2000 – Currane Community Website

The Ruddy Report – 22/12/00

Hastings Cup (U-21 Football) Second Round
Mayo 1-8
Leitrim 0-5
Mayo Under 21’s added another victory to their Hastings Cup Campaign – this time Leitrim were the unlucky victims. Although the score wasn’t as impressive as last weekend’s, the game was played on a very soft pitch in Drumbshambo and the play was more physical. The referee took his time in arriving and the match was delayed by over 25 minutes as a result.
Mayo displayed a very different team than last week due to NUI Galway and Athlone IT’s participation in the Sigerson Cup but it was an opportunity to try out some new players. Mayos performance left a lot to be desired but I wouldn’t be too worried with half the team unavailable to play and with it only being a Hastings Cup Match. I think they have plenty of time to sharpen up before the first round of the Connaght Championship.
Mayo opened the scoring after two minutes with Ronan Loftus pointing a free kick and three minutes later Liam Brady followed up with another point. Leitrim then got on top of Mayo in midfield with Shane Canning being very impressive. Darren McGovern and Paraic McGarry brought the sides even by 10 minutes and then Michael Foley pointed a free kick which put Leitrim into the lead for the first and only time in the match.
Mayo brought the scores even a minute later courtesy of Alan Regan. Although they regained control of the game at this stage, they were not making much use of the possession and all they could score was from a free thanks to Ronan Loftus on 23 minutes. Leitrim replied with a free courtesy of Darren McGovern but then Mayo replied with another free from Brian Maloney to give them a one point advantage at half-time.
As well as being late arriving, the referee must have been in a hurry to get home as well, as he only played 28 minutes in the first half and 27 minutes in the second.
Mayo changed around their team for the second half by bringing on M.J Meenaghan, Aodhain McTigue of Ballycastle, Conor Mortimer and Marty McNicholas. Mayo’s fitness and physical presence helped them in taking control of the second half. Marty McNicholas opened his account five minutes into the half with his score coming from a free. Mayo were well in command and should have put away a few goals at this stage. Charlestown’s Enda Casey scored a terrific point after 44 minutes and Conor Mortimer scored the only goal of the game with the help of Sean Grimes who placed a perfect pass for Mortimer to finish in style. The introduction of Aodhain McTigue helped Mayo take almost complete control of the Midfield. Mayo’s defence were magnificent and they denied Leitrim numerous times, although Micheal Foley scored in the 23rd minute for Leitrim from a free-kick. Ronan Loftus raped things up for the visiting side with another pointed free-kick.
Undoubtedly Mayo deserved to win, but they will have to work on their game a bit before they face Tyrone which will definitely be a stronger challenge. But all credit must go to the U-21 side as they have maximum points going into the Christmas break just like their Senior counterparts.

Mayo: K. Kelly, P. Kelly, D. O’Dea, K. Duignan, P. Coady, B. Prendergast, E. Casey, M. Webb, S. Healy, R. Loftus(0-4), S. Grimes, T. Naughton, A. Regan(0-1), M. Maloney(0-1), L. Brady(0-1). Subs: MJ. Meenaghan, A. Tighe, C. Mortimer(1-0), M. McNicholas(0-1).

Under 30’s Versus Over 30’s
If you were at Griffin Community Park on October Weekend 2000 you would have witnessed history in the making as the Currane Over-30’s fought it out with the Under-30’s in quite difficult conditions in a game of gaelic football. Over all the game was hailed as a success and proposed to be replayed again hopefully sooner rather than later. Well rumour has it that it is to be played this St Stephens Day at Griffin Community Park, Currane. I’m not quiet sure if this rumour is true – I myself would have waited until the New Year because I don’t think the Over 30’s or some of the Under 30’s will be fit to take part on St Stephens Day. So that is what I heard this week on the grapevine but do not take my word for granted, and if you are interested in learning more about this I would urge you to contact the organisers of the previous meeting, Sean Dever and Eamon Joyce.

My View
Hello and Welcome to the Christmas edition of My View. This week’s edition is full of interesting and exciting subjects. Firstly we will start on last weeks subject which was that blasted Hill.

Hill 16 – Should it Stay Or Should It Go?
I was overwhelmed this week with support saying that the Hill should go! Firstly Bob the Builder was on again, saying that it is not the perfect type of image the GAA should be showing in this millennium and he also wanted to say that he would do a state of the art job on the whole stadium for a cheap price. Secondly Bernard Manning e-mailed me and said that the Hill should go it is out of date and looks like something you would have seen in the 60’s. He believes the only people who want to keep it are the Dubs and he added that if the Dubs happen to be on it the day of demolition it would be no real loss. Come on Bernard that’s a bit harsh on the poor Dubs. Last but not least Micheal Bell e-mailed me to say that no matter whether they plan to knock it or not, with the length of time it is taking to complete the construction of Croke Park it will probably be there for another 84 years.

All Ireland Championship Structure
It took me along time to decide what would be the topic up for discussion this week but after a long hard think I decided to bring into the limelight the new structure proposed by the GAA for the All Ireland Championship. I am not quiet sure what the structure is right up to the last detail, but as far as I can make out 4 provincial champions qualify for the Quarter Finals and then the defeated provincial finalists get another chance. I would like to know this week what do you think about this structure will it benefit the game or will it take from it. It’s your call.

