-side): Having beaten Milltown/Castlemaine and Keel in the preliminary rounds, Laune Rangers defeated Glenbeigh/Glencar comprehensively in the final.

‘A’ panel: Morgan O Sullivan, Ryan Lucey, Cian Clifford, Pa Joy, Tommy O Callaghan, John Flynn, Timmy Healy, Audie Dunlea, Shane Flynn, Tony Lynch, Ciarán Doona, Matthew O Riordan, Chris O Brien.

 

‘B’ Competition – only 4 teams participated and the competition was played on a league basis. Laune Rangers ‘B’ went through the competition undefeated and were declared winners.

‘B’ panel: Cian Griffin, Mark O Riordan, Michael O Sullivan, Cormac Johnston, Declan Lillis, Aisling Clifford, Darragh Woods, Darren Curtayne, Rory O Shea, Conor Prendiville, Liam Concannon, Conor O Brien, Jesse Sheehan, Shane O Sullivan, Liam Foley, Kealon Foley, DJ Scannell, Cathal Dowd, Padraig Joy, Andrew Faulkner, Michael Carey, Eanna Curtayne, Aidan O Connor.

 

Festival Blitz in Tralee

Laune Rangers entered two teams and both did very well in a most organised blitz.

 

Parish League

Finals on Sun. 14^th Oct. at Cloon: ‘B’ Final – Audie Dunlea defeated Timmy Healy.

That game turned out to be very close and the supporters were treated to some fine football and some great scores.

‘A’ Final – Pa Joy defeated Tommy O Callaghan.

Tommy O Callaghan had to line out without Declan Lillis, who damaged his hand during the week. Again, the supporters were treated to some great scores and to some stylish football. However, goals by Pa Joy’s team helped to take the honours.

Colm Conway refereed both games. In a short speech afterwards, he thanked all the players for their commitment and he said that he was very pleased to see the level of skill displayed. He also thanked the coaches, Iraneus Looney, Donal Pigott and Brian O Shea for their dedication and time and he hoped that the U-10 players would go on to be the senior players in the years ahead.

The medals were then presented to the players – including the Mid-Kerry ‘A’ and ‘B’ blitz medals, which Laune Rangers had won in Keel. John Flynn was given the trophy (sponsored by Kathleen Finnegan) for the player-of-the-year, while the most improved player was O Sullivan. Afterwards, the players were taken to Murph’s for burgers and chips.

 

U-8 Football

Mentors – John Sheehan (Tinnahalla), James Ferris and Dermot O Shea.

 

Sat. 30^th June at Lewis Road: Dr. Crokes v Laune Rangers.

 

Schools’/Colleges’ Football

 

Mid-Kerry Primary Schools’ Championship (6-8 teacher schools)

Rd. 1 on Fri. 18^th May: Milltown defeated Scoil Mhuire A.

Rd. 2 on Fri. 25^th May: Milltown defeated Scoil Mhuire ‘B’.

Final on Sun. 10^th June at Keel: Milltown defeated Scoil Mhuire ‘A’.

 

Mid-Kerry Primary Schools Championship (2/3-teacher schools)

Final on Sun. 10^th June at Keel: Cromane Douglas.

 

Mid-Kerry Primary Schools Championship (4-teacher schools)

Fri. 1^st June: Castlemaine defeated Glounaguillagh N.S.

 

Co. Cumann na mBunscol Girls’ Football Championship

Final in June in Beaufort: Scoil Mhuire 1-4; St. Oliver’s, Ballycasheen 0-6.

Scoil Mhuire won the Div. 1 title for the 5^th successive year.

Scoil Mhuire: Niamh Pigott (capt.), Katie Buckley (goals), Shauna Poff, Rochelle Lucey, Ciara O Connor, Tina Walker, Sarah O Riordan, Gemma Coyle, Patrice McGillycuddy, Sarah Bennett, Amy Foley, Nicola Clifford, Oonagh Joy, Hazel Poff, Caragh Concannon, Celina Flaherty, Olivia Ahern, Stephanie O Sullivan, Aisling O Shea. Coach – Tommy Woods.

Corn Uí Mhoráin (U-15 Colleges)

Semi-final on Fri. 12^th Jan. at Caherslee: St. Brendan’s College 4-8; Intermediate School 1-4.

Intermediate School: Vincent Costello (Laune Rangers), Thaddeus Soffer (Glenbeigh/Glencar), James O Reilly (Beaufort), Peter O Reilly, Shane Malone, Ciarán Kelliher (Milltown/Castlemaine), Michael Griffin (Glenbeigh/Glencar), Patrick O Sullivan (Beaufort) 0-1, Raymond O Connor (Glenbeigh/Glencar) 0-1, Anthony O Brien (1-0), Darren O Sullivan (Glenbeigh/Glencar) 0-2, Edwin Kelliher (Beaufort), Eoin O Mahony (Laune Rangers), Tommy Moriarty, Cian Griffin. Subs: Sean O Riordan (Laune Rangers) for T. Moriarty, Dáire Clifford for M. Griffin, Gary Sayers (Keel) for J. O Reilly.

 

Dunloe Cup (U-16)

Wed. 28^th Feb. at Lewis Road: St. Brendan’s College 0-7; Intermediate School 3-6.

Intermediate School: A. O Brien, J. McHenry, D. O Donoghue, K. Kelliher, Tomas O Hagan, P. O Sullivan, Jody O Riordan, Dan Doona (0-3), Jerry Coffey, D. Ahern (1-0), M. Foley, Edwin Kelliher, Darren O Sullivan (1-1), Damien Breen (1-1), Michael O Sullivan (0-1).

 

O Sullivan Cup 2000/2001

Semi-final on Wed. 24^th Jan. at Caherslee: Intermediate School 2-12; Dingle CBS 2-8.

Intermediate School: Shane Clifford, Muiris Crowley, Aidan Lynch, Cathal O Donoghue, Mike Breen, Fergal Griffin, Colin McKenna, Noel Lynch, Donncha Walsh (0-1), Paudie McCarthy (1-1), Seamus Foley (1-1), Ross Sheehan (0-4), Daniel Doona, Donal Kelliher (0-5), Damien Breen. Subs: Colin O Connor for D. Doona, T. Foley for C. O Connor.

 

Final on Wed. 7^th Feb. in Fitzgerald Stadium: Intermediate School 1-10; Coláiste na Sceilge 0-7.

Intermediate School: Shane Clifford, Martin Breen, Aidan Lynch, Cathal O Donoghue, Muiris Crowley, Fergal Griffin, Colin McKenna, Noel Lynch (capt.) 0-1, Donncha Walsh (1-0), Ross Sheehan (0-2, frees), Seamus Foley (0-1), Paudie McCarthy (0-3), Damien Breen (0-2), Donal Kelliher, Liam Sheehan (0-1).

 

Corn Uí Mhuirí 2000/2001

Semi-final on Sun. 25^th Feb. at Dromcollogher: Intermediate School 1-11; St. Flannan’s 0-11.

Intermediate School: Shane Clifford (Laune Rangers), Martin Breen (Beaufort), Aidan Lynch (Laune Rangers), Cathal O Donoghue (Listry), Muiris Crowley (Laune Rangers), Fergal Griffin (Glenbeigh/Glencar) 0-1, Colin McKenna (Milltown/Castlemaine), Noel Lynch (Laune Rangers) capt., Donncha Walsh (Cromane) 0-3, Ross Sheehan (Laune Rangers) 0-4, all frees, Seamie Foley (do.), Paudie McCarthy (Cromane), Damien Breen (Beaufort) 0-3, 1 free, Donal Kelliher (Milltown/Castlemaine), Liam Sheehan (Keel) 1-0. Sub: Colin O Connor (Laune Rangers) for P. McCarthy, Francis Russell (Laune Rangers), Jerry Coffey (do.), Padraig O Sullivan (Beaufort), John D. Doona (do.), Daniel Doona (do.).

 

Final on Mon. 12^th March at Killarney: Coláiste na Sceilge 3-14; Intermediate School 3-6.

Intermediate School: Shane Clifford, Martin Breen, Aidan Lynch, Cathal O Donoghue, Muiris Crowley, Noel Lynch (capt.), Colin McKenna, Fergal Griffin (1-0), Donncha Walsh (0-2), Ross Sheehan (0-1), Seamie Foley, Paudie McCarthy, Damien Breen (0-1), Donal Kelliher (1-1), Liam Sheehan (1-1). Subs: Colin O Connor for F. Griffin, Padraig O Sullivan (Beaufort) for M. Breen.

 

Moynihan Cup (Kerry Colleges ‘B’ Championship)

Final in March at Mitchel’s Pitch: St. Joseph’s, Ballybunion 2-14; Milltown Monastery 3-5.

John Houlihan (Laune Rangers) played at full-forward with Milltown and scored 1-1.

 

Russell Shield (U-15 ‘C’ Colleges’ Football Championship)

Final on Thurs. 17^th May at Farranfore: Milltown Monastery 1-11; Moyderwell 2-3.

Stuart Delaney played at midfield for Milltown Monastery.

 

O Sullivan Cup (Kerry Senior Colleges Football) 2001/2002

Rd. 1 on Wed. 26^th Sept. at Beaufort: Intermediate School 3-12; Tarbert 1-7.

Intermediate School: Shane Clifford, Pat O Sullivan, Damien Breen, Cathal O Donoghue, Colin McKenna, Fergal Griffin, Tomás O Hagan (0-1), Ambrose O Donovan, Stephen Brosnan (0-1), Thomas Foley (0-2), Donncha Walsh (0-3), Padraig O Sullivan (0-3), Danny Doona (1-1), Adrian O Connor (1-0), Colin O Connor (1-0). Sub: Paul O Sullivan (0-1) for P. O Sullivan.

Rd. 2 on Wed. 3^rd Oct. at Beaufort: Intermediate School 1-17; St. Brendan’s 0-7

Rd. 3 on Mon. 8^th Oct. at Dingle: Dingle CBS 2-12; Intermediate School 2-14.

 

Semi-final on Wed. 24^th Oct. at Currow: Tralee CBS 1-11; Intermediate School 0-10.

Intermediate School: Shane Clifford (Laune Rangers) 0-1, Tomás O Hagan (Beaufort), Pat O Sullivan, Colin McKenna, Pat O Sullivan, P. O Connor, Martin Breen, Padraig O Sullivan, Stephen Brosnan (0-1), Ambrose O Donovan (Dr. Crokes) 0-1, John Doona (0-1), Aidan O Connor, Paul O Sullivan (0-1), D. O Sullivan, Dan Doona (0-1). Subs: Colin O Connor for Paul O Sullivan, Damien Breen (Beaufort) 0-3 for D. Doona.

 

Corn Uí Mhuirí 2001/2002

Rd. 1 on Wed. 17^th Oct. at Glin: Intermediate School 1-12; Coláistí Luimní 1-6.

Intermediate School: Shane Clifford, Martin Breen, Fergal Griffin, Muiris Crowley, Aidan Lynch, Damien Breen (0-2), Colin McKenna, Donncha Walsh (0-1), Stephen Brosnan, Thomas Foley, Ambrose O Donovan, Padraig O Sullivan (0-5), Danny Doona (1-3), Adrian O Connor, Colin O Connor (0-1). Subs: Paul O Sullivan for A. O Connor, Tomas O Hagan for Padraig O Sullivan, P. O Connor for C. McKenna.

 

Wed. 7^th Nov. at Mallow: Intermediate School 2-13; St. Augustine’s, Dungarvan 0-7.

Intermediate School: Shane Clifford, Tomas O Hagan, Fergal Griffin, Cathal O Donoghue, Colin McKenna, Aidan Lynch, Muiris Crowley, Donncha Walsh (0-3), Stephen Brosnan, P. O Sullivan, Ambrose O Donovan, Tom Foley (0-1), Damien Breen (1-3), Aidan O Connor, Colin O Connor (1-6). Sub: P. O Sullivan for A. O Connor.

 

Munster Colleges Corn Uí Mhoráin (U-15)

Fri. 19^th Oct. at John Mitchels: Intermediate School 2-14; Dingle CBS 0-3.

Final on Wed. 28^th Nov. at Fitzgerald Stadium: St. Brendan’s 0-10; Intermediate School 0-8.

Intermediate School: Liam Clifford (Laune Rangers), John Sheehan (do.), James Nagle (Keel), Liam O Sullivan (Beaufort), John O Keeffe (Cromane), James O Reilly (Beaufort), Jeremiah O Sullivan, Rodi Healy (Laune Rangers), Padraig Doyle (Beaufort) 0-2, Gary Sayers (Keel) 0-1, Shane Lynch, Sean O Riordan (Laune Rangers) 0-5, all frees, William Foley, Michael Hallissey (Beaufort), Pat Mannix. Sub: Stephen Caulfield (Glenbeigh) for P. Mannix.

 

Wed. 7^th Nov. at Mallow: Intermediate School; St. Augustine’s, Dungarvan.

 

Dunloe Cup

Quarter-final on Wed. 21^st Nov. at Coláiste na Sceilge: Coláiste na Sceilge 3-5; Intermediate School 1-8.

 

Colleges Ladies Senior Football Championship:

In Nov: Intermediate School 6-8; Milltown Presentation 3-8.

 

Kerry Vocational Schools Senior Football Championship

Rd. 4 on Wed. 17^th Oct. at Cloon: Killorglin Killarney.

Rd. 5 on Thurs. 8^th Nov. at Sports Complex, Tralee: Tralee CC Killorglin CC.

 

Kerry Vocational Schools’ Junior Football Championship

Rd. 4 on Tues. 6^th Nov. at Scartaglin: Castleisland CC Killorglin CC.

 

Kerry Vocational Schools 2^nd Year League

Rd. 1 on Thurs. 25^th Oct. at Killarney School Pitch: Killarney CC Killorglin CC.

 

Kerry Vocational Schools’ Ladies’ Football Championship

Thurs. 4^th Oct: Killorglin 3-10; Killarney 0-5.

Rd. 2 on Thurs. 25^th Oct. at Killarney School Pitch: Killarney CC Killorglin CC.

Final on Wed. 12^th Dec. at Direen: Killorglin CC 1-6; Rathmore CC 2-3.

Killorglin CC: Caroline O Sullivan, Caroline Brown (Laune Rangers) capt., Pearl Riordan, Martina Joy, Joanne Murphy, Margaret Kelliher, Evelyn Barton, Maeve Tangney (0-4), Gillian Foley (1-0), Leaha Foley (0-1), Emma Moriarty, Michaelle Courtney, Hazel Poff, Gillian Ahern, Bríd Joy (0-1). Sub: Hazel O Sullivan for C. Brown, Olivia Ahern, Elizabeth O Connor, Tracy Ahern.

 

Final replay on Wed. 19^th Dec. at Direen: Rathmore CC 1-11; Killorglin CC 2-5.

Killorglin CC: Caroline O Sullivan (Cromane), Hazel O Sullivan (Glenbeigh/Glencar), Pearl O Riordan (Listry), Martina Joy (G/G), Joanne Murphy (do.), Margaret Kelliher (Milltown/Castlemaine), Evelyn Barton (G/G), Maeve Tangney (Listry) 0-1, Gillian Foley (Keel), Leaha Foley (Cromane) 1-3, Brid Joy (Laune Rangers), Michelle Courtney (do.), Hazel Poff (do.) 1-1, Emma Moriarty (Keel), Gillian Ahern (Cromane). Subs: Sharon Costello (Laune Rangers) for G. Ahern, Tracy Flaherty (Laune Rangers) for Pearl O Riordan (inj.), Pearl O Riordan for T. Flaherty.

 

Munster Vocational Schools Senior Ladies Football Championship

Thurs. 18^th Oct: Newcastlewest CC 3-12; Killorglin CC 3-3.

 

Munster U-16 Football Championship

 

Rd. 1 on Sat. 14^th July at Foynes: Kerry South 2-6; Tipperary 0-10.

Kerry South: Richard White (Derrynane), Danny McCarthy (Rathmore), James O Sullivan (do.), Jodie O Riordan (Laune Rangers), Michael Curran (Waterville), Jerry Coffey (Laune Rangers), Aaron Cahillane (Keel), Damien Breen (Beaufort), Sean O Shea (St. Michael’s/Foilmore), Joe McGillycuddy (Glenbeigh/Glencar), Kevin O Sullivan (Waterville), Niall Foley (Firies), Eoin O Connell (Fossa), Daniel Doona (Beaufort) 0-4, Michael Murphy (Gneeveguilla) 1-1. Subs: Pa Moloney (Dr. Crokes) 1-1 for J. McGillycuddy, Colin O Sullivan (Skellig Rangers) for J. O Riordan.

 

Semi-final on Sat. 14^th July at Askeaton: Kerry North 1-14; Kerry South 1-12.

Kerry South: Richard White, Danny McCarthy, James O Sullivan, Aaron Cahillane (0-1), Michael Curran, Jerry Coffey (0-1), Joe McGillycuddy, Sean O Shea (Beaufort) 0-1, Kevin O Sullivan, Pa Moloney (0-2), Niall Foley (0-3), Eoin O Connell (0-1), Daniel Doona (0-2), Michael Murphy. Subs: Thomas O Hagan (Beaufort) for A. Cahillane, Jason Arthurs (Dr. Crokes) 1-1 for E. O Connell, Liam O Connell (Firies), Colin Myers (Fossa), Colin O Sullivan, Karl O Connell (St. Michael’s/Foilmore), Jodie O Riordan, Adam O Shea (Keel), Brian Sheehan (St. Mary’s).

 

NFL 2000/2001

 

Rd. 3 on Sun. 11^th Feb. at Tullamore: Offaly 1-18; Kerry 0-10.

