Month: August 2001

The Stamford GAA Volley Ball Competition 2001
On the 4th of July 2001 Stamford GAA hosted a festival down on Stamford Beach, it was a big day out and there was something there for everyone. But the boys from Fairfields’ main event was the Volleyball Tournament. On arriving out here one of our biggest pastimes in the evenings is going to the beach and playing volleyball. Under the guidance of Tommy Moran we tried to perfect our game and with big numbers appearing at the training sessions we were looking good. So good in fact that Tommy decided to enter us in the competition.
We arrived at the beach feeling very confident, believing a semi-final place was a realistic placing. As we strolled along the beach we saw our opponents warming up and they looked very good but our mentor Tommy Moran told us to stay focused, and we did.
The Line-up for the evening when Tommy entered the team was;
Tommy Moran, Frankie Sweeney, Ciaran Gallagher (qualified as a Currane man as a technicality and now is an honorary Currane man!!!), Ronan O’Malley, John Ruddy, Terence Gallagher.

Round 1
Currane Vs Cavan
A few men from the Cavan area challenged us in the first round and to our surprise they gave us a big fright. We were still half a sleep due to the long 20-minute journey to Stamford and a few of us still had our heads in the clouds (not just Ronan). The Cavan men had match point and we were facing an embarrassing early exit, the worst thing was we all knew we could play better. In a tense five-minute battle we turned the game around and scraped into the next round.

Round 2
Currane Vs Glenamade
After a poor performance, 30 minute break and a big prep talk by Tommy Moran the team were hyped up for the Second round, this time no mistakes were to be made, just do the job and the quicker the better. We started off well with Ronan O’Malley totally dominating the net battle and giving Currane a great head start. We were half way there and in complete control, but then the Glenamade boy’s came in with a surprise comeback. They came so close, but then we put the throttle down when it was needed to cruise away as easy winners. Frankie Sweeney played a blinder getting underneath nearly every ball that came close to hitting the sand and Tommy Moran adding the experience and the cool head hit the ball into places the opposition could not think of covering.

Semi Finals
Currane Vs Tipperary
So, after our comfortable win in the second round we were now two games away from the championship we came here to win, confidence was high. Tipperary had a very strong and tall team but with Ronan O’Malley at the net we knew they stood no chance. It was a tough game all the way. Tipperary matched us all the way to the finish but we were always just a bit in front. If Ronan O’Malley didn’t make it at the net Terence Gallagher was more than willing to help as he smashed ball after ball down on to the sand. And then if they got past the two, there was either Ciaran Gallagher or John Ruddy sweeping it up off the ground, and there was a lot of sweeping up! But after a dramatic finale to the semi final, Currane pipped it with about 3 points to spare.

Final
Currane Vs The Curragh(Kildare)
Well, we’d made it to the finals and we were being tipped as hot favourites due to our great semi-final performance. The crowds began to gather for the main event of the day, the court was surrounded with people wanting to see this Currane side, that were creating such a story all along the beach; not just for their volleyball skills either!!!
The team was nervous but after a good team talk from the man himself – Tommy Moran we were ready to begin. The Curragh began to create the first impact by getting us where we weren’t expecting it. It took us a while to get our heads focused, the big crowd the atmosphere and all those beautiful ladies in their bikinis, how could a man keep his concentration? Well, after a severe telling off from Tommy Moran I just had to and we began to play. Ronan O’Malley started to regain his composure in front of the net, Tommy Moran was hitting unbelievable shots and Frankie Sweeney was everywhere you needed him. Before you knew it we were back in the game. As we came to the last few minutes, Terence Gallagher started make some beautiful and important scores, Ciaran Gallagher was cleaning up all over the place and no one could set them up better than myself. With a combination like that how could we lose? We cruised home by playing the best volleyball of the evening, totally tearing apart the opposition in the final few scores.

Champions
Currane came, Currane saw, and Currane conquered. Tommy Moran received the trophy with great applause from the crowd and we began our journey home for a nice early night. We’d just like to thank all those beautiful ladies for lifting our performance when it mattered.
Coming soon The Mayo Boys join the Fairfield team for a challenge match against a Ukraine Selection. So from Fairfield Connecticut here’s signing off until next time.