E-mail me with YOUR opinion at johnruddy@currane.net, placing ‘My View’ in the subject bar.

Wishing all my readers a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!!!!!

The Ruddy Report 15/12/00

Hastings Cup (U-21 Football) First Round
Mayo 3-16
Donegal 1-6

In Ballina last Saturday (9/12/2000) a promising Mayo U-21 side convincingly brushed aside a much weaker Donegal outfit.
Although Mayo did win very well their defence was criticised and will need to tighten up before the first round of the Championship. The Midfield was satisfactory but the Forwards got most of the credit (and why not with the score as high as it was).
Marty McNicholas, Brian Maloney and Micheal Keane tortured the opposition defence. Billy Joe Padden distributed the ball well and Ronan Loftus made good use of it, scoring 1-8.
The Mayo team is very strong but like any other they need to sharpen up and the Hastings Cup is ideal for this. Micheal Keane had the ball in the Donegal net in the first minute thanks to Marty McNicholas and Brian Maloney. Keane struck again with a goal goal moments later, again helped by Brian Maloney.
Donegal replied with a goal on 10 minutes courtesy of Martin Caulfield, and the two sides continued to exchange scores, Mayo’s Defence looking very weak. Peader Easpey pointed for Donegal after 12 minutes. Then Mayo replied with 5 points without reply, Ronan Loftus scoring 3 of them and Brian Maloney and Sean grimes getting the other two.
Donegal scored 3 points before the break, Martin Caulfield with 2 and Gareth Blake with 1. Mayo replied through Billy Joe Padden and Brian Maloney and at half time the score stood at 2-7 to 1-4 in the home side’s favour.
Donegal’s Brendan Boyle dislocated his shoulder early in the second half and the game was delayed for 10 minutes. This loss was undoubtedly a big factor in Mayo’s big win. Soon after this Ronan Loftus struck a goal for the home side and although Donegal got back two points courtesy of Martin Caulfield, Mayo scored a further 9 points thanks to Ronan Loftus (4), Micheal Keane, Micheal Webb, Stephen Healy, Marty McNicholas and Brian Maloney.
Mayo: P. Tiernan, P. Finnerty, E. Casey, A. Moran, M.J. Meneaghan, S. Grimes, I. Knight, P. Kelly, M. Webb (0-1), R. Loftus (1-8), B.J. Padden (0-1), C. Lyons, M. McNicholas (0-1), Brian Maloney (0-3), M. Keane (2-1). Subs: P. Coady, S. Healy (0-1), E. Casey, T. Naughton, K. Kelly, K. Duignan, L. Brady.
Mayo take on Leitrim in the second round of the Hastings Cup this Saturday. Manager Paul McStay will be missing all the Galway NUI players due to Sigerson Cup Duty.

My View

Welcome to our second edition of My View. My Mail box was chocker-blocked with e-mails this week about last weeks topics and I apologise if I do not mention you all.

Firstly the topic of the National League. I got numerous e-mails on this, but I’ll just mention one from Stan (an obsessed fan of the Ruddy Report). To cut his e-mail short, he believed that the National League should be re-structured so it is like a soccer league and not the way it is with the top two of each division from 1A – 4B competing in a knockout competition. I tend to agree with you Stan. P.S. Sorry I didn’t reply sooner mate!

Second Topic Mayo. In last weeks edition I said that Mayo have been making great strides since they lost to Sligo last summer in the Connaght championship. Well I got an e-mail from Bob the Builder and he believes Mayo are fixing their troubles quite well in all fairness and he thinks that we should be booking our All Ireland tickets, and maybe Sam will make a visit this Autumn.

I would also like to mention an e-mail I got from some boys from the Bahamas who wanted to know WHO LET THE DOGS OUT?????

This week’s Topic: Should we knock the Hill???? I saw this week what Croke Park is proposed to look like when they eventually finish the development and I was amazed to see that the Hill was still there. I know there is a lot of history with it and I heard someone say it was like the Kop – well look what happened to that! I SAY KNOCK IT – we can’t stay in the past for ever and we can’t have a complete top class stadium with that lump of rubble there.

C’MON HAVE YOUR SAY, E-MAIL ME!!
So if you have anything to say on these three topics please don’t be shy, your opinions are all welcomed just e-mail me at johnruddy@currane.net and put “MY VIEW” in the Subject area.