Kerry: Declan O Keeffe, Mike McCarthy, Seamus Moynihan, Mossy Lyons, Tomás Ó Sé, Eamonn Fitzmaurice, Kieran Scanlon, Darragh Ó Sé, Donal Daly, Noel Kennelly (0-3, 1 free), Maurice Fitzgerald (0-2, 1 free), Aodán Mac Gearailt (0-3), Mike Frank Russell (0-1), Dara Ó Cinnéide (0-1, free), Denis O Dwyer. Subs: Tom O Sullivan for M. McCarthy, Liam Hassett for MF Russell, Enda Galvin for D. Ó Cinnéide, Billy Sheehan for D. O Dwyer.

 

Rd. 4 on Sun. 25^th March at Dr. Hyde Park: Roscommon 0-11; Kerry 1-5

Kerry: Declan O Keeffe, Mike McCarthy, Seamus Moynihan, Mossy Lyons, Tomás Ó Sé, Eamonn Fitzmaurice, Kieran Scanlon, Darragh Ó Sé, Donal Daly (1-0), Billy Sheehan, Noel Kennelly, Denis O Dwyer, Mike Frank Russell (0-3, 1 free), Liam Hassett, Aodán Mac Gearailt (0-2). Subs: Johnny Moroney for L. Hassett, John McGlynn for D. O Dwyer, Tom O Sullivan for B. Sheehan.

 

Rd. 5 on Sun. 1^st April at Killarney: Kerry 2-9; Dublin 0-10.

Kerry: Declan O Keeffe, Mike Hassett, Seamus Moynihan, Mike McCarthy, Tomás Ó Sé, Eamonn Fitzmaurice, Kieran Scanlon, Darragh Ó Sé (0-1), Donal Daly, Denis O Dwyer, Maurice Fitzgerald, Billy Sheehan, Mike Frank Russell (0-4), Dara Ó Cinnéide (1-2, 2 frees), Aodán Mac Gearailt (1-0). Subs: Noel Kennelly (0-2, 1 free) for B. Sheehan, William Kirby for D. Ó Cinnéide.

 

Rd. 6 on Sun. 8^th April at Killarney: Kerry 0-14; Donegal 0-9.

Kerry: Declan O Keeffe, Mike Hassett (0-1), Seamus Moynihan, Mike McCarthy, Tom O Sullivan, Tomás Ó Sé (0-1), Kieran Scanlon, Darragh Ó Sé, Donal Daly, Denis O Dwyer (0-1), Maurice Fitzgerald (0-3), Noel Kennelly (0-1), Mike Frank Russell (0-1), Dara Ó Cinnéide (0-4, 1 free), Aodán Mac Gearailt (0-2). Subs: William Kirby for D. Daly, Eoin Brosnan for A. Mac Gearailt, Mossy Lyons for M. McCarthy.

 

Rd. 7 on Sun. 15^th April at Tuam: Galway 1-18; Kerry 2-9.

Kerry: Declan O Keeffe, Tom O Sullivan, Seamus Moynihan, Enda Galvin, Tomás Ó Sé, Eamonn Fitzmaurice, Kieran Scanlon, Darragh Ó Sé, William Kirby, Denis O Dwyer (0-2), Maurice Fitzgerald, Noel Kennelly (1-1, 1 free), Mike Frank Russell (0-3), Dara Ó Cinnéide (0-2, 1 45), Aodán Mac Gearailt (1-1). Subs: Eoin Brosnan for D. Ó Cinnéide, Kenneth Dillon for W. Kirby, Mossy Lyons for K. Scanlon, Tommy Griffin for E. Fitzmaurice.

 

Munster Senior Football Championship

 

Rd. 1 on Sun. 13^th May at Clonmel: Tipperary 1-4; Kerry 3-17.

Mike Frank Russell again showed why he was one of the most talented forwards in the game. He linked up to fine effect with the rest of the forwards and the losers’ backs were unable to curb his fiery runs.

Kerry: Declan O Keeffe, Barry O Shea, Seamus Moynihan, Mossy Lyons, Tomás Ó Sé, Eamonn Fitzmaurice, Tom O Sullivan, Darragh Ó Sé, Donal Daly, Denis O Dwyer (0-2), Maurice Fitzgerald (0-4, 2 frees), Aodán Mac Gearailt (0-1), Mike Frank Russell (0-3), Dara Ó Cinnéide (1-2, 1 free), John Crowley (1-2). Subs: Noel Kennelly (1-1) for D. Daly, William Kirby for D. Ó Sé, Eoin Brosnan (0-1) for D. Ó Cinnéide, Declan Quill (0-1) for MF Russell, Tommy Griffin for M. Fitzgerald.

 

Semi-final on Sun. 17^th June at Killarney: Kerry 1-15; Limerick 0-10.

When the need was greatest, Kerry was able to produce an ace from the pack in the person of the mercurial Mike Frank Russell. In the 56^th minute, substitute William Kirby won possession and found Russell with a beautifully timed ball, the Laune Rangers’ star picked his spot on the left of the goal and let fly with a crunching drive. Goalkeeper, Alan Kitson, dived to save it but he was unable to prevent Russell’s rocket from bulging the net and the Kerry supporters jumped for joy. That score settled the issue there and then. A man-of-the-match performance by the Laune Rangers’ star.

Kerry: Declan O Keeffe, Mike McCarthy, Seamus Moynihan, Mossy Lyons, Tomás Ó Sé, Eamonn Fitzmaurice, Tom O Sullivan, Darragh Ó Sé (0-1), Donal Daly, Aodán Mac Gearailt, Maurice Fitzgerald (0-3, 1 free), Noel Kennelly (0-1), Mike Frank Russell (1-4), Dara Ó Cinnéide (0-2, 1 free), John Crowley (0-3). Subs: Denis O Dwyer for M. Fitzgerald, William Kirby (0-1) for D. Daly, Eoin Brosnan for A. Mac Gearailt.

 

Final on Sun. 15^th July at Páirc Uí Chaoimh: Cork 1-13; Kerry 0-19.

Kerry: Declan O Keeffe, Mossy Lyons, Seamus Moynihan, Mike McCarthy, Tom O Sullivan, Eamonn Fitzmaurice, Tomás Ó Sé, Darragh Ó Sé, Donal Daly (0-1), Aodán Mac Gearailt (0-1), Dara Ó Cinnéide (0-9, 8 frees, 1 45), Noel Kennelly (0-1), Mike Frank Russell (0-2), Maurice Fitzgerald, John Crowley (0-4). Subs: Eoin Brosnan (0-1) for M. Fitzgerald, Denis O Dwyer for N. Kennelly, William Kirby for D. Daly, Mike Hassett for T. Ó Sé, Diarmuid Murphy, Declan Quill, Barry O Shea, Johnny McGlynn, Tommy Griffin..

 

All-Ireland Quarter-final on Sun. 5^th Aug. at Thurles: Kerry 1-14; Dublin 2-11.

In the second half, there were some great Kerry scores, two of which Mike Frank Russell was involved in. The first came after the involvement of Tommy Carr (Dublin manager) with the referee and the sideline man and Russell flung over the free with aplomb. Two minutes later, he powered a sideline ball high across the face of the Dublin goal and Dara Ó Cinnéide made a brilliant contact with his fist to score a truly wonderful point.

Kerry: Declan O Keeffe, Mossy Lyons, Seamus Moynihan, Mike McCarthy, Tomás Ó Sé, Eamonn Fitzmaurice, Tom O Sullivan, Darragh Ó Sé, Donal Daly, Eoin Brosnan (0-1), Noel Kennelly, Aodán Mac Gearailt (1-1), Mike Frank Russell (0-2, 1 free), Dara Ó Cinnéide (0-6, 4 frees, 1 45), John Crowley (0-3). Subs: Denis O Dwyer for N. Kennelly, Mike Hassett for M. McCarthy, Maurice Fitzgerald (0-1, sideline) for A. Mac Gearailt, William Kirby for D. Daly, Declan Quill for D. Ó Cinnéide.

 

All-Ireland Quarter-final replay on Sat. 11^th Aug. at Thurles: Kerry 2-12; Dublin 1-12.

Mike Frank Russell emulated Maurice Fitzgerald with a beautiful sideline point and added two others from play. He was always dangerous and was a key man for Kerry. He was not getting the same plaudits as the previous year but that was only because of the phenomenal play of the man in the other corner (John Crowley).

Kerry: Declan O Keeffe, Mossy Lyons, Seamus Moynihan, Mike McCarthy, Tomás Ó Sé, Eamonn Fitzmaurice, Tom O Sullivan, Darragh Ó Sé, Donal Daly, Aodán Mac Gearailt, Dara Ó Cinnéide (0-4, 3 frees), Noel Kennelly (0-2), Mike Frank Russell (0-3, 1 sideline), Eoin Brosnan, John Crowley (2-2). Subs: Maurice Fitzgerald (0-1) for E. Brosnan, William Kirby for D. Daly, Declan Quill for D. Ó Cinnéide, Mike Hassett, Denis O Dwyer, Tommy Griffin.

 

All-Ireland Semi-final on Sun. 1^st Sept. at Croke Park: Meath 2-14; Kerry 0-5.

Mike Hassett was settling into the game very nicely and was taking the game to Meath with some penetrative runs from defence. However, he hobbled off the field with a knee injury in the 23^rd minute. Mike Frank Russell kept looking for the ball, even though things weren’t going his way on the score-board. He kicked five wides and had a shot for a goal strike the post. He was still Kerry’s most dangerous attacker.

Kerry: Declan O Keeffe, Mossy Lyons, Seamus Moynihan, Mike McCarthy, Eamonn Fitzmaurice, Mike Hassett, Tom O Sullivan, Darragh Ó Sé, Donal Daly, Eoin Brosnan (capt.) 0-1, Noel Kennelly, Aodán Mac Gearailt, Mike Frank Russell (0-1), Dara Ó Cinnéide (0-1, free), John Crowley (0-1). Subs: Tommy Griffin for M. Hassett (inj.), Maurice Fitzgerald for T. O Sullivan, William Kirby for D. Ó Cinnéide, Johnny McGlynn for D. Daly, Declan Quill (0-1) for A. Mac Gearailt, Diarmuid Murphy, Denis O Dwyer, Barry O Shea, Marc Ó Sé.

 

Inter-Provincial Senior Football Championship

 

Semi-final on Sat. 10^th Nov. at Austin Stack Park: Leinster 2-11; Munster 0-16.

Munster (Kerry except where stated): Declan O Keeffe, Mike McCarthy, Graham Canty (Cork), Anthony Lynch (do.), Mossy Lyons, Damien Reidy (Limerick), Shane Maher (Tipperary), Nicholas Murphy (Cork), Jason Stokes (Limerick) 0-1, Brendan Jer O Sullivan (Cork) 0-2, Donal Daly (0-1), Noel Kennelly (0-7, 4 frees), Mike Frank Russell (0-1, free), Paul Hehir (Clare), Mícheál Reidy (Limerick) 0-1. Subs: Michael O Sullivan (Cork) for S. Maher, Declan Quill (0-1) for D. Daly, Denis Russell (Clare) for N. Murphy, Fionán Murray (Cork) 0-2 for P. Hehir.

 

Co./Munster Inter-firm Senior Football Championship

 

Mon. 9^th July: AIB Lee Strand

Klinge Liebherr

Mon. 16^th July: AIB 0-7; Klinge/Fujisawa 0-4.

Liebherr 1-5; Lee Strand 0-8.

Mon. 23^rd July: Klinge/Fujisawa Lee Strand

AIB Liebherr

 

Munster Final on Sat. 8^th Dec. at Ballincollig: Cork Garda 2-8; Kerry AIB 0-13.

Kerry: Mark Terry (Fossa), Kenneth Leen (Austin Stacks), Barry O Shea (Kerins O Rahillys), Colm O Shea (Dr. Crokes), Stephen Stack (Emmett’s) 0-2, Pa Laide (Austin Stacks) 0-2, Peter Quillinan (do), Seamus Moynihan (Glenflesk) 0-3, 2 frees, Aidan Moynihan (John Mitchels) 0-2, 1 free, Brian Gannon (Laune Rangers), Austin Constable (St. Mary’s) 0-1, Tomás Griffin (Legion), Billy O Shea (Laune Rangers), Mark Fitzgerald (Kerins O Rahillys) 0-1, D.J. Fleming (Kilcummin) 0-2. Subs: John Courtney for DJ Fleming.

 

Co. Inter-firm Junior Football Championship

 

Mon. 9^th July: Fexco Klinge

Mon. 16^th July: Fexco 3-9; Co. Council/Tralee General Hospital 2-7.

Mon. 23^rd July: Denny’s/Beru Fexco.

 

 

 

Final on Tues. 14^th Aug. at Strand Road: Denny’s/Beru 1-9; Fexco 1-5.

FEXCO: Ger Clifford (Laune Rangers), John O Donnell (do.), Danny Sheehan, Eamonn O Connor (Cromane), Tim Scanlon (Listry), John Joe Quirke (Glenbeigh/Glencar), Vivian O Callaghan (Laune Rangers), John Donoghue, Podge Foley (Laune Rangers), Kevin Clifford (0-3), Robbie Evans (Laune Rangers), Paudie McCarthy (Cromane), Clinton Griffin (do.), Eoin O Sullivan (Laune Rangers) 1-2, Donie Coffey. Subs: Billy O Sullivan (Laune Rangers) for D. Coffey, Chris Breen for R. Evans, Donal de Barra for J. Donoghue, Ivo O Sullivan for JJ Quirke.

 

Ladies’ Co. Junior ‘A’ Championship

 

Rd. 1 on Sun. 29^th July at Dingle: Corca Dhuibhne defeated Laune Rangers.

 

Ladies Co. Junior A League

 

Rd. 1 on Sun. 6^th May at Cloon: Laune Rangers 4-7; Abbeydorney 4-18.

Rd. 2 on Sat. 19^th May at Cloon: Laune Rangers 4-10; Southern Gaels 7-8.

 

Co. U-16 Ladies’ Football League

 

Rd. 1 on Thurs. 10^th May at Cloon: Laune Rangers lost to Legion.

Mon. 23^rd July at Cloon: Laune Rangers 3-12; Southern Gaels ‘B’ 4-5.

 

Girls’ Féile Peil na nOg

The team was sponsored by Murph’s Restaurant. Coaches – Kerry O Connor, Paula O Connor, Jerry Houlihan and Patie Corkery.

 

Semi-final on Fri. 25^th May at Direen: Laune Rangers 3-9; Austin Stacks 1-1.

Laune Rangers: Katie Buckley, Niamh Pigott (capt.), Ciara O Connor, Sinéad Pigott, Louise O Connor, Rochelle Lucey, Sheila O Shea, Linda Courtney (0-2), Sarah Jane Joy (0-1), Michelle Courtney, Hazel Poff (1-1), Caroline Healy (0-2), Sarah Houlihan (1-0), Eimear Knightley (1-3), Megan O Sullivan. Subs: Patrice McGillycuddy for M. O Sullivan, Grainne Quirke for E. Knightley.

 

Final on Fri. 25^th May at Direen: Southern Gaels 4-3; Laune Rangers 2-5.

Laune Rangers: Katie Buckley, Niamh Pigott, Ciara O Connor, Sinéad Pigott, Louise O Connor, Rochelle Lucey, Sheila O Shea, Linda Courtney (0-2), Sarah Jane Joy, Michelle Courtney, Hazel Poff (0-1), Caroline Healy, Sarah Houlihan (1-1), Eimear Knightley (1-1, 1 pen.), Patrice McGillycuddy. Sub: Megan O Sullivan for S. Pigott.

 

Co. U-14 Girls’ Football Championship

 

Quarter-final on Sun. 7^th Oct. at Cloon: Laune Rangers defeated Southern Gaels ‘B’.

 

Semi-final: Laune Rangers defeated Legion.

 

Final on Sun. 25^th Nov. at JP O Sullivan Park: Laune Rangers 1-3; Southern Gaels 4-16.

Southern Gaels were very strong and, in perfect conditions, they were first to settle and took their scoring chances. Even though Laune Rangers were missing three key players, they tried hard up to the final whistle.

 

Co. U-14 Girls’ Football League

 

Rd. 2 on Tues. 12^th June at Cloon: Laune Rangers 7-13; Abbeydorney 4-6.

Rd. 3 on Tues. 19^th June at Cloon: Laune Rangers 3-9; Southern Gaels 5-10.

Laune Rangers: Katie Buckley, Sinead Pigott (capt.), Niamh Pigott, Sheila O Shea, Grainne Quirke, Ciara O Connor, Rochelle Lucey, Sarah Jane Joy (0-1), Linda Courtney (0-1), Hazel Poff, Michelle Courtney (0-1), Caroline Healy (0-3), Megan O Sullivan, Eimear Knightley (1-3), Sarah Houlihan (2-0).

 

Final on 12^th Sept. at JP O Sullivan Park: Laune Rangers lost to Southern Gaels.

Laune Rangers: Katie Buckley, Sinead Pigott (capt), Niamh Pigott, Louise O Connor, Rochelle Lucey, Ciara O Connor, Grainne Quirke, Linda Courtney, Michelle Courtney, Caroline Healy, Sarah Jane Joy Sarah Houlihan, Eimear Knightley, Megan O Sullivan, Sheila O Shea. Subs: Hazel Poff for L. O Connor, Ann M Healy for R. Lucey, Tina Walker for H. Poff.

 

Co. U-12 Girls’ Football League

Trainer – Susan Joy. Selectors – Kay Galvin and Robert Murphy.

 

Rd. 1 on Mon. 25^th June: Laune Rangers defeated Firies.

Rd. 2 on Mon. 2^nd July: Laune Rangers defeated Rathmore.

Rd. 3 on Mon. 9^th July: Laune Rangers drew with Beaufort.

Rd. 4 on Mon. 16^th July: Laune Rangers drew with Glenbeigh.

Rd. 5 on Mon. 23^rd July: Laune Rangers defeated Southern Gaels ‘B’.

Kenmare 8-7; Laune Rangers 2-1.

 

Co. U-12 Girls’ Football Blitz

Laune Rangers were grouped with Southern Gaels 2, Rathmore and Currow.

 

Sat. 16^th June at Tralee:

Rd. 1: Laune Rangers 3-2; Southern Gaels (2) 0-1.

Laune Rangers: Lorraine Gorman, Sharon Healy, Michelle Teahan, Tina Walker, Nicola Clifford, Sheila O Shea, Aisling Clifford, Ann Marie Healy (capt.) 1-0, Rachel Carey (0-1), Dearbhaill Cronin O Reilly (1-0), Deirdre Quirke, Roisin Johnston, Sarah Pigott (1-0), Natalie Corcoran (0-1), Anita O Shea. Subs: Tracy Ahern, Helen O Neill, Karen Joy, Elaine Flynn.

Rd. 2: Laune Rangers 5-12; Rathmore 0-1.

Laune Rangers’ scorers – Ann Marie Healy (3-1), Dearbhaill Cronin O Reilly (1-4), Natalie Corcoran (1-1), Rachel Carey (0-1), Aisling Clifford (0-1), Roisin Johnston (0-4).

Rd. 3: Laune Rangers 3-3; Currow 0-3.

Semi-final: Southern Gaels (1) 0-4; Laune Rangers 0-3.

 

Co. Community Games Girls’ Football (U-12)

 

Finals on Mon. 4^th June at Beaufort: Killorglin was grouped with Kenmare, Spa/Fenit and Gaeltacht.

Rd. 1: Killorglin 3-1; Kenmare 0-0.

Rd. 2: Killorglin 4-1; Spa/Fenit 0-2.

Rd. 3: Killorglin 2-3; Gaeltacht 2-0.

Final: Killorglin 2-1; Annascaul 1-0.

Killorglin panel: Ann Marie Healy, Sharon Healy (capt.), Sinead Concannon, Sarah Pigott, Dearbhaill Cronin O Reilly, Aisling Clifford, Lisa O Sullivan, Lorraine O Gorman, Tracy Ahern, Deirdre Quirke, Anita O Shea, Karen Joy, Nicola Clifford, Maeve O Grady, Michelle Teahan, Helen O Neill, Sarah Riordan, Roisin O Sullivan, Paul Murray.

 

Ladies NFL Div. 2

 

Final on Sun. 3^rd June at Claughaun, Limerick: Laois 2-19; Kerry 3-12.

Kerry: Andrea O Donoghue, Deirdre Dennehy, Gráinne Ní Fhlatharta, Aoife O Neill, Siobhán O Connor, Edel O Connell, Ann Marie O Shea, Margaret O Donoghue, Mary Kelly, Sinead Bunyan, Geraldine O Shea (1-2), Patrice Dennehy (1-1), Shari Delaney, Sarah O Connor (1-8), Lorraine Casey. Subs: Ann Marie O Donoghue (0-1) for L. Casey, Susan Joy for S. Bunyan, Eileen Sayers for M. O Donoghue.

 

Munster Ladies’ U-16 Football Championship

 

Rd. 1 on Sat. 14^th April at Killarney: Kerry Cork.

The Laune Rangers’ players on the panel were Sheila and Mary Cronin and Amy Houlihan.

 

Quarter-final on Thurs. 3^rd May at Newcastlewest: Kerry 6-14; Tipperary 2-4.

Mary Cronin played at right halfback, Sheila Cronin at left halfback and Amy Houlihan at left full-forward.

 

Semi-final on Fri. 11^th May in Athea: Kerry 3-15; Limerick 3-13.

Mary & Sheila Cronin and Amy Houlihan were on the panel.

 

Final on Sat. 12^th May at Direen: Kerry 2-9; Cork 5-13.

 

Munster Ladies’ U-14 Football Championship

 

Rd. 1 on Sat. 7^th April at Ballysteen: Kerry 6-7; Tipperary 2-4.

The following Laune Rangers’ players were on the panel: Sarah Jane Joy (1-0), Eimear Knightley (2-1), Michelle Courtney, Linda Courtney and Caroline Healy.

 

Rd. 2 on Sat. 21^st April at Killarney: Kerry 2-9; Waterford 2-5.

Eimear Knightley scored a goal, Caroline Healy played at left fullback, Sarah Jane Joy played at midfield, while other players on the panel were Michelle and Linda Courtney.

 

Rd. 3 on Sat. 28^th April at Dromcollogher: Limerick 0-3; Kerry 4-8.

Caroline Healy played outstandingly at left fullback and Emer Knightley at left full-forward.

 

Semi-final on Sat. 5^th May at Connolly Park: Kerry 3-10; Clare 1-2.

Caroline Healy played at left fullback and Linda Courtney played at centre-half-forward. Also on the panel were Michelle Courtney, Sarah Jane Joy and Eimear Knightley.

 

Final on Sat. 12^th May at Lewis Road: Cork 5-9; Kerry 0-2.

Laune Rangers were represented by Caroline Healy, Eimear Knightley (0-1), Sarah Jane Joy, Michelle and Linda Courtney.

 

Munster Ladies Junior Football Championship

 

Rd. 1 on Sat. 30^th June at Ballyhooly, Co. Cork: Waterford 4-8; Kerry 3-8.

Kerry: Martha O Connor (Southern Gaels), Grace O Shea (Blennerville), Gráinne Ní Fhlatharta (Corca Dhuibhne), Laura Flannery (do.), Mary Jo Bowler (do.), Michelle Cronin (Southern Gaels), Grainne O Malley (Dr. Crokes), Lorraine Casey (Southern Gaels), Emily Woods (Abbeydorney), Anna Sheehan (Southern Gaels), Eileen Sayers (Blennerville), Aideen Ní Chaomhánaigh (Corca Dhuibhne), Ann Marie O Donoghue (Laune Rangers), Susan Joy (Laune Rangers), Casey O Driscoll (Southern Gaels). Sub: Evelyn O Connell (Southern Gaels).

 

Rd. 2 on Sat. 21^st July at Tralee: Kerry lost to Cork.

Laune Rangers were represented on the team by Susan Joy and Ann Marie O Donoghue.

 

Co. Junior Hurling Championship

 

Rd. 1 on Wed. 22^nd Aug. at Caherslee: Crotta ‘B’ 0-18; Laune Rangers 3-7.

Laune Rangers: Alan Quirke, Karl Daly, Richard O Connor, Josh Whelan, Denis McDonnell, Tom Coleman, Frank Hill (capt.), Robert Kennedy, Joe Kennedy (1-4), Wayne Doyle, Jim Kennedy (0-1), Connie Moynihan (0-1), Jim Murphy (0-1), John Coleman (1-0), David Lynch (1-0). Subs: Liam Mangan for J. Whelan, Declan O Shea for J. Coleman.

 

Co. Hurling League Div. 3

 

Rd. 1 on Wed. 27^th June at Cloon: Laune Rangers 0-22; St. Pat’s, East-Kerry 0-3.

Outstanding for Laune Rangers were Jim Kennedy and Robert Kennedy.

Laune Rangers: Alan Quirke, Josh Whelan, Richard O Connor, Eamonn Clifford, Denis McDonnell, Connie Moynihan, Frank Hill (capt.), Joe Kennedy, Robert Kennedy, Wayne Doyle, Jim Kennedy, Sean Jones, Paul Daly, James Murphy, Stephen Daly. Sub: Maurice Foley for S. Daly.

 

Rd. 2 on Wed. 4^th July at Kilflynn: Crotta ‘B’ Laune Rangers.

 

Rd. 3 on Wed. 11^th July at Cloon: Laune Rangers 1-9; Kilmoyley ‘C’ 3-15.

That was an under-strength Laune Rangers’ team. A second-half rally and the performances of Robert Kennedy, Richard O Connor, Denis McDonnell and Jim Murphy suggested cause for hope for the rest of the season.

Laune Rangers: Joe Crowe, Karl Daly, Richard O Connor, Eamonn Clifford, Frank Hill (capt.), Josh Whelan, Denis McDonnell, John P. Quirke (1-0), Robert Kennedy (0-4), Alan Quirke (0-3), Wayne Doyle, Paul Daly, Declan O Shea, James Murphy (0-2), Maurice Foley.

 

Rd. 4 on Wed. 18^th July at Cloon: Laune Rangers 1-6; Abbeydorney ‘B’ 2-12.

The best performer for the home team was David Lynch.

Laune Rangers: Alan Quirke, Karl Daly, Richard O Connor (capt.), Josh Whelan, Eamonn Clifford, Connie Moynihan, Denis McDonnell, Joe Kennedy (0-3), Robert Kennedy (0-1), David Lynch (1-1), J. Coleman, Wayne Doyle, Declan O Shea, James Murphy (0-1), Stephen Daly. Sub: Paul Daly for D. O Shea.

 

Rd. 5 on Wed. 25^th July at Connolly Park: Austin Stacks 1-11; Laune Rangers 1-13.

That was a tough physical battle but another good performance by the Kennedy brothers, Robert and Joe, at midfield was the difference between the sides.

Laune Rangers: Alan Quirke, Karl Daly, Connie Moynihan, Eamonn Clifford, Denis McDonnell, Josh Whelan (0-1), Frank Hill, Robert Kennedy )-2), Joe Kennedy (1-7), Wayne Doyle (0-1), JP Quirke (0-1), James Murphy, Declan O Shea (0-1), Jim Coleman, Stephen Daly. Subs: Paul Daly for S. Daly, Seamus Enright for P. Daly.

 

South-Kerry Junior Hurling League

 

In May: Laune Rangers 2-12; Austin Stacks 1-5.

Laune Rangers: Alan Quirke, Karl Daly, Richard O Connor, Josh Whelan, Denis McDonnell (capt.), Tom Coleman, James Murphy, Joe Kennedy, Wayne Doyle, Robbie Kennedy, Jim Kennedy, David Lynch, Declan O Shea, Raymond O Sullivan, Stephen Daly. Subs: Connie Moynihan for D. O Shea, Seamus Enright for S. Daly, Eamonn Clifford, Paul Daly, Maurice Foley.

 

Final on Sat. 6^th Oct: Laune Rangers defeated

 

South-Kerry Junior Hurling Championship

 

Quarter-final on Sun. 14^th Oct. at JP O Sullivan Park: Laune Rangers 1-17; Austin Stacks 0-7.

Laune Rangers: Alan Quirke, Karl Daly, Richard O Connor, Josh Whelan, Denis McDonnell (capt.), Tom Coleman, Frank Hill, Robert Kennedy (0-2), Joe Kennedy (0-10), Raymond O Sullivan (0-1), Connie Moynihan (0-1), David Lynch (0-1), James Murphy, P. O Sullivan (0-2), Declan O Shea (1-0). Subs: John Coleman for J. Murphy, Paul Daly for D. O Shea, Maurice Foley for K. Daly, John P. Quirke for D. Lynch.

 

Semi-final: Laune Rangers Kilgarvan ‘B’.

 

Junior Hurling Challenge Game

 

The John Quirke Memorial Shield:

Sun. 22^nd July at Milltown: Laune Rangers 4-12; Rosegreen (Cashel) 0-14.

The proceeds of this challenge game went towards the Chernobyl Children’s Fund. Playing against the wind in the first half, Rangers allowed the visitors score seven points without reply. They then scored two goals to keep themselves in the game. In fact, they had cut the lead to two points by halftime (2-3 to 0-11). In the second half, Rangers piled on the pressure to clinch the game decisively. Best for the winners were Joe Kennedy, who gave an exhibition of attacking midfield play in the second half, Robert Kennedy, Seanie Morris, John Coleman and substitute, Connie Moynihan.

Laune Rangers: P. Corridan, Karl Daly, P. Cronin, Eamonn Clifford, Seamus Enright, Josh Whelan, Maurice Foley, Robert Kennedy (capt.), Joe Kennedy, Alan Quirke, Declan O Shea, Seanie Morris (Spa), Stephen Daly, John Coleman, Paul Daly. Subs: Denis McDonnell for S. Enright, Connie Moynihan for E. Clifford.

 

Administration/Miscellany

 

Sean Mac Cague, Muineachán, was Uachtarán CLG.

Annual Congress was held in the Burlington Hotel, Dublin. It was decided that e-mail was a means of official GAA correspondence. Jerome Conway was on the Kerry delegation.

 

Jerome Conway was re-appointed by An t-Uachtarán, Sean McCague, as National Secretary of Féile Peil na nOg, which was held in Tipperary. Chairman of the committee was John McConnell (Donegal), while other members were Jim Whelan (Coca-Cola),

 

Jerome Conway was also re-appointed onto the National Hurling Development Committee.

 

The Annual Convention of the Munster Council was held in the Silver Springs Hotel, Cork, on Fri. 23^rd Feb. The following officers were elected: Chairman – Christy Cooney (Corcaigh), Secretary – Donie Nealon (Tiobrad Árainn), Treasurer – Dan Hoare (Corcaigh). James Coffey, Laune Rangers, was a member of the Kerry delegation.

 

Jerome Conway was Chairman of the Munster Club League, together with Jim Cronin (Cork) – Vice-Chairman, Liam Hodnett (Cork) – Secretary, Finbarr McCarthy (Cork) – PRO, Pat Healy (Kerry) – Treasurer, Jerry Hough – Cork representative.

 

The Annual Convention of the Kerry Co. Board was held in the Brandon Hotel, Tralee on Tues. 12^th Dec. 2000. The following officers were elected: Chairman – Sean Walsh, Vice-Chairman – Jerome Conway, Secretary – Tony O Keeffe, Joint-Treasurers – James Coffey and John McMahon, Central Council Delegate – Gerald McKenna, Munster Council Delegates – Eamonn O Sullivan and Teddy O Sullivan, PRO – Willie O Connor, Youth Officer – Michael McCarthy, Cultural Officer – Derry Murphy, Development Officer – Patrick o Sullivan, Coaching Officer – Liam Sayers (106 votes), Bernie Reen (103).

 

Jerome Conway was vice-chairman of the Co. G.A.C. He was, also, Chairman of Coiste Iomána Chiarraí (with Pat O Brien, Fossa, as Rúnaí) and a member of the Co. Coaching and Games Development Committee.

A special sub-committee was set up by the Chairman of the Co. Board, Sean Walsh, to review adult competitions within the county. It was chaired by Jerome Conway, with Eamonn O Sullivan as Secretary, together with Christy O Connell (St. Mary’s), Mike O Donoghue (Valentia), John O Donoghue (Glenflesk), Mike Williams (Annascaul), Mike Carey (Kenmare), Der O Connor (Tarbert), Tadhgie Fleming (Dr. Crokes), Justin Brosnan (Churchill), Stephen Stack (Emmet’s) and Tim Coffey (Beaufort). All of the sub-committee’s recommendations were adopted.

 

The following were the management committees of the Kerry Inter-county teams in 2001:

Senior – Páidí Ó Sé, John O Keeffe, Eddie O Sullivan, Eamonn Walsh, Jack O Connor.

U-21 – John Evans, Patrick Brosnan, Mossie Spillane, Tom O Connor, Ambrose O Donovan.

Minor – Charlie Nelligan, Mikey Sheehy, Derry Crowley, Junior Murphy, John Kennedy.

Junior – Buddy O Grady, Mossie Spillane, Donal O Leary, Jim Foley and Gerard Savage.

 

The Annual Convention of Bord na nOg Chiarraí was held in the Austin Stack Park Pavilion on Thurs. 7^th Dec. 2000. The following officers were elected: Chairman – John Foley (Dingle), Vice-Chairmen – Johnny Brosnan (Currow) and John Lenihan (Kilcummin), Secretary – Peggy Horan (Glenflesk), Joint Treasures – Der Flynn (Cordal) and Billy Broderick (Desmonds), PRO – Michael Carroll (Milltown/Castlemaine), Registrar – Liam Ó Rócháin (Gaeltacht), Hurling Officer – Tom O Connor (Ballyheigue).

 

Jerome Conway was Vice-chairman of Cumann na mBunscol Chiarraí.

 

At the Ladies’ Co. Board meeting, at the end of February, John O Connor (Laune Rangers) was elected onto the Finance Committee. Danny and Kathleen Healy (Laune Rangers) were appointed as part of the Co. U-14 Selection Committee.

 

The Annual Convention of the Mid-Kerry Board was held in the Fishery, Killorglin, on Mon. 22^nd Jan. The following officers were elected: Chairman – John Dowling (Keel), Vice-Chairman – Patie Hartnett (Beaufort), Secretary – John Twiss (Milltown/Castlemaine), PRO – Mike O Shea (Laune Rangers), Joint-Treasurers – George Evans (Keel) and Dan Carey (Cromane), Delegate to Co. Board – John Twiss. A motion from Keel ‘that the O Sullivan Cup be played as a junior championship’ was carried. The format was that Keel, Cromane and Glenbeigh/Glencar could play their strongest teams, while Laune Rangers, Beaufort and Milltown/Castlemaine could not play any player that had started in their last game in the Mid-Kerry Championship of the previous year (Clubs playing in Div. 1 or 2 of the Co. League could only play their second best team).

 

Keel had the responsibility of organising Bord na nOg Chiarraí Lár. John Cahillane was Chairman and Michael Murphy was Secretary.

 

The AGM of Laune Rangers Bord na nOg was held in the Fishery on Mon. 5^th Feb. 30/35 people attended, which was a welcome improvement on the previous year. Chairman, Pat Pigott, presided. The Secretary, Colm Conway, read the minutes of the previous AGM. They were then signed, on the proposition of John Clifford and seconded by Michael Foley. The Secretary gave his report on the activities of the previous year. The senior club Chairman, John Clifford, then addressed the meeting. He thanked all the mentors and trainers of the underage teams and wished them further success in the coming year. He paid special tribute to the outgoing Chairman, Pat Pigott, who had decided to step down. He thanked him for his great dedication and commitment to Laune Rangers’ Bord na nOg over the previous 16 years. The Chairman’s address is given at the end of 2000. The mentors of the various teams were then appointed.