The Ruddy Report – 08/12/00

Allianz National Football League Division 1B Match Report
Mayo 1-17
Derry 1-7
At Fr O’Hara Park last Sunday Derry came to play Mayo in the NFL. Derry, who were expected to field a strong team for this crunch tie, arrived with a team of inexperienced newcomers and to top it all they had only 16 players who were prepared to play! Looking on these facts from last Sunday’s game it is hard to believe that they are the present holders of this Competition.
Derry were well and truly punished for their poor attention to this match! By the 30th minute of the match Mayo had scored 1-9 with out reply, and at this stage you could safely say Mayo had won the match. Although it is true that Mayo’s opposition were poor, Mayo did deal with them impressively. Mayo’s back line was very good once again with Ray Connelly, Noel Connelly, Kevin Cahill and Fergal Costello showing well, and they were very disciplined, giving away minimal free-kicks.
Colm McManaman and David Brady continue to impress, Brady especially as he had played 80 minutes with Ballina in the All Ireland Rugby League 24 hours earlier. Mayo’s forwards were the most impressive on Sunday with Marty McNicholas, James Gill and David Nestor all having a good game. Mayo’s work rate in the forwards was excellent with the forwards notching up 1-8 among them.
Mayo began the match well with a scatter of points in the first 15 minutes from Com McManaman, Ronan Loftus(free), David Nester, Trevor Mortimer and Marty McNicholas and the impressive thing was they were all good scores. Then came David Nester’s impressive goal with the help of Trevor Mortimer, Fergal Costello and Marty McNicholas. Ronan Loftus(free), Substitute Stephen Carolan, Marty McNicholas and James Gill added the other scores. It wasn’t until the 33rd minute that Derry replied to Mayo with a Paddy Bradley free-kick and a Paul Murphy point on the run. That rounded up the first-half and left the score at 1-11 to 0-2, leaving the gap at 12 points.
In the second half Mayo were not as focused at times and Derry took advantage with Conleth Gilligan notching up a number of scores to narrow the gap slightly, but Mayo woke up and David Brady and David McDonagh scored points in response and David Nestor and Marty McNicholas added 2 more scores.
The last Quarter saw the crowd of 2000 spectators begin to leave and the gang that hung around were as well to have gone too. Derry’s Ronan Rocks beat Mayo Goalkeeper Fergal Kelly and Derry followed that with a few more points but it was all too late. Micheal Coleman rounded it up for Mayo with a very impressive score. One bad thing that came out of the match was Ray Connelly’s leg injury.
Mayo:
F. Kelly, R. Connelly, K Cahill, A. Higgins, F. Costello, A. Roche, N. Connelly, C. McManaman (0-1), D Brady (0-1), M. McNicholas (0-3), D McDonagh (0-1), J. Gill (0-2), R. Loftus (0-3f’s), T. Mortimer (0-1), D. Nestor (1-3).
Subs:
S. Carolan (0-1) for Mortimer (inj), M. Sheridan for Loftus, M. Coleman (0-1) for Brady, R. Hannick for R. Connelly (inj)

My View

New to the Ruddy Report, “My View” is a section for comment and opinion – controversial and otherwise. I will give you my opinion on the pressing issues of the day and you can tell me I’m a hero/wrong/stupid/off my trolley or whatever. If you have a question or an opinion on something (in sport) then you can have your say here.

New York
I am going to start this section off with the story that has been in the papers this week about New York GAA holding a Connaught Senior Football Championship match. New York entered the Championship in 1999 when they travelled to Castlebar to play Mayo (Connaught Champions 1999) in the First Round, putting up a good display (not disgracing themselves). Last year New York travelled to Galway (Connaught Champions 2000) to play the First Round and once again they put up a decent display. In the two years New York have travelled across the Atlantic to play the Connaught Champions of that year and if that doesn’t have a bad effect on the team then take into account that their most impressive players did not travel to both these games. My conclusion to this is if London are allowed play their home games in Ruislip I think it’s time a Connaught Senior Football Championship Match was played in Gaelic Park, New York. So what do you think?

Mayo
Would you believe after such a bad run in the Connaught Championship last year that Mayo would respond with a very impressive run in the League. 3 wins out of 3! Fermanagh away, Laois away and Derry at home. Holmes has brought in a few new players into the squad with great effect, the confidence is back in the squad and although the last three games they played have not been very tough Mayo should still feel confident. Sligo, Meath, Cavan and Clare to play and with the confidence built a semi-final place beckons. If I was asked before the NFL started I would not have thought Mayo would have a chance of winning Connaght but look now! Mayo seem to be in with a shout and I think they will give Galway a run for their money. But if Mayo have a good run in the league will it affect their Championship? Look at Derry NFL champions 2000 and Derry then were rubbish in the Championship! So what do you think?

National Football League
The National Football League seems to be on its last legs! Answer me one question: if you were running a business and you weren’t getting a lot of custom what would you do?
A: Up the prices on your goods
B: Lower the prices on your goods
Well the bright sparks up in GAA HQ answered A!
With the NFL not being taking that seriously and Counties putting out their second teams (e.g. Derry last Sunday) not many spectators attend National League matches. So the GAA up the ticket price. I believe its ridiculous. What do you think?

Have your say!!!

So if you have anything to say on these three topics please don’t be shy, your opinions are all welcomed just e-mail me at johnruddy@currane.net and put “MY VIEW” in the Subject area.