A proposal was adopted for the introduction of some senior players, and others, who would contribute 1 hour approximately per week to the coaching of underage players. That would be in addition to the coaching of teams and would concentrate on developing the skills of the young players.

The following officers were then elected:

Chairman – John Quirke (proposed by John O Donnell and seconded by Brian O Shea).

Secretary – Colm Conway (proposed by Donal Pigott and seconded by Pat O Riordan).

Ass. Secretary – Maria Tobin (proposed by John Clifford and seconded by Pat Pigott).

PRO – Sean Moriarty (proposed by John O Donnell and seconded by John Clifford).

Delegate to the Mid-Kerry Board – Pat Pigott (proposed by Michael Foley and seconded by James Riordan).

The following items were then discussed:

1)     John Clifford expressed concern at the lack of players coming to the club from Glounaguillagh N.S. Many people said that the schools were very important to keep numbers up but also to get the players before they could go elsewhere. It was decided to canvass the schools for players.

2)     People wondered if the numbers allowed the club to enter ‘B’ teams at U-12 and U-14 levels. It was promised that ‘B’ teams would be entered if the numbers allowed.

3)     Maria Tobin suggested that the promotion of the club should be tackled at source – young children and parents. It was decided to offer incentives such as an Open Day and/or packs containing togs, socks etc.

4)     Pat O Riordan referred to the increasingly deteriorating position of referees within the club. A new regulation from Bord na nOg Chiarraí required clubs to supply a referee for a specific number of games – failure to do so meant the incurrence of a fine. Jimmy Hayes suggested that a supplementary fee should be paid to referees as well as the payment by the Co. Board.

5)     Joe Hayes suggested that senior players would assist the team mentors with coaching of the skills to the underage players. It was also suggested that all the underage coaches would partake in a coaching course.

6)     James Ferris raised the problem of players, who were not members of the club, playing for the club. He said that, in the event of an accident, the club could be liable for expenses.

 

Laune Rangers held 14 meetings during the year. The following were in attendance: Michael Foley (14), James Riordan (14), John Clifford (13), James Ferris (11), Bart Moriarty (11), Johnny Galvin (11), Pat O Riordan (10), Patrick O Shea (10), John O Donnell (7), John Purcell (6), Jim Galvin (6), Ger O Connor (6), John O Connor (6), Pat Pigott (5), Christy Fenton (4), Mike O Shea (4), John Griffin (3), Denis McDonnell (3), Josie Fenton (2), John Quirke (1), Josh Whelan (1), Jerry Coffey (1), Maurice Corkery (1), Sean Moriarty (1), Adrian O Connor (1).

The following matters were discussed:

Tues. 6^th Feb. – James Ferris reported from the Co. Board meeting, stating that only six players from Laune Rangers had availed of the Players’ Voluntary Insurance Scheme out of 668 in the whole county. He also stated that a sub-committee had been set up to examine the Co. Championship under the chairmanship of Jerome Conway. He felt that club teams did not have fair representation on the sub-committee. A discussion took place on the media coverage of the proposed new astro-turf pitch in the Intermediate School (There had been an article in the Kerryman, which included Jerome Conway promoting the new pitch from a GAA point of view, so that it would qualify for a government grant as an amenity for the local community. He had said, ‘From the point of view of the national school, we have not been able to train as it has been impossible to get a pitch on numerous occasions. A facility like this would accommodate primary school games. From a Laune Rangers’ point of view, it would be ideal for training at this time of the year. It is training, not matches, that destroys pitches and this would be a great amenity, not only for our senior team, but also our underage teams’). James Ferris and John O Donnell spoke strongly that they should not have used Jerome Conway as representing Laune Rangers!

Tues. 6^th March – The threat of foot-and-mouth disease had interrupted some fixtures and courses. Correspondence from the Co. Board stated that the U-21 football championship would be played between the District Boards (club teams had been excluded). James Ferris expressed dissatisfaction with that arrangement. John Clifford explained that the competition had been difficult to schedule over the past number of years and that the present arrangement had been passed at Co. Board with dissention for a one-year trial period. John Foley, Accelerated Drainage, had agreed to be the main sponsor of the Golf Classic. The following rota for the Lotto on Sunday nights in the CYMS was drawn up: March, July and November – Patrick O Shea (capt.), Mike O Shea and James Ferris; April, August and December – Michael Foley (capt.), James Riordan and John Clifford; May, September and January (2002) – Bart Moriarty (capt.), Pat O Riordan and Ger O Connor; June and October – Pat Pigott (capt.), Jerry Coffey and John O Donnell.

Tues. 3^rd April – John Griffin reported that there had been security problems in the dressing-rooms in Cloon and he asked mentors to inform players to be more vigilant. The lower pitch in the JP O Sullivan Park was to be ploughed and drained.

Tues. 1^st May – The tender for Phase 2 Development of the JP O Sullivan Park (the car-park) amounted to £54,000 (Michael Lynch) and was accepted. The invoice received for the electronic score-board amounted to £6,000 + VAT. The cost of advertising signs in the field was £300 for a two-year period. £2,000 was received from Killorglin Credit Union as sponsorship of the senior teams. The Church-gate collection for Co. Bord na nOg amounted to £625.

Tues. 5^th June – Patrick O Shea reported that there were 430 paid-up members of the club at that point in time. James Riordan reported that he had met with the Minister for Justice, John O Donoghue, regarding the club’s application for Lottery funding for the JP O Sullivan Park Development and he had received a positive response. The club had been granted 8 places on the Students Summer Job Scheme. The lowering of the front wall was progressing satisfactorily. Kerry Co. Council was willing to provide stone for the facing of the wall at £740 per load but it was not willing to carry out the work. The Co. Council had agreed to lay a footpath from the town to the JP O Sullivan Park. A five-year lease on Cloon, with the Sheehy family, had been procured @ £3,300 per year. The girls football sub-committee undertook bag-packing during the bank-holiday week-end, organised by John O Connor and Kathleen Healy, and raised £1,000.

Mon. 25^th June – The ongoing problem of players from Killorglin Parish playing with Beaufort was discussed. The Chairman and James Ferris and Beaufort representatives had met with the Co. Board. Both clubs had been asked to make submissions. The club felt that there were two options, 1. to allow Cappagh and Shanara as open areas, 2. to allow those presently playing with Beaufort to continue to do so, but that the Parish Rule should apply thereafter. A tender of £13,000+VAT was accepted from Carroll Engineering for the provision and placement of a railing on the wall and gates.

Tues. 3^rd July – The price for the stone-work on the front wall from Corcoran’s, Tralee, was £11,700+VAT. Pat Pigott offered to supervise the work of the students on the Summer Job Scheme. Co. Board has informed that future correspondence with clubs would be through e-mail only. Bart Moriarty gave a detailed account of events, which lead to the disqualification of Peter Lyons as a referee. Following a Co. League game, Beaufort v Gneeveguilla, the latter club contacted the Co. Board to ask if one of its players, who had been sent off by Peter Lyons, was eligible to play in the following game. The Co. Board had contacted Peter Lyons, who had indicated that the player could play. However, Spa club, which had been represented at the game, contacted the Co. Board to say that the player had received a straight red card from Peter Lyons. As a result, Peter Lyons had been summoned to attend a meeting with some Co. Board officers and representatives of the Referees’ Committee. Peter Lyons admitted his mistake and apologised for any embarrassment caused. Bart Moriarty appealed for clemency and Peter Lyons was disqualified from refereeing until 1^st Oct. James Ferris expressed disappointment that Laune Rangers’ players had played with Mid-Kerry in the Co. U-21 Football Championship.

Tues. 7^th Aug. – The parish had been canvassed for Lotto Direct Debit members – Christy Fenton was thanked for his efforts in Caragh Lake. Laune Rangers’ Golf Society outing in Beaufort Golf Club was won by Ger O Connor. Owen Mangan, President of the Society, criticised the senior team management during the presentation of prizes, even though he admitted to have attended very few games during the year. John Clifford, Sean Moriarty and John O Donnell, who had been present at the prize-giving, said that he had been out of order. James Ferris stated that matters had not being going well on the playing pitch and that the future did not look bright. Timmy Doyle’s book, ‘Get Up Them Steps’, was launched in the Fishery on Fri. 10^th Aug.

Wed. 5^th Sept. – Some players did not fill in injury claim forms and the club then had to pay the physio and other medical bills. Ger O Connor suggested that an office should be set up within the club-rooms where files would be stored.

Tues. 18^th Sept. – a special meeting to make nominations for the positions of managers of the various county teams. John Evans was nominated as U-21 manager. £100 was donated to Scoil Mhuire Parents’ Association. Pat Pigott stated that he was not seeking club Chairmanship, contrary to rumours.

Tues. 2^nd Oct. – The ongoing saga between Laune Rangers and Beaufort raised its ugly head. Frank Coffey (Beaufort) had offered to make both Meanus and Brookhill open areas between the two clubs. James Ferris and Pat Pigott opposed that proposal vehemently. It was reported that 12 players from the Killorglin parish were attending Kilgobnet NS and playing U-12 football with Beaufort. It was decided to uphold the parish rule. John O Donnell proposed that any work costing over £500 should be sanctioned at a club meeting. The Co. Board Ladies Football Committee’s Church-gate collection in Killorglin yielded £670 – Laune Rangers were entitled to retain half of that amount.

Tues. 6^th Nov. – Arrangements were made for the Club Race-Night. Permission was received from the CYMS Committee to display all upcoming Laune Rangers’ activities on the CYMS notice-board.

Thurs. 29^th Nov. – (Club officers’ meeting) The proposed four motions from the Fixtures Review Work-Group to Co. Convention were discussed. The Chairman of the Work-Group had been Jerome Conway. The club decided to support three of the motions but declined, on a vote, to support the motion on the availability of inter-county players for just five games of the Co. Leagues. John O Donnell, Johnny Galvin and James Riordan felt that five games were not sufficient. John Clifford explained that, with the backdoor system in the All-Ireland SFC, clubs would henceforth be without their inter-county players much more that they realised but with the proposed motion they would have their players for five games. James Ferris had his reservations regarding the motion. The motion was defeated by 4 votes to 3, with 3 abstentions.

Mon. 3^rd Dec. – James Ferris reported that the Co. Chairman had deemed that the motions from the Fixture Review Work-Group would have to be proposed by the club of the Chairman of that work-group (Laune Rangers). On a revote, the 4^th motion was carried by 7 votes to nil, with 5 abstentions on the proposition of Bart Moriarty, seconded by James Ferris. The Laune Rangers hurling sub-committee had a most enjoyable function in the Fishery, during which the 2000 South-Kerry Junior Hurling Championship medals were presented.

 

Membership of Laune Rangers’ Club cost £15 (family £25) in 2001.

The following were registered members of the club for 2001: Paddy Crowley, John Clifford, Jim Galvin, Patrick Pigott, Michael Foley, James O Riordan (Gurrane), Gerard O Connor (Laharn), Michael O Shea, Patrick O Shea, Pat Riordan, Johnny Galvin, James Ferris, Jerry Coffey, Bart Moriarty, James Coffey, Eileen Clifford, Jenny Pigott, Kathleen Foley, Margaret O Riordan, Siobhan O Shea (Sunhill), Mary Ferris, Maureen Coffey, Michael Ahern, Maureen Ahern, John Brown, Margaret Brown, Liam Burke, Jim Burns, Agnes Burns, Matty Cahill, James Cahillane, Liam Clifford, Martin Clifford (Glencuttane), Christy Clifford, Mary Clifford, Finbarra Coffey, Jerome Conway, Eva Conway, Patie Corkery, Lorraine Corkery, Maurice Corkery, Bernadette Corkery, Patrick Costello, Ger Counihan, Joe Cronin, Donal Cronin, Eamonn Crowley, Eileen Crowley, Declan Crowley, Joe Crowley, Brid Crowley, Thomas Curran, Nuala Curran, Enda Curtayne, Jimmy Doona, John A. Doona, Gene Evans, John Evans, Vincent Evans, Declan Falvey, Breda Falvey, Christy Fenton, Ann Fenton, Josie Fenton, Willie Fitzgerald, Kathleen Fitzgerald, Peter Fleming, Gerard Flynn, Mary Flynn, Pa Foley, Dolores Foley, James Foley, John Foley, Batty Foley, Agnes Foley, Kevin Foley, Jerry Foley, Joan Foley, Gina Foley, John Galvin, James Galvin, Aidan Gannon, Ann Gannon, Maurice Geary, Francis Griffin, Donie Griffin, Noreen Griffin, John Griffin, Mary Griffin, Con Griffin, Frank Griffin (Sn.), Barry Harmon, Diane Hassett, Mike Hassett, Jimmy hayes, Danny Healy, Kathleen Healy, Tina Healy, Mary Healy, Stephen Henken, Ted Houlihan, Mary Houlihan, Con Lucey, Paula Lucey, John Lynch, Belinda Lynch, Pat Lynch, John Ahern (St. James’ Gardens), Mary Lyons, Tony Lyons, Kathleen Lyons, Eoin Mangan, Brendan McCarthy, James McInery, Sean McKenna, Bridget McKenna, Denis Moroney, Sharon Moroney (Ardnaknockeen), Sean Murphy (The Square), Barry Murphy, James Murphy, Maria Murphy (Killarney), Paudie O Connor, Eileen O Connor, Patrick O Connor, Eileen O Connor, Kerry O Connor, Tom O Connor (Ardmoniel), Michael O Leary, Conor O Mahony, Eileen O Mahony, Noel O Mahony, Dermot O Shea, Carina O Shea, Davy O Shea, Siobhan O Sullivan (Anglont), Ann O Sullivan (Mountain View), Sean O Sullivan, Dolores O Sullivan, Mícheál O Mahony, Donal Pigott, Maria Pigott, John Purcell, John Quirke, Mary Quirke, Denis Russell, Frank Russell, Liam Russell, Joe Shannon, Mary Shannon, Liam Shannon, Kathleen Shannon, Tom O Shea, Patrick Sheehan (Sunhill), Kathleen Sheehan (do), Sean Sheehan, Gina Sheehan, Sean Tracey, Maura Tuohy, Leslie West, John Whelan, John Woods, Tommy Woods, Kathleen Woods, Sean Foley (Dungeel), Kathleen Foley (do.), John Sheehan (Laune View), Pat Sheehan (Groyne), Eileen O Riordan, Keith Bradburn, Mary Bradburn, Maurice Harmon, Pat O Mahony, Maria O Mahony, Dan Moriarty, Mary O Shea, Paudie O Sullivan (Iveragh Road), James O Riordan (Sunhill Road), Fiona O Riordan, Johnny O Connor, Peter Lyons, Mark O Connor, Mark Conway, John Sheehan, Shane O Sullivan, Brendan Fitzgerald, Pierce Prendiville, Johnny Lynch, Pa O Sullivan, James O Shea, Billy O Sullivan, Billy O Shea, Brian Gannon, Mike Frank Russell, Pa Foley, Eoin Ferris, Paul Griffin, Pa Murphy, Adrian Hassett, Joe Hayes, John O Sullivan, Tony Lyons, Karl Griffin, Jerry O Brien, John F. O Brien, Derry O Sullivan, Jason Griffin, Liam Foley, Michael O Reilly, Mikey Griffin, Denis Cleary, Joe Healy, Danny Cahill, Pat Leahy, Bertie O Riordan, John Moriarty, Colm Conway, Eddie Birmingham, Michael Cahillane, Fiachra O Donoghue, Sean Moriarty, Eoin O Sullivan, Paul O Brien, Anthony Foley (Rangue), Donncha Curran, Carl O Sullivan, Redmond Fitzgerald, Michael Lynch, Anthony O Sullivan, Enda Clifford, Raymond O Sullivan, James Sheehan, Patsy Joy, Brian O Shea, Peter Byrne, Dominic Crowley, Jamie Clifford, John Griffin, Billy O Mahony, Terence Houlihan, Pa Sheehan, Paul Russell, Robert Moriarty, Morgan Foley, Alan O Sullivan, Gerard Purcell, Carl Falvey, Kevin Jones, Timothy Moroney, John O Donnell, Ross Sheehan, Darren O Riordan, James Hayes, Seamus Foley, Francis Russell, Dermot Houlihan, Muiris Crowley, Tim O Regan, Michael Doyle, Jonathan McCarthy, David Coffey, Mark Healy, Cathal Foley, Niall Looney, Sean Kirschoffer, Alan Murphy, Niall O Mahony, Carl McCarthy, Paul O Connor, Shane Clifford, Aidan Lynch, Colin O Connor, Peter Slattery, David O Sullivan (Glenashe), Eoin McMahon, Daryl Corkery, John O Sullivan (twin), Darragh Burns, Tom Crowley, Fergus O Riordan, Cian Foley, Cian Evans, Colm Leahy, Paul Sheehan, Fergal O Donoghue, Brian Curran, John Ahern, Eoin Clifford, Padraig Clifford, Seamus Galvin, Daniel Moriarty, Geoffrey O Mahony, Paul Costello, Mike McGillycuddy, Aidan O Connor, Trevor Gannon, Brian Houlihan, Robert Foley, Andrew O Reilly, John E. Murphy, Tom McGillycuddy, Noel Lynch, Colin Mangan, Damien Harmon, Padraig Crowley, Paul McKenna, Barry O Sullivan, Conor Falvey, William Byrne, Vincent Griffin, James Foley, Pat Clifford (Dromin), Iraneus Looney, Geraldine Looney, Des Ahern, John Healy (Farrentoreen), Jerry Courtney, Michael Houlihan (Iveragh Road), Timothy Brosnan (Ballycleave), Mrs. Brosnan (do.), Paul Bennett, Michael Carolan, Joan Carolan, Francis McMahon, Teresa McMahon, John Sheehan (Tinahalla), Jerome O Regan, Chris O Regan, Pat Joy (Caragh Lake), John O Dwyer, Robert Murphy, Denis O Neill, Christy Kissane, Denis Kissane, Tom Johnston, Dolores Johnston, Michael Kissane, Patie Sheehan (Gort Luachra), Jerry Houlihan (Douglas), Doreen Houlihan, Pa Fleming, Cornelius O Connor, Marguerite O Connor, Colm Dunlea, Rose Dunlea, Johnny O Grady, John O Connor (Gurrane), Carl Daly, Joan Joy, Jim Tobin, Maria Tobin, Tim Faulkner, Brendan Costello (Tullig), Eileen O Sullivan (Knocknaboola), Patricia Maher (Laharn), Francis Flynn, Kathleen Flynn, Michael O Sullivan (Reeks View), Teddy Clifford, Mary Clifford, John O Riordan (Tullig Beg), Mossy Joy, Denis Murphy, Eamonn Carey, Adrian O Connor, Pat Healy, Patrick Foley (Laharn), Dan Griffin (Ownagarry), Chris Griffin (do.), Richard O Connor, Patrick Courtney, Denis McDonnell, Frank Hill, Josh Whelan, Noel Purcell, Aidan Spillane, Tom Coleman, Paul O Shea, James O Connell, Wayne Doyle, James Murphy, Ross Breen, Stephen Daly, Simon Whelan, John Buckley, Joe Kennedy, Robert Kennedy, Con Moynihan, Eamonn Clifford, Michael O Connor, Seamus Kennedy, Sean Jones, Liam Mangan, David Lynch, Evan Healy, Nelius Lynch, Declan O Shea, Danno Woods, Noreen Woods, Debra Murphy, Muireann Clifford, Fergus Clifford, Kevin Harmon, Padraig O Sullivan (Rathmore), Joe Crowe, Alan Quirke, Sean P. Quirke, Joe Clifford (Laharn), Breda Clifford (do.), Timothy Brosnan, Deborah Brosnan, Patrick Clifford (Meanus), Philomena Clifford, Patrick Coffey, Kathleen Coffey, Jacko Foley, Bridget Foley, Charles O Connor, Ben Courtney, Eoin Gorman (Manor Inn), Maureen Gorman (do.), Scott McGlashen, Michael Lyne (Tullig Beg), John Houlihan (Iveragh Park), Eamonn Looney, Nora Looney, Brendan Mangan, Mary Murphy (Iveragh Park), Jeremiah O Callaghan, Colm O Sullivan (Dromin), Johnny O Regan, Mary O Regan, Ann O Sullivan (Reeks’ View), Noel O Sullivan, Diarmuid O Sullivan, Neilie O Sullivan, Hannah O Sullivan, Dodo Sheahan, Martin Sweeney, Willie Murphy, John Joy (Annadale), Mona Joy (do.).