The Ruddy Report – 01/12/00

Allianz National Football League Division 1B Match Report
Mayo 1-11 Laois 0-11
Mayo got a very hard earned two points last Sunday in O’Moore Park, Portlaoise, having improved a lot from their clash against Fermanagh.
Their defence were superb showing no hesitancy at all. Kevin Cahill and Peter Burke get a special mention for their outstanding contribution, as do David Brady and Colm McManaman in Midfield, while in the Forwards four U-21’s were playing. James Gill was outstanding roaming all over the forward line as if he owned it and scoring an impressive five points.
Trevor Mortimer, although scoring null, played well in the forward line winning a lot of possession despite the ankle injury he is still carrying. Marty McNicholas was also very good, although he didn’t get as much possession as he did against Fermanagh, but he is very fast and took his score when the chance arose.
Ronan Loftus had a fairly quiet game, but he too got his name on the score board with the help of Stephen Carolan. James Nallen made an appearance midway through the second half replacing McDonagh and he played an important role in Mayo’s success.
Marty McNicholas opened the scoring for Mayo after 9 minutes with the help of Trevor Mortimer. Laois replied with a point two minutes later, though Mayo were playing the better football at this stage and Marty McNicholas and James Gill provided the build up to David Nestor’s goal in the 15th minute. James Gill and Nestor both scored points following the goal and Chris Conway(Laois), Martin Lawlor(Laois) and David Brady traded points.
The home side started to come back into the game with Chris Conway and Noel Garvan being very impressive. The score was at 1-4 to 0-4 in Mayo’s favour when Gill and Garvan swapped points and Nestor had a terrible miss.
In the second half Laois opened the scoring with Chris Conway hitting a point but Noel Connelly, who was outstanding, replied with a point. Laois began to put the pressure on in the last qaurter, Ian Fitzgerald and Roddy McEvoy scoring points which left only one point between the teams. Mayo answered back with Carolan setting up Loftus for a point which James Gill followed up with two more and Maurice Sheridan pointed a free when he came on as a sub for Loftus.
Laois were the dominant side in the last 10 minutes, scoring two points to narrow the gap, but James Gill converted a long range free to wrap things up.
Mayo:
P. Burke, R. Connelly, K. Cahill, F. Costello, N. Connelly(0-1), A. Roche, A. Higgins, C. McManaman, D. Brady(0-1), M. McNicholas(0-1), D. McDonagh, J. Gill(0-5), R. Loftus(0-1), T. Mortimer, D. Nestor(1-1)
Subs: S. Carolan for Mortimer, M. Sheridan(0-1) for Loftus, J. Nallen for McDonagh.

Allianz National Football League Division 1B Preview
This Sunday Mayo take on Derry at Fr O’Hara Park in Charlestown in the NFL. Mayo’s campaign cannot have gone better so far, with two away victories on the trot ,although Laois are probably the weakest team in the Division, and Mayo are on track for a Semi Final place. Mayo take on Derry with no injury worries, David McDonagh, Colm McManaman and Ronan Loftus are all expected to play. However Belmullet’s Stephen Carolan and Crossmolina’s James Nallen are both pushing for positions. Kevin O’Neill, a former All Star with Mayo, has withdrawn himself from the panel for this season and the chance of Kiearan McDonald starting is unclear.
Derry will be wanting to pick up all the points in Charlestown this Sunday. Although they defeated Laois in the first round unconvincingly, Derry lost to Clare last weekend by three points. Manager Eamon Coleman shouldn’t worry too much about that defeat as only 4 of the Derry team that won the league last season started the match, the rest were all newcomers. Derry are expected to strengthen their side this weekend.
Mayo must win in my opinion. Derry have defeated Mayo in their most recent encounters and I believe it is time Mayo turned the tables. Mayo are in great form and very confident so I am sticking my head out here and although it will be a close match, I predict a Mayo win.

GAA Briefs

Football AllStar Results in next weeks Report
Kerry’s Seamus Moynihan named Footballer of the Year
I would like to thank Al & Jane Steger-Lewis for their match report on the Hacky Cup final last week.

The Ruddy Report – 25/11/00

Hacky Cup Final Bunnacurry 10-7 Currane 4-1
On a very chilly afternoon in Keel, Bunnacurry NS took on Currane NS in the final of the Hacky Cup.The first half was a closely fought affair with attacks at both ends, and some excellent defending by Currane kept them in touch at about three points down at half time.The beginning of the second half saw the larger and more proficient Bunnacurry team putting the squeeze on. Despite valiant defending by Currane, a flurry of goals and points put the result beyond doubt.Currane did not lose heart and came back strongly in the last quarter with some good scores. Had it not been for the quality of the Bunnacurry keeper the score would have been somewhat closer.
It was a very entertaining game and a credit to both teams who should be proud of themselves.

Crossmolina Champions Again
AIB Connaght Club Football Championship Final
Crossmolina 1-10
Corofin 0-5
Crossmolina made history last Sunday by becoming the first Mayo side to win two Connaght Titles back to back, outclassing the 1998 All Ireland Champions all over the pitch. The game began with both sides wanting to stamp their authority on the match, which is exactly what they did. Derek Reilly of Corofin broke his Collar Bone after just 30 seconds of the game, then Crossmolina’s ace forward Kieran McDonald followed him with a rib injury. But the loss did not halt Crossmolina’s stride, Liam Moffat replacing McDonald in the forward line.Crossmolina dominated midfield and took their chances although it was not until the 11th minute that they registered their first point of the game scored by Johnny Leonard. Corofin struggled to find their feet with Deel Rovers defence showing no flaws. Micheal Moyles was excellent in the forward line creating a lot of chances and after seventeen minutes he created a chance for Liam Moffat who fisted the ball into the back of the net to register the only goal of the game. Peader Gardiner was also excellent in the forwards.Corofin lifted themselves for a while due to the shock of the goal. Alan O’Donavan scored Corofins first point from a free kick but Moyles and Gardiner Stretched the gap to 5 points. Before half time Corofin clawed back a point courtesy of Micheal Donnellan to leave the gap at half time at 4 points.Corofin’s hopes of changing the game around in the second half were dashed by Moyles and McGuinness who at this stage had the game wrapped up. After 42 minutes Crossmolina lead by 8 points. Johnny Leonard and Damian Mulligan knotched up a few more points for Deel Rovers and Paul McGuinness put the icing on the cake three minutes from the end with the last score of the game. Crossmolina now face Ulster Champions Bellaghy in the All Ireland Semi- Final but they must improve on their shooting tally which was very high.
Crossmolina:
B. Heffernan, S. Rochford, T .Nallen, C. Reilly, P. McAndrew, D. Mulligan (0-1), F. Costello, J. Nallen, M. Moyles (0-3), T. Loftus, K McDonald, P. Gardiner (0-2), P. Mcguinness (0-2), E. Lavelle, J. Leonard (0-2)
Subs: L Moffat (1-0) for McDonald, G Walsh for Loftus, D O’Donnel for Reilly, P Whittaker for Rochford.

All Ireland U-21 Hurling Championship Final
West-Meath 0-11
Mayo 0-4
Mayo were outclassed by West-Meath last Sunday at Hyde Park, Roscommon. They struggled to break down the West-Meath defence and forwards Derek McDonnell, Ger McDonnell, James Hogan and Paul Broderick didn’t get a chance at goal.Mayo didn’t get their bearings in midfield at all, changing the line up before half-time to bring in Stephen Broderick, but while he made an impact for a time,t West Meath soon marked him out of it.Mayo defence played well with Paddy Barrett, Pat Freyne and Seamus McGlynn all making big impacts. Aaron Farrell caused his marker so much trouble his marker was substituted.Mayo had the wind in their favour in the first half but West-Meath still led by 5 points at half time. In the first ten minutes in the second half Mayo went to 7 points down but held West-Meath to a single goal for the rest of the game.Mayo should feel proud for getting this far and it’s a view of the future of Mayo Hurling.

Allianz National Football League Preview
Mayo travel to O’Moore Park in Portlaosie this Sunday to play Laois. Mayo, who had an excellent game a fortnight ago, may have the Crossmolina Connaght Champions in their panel this weekend with Moyles and Nallen expected to travel with the team. Kieran McDonald will be missing though due to an injury he picked up last Sunday which, although it is not supposed to be serious, means he will be rested as a precaution. No changes are expected to be made to the team which defeated Fermanagh, with Loftus and McNicholas expected to retain their places in the team. Laois on the other hand have had a poor star to the competition, losing their opening games to Cavan and Derry. Laois are under new management and are still experimenting with their squad. My prediction for the match is a Mayo win and if they play as well as they did against Fermanagh I can’t see them having a problem.

GAA Briefs

Kilmeena defeated Balla by 3 points to win the County U-17 Football League Final.
Ballahadereen defeated Castlebar by 5 points to win the County U-15 Football League Final.
Carnacon defeated The Neale by 1 point in the Mayo Ladies U-16 Football Championship Final.
Garrymore defeated Crossmolina in the Mayo Ladies Junior Football League Semi Final.
Rice College, Westport defeated St Brendans, Belmullet in the Connaght Colleges first year Football League.

The Ruddy Report – 18/11/00

Allianz National Football League Division 1B
Mayo 0-12 Fermanagh 2-2

At Brewster Park last Sunday, in front of 3000 spectators, Mayo produced one of their finest displays in recent memory. The trip to the United States has obviously rejuvenated the team. Mayo were very sharp and their defence was disciplined. Colm McManaman and David Brady ran the show in midfield, winning almost everything while Marty McNicholas of Breaffy had a great debut scoring three points in the first half. Noel Connelly scored two points running from the middle of the field to do so, James Gill, David McDonagh and Trevor Mortimer all scored points and Ronan Loftus was absolutely brillant with his free takings. They played inspired football at times. Fermanagh were not the same team which had an impressive run in last years Ulster Football Championship, they just could not stop Mayo.
It took Fermanagh, a team with an outstanding forward line, 50 minutes to register a score from play. At half-time Fermanagh were holding on by a goal then Rory Gallagher scored from the penalty spot after a controversial decision by the referee.
In the second half Mayo started strong again with scores from Ronan Loftus and Marty McNicholas widening the gap to 8 points. Fermanagh tried to respond and when they got their first point from play a cheer went up from the home supporters, as they still could not believe what was happening to their team. Fermanagh scored another point courtesy of Rory Gallagher and a goal came from substitute Martin McGrath, but it was not enough. Mayo defended well and got vital scores in the last 10 minutes. Stephen Carolan scored a superb point from the right wing and to put a darker shadow on the game for Fermanagh, Shane King was dismissed after receiving a second bookable offence minutes from the final whistle.
Mayo still have a problem with their wides, notching up a tally of 16. But the impressive displays from Ray and Noel Connelly, Colm McManaman, David Brady, Marty McNicholas and David McDonagh evened things out. The scorers for Mayo were: N. Connelly(0-2), J. Gill(0-1),D. McDonagh(0-1), M. McNicholas(0-4), T. Mortimer(0-1), R. Loftus(0-2), S. Carolan(0-1).
Avid readers will note that I correctly predicted this result. I also predicted a Corofin win in the Connaght Club Championships Semi Finals, Check out the GAA Briefs to see if I got 2/2.