 

At the Co. GAC meeting on Mon. 5^th Feb. the transfer of Patrick Curran from Laune Rangers to Cork were ratified.

At the GAC meeting on 27^th Feb. the transfer of Mike Hassett from Laune Rangers to An Tóchar (Roundwood), Wicklow was ratified. The Chairman of that club was Donal McGillycuddy, formerly of Reenalagane, Glenbeigh. Liam Hassett had already transferred to St. Anne’s Club in Dublin as he had been teaching in Firhouse Community School in the area.

At the same meeting, John Ahern transferred back from London to Laune Rangers.

 

In Feb. Laune Rangers received a grant of £8,000 from the Munster Council towards field development. On 11^th Dec. the club was allotted a grant of £50,000 from the National Lottery towards the field development. Michael Ahern, solicitor, had assiduously acted for the club in that regard.

 

The annual Mass for bereaved members of Laune Rangers Club was read on Monday 12^th March at 7.30pm in St. James’ Church.

 

Phase 2 of the development in the JP O Sullivan Park included reduction of Existing Front Wall (£6,375), replace front wall and face with native stonework, 3 entrance gates, 2 pedestrian gates (£74,000), demolition of old dressing-rooms and remove debris (£382.00), erection of score-board and installation of service duct (£10,000), provision of fencing surround to playing pitch (£12,600), provision of ducting for future lighting (£2,900), erection of goal-posts and netting (£1,100), construction of car-park and surface-water drain (£35,098), professional fees (£3,000), VAT @ 12.5% .

 

At the GPC meeting on Thurs. 18^th October, Ross Sheehan, having been sent off in the SFL Div. 1 game versus Kerins O Rahillys, was suspended for 24 weeks.

 

Laune Rangers submitted the following list of 18 players who constituted their Div. 1 team for the year and were ineligible to play in the ‘B’ team in the Co. League: Mark O Connor, Mark Conway, Paul Costello, Shane Clifford, Noel Lynch, John Sheehan, Brendan Fitzgerald, Shane O Sullivan, Johnny Lynch, Pierce Prendiville, Pa O Sullivan, James O Shea, Brian Gannon, Mike Frank Russell, Thomas McGillycuddy, Ross Sheehan, Billy O Shea and Podge Foley. The following 12 players, plus the above 18, were ineligible to play with the ‘C’ team in the Co. Junior League: Tony Lyons, John O Sullivan, Brian Curran, Eoin Ferris, Joe Hayes, Paul Russell, Jerry O Brien, Paul Griffin, Geoffrey O Mahony, Joe Healy, Billy O Sullivan and John Moriarty.

 

Laune Rangers continued with its weekly Lotto @ £1 per week, the draw for which was held each Sunday night in the CYMS – the winners being announced during the Bingo. The sellers included Margaret Brown, Patrick Foley, Peter Lyons, Paul O Shea, Bridget McKenna, Pat Pigott, Michael O Shea, John O Donnell, O Neill’s Bar, Johnny Galvin, Pat O Riordan, Christopher Houlihan, Sheila O Neill’s Bar, Coffey’s Bar, Falvey’s Bar, Bunker’s Bar, James Riordan, Francie Sheahan’s Bar, Matty Cahill, Jim Galvin, Jimmy Hayes, Billy O Sullivan, Step Inn Bar, Houlihan’s Butchers, Jamie Clifford, Barry Woods, Liam Shannon, O Shea’s Bar, Francis McMahon, Post Office, Eoin Ferris, Jimmy Doona. The monthly rota for supervising  the operation of the Lotto Draw on Sunday nights at Bingo in the CYMS was as follows: March – Team A (Mike O Shea, Pat O Shea and James Ferris); April – Team B (Michael Foley, James Riordan and John Clifford); May – Team C (Bart Moriarty, Pat O Riordan and Ger O Connor); June – Team D (Jerry Coffey, John O Donnell and Pat Pigott); July – Team A; August – Team B; September – Team C; October – Team D; November – Team A; December – Team B. The winners were as follows:

Sun. 7^th Jan. (jackpot of £1,600 not won) – Prize-winners: Sean O Connor, Curaheen West, Glenbeigh (£50), Mossy O Sullivan, Callinfersy (£25), Helen Brazil, Maynooth, Kildare (£25).

Sun. 14^th Jan. (jackpot of £1,700 not won) – Prize-winners: Eileen Kelly, Gneeveguilla (£50), Maureen Donovan, Langford St. (£25), Rhona Flaherty, Iveragh Park (£25).

Sun. 21^st Jan. (jackpot of £1,800 not won) – Prize-winners: Patricia O Sullivan, Quarry Lodge, Cromane (£50), Clodagh Woods, Sunhill (£25), Barry Harmon, Dunmaniheen (£25).

Sun. 28^th Jan. – jackpot of £1,900 was won by Brendan O Sullivan, Keelcoulaght.

Sun. 4^th Feb. (jackpot of £500 not won) – Prize-winners: Kat & Pat Cahillane, Reenalagane, Glenbeigh (£50), Peggy O Shea, Laharn (£25), Billy O Shea, Langford St. (£25).

Sun. 11^th Feb. (jackpot of £600 not won) – Prize-winners: May Kerrisk, Keel (£50), John O Sullivan, Keelcoulaght (£25), James McCarthy, Annadale Road (£25).

Sun. 18^th Feb. (jackpot of £700 not won) – Prize-winners: Mary L. O Sullivan, Glenbeigh (£50), Alanna Pigott, Dromin (£25), Patrick Clifford, Mountain View (£25).

Sun. 25^th Feb. (jackpot of £800 not won) – Prize-winners: Denis Harris, Glenbeigh (£50), Jack O Sullivan (£25), Margaret Buckley, Mountain View (£25).

Sun. 4^th March 9jackpot of £900 not won) – Prize-winners: JJ Murphy, Clover Hill (£50), Sean Galvin, Garrahadoo (£25), Michael Curran, Steelroe (£25).

Sun. 11^th March (jackpot of £1,000 not won) – Prize-winners: Michael Cronin, Ballycasheen, Killarney (£50), Michael Costello, Douglas (£25), Christena Casey, Cromane Cross (£25).

Sun. 18^th March (jackpot of £1,100 not won) – Prize-winners: Mary O Sullivan, Glenbeigh (£50), John Foley, Iveragh Park (£25), Hugh Dwyer, Muingaphouca (£25).

Sun. 25^th March (jackpot of £1,200 not won) – Prize-winners: Imelda O Sullivan, Iveragh Park (£50), Denis Harris, Glenbeigh (£25), Margaret O Riordan, Gurrane East (£25).

Sun. 1^st April (jackpot of £1,300 not won) – Prize-winners: Eileen O Sullivan, Glenbeigh (£50), Graham Doyle, Tesco, Killarney (£25), Maureen Galvin, Garrahadoo (£25).

Sun. 8^th April (jackpot of £1,400 not won) – Prize-winners: Joe Crowe, Iveragh Park (£50), Joe McMahon, Cappagh, Beaufort (£25), DJ Scannell, Clover Hill Close (£25).

Sun. 15^th April (jackpot of £1,500 not won) – Prize-winners: Sheila O Doherty, Glencar (£50), Danny O Callaghan, Langford St. (£25), Gerard Flynn, Tullig (£25).

Sun. 22^nd April (jackpot of £1,600 not won) – Prize-winners: Mary Harmon, Laune View (£50), Ned Lawlor, Millstreet (£25), Donie Griffin, Meanus (£25).

Sun. 29^th April (jackpot of £1,700 not won) – Prize-winners: Liam Concannon, c/o O Neill’s Bar (£50), Donal Pigott, Dromin (£25), Catherine Galvin, Keelcoulaght (£25).

Sun. 6^th May (jackpot of £1,800 not won) – Prize-winners: Mikey Griffin, Gurrane (£50), Maureen O Reilly, Steelroe (£25), Laura Doona, Killarney (£25).

Sun. 13^th May (jackpot of £1,900 not won) – Prize-winners: Tom Sugrue, Mountain Stage (£50), Katie Joy, Callanfersy (£25).

Sun. 20^th May (jackpot of £2,000 not won) – Prize-winners: G. Kelliher, c/o Falvey’s Bar (£50), Shane Horgan, Tinnahalla (£25), Con O Connor, Iveragh Park (£25).

Sun. 3^rd June (jackpot of £2,200 not won) – Prize-winners: Flor McCarthy, Coolbane (£50), Eddie O Donoghue, Sunhill (£25), John McKenna, Whitegate, Castlemaine (£25).

Sun. 10^th June (jackpot of £2,300 not won) – Prize-winners: Pat Grandfield, Knocknaboola (£50), Rev. Father Noel Spring, The Presbytery (£25), Mary McKenna, Whitegate, Castlemaine (£25).

Sun. 17^th June (jackpot of £2,400 not won) – Prize-winners: Sheila F. Sheahan, The Square (£50), Joe Curran, Dromin (£25), Angela O Connor, Woodlawn , Killarney (£25).

Sun. 24^th June (jackpot of £2,500 not won) – Prize-winners: Mary O Neill, c/o Mgt. Byrne (£50), Gary Lewis, Countess Grove, Killarney (£25), Mike Carroll, Kiltallagh, Castlemaine (£25).

Sun. 15^th July (jackpot of £2,800 not won) – Prize-winners: Tom Lynch, Glenbeigh (£50), Mary Teahan, Mountain Stage (£25), Kay O Sullivan (£25).

Sun. 22^nd July (jackpot of £2,900 not won) – Prize-winners: Bertie O Riordan, Upper Tullig (£50), Teddy Clifford, Alta Villa (£25), Kathleen Brosnan, Port Road, Killarney (£25).

Sun. 5^th Aug. (jackpot of £3,100 not won) – Prize-winners: Margaret Griffin, Gurrane West (£50), Ann Marie Clifford, Glenashe (£25), Donal O Neill, c/o Klinge (£25).

Sun. 19^th Aug. (jackpot of £3,300 not won) – Prize-winners: Anita Houlihan, Iveragh Road (£50), Josephine Teahan, Mountain Stage (£25), Jim Galvin, Keelcoulaght (£25).

Sun. 26^th Aug. (jackpot of £3,400 not won) – Prize-winners: Bridget Howe, Upper Tullig (£50), Michael O Sullivan (Sn.), Kilgobnet (£25), Jim Casey, Ballymacprior (£25).

Sun. 2^nd Sept. (jackpot of £3,500 not won) – Prize-winners: Mary O Shea, Commane, Glenbeigh ($50), Kieran O Shea, 45 Iveragh Park (£25), Kathleen Moriarty, Inch (£25).

Sun. 16^th Sept. (jackpot of £3,700 not won) – Prize-winners: Podge Leen, Milltown (£50), Frank Brennan, Ownagarry (£25), Mary Griffin, Reen (£25).

Sun. 30^th Sept. (jackpot of £3,900 not won) – Prize-winners: Jim Galvin, Keelcoulaght (£50), Mike Allen, Ballyhar (£25), Lucy Byrnes, The Square (£25).

Sun. 7^th Oct. (jackpot of £4,000 not won) – Prize-winners: JL Howe, Upper Tullig (£50), Aileen Kelly, Ballycleave (£25), Dan Murphy, Bansha (£25).

Sun. 21^st Oct – Jackpot of £4,200 won by Bernie Foley, New York (formerly of Reen).

`            Sun. 11^th Nov. – jackpot of £1,000 won by John Bell, Knockavota.

Sun. 18^th Nov. (jackpot of £1,00 not won) – Prize-winners: Rhetta McSwiney, Langford St. (£50), Nigel Reidy, Annadale Road (£25), Denis Scannell, Douglas (£25).

Sun. 16^th Dec. (jackpot of £1,400 not won) – Prize-winners: Ronnie Hannon, Cromane (£50), Tommy Evans, Castlemaine £25, Dan Moriarty, Laharn (£25).

 

Under the Fás Scheme, Laune Rangers employed Denis Kissane and Willie Murphy to work in the JP O Sullivan Park and Cloon.

 

Laune Rangers club entered a team (£300) in the Killorglin Millennium Project Committee’s Golf Classic, which was held on 27^th April.

Laune Rangers club donated £100 to the Scoil Mhuire Parents’ Association in October.

 

Kerry Primary Schools’ Girls team defeated Cork in a curtain-raiser to the Munster Senior Football Final in Páirc Uí Chaoimh. Laune Rangers were represented by Sarah Houlihan (Douglas N.S.) and Ciara O Connor (Scoil Mhuire).

 

Laune Rangers held a medal presentation function in the Fishery on Sat. 23^rd Feb. 2001. On the night, retiring officers James Coffey, Michael Foley and Jim Galvin were honoured and presentations were made to them in recognition of their tremendous contributions to the club over many years. The presentations were made by the Kerry Rose, Linda O Sullivan. The night was organised by the club Secretary, John O Donnell, and Michael C. Ahern. There was a buffet dinner. Music was provided by ‘The Connerys’ and everybody enjoyed themselves.

The presentation of the Mid-Kerry 2000 Senior Championship and League medals took place in the Fishery on Fri. 6^th April. The players of the year were also announced. There was a buffet and the music was provided by DJ, Darren O Riordan.

 

The death occurred on 27^th Jan. of Sean O Reilly, Farrentoreen, aged 69 years. He had played with Laune Rangers in the fifties and then immigrated to England where he played with Naomh Mhuire in London. A guard of honour consisting of past and present players from Laune Rangers attended at his funeral.

The death occurred on 20^th Feb. of Johnny Mangan, Ard na Leamhna, aged 90 years. When he attended at St. Patrick’s Teacher Training College, Drumcondra, Dublin,he was the only member of the senior football team who was not an inter-county player. He played with Laune Rangers in the thirties but had a greater attraction to rugby.

The death occurred on 20^th May of Pat Kennedy, formerly of Laharn (aged 50). He had played football with Laune Rangers in the seventies and he remained a staunch supporter for the remainder of his life. A guard of honour, comprising of club players and officials, past and present, attended at his funeral.

The death occurred on Fri. 25^th May of Mícheál O Mahony, formerly of Laune View. He had played with Laune Rangers in the late thirties and early forties. Even though he resided in Killarney, he was a staunch Rangers’ supporter and kept many scrap-books of their games. Some of those books were incomplete as, he explained, he lost heart when the team would get beaten. He was a member of the Laune Rangers’ Centenary Committee which organised the celebrations in 1988. A guard-of-honour of Laune Rangers accompanied his remains to the Cathedral in Killarney.

The death occurred at the end of June of Joe Foley, Keelnabrack, Glenbeigh, formerly of Caragh Lake. He had played with Laune Rangers in the 1960’s and then had transferred to Glenbeigh/Glencar.

The death occurred on 9^th Aug. of Eugie Joy, Knocknaboola. He had played football with Laune Rangers in the ‘40’s.

 

Laune Rangers’ Golf Society Captain was Mossy Joy. His captain’s prize took place in Killorglin Golf Club on Sat. 20^th October. The deferred 2000 Captain’s Prize(John Evans) was held in Adare Manor Golf Club on Easter Saturday.