AIB Connaght Club Football Championship Final Preview
Crossmolina of Mayo will take on Corofin of Galway this Sunday at St Tiernans Park, Crossmolina in the AIB Connaght Club Football Championship Final. It’s the game everybody wanted to see but no one thought it would happen. The Galway Board were fined because of the delay of the Connaght Club Semi Final, which was postponed for a few weeks because of the Galway County Final being delayed due to the Galway Team reaching the All Ireland Final. But while the County board were struggling to enter a team into the competition Crossmolina were beating Kilbride and Bunninadden.
This will be Crossmolina’s toughest task since they met Na Fianna in the All Ireland Semi Final last year. Corofin, who won the All Ireland Title in 1998, have very good players such as Donnelan, Conlisk and O’Donavan. They have defeated Mountbellew/Moylough, Kilanin and Aughavas of Leitrim in successive weeks. They were reported to be tired and jaded in last weekend’s clash against Aughavas so it is likely that it was a light training session Corofin were doing this week.
Corofin will be missing their county centre half Jason Killeen through injury. Crossmolina will be missing players as well with Gerard O’Malley in the Lebanon, Stephen Rochford is expected to slot into the left half back position. Elsewhere there are no changes expected.
Crossmolina will find it tough against players such as Martin McNamara, Ray and Brian Silke, John and James Lardner and midfielders Kieran Fitzgerald and Aiden Donnellan will cause problems. Nevertheless I think Crossmolina will more than match them so I predict a Crossmolina win!!!

All Ireland U21B Hurling Championship Final
This Saturday at Hyde Park, Roscommon, Mayo take on Westmeath in the Final of the All Ireland U21B Hurling Championship. The final was scheduled for October 30th but was postponed due to Hyde Park not being playable. Things have changed since then, the quality of playing fields has deteriorated due to winter setting in – it’s not exactly the time of year to be presenting silverware. Mayo got to the final by defeating Armagh in the Semi-final on September 16th. Westmeath reached the final via Kerry which took a replay to decide the winner, that game was played on the August Bank Holiday Weekend. Westmeath are going into the final as favourites situated in Division 2 of the National Hurling League and with Mayo only in Division 3. But the Mayo team are still very optimistic. The Mayo team will be: Tomas Duffy, Seamus Glynn, Declan Cafferkey, Kevin Healy, Patrick Freyne, Paddy Barret, Paul McConn, Ciaran Conroy(captain), John Duffy, Andrew Howard, Sean Ganley, Gerard McDonnell, Martin Devaney and Stephen Broderick.

GAA News Brief

Cashman selected as new Cork Hurling Manager.
Paidi O’Se voted Football Manager of the Month.
Four Roads of Roscommon defeated Toreen of Mayo by 4 points in the AIB Connaght Hurling Championship Semi Final.
Rice College, Westport defeated Ballyhaunis C.S. in the Connaght Colleges Senior ‘B’ Football League.
Davitts defeated Kilmeena by 1 point in the Mayo Minor ‘B’ Football Championship Final Replay.
Mayo Ladies present ‘The Saw Doctors’ Thursday November 23rd in the Travellers Friend, Castlebar at 8pm, Tickets £8 and all proceeds go to Mayo Ladies Holiday Fund.
Mayo have to travel to London in the first round of the Connaght Championship next Summer. The winners will play Sligo in the Semi-final.
Galway face Leitrim in the first round of the Connaght Championship next summer. The winners will play Roscommon or New York in the Semi Final.

The Ruddy Report – 11/11/00

Achill Ladies GAA News
Cancellation and Postponements
At Griffin Community Park last Sunday only one game took place. The Currane and Achill Sound match was cancelled the evening before due to Achill Sound’s inability to field a team. But Bunnacurry/Cashel and Kildawnet/Saula met at 12 pm. The rain began to worsen as the teams took to the field, both teams only fielding 8 players per team. A tough task lay ahead with them also playing full size pitch. During the first the half conditions began to worsen and at half time the match was postponed.

AIB Connaght Club Football Championship Semi-final
Crossmolina 1-12 Bunninadden 1-6
Crossmolina Deel Rovers are through to the AIB Connaght Club Football
Championship Final again. But they will have to improve on Sunday’s display if they are to become the first Mayo team to win this competition back-to-back. Bunninadden started the game with the wind in their favour and started the better of the two teams, at one stage they were leading by 4 points due to a blunder by Damien Mulligan which allowed Padraig Doohan in to score a goal. Bunninadden were winning by 1-4 to 0-5 at this stage, but a goal by Kieran McDonald just before half time narrowed the gap to 1 point. All six Crossmolina attackers were very much involved in the game but special mention must go to McGuinnes, McDonald, Gardiner and Enda Lavelle as they played exceptionally well. The defence made a lot of blunders however, Francis Costello, Damian Mulligan and Tom Nallen all had passes intercepted. The playing conditions did not help though, causing a lot of the blunders.
In the second half, Crossmolina began to get the edge on their opponents, with McDonald and Moyles scoring crucial points. However, Bunninadden did scare the local fans as they came close to scoring a goal on more than one occasion. Man of the Match went to Bunninadden Goalkeeper Michael Finn. He pulled off some great saves in the first half to keep his side in front. In the end Crossmolina won by six points and Bunninadden went away proud after a impressive display in their first ever match in this competition.
Scorers for Crossmolina were; Francis Costello (0-1), Gereard O’Malley (0-1), Micheal Moyles (0-2), Kieran McDonald (1-2), Peader Gardiner (0-2), Paul McGuinness (0-4).
Crossmolina are to meet either Galway’s Corofin or Leitrim’s Aughavas in the final on November 19th.
My prediction: A Corofin win (Aughavas and Corofin match). If Corofin win, the final will be held in Crossmolina. If Aughavas win, the final will be held in Carrick-on-Shannon.
I will have all the news on the Club Championship here on “The Ruddy Report”.

Ladies National Football League Division One
Mayo 0-9 Tyrone 1-6
Mayo ladies travelled to Carrickmore in north Tyrone to play Tyrone last Sunday in their opening game of the season. Mayo went to Tyrone with an understrength side, players such as Cora Staunton, Maria Staunton, Niamh Lally and Orla Casby missing through injury. However, Louisbourghs’ Clare Egan played exceptionally well in midfield with the help of Assumpta Bohan, Yvonne Byrne and Niamh NíShé who played superbly in the difficult conditions. At half time the sides were level at (0-5) each. Scores for Mayo in the first half came from Diane O’Hora and Martha O’Malley.
Score’s from substitute Sabrina Bailey, Diane O’Hora and Martha O’Malley put Mayo into a strong position in the second half, they lead by three point’s going into the final quarter with the scores at (0-9) to (0-6). In injury time Tyrone scored a valuable goal to share the points.
Mayo’s next game in the National League is against Monaghan in Monaghan on November 19th.

Crisis for Mayo Football Selectors
Once again success for a Mayo club in the Connaght Club Championships is to cause selection problems for the Mayo Selectors. It is likely that Pat Holmes (Mayo football Manager) will have to select his team for the National League clash on Sunday against Fermanagh without the Crossmolina players.
The Mayo and Connaght Champions will be appearing in their second successive Connaght Club final on November 19th. This is causing difficulty for Pat Holmes as he faces a difficult away trip to Fermanagh on Sunday. Holmes is to meet the Crossmolina manager this week to discuss if his players are available for selection for the Allianz National Football League match in Irvinestown, but it is highly unlikely seemingly with the club championship two weeks away.
This it is not the first time this has happened to Mayo Selectors with the recent success of Mayo Clubs in All Ireland Competition.
But why should Crossmolina release their players? They were defeated last year by Na Fianna of Dublin in the all Ireland semi-final, but this time they would like to go one step further. With All Ireland Champions Crossmaglen Rangers of Armagh knocked out, the door is left open with Crossmolina, Na Fianna and Cork’s Nemo Rangers favourites to lift the Andy Merrigan Cup.
Prediction: Mayo and Fermanagh, tough one this with Mayo having a very young and inexperienced side, but I have heard a lot about the morale in the team so I am going to stick my neck out and say a Mayo win.

GAA News In Brief

Jimmy Barry Murphy step’s down as Cork Hurling manager.
Bellaghy win the Ulster Club football Championship.
Knockmore U-17’s win Mayo County title.
Castlebar Mitchels and Charlestown to contest U-15 League County Final.
Balinrobe’s Sinead Costello was announced as Mayo Ladies Captain for the coming season.
Sacred Heart, Westport defeated Scoil Muire, Tourmakeady in the Connaght Colleges Ladies Senior Football Championship round 3.
In the Guinness Hurling Writers Awards, Kilkenny hurling stars DJ Carey and Noel Hickey stole the show. DJ Carey won hurling player of the year and Noel Hickey won Young Hurler of the year.
Connaght Club Hurling Championship: Tooreen of Mayo take on Four Roads of Roscommon this Sunday in the provincial Semi-final. The winners will play Galway’s All Ireland Champions Athenry in the Final.
Liam McHale is reported to be making himself available for selection for the Mayo Senior football Team. Liam who is 35, retired last season.
Abbot’s of Sligo defeated Allergan of Westport to win the Connaght Football Inter Firm’s Title.

The Ruddy Report – 04/11/00

The Sheila Joyce Cup
On the 29th of October at Griffin Community Park, Currane, a lot of interesting football took place.
At 2.30pm the final of the Sheila Joyce cup took place. This is an annual tournament, organised by Michael Joyce in memory of his late wife Sheila.
The boys and girls of Currane National School were split into teams. They competed against each other until the best two teams met in the final to decide the winner.
All credit to the children who played so well given the difficult weather conditions. A wet and windy Griffin Park attracted a lot of spectators, which shows that this annual contest is very popular among locals.
On the day Mairead Moran’s team won. In her speech she thanked everyone for coming to watch and her team for playing so well. She also thanked their opponents for giving them such a good match.