 

Laune Rangers ran a Golf Classic in Killorglin Golf Club on Fri. 4^th May. 58 teams partook and the event was organised by Ger Counihan, Declan Falvey and John O Donnell. The proceeds went towards paying off the debt incurred for the re-development of the JP O Sullivan Park. The pitch had been totally resurfaced and was then a sand-based pitch. New entrances had been provided and the old front wall had been lowered and faced with stone. A car-park with 80 spaces had been laid down and the pitch had been enclosed anew. The cost was expected to top £130,000 and Ger Counihan was Chairman of the Finance Committee, which was charged with collecting that sum.

 

Ciara O Connor, Linda Courtney and Sarah Houlihan were on the Kerry Primary Schools’ team that played against Tipperary in Clonmel.

Niamh Pigott won the Mid-Kerry Primary Schools Skills Competition, which was held in Glenbeigh on Thurs. 24^th May. She was defeated by one point in the Co. Finals in Killarney.

 

Having transferred to St. Anne’s Club in Dublin at the end of 2000, Liam Hassett was injured seriously during a game on Sat. 28^th April. He ruptured a tendon just below his left knee-cap. Eamonn Horan reported on the injury in the Kerryman as follows: “With their opening game in the Munster SFC just over a week away, Kerry’s hopes of holding on to their All-Ireland title were dealt a massive body-blow when star forward, Liam Hassett, suffered a severe knee-injury, which virtually rules him out of this year’s championship. Hassett, who captained Kerry to win the All-Ireland title back in 1997, ruptured a tendon just below his left knee-cap when playing with his club, St. Anne’s, in the Dublin Co. Championship last Saturday night. The former Laune Rangers’ player was only just recovering from an injury to the same knee, which had kept him out of much of Kerry’s National League campaign across the winter.

Hassett suffered the latest injury early in the second quarter of a Co. Championship game against Naomh Fionnbarra. He received an accidental boot from an opponent as they jumped for the ball and, as a result, underwent surgery in St. James’ Hospital in Dublin at the weekend. The knee will be in a cast for nine weeks and recovery will be very slow thereafter. ‘It’s the same knee that had kept me out of the game for months,’ said Hassett, when I spoke to him on the phone on Monday. ‘I had been having treatment for tendonitis on my knee from Dr. Pat O Neill and it was clearing up when this happened. I jumped for a ball with an opponent and his heel caught me below the knee-cap. That’s what did the damage. It was purely accidental and happened after about fifteen or twenty minutes of the first half. They’re waiting for the swelling to go down before they put the cast on. They’ll probably put the cast on on Wednesday.’

I asked the Dublin-based school-teacher if he held out any hope of being back for any part of this year’s championship with Kerry. ‘It’s not looking great,’ he replied. ‘I’ll have to walk before I will be able to run. Of course, I’m terribly disappointed that this has happened. But it hasn’t really sunk in yet.’ Both Kerry team manager, Páidí Ó Sé, and Kerry Co. Board Chairman, Sean Walsh, have been in contact with the Kerry All-Star since Saturday night’s game. Mr. Walsh regards Hassett’s latest injury as a major blow to Kerry facing into the championship in just over a week’s time. ‘There’s only one way you can describe Liam Hassett’s injury,’ he said. ‘It’s a major blow to Kerry’s prospects of retaining their Munster and All-Ireland crowns. Of course, it’s very disappointing for Liam himself. He had been working very hard to get back from the knee injury, which had been troubling him all along. He was just unlucky to have been caught by an opponent’s heel in the game at the weekend. He underwent major surgery on Sunday night to repair the tendon damage. We’re all very disappointed overall at the news. Having spoken to him on Monday morning, it looks like the leg won’t be out of the cast for about six weeks. Then he will be starting a rehabilitation programme immediately.’ The Co. Board Chairman said that from a Kerry point of view Hassett’s withdrawal was a massive loss to the Kerry team. ‘Liam was one of our most influential players last year in our push for All-Ireland honours. He will be hard to replace.”

Better news appeared in the Kingdom newspaper on Tues. 16^th October by Murt Murphy: “Liam Hassett is to return to Kerry to help awaken Laune Rangers from their footballing slumber. The star Kerry centre-forward has confirmed that he is quitting Dublin club, St. Anne’s, and will help Laune Rangers in their attempt to bounce straight back into the top flight of the Co. League, following their shock relegation this season.

Hassett has secured a teaching post at St. Michael’s College in Listowel and the news has come as a major boost to his hometown club whose performances have slumped dramatically following the decision of Hassett and his brother, Mike, to play their club-football outside of Kerry. The news of Hassett’s return will, also, come as a major fillip to Kerry team boss, Páidí Ó Sé, who is just over a week into his new two-year term at the helm of Kerry football. Hassett has already started his teaching job in Listowel, where his principal is former Kerry footballer and county selector, Moyvane’s Johnny Mulvihill.

Hassett, who lifted the Sam Maguire Cup after Kerry’s 1997 All-Ireland victory over Mayo and picked up an All-Star award for his sterling performances last year, missed out on Kerry’s championship campaign this season because of a knee ligament injury. His absence was attributed by many – including Kerry boss Ó Sé – as being a factor in Kerry’s dramatic demise.

But the fact that Hassett is now working in Kerry will mean that he will be available to Ó Sé for training on a regular basis and the travel hassle to and from Dublin will not be a factor. ‘I will be transferring back to Laune Rangers after Christmas but, at the moment, I intend to keep travelling to Dublin every Saturday morning as I have commitments with the juveniles there that I intend to honour,’ said Hassett, who hopes to have recovered sufficiently from injury to enable him to return to action very early in the New Year.

‘Obviously, it will be great to be down here training with the lads because you really know what stage you are at when you are training alongside the other Kerry players,’ he said. ‘There is, of course, the added bonus of a lot less travelling, which helps,’ he added.

Hassett is currently concentrating on making a full recovery from the injury, which destroyed his season and he hopes to bounce back in style. ‘At the moment, I am doing some training at the IT in Tralee – I am just trying to build back the quad muscle because I lost a lot of it because of the injury,’ he stated. ‘I am hoping to do some jogging over the next few weeks, so things are going well overall,’ he added.

He was warned by his specialist not to attempt a comeback before November. ‘I suppose I will go back indoor-training with Kerry before Christmas but I won’t kick any ball until January when I will be ready for full-time training,’ he confirmed.”

 

At the Co. Board meeting on 10^th Sept. Peter Lyons had reinstated as a referee, in response to a letter from the referee seeking reinstatement.

 

Peter Lyons refereed the following game, amongst others, for the Kerry Voc. Schools’ Committee:

Junior Football Final on Thurs. 6^th Dec. at Austin Stack Park: Rathmore 5-8; Causeway 0-2.

 

Peter Lyons refereed the following games, amongst others, for the Kerry Colleges’ Committee:

Dunloe Shield Final on Fri. 30^th Nov. at Glenflesk: Kenmare CC 0-12; St. Patrick’s, Castleisland 2-5.

Dunloe Cup Final on Fri. 7^th Dec. at Fitzgerald Stadium: St. Brendan’s 3-10; Coláiste na Sceilge 1-8.

 

Peter Lyons refereed the following game, amongst others, for the Mid-Kerry Board:

SFC Semi-final on Sun. 21^st Oct. at Beaufort: Milltown/Castlemaine 2-13; Cromane 0-8.

 

Peter Lyons refereed the following game for the West-Kerry Board:

SFC Final on Sun. 9^th Dec. at Dingle: An Ghaeltacht 0-12; Lispole 0-12.

 

Peter Lyons refereed the following game, amongst others, for the Kerry Co. Board:

Co. SFL Div. 1 on Mon. 16^th April at Connolly Park: Austin Stacks 2-11; Desmonds 2-7.

 

Peter Lyons refereed the following game, amongst others, for the Munster Council:

U-21 FC on Sat. 24^th Feb. at Limerick: Tipperary defeated Clare.

 

Peter Lyons refereed the following game, amongst others, in the NFL:

Sun. 25^th Feb. at Markievicz Park, Sligo: Sligo drew with Mayo.

 

Co. U-14 Div. 3 Final on Mon. 14^th May at Beaufort: Keel 1-16; Glenflesk 1-8.

Ref: Colm Conway (Laune Rangers).

 

Co. Senior Football Championship Final: An Ghaeltacht 1-13; Austin Stacks 0-10.

Co. Senior Football League Div. 1 Final: Milltown/Castlemaine 2-11; Austin Stacks 0-16.

Co. Club Championship Final: An Ghaeltacht 0-11; Rathmore 1-6.

Co. Intermediate Football Championship Final: St. Mary’s 1-17; Ballymac 1-9.

Co. Junior Football Championship Final: St. Michael’s/Foilmore 2-10; Dromid 1-9.

Co. Novice Football Championship Final: Renard 0-15; Tuosist 0-11.

Co. Minor Football Championship Final: South-Kerry 2-7; Rathmore/Glenflesk 1-8.

Co. U-16 Football Championship Final (replay) Ballyduff 2-13; Beaufort 2-12

Co. U-14 Football Champions: Austin Stacks 3-7; Beaufort 0-13.

 

Mid-Kerry Senior Football Champions – Milltown/Castlemaine 0-9; Laune Rangers 0-8.

Mid-Kerry U-21 Football Champions – Milltown/Castlemaine 2-9; Beaufort 1-10.

Mid-Kerry Minor Football Final (replay): Glenbeigh/Glencar 2-8; Beaufort 1-9.

Mid-Kerry U-12 Football Champions – Milltown/Castlemaine.

Mid-Kerry U-16 Football Champions: Beaufort defeated Glenbeigh/Glencar

 

Laune Rangers came second in four items at the Mid-Kerry Scór na nÓg finals in Keel on Fri. 16^th Nov: Figure Dancing (Caitriona O Connor, Siobhán Joy, Sarah Jane Joy and Lynn Cahillane), Instrumental Music (Edward Looney, Laura Cahillane and Sinéad Cahillane), Tráth na gCeist (Gearoid Clifford, Liam Clifford and Lynn Cahillane), Set Dancing (Caroline O Riordan, Sarah Jane Joy, Siobhán Joy, Tracy Ahern, Celine O Flaherty, Róisín O Sullivan, Orla McSweeney, Karen Joy). Brian Coffey supplied the music for the dancers.

 

Laune Rangers had a Gala Race-night in the Fishery on 27^th Dec. Everyone there had a great night of entertainment and the winners were as follows:

1^st Race (sponsored by O Regans Auctioneers) – Mike Murphy, Frozen Foods.

2^nd Race (sponsored by Klinge Pharma) – Diamond Express.

3^rd Race (sponsored by Fujisawa Ireland Ltd. – The Croppy Boy.

4^th Race (sponsored by The Fishery Bar and Restaurant) – Mattie’s Lads.

5^th Race (sponsored by Guinness) – Adare Magic.

6^th Race (sponsored by FEXCO) – The Fishery.

7^th Race (sponsored by Westwood Homes) – Bookie Basher.

8^th Race (sponsored by Quirke Sand & Gravel) – The Marina Flyer.

9^th Race (sponsored by Killorglin Credit Union) – Ranger Delights.

 

In the 18^th September edition of the Kingdom newspaper, David Leen took a look at the Laune Rangers’ Club, recalled some of the glory days of the past and wondered where it all went wrong, following their shock relegation to Div. 2 of the Co. League. “The skies a deeper shade of blue over Killorglin this week and it’s not because of the incessant bad weather. A heart-breaking defeat at the hands of Kerins O Rahillys in the second last round of the Co. Football League consigned Laune Rangers to relegation from Div. 1 after a 22-year run in football’s top tier.

The Rangers began the game knowing that only victories in their last two encounters might have saved them from the dreaded drop. Laune Rangers had gone a deal too far by leaving themselves threadbare in the line of players coming through from underage teams – ironic considering that was how they built their great team of the ‘90’s, by nurturing that minor team with the likes of Billy O Shea and others. In general, people will be very good about Rangers’ demise. ‘Try again and you’ll be back next year,’ will be among the words conveyed to all involved with the famed Killorglin club.

In reality, they had become hardened to the threat of relegation in the last two years. Now, don’t get me wrong – Rangers weren’t the perennial strugglers when they were in the top flight. They have been comfortable for years, but it’s only in the last two years or so that the threat of relegation became a distinct possibility.

The position the club finds itself in now is a far-cry from the hallowed turf of Croke Park, where they played so well in 1996 to capture the biggest club prize in the country – the All-Ireland club trophy. But the funny thing about golden eras is that they can only be assessed as such in retrospect, when distance has lent its enchantment. I’m sure that there are many Laune Rangers’ supporters that can remember the day when the likes of Billy O Shea and Billy O Sullivan played with that minor team that ended up winning the minor county championship for the second year-in-a-row in 1989. Coincidentally, it was the same year that the seniors brought home the Bishop Moynihan trophy to the banks of the Laune for the first time since 1911. It was the beginning of a ten-year reign that would see the Blues capture three more county titles and that famed All-Ireland club trophy.

After the breakthrough in ’89, the club would go another four years without capturing a Kerry county title, but many knew that it was only a matter of time before they tasted success again. The club made its ground on the Glenbeigh road, JP O Sullivan Park, a virtual fortress, beating teams at will and capturing many county football titles as well as numerous Mid-Kerry Championships.

So what happened to a club that seemingly has everything in place to make sure that the tradition was carried on from generation to generation? According to Laune Rangers’ Chairman, John Clifford, it’s very disappointing for everybody involved in the club, players as well as members, that Rangers have been relegated. ‘A number of factors, both directly and indirectly, have contributed to our demise,’ he suggested. A lot of players that were there when we were winning the county championships and, indeed, the All-Ireland Club final, continued playing but, in the end, they decided to slacken off and take it easy and leave the football to the younger lads coming through,’ he said. ‘Unfortunately, that didn’t happen. Playing in Div. 1 of the Co. League and playing championship games is very hard when you have so many young players, but I have no doubt that we will return,’ predicted Clifford.

And return they will, with the likes of Barry O Sullivan and Ross Sheehan, they have players that are well capable of taking over the reins from former stalwarts Joe Shannon and Liam Hassett. That’s another aspect that any club would find hard to deal with. Losing two inter-county players was a hard blow for the Rangers. Liam and Mike Hassett transferred to Dublin clubs because of work commitments and that was a KO body-blow for the club. Liam had captained Kerry to their All-Ireland win in ’97 – the first in 11 years, and to lose players of that stature was exceptionally tough luck.

It’s always easy to remember the bad times, but that day in ’96, St. Patrick’s Day to be specific, will rank was the greatest in the club’s history. When they beat Éire Óg from Carlow in the final of the All-Ireland Club Championship, the general consensus was that Laune Rangers had really arrived on the football map. But, strangely enough, it would be their last title in senior domestic football. They continued to challenge for the county league but, with the emergence of East-Kerry, who went on to capture three SFC titles in-a-row, the Killorglin side began to fall from grace a little.

But while the club may not have been performing on the pitch that well, Chairman John Clifford has been overseeing the redevelopment of the pitch that has seen them resurface the original playing field that has turned out to be one of the best in the county. There are further developments planned in the coming year and, hopefully, Laune Rangers will return to the pinnacle of Kerry football once again. It’s exactly where they belong.”

 

Mike Frank Russell was on the Irish team that played Australia in the Compromise Rules Series in October in Australia. The other Kerry players on the tour were Seamus Moynihan, Darragh Ó Sé and John Crowley, while John O Keeffe was the assistant manager to Brian McEniff. While he was down under, Mike Frank kept a diary of the highs and lows of the trip, starting in Melbourne, as follows:

“Mon. 8^th October: Arrived here late last night and it took us over a day to get here, so we all lay in until 11.00 am after the long flight. Breakfast at 12. Fabulous hotel overlooking the lake where the Grand Prix took place. Weather is nice but cool (20 degrees C). Training in Oval Junction (cricket ground). Ten minute walk. Lovely playing surface. Did a light session and lots of stretching after the flight. There is an excellent medical back-up, with our own two doctors, Tom Foley and Felix McKnight, our physio, Ronan Carolan (former Cavan footballer), masseur, Declan, from Louth, plus back-up professional masseur, Gary, which was supplied to us by the AFL, which meant that we could get a rub at anytime.

We used the pool in the hotel after training. The atmosphere in the hotel is good. Some supporters around, also some of the players’ parents have made the trip. The squad goes for a walk down town. Reminds me of New York a bit. Dinner at 7pm and the food was excellent.

After the meal, Sean McCague addressed us and wished us well and said that as we were representing our country, we were not to forget it and do Ireland proud. I’m sharing with Sean Óg de Paor from Galway for the first week, a fella that I became very close friends with on the trip. I will definitely be meeting up with him again as he’s great craic and a person that has been here before, so he knows what its all about. Curfew at 11pm.

Tues. 9^th October: Breakfast at 10. A nice lie-in considering that we are here to train – but the excitement is good – we are all looking forward to seeing what this is all about. Masseur gave us a rub, which helps, because we are all pretty tired after the long journey.

11.20am – bus departs for training at MCG, Melbourne Cricket Ground. A huge stadium that can hold 85,000 – 90,000 people. Training consisted of drills with assistant manager, Paddy Clarke (some of his drills went down a treat with the lads, while others found them tough), temperature very humid, 23 degrees C, takes a while to get used to.

Back to hotel for two-hour rest. Then back to MCG at 5.30 for match against Australian Academy, i.e. the up and coming stars of the AFL. We were disappointed with the challenge as we wiped them off the field. Brian McEniff was worried that it might have been a set-up for the ‘real’ game in a few days. Dinner at 8 in the hotel.

Team heads down to the famous casino in Melbourne, which is open 24 hours. We decide to just play a $5 or $10 table of blackjack, because it was some of the lads’ first time. Not much luck, although Padraig Joyce, by the end of the week, was up a couple of hundred dollars. Seems his rich vein of form was continuing even off the field since his All-Ireland win – got a bit of a going over from some of the lads because of this.

Wed. 10^th October: Breakfast at 10am. Free-time until 3.30pm. Myself, Brendan Devenney, Cormac McAnnalen and Sean Og head to the city for shopping. We then head to the beach for an hour. It was warm for us, about 20 degrees, but not for Australians.