Over 30’s versus under 30’s.
After the Sheila Joyce Cup an unusual event took place. The match would not have been possible if it wasn’t for the efforts of Eamon Joyce and Sean Dever and everyone who helped them organise it in a matter of weeks. Originally the match was to be a clash between over 30’s and under 30’s but was changed to over 25’s v. under 25’s due to the uneven teams.
Michael T. Gallagher had the pleasure and honour of refereeing the match.
Just before throw in the weather took a turn for the worse, it began to rain heavily.and many spectators took refuge in their cars.
A large cheer went up from all corners of the field when Eamon Joyce ran onto the field. The over 25’s began the match with the wind in their favour and took advantage of it scoring a lot of points early on. The under 25’s battled to keep Eamon Joyce’s team in check but the over 25’s were just too strong in the first half and were winning by about 7 points at half time.
In the second half, the under 25’s started with a mini revival, coming to within 2 points of their elders. But a great goal at the very last minute by Andrew Patten sealed it for the over 25’s.
There were great performances by both teams, scores for the over 25’s came from; John Joe McNamera, Sean Gallagher, Noel Grealis, James McNamera, Andrew Patten, Eamon Joyce and Michael Cattigan. Other players who played well were; Paul McGinty, Andrew and Michael Dever, Tommy and Michael Madden and Kieran McGurk.
Scorers for the under 25’s were; Adrian Ryder, Peadar Cawley, Thomas Ruddy, Barry Dever, Declan O’Malley, Dennis Patten and John Dara O’Malley. There were great performances also from; Ronan O’Malley, Donnchadh O’Malley, Sean Dever, Thomas Joyce, Michael Joyce and John Ruddy.
The organisers and the players would like to thank all who came to support the teams, especially in such poor conditions, we hope you enjoyed yourselves. We hope for this to become an annual event, there is even talk of a trophy being introduced. Stay tuned for more information on this development. Please accept my apologies if I have omitted any names.

Achill GAA News – Ladies
In the semi-finals of the local ladies competition, Currane play Achill Sound and Kildownet/Sáile play Cashel/Bunnacurry on Sunday 5th November at Griffin Community Park, Currane. The first game starts at 12 noon.
When Currane and Achill Sound last met, Currane were run away winners . I believe whoever wins this one will win the overall competition as these are the two best teams. Achill Sound are very confident but they went into the last game against Currane very sure of themselves and were defeated.

My Prediction: Two very competitive games with Currane coming out as eventual winners once again.

GAA news – Mayo senior football
The Allianz National Football League 2000-2001 has started, although the Mayo Football team missed last week’s games due to the FBD Connaught League Final. Mayo travelled to Gaelic Park in Manhattan to play New York.
Mayo won 0-13 to New York’s 0-9. The Mayo team were to fly to Chicago on Tuesday (31st October) to play a local selection and are due to return home on the following Tuesday (7th November).
Mayo begin their National League campaign against Fermanagh. The fact that Fermanagh lost their opening match to Sligo and that they are being coached by former Mayo manager John Maughan is certain to add spice to the occasion. Mayo won’t want to lose this one!
Also in our group (Division 1B) are Derry, Fermanagh Laois, Meath, Clare, Sligo and Cavan. It is a tough division. The panel this year is an unfamiliar one compared to past seasons. There are a lot of new players in the squad including players who have been on the fringes and players coming through the youth teams.
Mayo will be aiming to survive in this group and hopefully challenge for the play-off’s. They are trying to rebuild their squad for the future and hope that the national league will bring some new talent into the picture.
This looks promising as in the last five years the Mayo Minors have dominated Connaught although our under 21 team has let us down (one provincial title in five years). The recently appointed Mayo U21 manager Paul McStay said recently “I attended a challenge match in Hawkfield on the outskirts of Newbridge town and the headquarters of Kildare senior, junior, U21, minor and U16 teams. They had three full lit pitches, two warm up pitches, dressing rooms as big as the local town halls complete with treatment tables and medicos on site”.
Mayo are at the moment trailing Kildare in facilities. We are a big county with a big population and most of us wish we were up amongst the best in Ireland, i.e. Meath, Derry, Cork and Galway. But we just have to wait and hope.
Stay tuned for more info on Mayo’s progression in the National league.

AIB Connaught Club Football Championship – semi-final
Crossmolina are Mayo’s representatives in this year’s Connaught Club Football Championship after retaining their county championship. This Sunday Crossmolina welcome Sligo champions Bunninadden to St Tiernan’s Park.
The Bookmakers have Crossmolina as favourites but Crossmolina have still to actually win the game. The Sligo side made history by winning their first Sligo county title last month. Crossmolina are not expected to make any changes from the team, which defeated Kilbride a fortnight ago. There are no injuries but Pat McAndrew who missed the last game due to a cold is back in contention for a starting place. Crossmolina will name their starting line up on the 1st of November.
Crossmolina are looking good, they have two very good midfielders and Kieran McDonald has been playing well lately, the inside forwards are also very impressive.
Bunninadden are going into the game after already reaching the pinnacle of the club’s history and a good performance from them will be expected, anything else is a bonus.

My prediction: Crossmolina are not lacking in preparation and should qualify for another provincial final.
Throw in at St Tiernan’s Park at 2.30pm on Sunday (5th November).

Senior Ladies Football Challenge
All Star selection 5-6
Mayo 1-2

The weather spoiled the game yet again on Sunday last (29th October) at Claremorris. The referee was considering calling off the match but, due to the large crowd that had already gathered, the players convinced the ref. to go ahead with it.
The referee decided to play a 20 minute aside match which resulted in a flattering win for the All Stars. Mayo had fielded a depleted side – Cora Staunton was missing due to a broken jaw picked up whilst playing for Athlone IT. Scores for the All Stars came from; A. Crotty (Waterford), A. McNally (Dublin), F. Blessington (Longford), M. Downey (Down), E. Gormley (Tyrone), O. Colreavy (Dublin) and for Mayo: M. Heffernan, C. Heffernan, M. Corcoran.