The Aussies must have thought we were on drugs with our tops off. I’d say we looked  like four bottles of milk with the white chests on us.

4pm training at Oval Junction. Light drills and kicking practice.

At 6pm we must meet the governor at the embassy in the government buildings. We wear our suits for this. The Australian team was there. Friendly enough. We got chatting to a few of them. We met Jim Stynes, who is 6’ 7’’ tall. He is a legend in Oz and has played here for years after moving out from Dublin.

8.30pm – Back to the hotel for dinner, a bit of craic afterwards, but, with the game in a few days, we are a little cautious about what we do with ourselves after dinner – suppose it’s better that we take another early night.

Thurs. 11^th October: Swim. Breakfast. Rubs. Assemble for bus to MCG for training at 1pm. It pours rain. It was a shock for us, normally this type of weather is only at home. Training is light, just kicking practice. Brian and Paddy go through some tactics. Paddy Clarke had a lot of homework done on the Australians. He was a very good tactician – both he and Brian had done an amount of work before we came out here.

2.30pm – snacks upstairs in the premier section of MCG. This view of pitch is awesome. Back to the hotel for 3.30pm.

Free-time until 7.30. A lot of our spare time was spent getting a rub or chatting to the lads down in the lobby. Every day, Paddy Clarke would give us a sheet of our plan for the day, so everything was planned for us and the time went fast enough – there was just no laying about getting bored.

I meet a friend of mine from Killorglin, Garrath Sheehan, who is working in Australia for a year. I chat with him and give him a ticket for the game – it’s good to meet people from home out here, it makes you that little bit more relaxed.

Dinner at 7. Afterwards there’s a team meeting. There is a panel of 27 players but only 24 are allowed tog out.  Brian informs the team that Brendan Jer O Sullivan from Cork, Coman Goggins from Dublin and Francie Grehan from Roscommon aren’t togging out.

It was very tough on them and the team felt for them in a big way. They had trained all along and they were disappointed to miss out. Brian gets us really psyched up with a speech that came straight from the heart. I knew we headed to bed that night in the right frame of mind. All the players that were on the team last year know what the Australians would be like, so we had to be totally prepared.

Fri. 12^th October: Breakfast at 10. Fellas are nervous, you can see it in their eyes. Some lads had sleepless nights. I remember Niall Buckley (Nuxter) been up at 6 o’clock that morning.

Rubs at 11am. Rest until two. Myself and Sean Og watch a video in the room. 2pm Dinner. Rest again until 4.45. It was a very long day. We were all on the same floor, so were all good mates and bonding well.

4.45 meet in state room of the hotel. Brian speaks of playing for our country, our province, our county, our club, our parish, our family, our friends back home.  He got very emotional. We all did. He said that he had waited a year for this moment and not to let it pass us by. Sandwiches at 5 o’clock, depart for MCG at 5.30pm, bus-ride takes about three-quarters of an hour. Walk onto the pitch. Raining. Nerves are setting in now. Sean McCague wishes us well. We all shake hands with one another and wish each other well. Brian has said it all, but no matter what he said, you will always have some nerves. We warm up in dressing room and going out the tunnel, there is an intimidating atmosphere there with all the Australian crowd – about 48,345, not near full but still a lot of noise.

The rain had a lot to do with the poor attendance – MCG must have looked empty to the Australians, they usually have a full house for their games. The Australian team ran down in front of us and stretched in front of us to try and intimidate us. We are introduced to the crowd individually. The national anthem was next. It was probably one of the proudest moments of my life and the lads as well. I remember the drizzling rain hitting on our faces, and our arms around each other, it was very emotional.

We were all in this together. I thought of the people back home in Ireland. All the banter and the craic stopped then. When we sang the national anthem, we were proud to be Irish at that moment.

In the game, we started poorly – probably down to nerves. Made a lot of mistakes early on. 14-10 to Ireland after the first quarter. I played the second quarter. It was Ireland’s worst quarter probably in the whole series. I got one mark and laid off two balls. In that quarter, we saw little ball in the forwards, as Australia was dominating everywhere.

Brian McEniff gave us a right bollicking at halftime to put it bluntly. He said we hadn’t played and we knew that – we weren’t expressing ourselves out there. Playing in that quarter came against me, I think, for the remainder of the test, as I was to see no more action.

After halftime, Anthony Tohill got the ball rolling with a goal. Then that followed up with a goal by Kieran McGeeney. In fairness, Ireland did play poorly but still won.

The MCG was a tight field and I don’t think it suited our lads. Adelaide was going to be a much bigger field. Great atmosphere afterwards. Graham Canty, Kieran McGeeney, Darren Fay, Anthony Tohill and, especially, Brendan Devenney were the stars of the night for Ireland. Known as the ‘Funkmaster’, Devenney was one of the characters of the squad.

He spends a lot of his spare time DJing in Kilkenny, so he was spinning mad that night. Irish supporters everywhere. Met Eugene and John O Connell from Tarbert. Late night for the first time since we got here – chance to chill out and enjoy Australian life.

Sat. 13^th October: Wake at 10. Squad goes racing at Caulfield racecourse. Good atmosphere, meet some of the Aussie team. The ‘Dipper’ gives us some tips for a bet. No luck though. We had a function at the Celtic Cross Irish Club that night. Fierce crowd of Irish people.

Lads are more relaxed now that the first test is won. A lot of pressure off the shoulders. Head to PJ O Brien’s again. Lads getting to like it – it could turn out to be a regular haunt for a lot of the lads.

Sun. 14^th October: Lie in. Mass at 1.30. Irish priest, which was weird.

Free day. Myself and some of the lads visit Rialto Tower in the city. There is a great view of the city. Ciarán McManus got kind of dizzy being up so high. I think the alcohol the night before had something to do with it, compliments of PJ O Brien.

4 o’clock – 5km run in Albert Park, which is across the road from the hotel. Some of the lads weren’t in the best of shape after the two previous nights. But this was our wake-up call to say that it’s only halftime and there was another game left.

At 5.30pm, I meet Ian Stevensom from Cork, a fella I used to work with and he brings myself and Sean Og on a sightseeing mission around Melbourne. He brings us to Colonial Stadium. Reminds me a lot of New York.

Mon. 15^th October: Check out of hotel at 11 o’clock. First part of trip over. Halftime. Everyone meets in the lobby and is in good form and looks forward to Adelaide. Bus to airport at 1.30pm. But then the bad news hits the camp. Assistant manager, Paddy Clarke, gets a two and a half year ban from the series, which is five test matches. It rules him out of any involvement with the team until 2004. Paddy is a great guy, a great tactician, a great man for analysing opposition. He watches so many videos that he gets confused with them all. We all felt sorry for him because he has put so much effort into it. I think that he was unlucky because we didn’t know that when the hooter sounds they still can take their sideline kick and that was what Paddy was protesting about – they nearly grabbed a crucial score from that kick. The newspapers over here ran a big story on it, The Herald, Sun and The Age. And also the sports channel Fox Sports on TV. Brian McEniff says that we have to prepare ourselves for an Aussie backlash.

The flight to Adelaide wasn’t so bad – it just took about an hour. The camaraderie within the camp now is very good and fellas are getting to know lads better. One player, in particular, had a bet with the lads, on how many women he was going to pull! It went into double figures, I think, though nobody was willing to confirm that.

Adelaide is a lot smaller city than Melbourne. A lot quieter. Staying at a fabulous hotel, Hyatt Regency, unreal view of the city. We train at 7 that evening at the GAA grounds in Adelaide. It was an historic evening for the GAA patriots there – as the President Sean McCague officially launched the opening of their new lights on the pitch.

More bad news as Ciarán Whelan pulls a hamstring badly in training – a pure accident. Two blows in one day. Bed early that night – at 11.

Tues. 16^th October: Training at 11, in a local park up the road because the Aussies have Adelaide Football Park booked first. Very humid – 22 degrees C. Free time from 1-30pm – 6.30. Myself, Dermot Earley, Sean Og and the ‘Funkmaster’ and a mate of mine from Killorglin, Garrath Sheehan, head to the zoo. Finally, we get to see some kangaroos and some crocs.

Meet at 6.30. Bus to Adelaide Grounds for training. Fabulous surface, nicer than the MCG. Training drills and then a half an hour game. No holding back. I felt I was moving well and got some scores. The field was a few yards wider than the MCG also. Graham Geraghty doesn’t train because of a throat infection – casualties are beginning to mount up.

9pm – we all have a meal in a steakhouse. 11pm curfew, but some of the lads are still thinking about PJ O Brien’s and the craic back in Melbourne.

Wed. 17^th October: Bad day – raining. Breakfast at 10. Get some laundry done before a pool session. We have an official team-photograph at 3.30 in our suits outside the hotel. The rain holds off just in time for the photo. Ray McManus of Sportsfile makes sure we are all looking well and the photo looks well.

4.15 – Paraic Duffy of the GAA gives us our tickets for the match.

5.15 – the team walks to Government Buildings in our suits for a function. The Aussie lads are also there. Friendly fellas and we all chat. They find the idea that we don’t get paid in Ireland crazy. They just can’t believe it. Chairman of AFL, Wayne Jackson, and Sean McCague announce another four-year deal between the countries.

Training at 8 at football park. 20 minutes match and more kicking practice. We have a meal in hotel after training (self-service). Curfew at 12. Watch video with Kieran McGeeney – my roommate in Adelaide.

Thurs. 18^th October: Bus departs for Adelaide Park at 12.15 for 1pm session. We just have a very light kick and go through some tactics. It is also the home ground of Adelaide Crows Aussie Rules club. Underneath the stand, there is a top-class gym. The facilities are unreal. Free till 6.30pm. Some of the lads go shopping. We all meet at 6.30pm to get all the jersey-signing done and out of the way. Some supporters visit the hotel to get their jerseys signed.

Dinner at 7.00 in the Grevillian Room down-stairs before meeting. Brian McEniff calls me aside and tells me the bad news that I wouldn’t be togging out tomorrow. I was the unlucky one to lose out this time – now I know how the other lads felt last week. He explained that he admired me as a footballer and regarded my skill and football ability highly only that tomorrow night he was going for a more physical player. He expected an Aussie backlash and went for a more physical player. At first, I felt bitter disappointment and anger. But then I gathered my thoughts quickly and said I have represented Ireland in the first game and I hadn’t done a bad thing. I said I could react in two ways – go into a sulk or snap out of it, accept it and be helpful to the rest of the players and encourage them and next year go out and prove myself. I actually thought of Pat Spillane at that time. I remember reading his book and he saying that, when he was in Australia under Kevin Heffernan, the same thing happened him, so it was something.

Team meeting at 8pm. We go through tactics, the Australian kick-out and how they will try to intimidate us. Brian talks and Anthony (Tohill), the captain, says a few words – he has done it all before, so the lads listen to what he has to say. You just know when you finish talks like this if players are in the right frame of mind – that night everything felt right. We now had time to kill, so we go for a walk.

Fri. 19^th October: Breakfast a little early this morning as it’s game day. Nice day but windy. Some of the lads that had been carrying knocks get a rub. Dinner at 2 – but we have a fair chunk of the day to kill so we go for walks – I’ve never done so much walking in all my life!

The nerves are setting in, you can see it in the players, even though I wasn’t playing, I was nervous – tried to encourage the lads, wishing them well. There is really no need to get some lads going for the game – they are the ones to lead from the front. Brian McEniff gave myself and the three injured players, Dermot McCabe, Niall Buckley and Ciarán Whelan, jobs to do that night. My job was to report to our physio, Ronan Carolan, who was communicating with Brian from the stand by ear-piece – watching out for what subs the Australians were bringing on.

5.45– Meet in the Grevillian Room for sandwiches before the team meeting. Brian tells the lads that they expect some rough treatment from the Australians, as they got a fair going-over in the papers after the first test. There will definitely be a physical aspect and he also mentioned that the players can expect a lot of intimidation.

We get the bus to the pitch, where a crowd of about 31,500 awaits us. The pre-match speech was once again very emotional – playing for the pride of the country.

During the match, early goals from Tohill and Geraghty settled us down a lot. Sean Marty Lockhart, Darren Fay, Geraghty and Tadhg Kennelly played superbly. It was great to have Tadhg in our squad as he knew a lot of the players and was able to advise our guys. He’s doing very well for himself out here and, hopefully, some day he’ll return to Ireland, as he would be a huge addition to the Kerry team.

After we won the game, there were superb scenes – even though I wasn’t part of the panel of players that togged out, I felt involved with the lads – that was the great thing about it, a real bond had developed among the players during the last two weeks. Getting the cup for our country was a weird experience – it’s usually for your club or county. We do a lap of honour and it’s only after that we discover that there’s a lot of Irish around.

Post-match meal upstairs. Brian McEniff is relieved its all over. He said to me that he was sorry about not being picked but I took it very well – but if the truth was known, I was still very disappointed, especially when they won. We all hit PJ O Brien’s pub in Adelaide this time. Excellent night, Irish songs, great occasion and proud to be Irish.

Saturday 20^th October: Not many at breakfast this morning. PJ O Brien’s must be to blame for that. Bus to airport at 12.30, but it was more like 1.30 before we rounded up everybody, as nearly everybody had a heavy head. By now, everyone can enjoy themselves. We have won the series and everybody involved with the team feels relieved.

Our flight is at 3.25, but Johnny (Crowley) and Anthony (Tohill) head back to Ireland – they had planned to do that even before we came out here. Arrive in Sydney, fabulous city. We all head to Scruffy Murphy’s Irish pub that night to watch Ireland rugby game, with the cup in tow. It’s another night to remember.

Sunday 21^st October: The weather is fabulous, better than Melbourne or Adelaide. The view from our hotel is awesome. We can see Sydney Harbour and the Opera House. I’m rooming with Cormac McAnnalen this time. The two of us head down early to get some snaps. Our second time having Mass over here and once again another Irish priest, Fr. Alan Millard from Dublin.

We then get a bus to Auburn for GAA match with New South Wales. About 3,500 Irish supporters turn up to watch the match. This game is actually the only GAA match we have had over here. The best of the Irish lads that play GAA have put a team together to give us a match. Unbelievably, I met up with one of my best mates from school, John A O Sullivan, who plays with the Beaufort senior team here. We spend a lot of time signing autographs. The pre-match menu was a quick job – hot dogs – which was the first time since we came over here that we didn’t have to sit down to a big meal. We win the game easily and, on a high note, Brian McEniff makes me captain for the day. I was delighted, but I couldn’t help feeling that it was for not picking me for the second test game – but it was a nice gesture and I appreciated it. Brian actually came on with about five minutes to go at corner forward beside me and scored a point.

We get back to hotel at 7.30pm, after the post-match Bar-B-Que, myself and some of the lads decide to go for dinner at 9 down on the rocks. Great spot, way out near the harbour. These are some of the things that I will remember from the trip.

Mon. 22^nd October: The following day is fabulous – about 26 degrees C. Nine or ten of us get a taxi to Kuogi Bay for a swim. We all walk to Bondi Beach, over an hour’s walk. Tadhg Kennelly used to live around here and the beaches are packed. The Australian Summer has just arrived and here we are getting ready to go home to miserable weather.

One thing that struck me was the number of Aussies out walking, jogging and working out. I can now understand why all the top sports people come to Australia for their pre-season training. It’s a very sport orientated country. We all arrive at Bondi and think we all looked out of place. In the middle of Bondi Beach you could see nine or ten Paddy’s sticking out like a sore thumb. We decided it was time to get a colour. We spent the day at the beach and got a bus back to the city at 4pm. I meet my friend John A. O Sullivan and go to his house in Bondi Junction. Head back to the rocks to meet the lads in Scruffy Murphy’s – another place that we have made our local.

Tues. 23^rd October: The numbers at breakfast have been getting smaller and smaller the last few days and today you could have counted the number on one hand. Most of us get a bus to Manly Beach for surfing. The ‘Funkmaster’ is probably the best. He claims he does a lot of surfing in Donegal, whenever he gets a break from the DJing! Ciarán McManus gets burnt badly on one side and some of the lads think it’s funny and start calling him 50/50! Later on in the evening, we get a bus to the revolving restaurant – the APM Tower, which is absolutely amazing. While we are eating, the restaurant is moving under us. We are up about forty stories and it was definitely one of the most amazing places that I have ever been in. Sean Og refuses to go up, seemingly he’s afraid of heights and all this World Trade Centre fiasco has not helped. He is full of piseogs, that Sean Og fella. Head to Durty Nelly’s Irish pub that night. The holiday is coming to a close, so we have a good night. A fabulous experience. A great honour. And memories that I will never forget.

Wed. 24^th October: Today is the day when it all comes to an end. After two weeks, we are heading back home. It’s disappointing and it doesn’t help that we have to face that 24-hour flight again. But I feel that I have learnt a lot on this trip. The highs and lows that I have experienced will stand to me in the future and, in the process, I got a taste of what it would be like to play professional. Now that it is over, I would really like to get another chance to play for my country again and maybe next time, when the Australians come over here, I might feature that bit more.”

 

The Kerry U-21 team, coached by John Evans, lost to Cork by 1-11 to 1-10 on Sat. 31^st March in Páirc Uí Chaoimh in the semi-final of the Munster Championship.

Kerry: Kieran Cremins (Dr. Crokes), Daithí Donegan (Ballyduff), James Cahillane (Dr. Crokes), Ronan O Connor (Ballyduff), Stephen O Sullivan (Skellig Rangers), Aidan O Mahony (Rathmore), Marc Ó Sé (An Ghaeltacht), Seamus Scanlon (Currow), Kenneth O Connor (Glenbeigh/Glencar), Ronan O Connor (Kilcummin) 0-1, Eoin Brosnan (Dr. Crokes) 0-1, Sean O Sullivan (Cromane) 1-1, Declan Quill (Kerins O Rahillys) 0-5, 1 free, Ronan O Connor (St. Michael’s/Foilmore), Kevin Lynch (Desmonds) 0-1. Subs: Flor O Sullivan (Tuosist) for S. Scanlon (inj.), Seamus Scanlon for F. O Sullivan, Paul Galvin (Ballymacelligott) 0-1 for K. O Connor, John O Connor (Kerins O Rahillys) for R. O Connor (St. Michaels/Foilmore), Garret Walsh (Kerins O Rahillys) for D. Donegan, Hugh Murphy (Kenmare), Jason Kelly (Ballydesmond), Oliver Favier (Glenflesk), Dara Long (Austin Stacks), Denis Kiely (Tarbert).

 

Having defeated Cork by 0-19 to 1-13 in the Munster Final, the Kerry Minor Football team, managed by Charlie Nelligan, lost the All-Ireland semi-final to Dublin in Croke Park on Sun. 1^st Sept. on the score of 2-13 to 2-9.

Kerry: Bryan Sheehan (St. Mary’s), Shane O Neill (Rathmore), Ronán Ó Flatharta (Gaeltacht), Brian Sugrue (Kerins O Rahillys), Fergal Griffin (Glenbeigh/Glencar), Michael Slattery (Dingle), Wayne O Sullivan (Skellig Rangers), Donncha Walsh (Cromane), Paddy Kelly (Ballylongford), Ronan McAuliffe (Gneeveguilla) 0-2, Mark O Connor (Churchill), Sean Courtney (Skellig Rangers) 1-0, Colm Cooper (Dr. Crokes) 0-2, Declan O Sullivan (Dromid), Conal Ó Cruadhlaíoch (Gaeltacht) 1-5, 4 frees. Subs: Kieran Donaghy (Austin Stacks) for P. Kelly, Daniel Bohan (do.) for B. Sugrue), Donal Kelliher  (Milltown/Castlemaine) for M. O Connor, Ger O Shea (St. Michael’s/Foilmore) for C. Ó Cruadhlaíoch (inj.), Seamus Devane (Spa), Declan O Sullivan (Lispole), Michael Conway (Finuge), Damien McCarthy (Glenflesk), Brendan O Mahony (John Mitchels).

 

For the first time in its 104 years history, the Killorglin Cycling Club was honoured with the prestigious Club of the Year award from the Irish Cycling Federation. The award reflected a fine season for the club, which had gone from strength to strength, particularly in the previous five years, as an increasing number of recruits had taken up the sport under the auspices of the club. The award recognised the huge amount of success that the club had achieved during the year. The club had won 60% of the medals available at the  All-Ireland underage Championships in Monaghan in July. The club hosted the Rás Mumhan cycle race over the Easter weekend for the Donal McKenna memorial trophy. Killorglin hosted a stage of the FBD Milk Rás in May and the Westwood Homes International Tour, which attracted cyclists from Denmark, Belgium, Isle of Man and the UK. The club’s members continued to fly the Irish flag during the year, including Barry Woods, Eoin and Mícheál Concannon, Aidan O Shea, Tommy Moriarty and Cian Lanigan.

 

The AGM of Laune Rangers club was held in Scoil Mhuire on 15^th Dec. 2001. The Secretary, Michael Foley, gave his report as follows: “As another year draws to a close, we will look back on 2001 with disappointment on not achieving any trophies at senior level. That is due to the high standards we have set ourselves in the past. We were on the wrong side of narrow results, which cost us dearly at the end of the year. On the development side, the J.P. O Sullivan Park is again the focal point for Gaelic Games.

Administration

This year we held 14 club meetings. These were well attended and very constructive. Again I would ask more members to attend and express their views, as this is the only official forum from which action can be taken.

Mass

The year began with Mass on the 12^th March for deceased club members. This we should continue on an annual basis with as many members as possible attending. Sympathy is extended to family and friends of all deceased members who died during the year.

Buffet

A buffet was held in the Fishery for the presentation of medals and ‘Player-of-the-Year’ awards in various grades. In future, I would like to see more players showing their appreciation by their attendance.

Membership

The club membership has reached a new high of 430 full members. It is essential that all players and team mentors are paid up members for insurance purposes. Thanks to our registrars.

Insurance

I would encourage all players to take out the GAA Players Voluntary Injury Insurance Scheme at a cost of £10 (€12.70) for minors and £20 (€25.39) for seniors to cover additional medical and out-of-work expenses. It is vital to report all injuries immediately, as it can result in large expenses to both players and club. Thanks to Bart Moriarty, our insurance officer, for a job well done. Thanks to Keith Bradburn and Pat O Shea for their attention to injuries.

Sponsorship

Killorglin Credit Union is again our main sponsors for senior and minor football, hurling and ladies’ football. They have also given us generous sponsorship for our scoreboard, from which we hope to see many enjoyable results. Without their financial assistance, we would find it very difficult to continue. The contract is up for renewal next year and we hope to continue our association for another term. A special thank you to Agnes Foley, James Murphy and Michael Murphy.

Thanks to Sean Murphy and his staff at Starlite Cleaners for his outstanding generosity of laundry services to the club. To our many other sponsors, who helped us during the year, our grateful appreciation. I would ask all members to support our sponsors.

Finance

With finance becoming more and more of a problem, extra teams, travel etc., it is essential to raise funds throughout the year. There is great credit due to Ger Counihan, Chairman of the Finance Committee, and his small band of hard-working members, who continue to amaze me. Ger has been involved in this capacity for a number of years and always comes up trumps when the chips are down. This year, they organised a very successful Golf Classic with the able assistance of Gerard Foley and company. A special word of thanks to Killorglin Golf Club who had everything in top-class condition, which ensured the smooth running of the event on the day. Thanks to all our sponsors who made this a financial success. The annual Race-Night is all set for Thurs. 27^th December with a full card. Your support will be greatly appreciated. The Lotto is again one of our main sources of income. With the Jackpot at a minimum of £1,000 (€1,269.74), we need to continue to increase our sales. Thanks to all that assist with the Sunday night draw, to our sellers and to the CYMS for allowing us the use of the premises, to everyone who supports us and to our treasurers, James and Ger, who kept a close eye on transactions over the year.

Field Development

The progress has continued in the J.P. O Sullivan Park, with a view to completion now in sight. Phase 2 saw the car-park developed, digital score-board installed, roadside wall and railing erected and the field enclosed. The juvenile pitch is also upgraded. At this point, I would like to thank everyone for the huge effort made to have the pitch re-opened for the replay of the Co. Championship game on 20^th July. We are indebted to Jerry Coffey and Pa Murphy for their time and work they have given towards this project over the year. At this point, I would like to wish Pa a speedy recovery.

The pitch in Cloon is of extreme value to the club for games and training at all levels, thus reducing traffic and damage at the J.P. O Sullivan Park. The lease in Cloon has been renewed for a further five years.

Bord na nOg

Bord na nOg continues to be the foundation of our club. It is very encouraging to see so much activity of all age-groups in Cloon on a Sunday morning. To all who coach and look after our underage teams, a huge thank-you. To me, these people deserve great credit as they promote the future success of the club. Thanks to all the officers for a job well done. Colm Conway will give a report on activities for the year. Thanks to Mary Clifford for organising Scór and to all who participated in the various events.

FÁS Scheme

The upkeep of the grounds is a credit to our FÁS workers – Denis Kissane (term completed), Willie Murphy (back again this year) and Jerry O Sullivan (starting a new term). Thanks for a job well-done. We are very grateful to Eileen Clifford for her help with the administration of this scheme. We, also, had four 3^rd level students on this year’s Students’ Scheme. I would like to thank them for their contribution to various projects. If we are to continue with this scheme, I suggest a programme of coaching or administration is drawn up to benefit both club and participants.

Referees

Thanks to our club referees who gave so willingly of their time. Especially thanks to Peter Lyons, who took charge of a number of championship and National League games. We should encourage more people to take up refereeing.

Foot & Mouth

The playing season was delayed for a number of weeks due to the outbreak of Foot and Mouth Disease. Thankfully, any major outbreak was averted due to the help and co-operation of all concerned.

Hurling

Hurling continues to grow, having had a successful year with the winning of the 2000 South-Kerry Junior Championship and this year’s League. John Purcell deserves great credit for his dedication to the training of this team. Thanks to Denis McDonald and Josh Whelan for their co-operation with fixtures and pitches. An enjoyable medal-presentation was held in the Fishery on 16^th Nov.

Ladies Football

Laune Rangers Ladies Football is growing from strength to strength with the formation of a senior team this year, which proves the development of the work at underage. Thanks to trainers, coaches and officers for their time and effort over the year.

Teams

It was not one of the most successful years for our senior team, trained by James Sheehan, with selectors Patsy Joy, Denis Cleary and Brian O Shea. The loss of established players did not help our cause. A number of games in the Munster League were postponed at the beginning of the year due to the foot & mouth scare. This competition was completed in November, when we were defeated in the semi-final by Bishopstown. The final of the Mid-Kerry League was not played as we invoked the bye-law where players are unavailable due to county commitments. The Co. League started off on a high note with victory over Co. Champions, Dr. Crokes, but, unfortunately, this was our only win as a series of draws and one-point defeats left us facing Div. 2 for the coming year. We were defeated by Glenflesk in the Club Championship on a score-line of 2-11 to 0-12. Our fortune did not change in the Co. Championship, where we played a draw with Kerins O Rahillys in Tralee. The replay was our first game back in the J.P. O Sullivan Park after two years. A serious accidental clash led to the injury of two players. This upset our game for the second half and we made our exit from the championship. Our bad luck continued in the Mid-Kerry final, when we lost to Milltown/Castlemaine by one point. We look forward with confidence to 2002, as our younger players mature and the experience of the more senior players will shine through. With a total commitment to training and playing, we will be back in the winners’ enclosure in a very short time.

‘B’ Team

Trainer Eddie Birmingham, selectors Mike O Shea, Sean Moriarty and Kevin Cahillane can be proud of a year’s work well done. They started with success in the replay of the 2000 Molyneaux Cup, where they defeated Desmonds in the final. They followed this up with victory in the Mid-Kerry ‘B’ Championship, with a win over Milltown/Castlemaine, and the O Sullivan Cup, where they defeated Keel, 2-6 to 0-4, in very inclement conditions at Cromane. Promotion to Div. 4 eluded them on a decision taken at Co. Board to promote two teams. The only break in this sequence was the defeat to Austin Stacks in the final of this year’s Molyneaux Cup, where we lost in extra time. A number of players were involved in another competition the previous day. I feel this should be avoided, if possible, especially when we are involved in a championship final. As I complete my report, I have just been informed by Eddie that he is now taking a break. We wish him well and, no doubt, Eddie will be back at the helm again in a short while.

‘C’ Team

Our ‘C’ team, under the guidance of Danny Cahill, Peter Byrne, Dominic Crowley and Jamie Clifford, had a great year. In the Co. Urban League, they qualified for the knock-out stages, where they had a hard-earned victory over Kenmare. In the final, they went on to beat neighbours Cromane. They made their exit from the Barrett Cup when defeated by Austin Stacks in the quarter-final.

U-21

Club teams were omitted from this year’s Co. U-21 Championship. It was not greeted favourably by us, as it deprived a number of players of football. Those available played with Mid-Kerry and lost to East-Kerry by one point.

In the Mid-Kerry Championship, we were defeated by Milltown/Castlemaine after a second replay. Injuries deprived us of a number of players for these games. Again we were invited to take part in the Duhallow Cup where we went down by a point to Doheny’s in the quarter-final.

Minors

John Griffin, trainer, with selectors Maurice Corkery and Jerry Houlihan, took charge of the minor team. This team acquitted itself very well over the year without getting the results deserved. They reached the final of the Co. Minor League against Waterville/Dromid only to lose by a single point. A great run followed in the Co. Championship with victories over Feale Rangers in Finuge and An Ghaeltacht in Gallerus. We came up against Rathmore/Glenflesk in the semi-final on 14^th Aug. The timing of this fixture was not favourable to us and we lost by two points. The Mid-Kerry Championship eluded us this year. In the semi-final, played at J.P. O Sullivan Park against Beaufort, we never played to our full potential.

Well Done

Congratulations to Mike Frank Russell on winning another Munster Senior Football Championship medal and to John Evans, who trained the Co. U-21 team.

Media

Thanks to radio Kerry and print media for their coverage over the year.

Thank You

To all my fellow officers, some of whom I have mentioned already,

To James Ferris, our Co. Board Delegate, who continues to fight our case, which is not always an easy task,

To Mike O Shea, assistant PRO, for keeping us all up to date,

To our officers, who are stepping down – Jim Galvin, Pat Pigott and John O Donnell for the many years’ service given to the club and, I have no doubt, you will continue to help out and return when time allows. On a personal note, a special thank-you to Chairman, John Clifford, for the assistance he gave me. It amazes me the amount of voluntary time and effort John gives to Laune Rangers.

To my family for their help and putting up with me and all the clutter around the house, thank you. As I regretfully step down due to work commitments, I enjoyed my year as Secretary and thank all officers, team mentors and members who assisted me.

On a closing note, I would like to see office space developed in our club-room where clerical assistance would be available. I wish the incoming officers and teams every success in 2002.”

 

Colm Conway delivered the following Secretary’s Report to the AGM of Laune Rangers Bord na nOg on Sat. 2^nd Feb. 2002: “It was a very active year at Bord na nOg with a combined total of 75 games played.

Beginning with our U-8’s, it was very pleasing to see such a large number of boys and girls throughout the year. Their enthusiasm lingered throughout the year and great credit and thanks is due to their coaches, John Sheehan, Dermot O Shea and James Ferris.

Moving up a grade, the U-10’s had a very successful year. Two Laune Rangers’ teams participated in the Mid-Kerry Blitz with both teams being successful, winning the ‘A’ and ‘B’ competitions. We were also invited to take part in the Austin Stacks tournament during the Rose of Tralee festival. Here again success was achieved. As usual, the U-10 Parish League produced high quality and exciting matches and proved a huge success. A big thank-you is due to Iraneus Looney, Donal Pigott and Brian O Shea for their efforts during the year. One other positive aspect from the U-8 and U-10 scene was the high number of new registrations gained from the parents at these levels.

Moving to the U-12’s, under the guidance of John O Dwyer, John Quirke, Diarmuid O Sullivan and Shane O Sullivan, they had mixed fortunes throughout the season. The Co. Competition was divided into two sections. Our boys won the first section, remaining unbeaten, and only lost one game in the second section to a superb Kerins O Rahillys outfit. The team participated in the Tralee District competition as a warm up for the Mid-Kerry Championship and, in that competition, remained unbeaten until the final, where they were beaten by a well-motivated Beaufort team. However, they did bounce back to defeat Milltown/Castlemaine in the U-12B competition. We will hope for further success in the coming years from this team. A big thanks is due to the U-12 sponsor, FEXCO.

Our U-13 team, looked after by John O Dwyer and John Quirke, participated in the Tralee District competition and played in a once-off game versus Austin Stacks under lights on the new all-weather pitch in the ISK. This proved a great success.

The U-14 team took part in the Tralee District competition in preparation for the Co. League, which proved a good idea as they qualified for the Div. 2 Co. final. Here, in an epic contest, Rangers were defeated by a solitary point by Listowel Emmett’s in Austin Stack Park. The Mid-Kerry Championship threw up a similar fate with defeat to Beaufort in the final. However, in the Mid-Kerry ‘B’, our boys were not to be outdone when they comprehensively defeated Milltown/Castlemaine in Keel. A special thanks to Patsy Joy, who’s enthusiasm never seems to fade, ably assisted by James Riordan and Eamonn Carey. In the U-14’s case, a big thanks to Flynn’s Bus Hire, who began sponsorship at this level this season.

The U-15 Co. Urban League Div. 1 was very poorly organised, so much so that it reverted to a knock-out format. Under Joe Hayes and Colm Conway, we were defeated by Dingle after a replay. The U-15 competition has been discussed at Co. Board level and restructuring needs to take place if the competition is to succeed.

The senior team at Bord na nOg level, the U-16’s, kindly sponsored by The Fishery, had somewhat of a disappointing year. The Tralee District Board and Mid-Kerry competitions were hampered by the loss of key players for various reasons. Therefore, success was in short supply. The County campaign brought better results and eventually we suffered a one-point semi-final defeat to Rathmore in a game that was there for the taking. The final competition of the year saw defeat at the hands of Glenbeigh/Glencar in the Mid-Kerry ‘B’ semi-final. The U-16’s were looked after by Joe Hayes, Colm Conway, Brian Gannon and Liam Clifford.

I would like to thank all the coaches and trainers of the teams for their commitment given throughout the year. If it were not for their dedication, the club’s youth policy would not exist. Your continued participation is gratefully appreciated, as is the help of any other volunteers willing to put the shoulder to the wheel. I would like to thank Danny Cahill, John O Donnell and Billy O Sullivan for participating in a coaching course during the year. I would like to thank all the bus companies for their transport and availability during the year. A special mention for the Starlite laundrette, who are always very accommodating with jerseys for the Bord na nOg teams. I want to thank our Bord na nOg Chairman, John Quirke, for his work and co-operation and that of other officers like Maria Tobin and Sean Moriarty, when called upon. I want to mention former Chairman and Secretary, Pat Pigott, for his advice and support during the year. A big thanks to the senior board for their full backing and co-operation during the year. This makes our job much easier. I want to thank the volunteers who refereed matches for me during the year but I would also invite more people to become involved in refereeing of matches as it is difficult to get referees at times. I would like to thank Mary Clifford for her continued work for Scor na nOg. Just a word about the support of the parents at U-8 and U-10 levels. It is encouraging to see many parents taking an interest. However, it is something that older teams could do with and would ultimately benefit the teams.

Finally, we look forward to the coming year at Bord an nOg level and hope we will continue on our quest to bring success to the club and take our rightful place back at the top of Kerry club football.”