Bride Rovers Ladies Football & Camogie Club held a very successful AGM on Thursday 1st December.

The highlights of the year included:

2 County Titles at U12 Football & Minor Camogie

3 East Cork Titles at U14 & U16 Football & U15 Camogie.

Grace Culloty & Laura Quirke winning All-Ireland Minor Championship with Cork,

Jen Barry fantastic displays for Cork Camogie,

A very successful Summer Camp Great response to Fundraising Bag Pack & Street Collection

Officers for 2017

President: Janie O’ Driscoll

Vice-President: Rita Kelleher, Tom Cotter 

Chairman:  Liam Barry

Vice-Chairman:  Mossie O’Sullivan

Secretary:  Meeks Carr

Assistant Secretary:  Catherine Murphy

Treasurer:  Eleanor Quirke

Assistant Treasurer:  Shirley Johnson 

P.R.O:  Valerie Culloty 

Registrar:  Shirley Johnson

Camogier Registrar: Mary Barry

East Cork Delegates:  Valerie Culloty, Eleanor Quirke

Cork Delegates:  Kathleen Kearney, Irene Hogan, Liam Barry

Child Protection Officer:  Katie Kelleher

Camogie Secretary:  Meeks Carr

Camogie Delegates:  Mossie O Sullivan

Secretary’s Annual Report

1st December 2016

  I’d like to warmly welcome everyone here tonight to our AGM, the time you have taken to attend this meeting is greatly valued and appreciated by the club. The following reports outline the 2016 season.

 U6/U8 Football by Anne-Marie O’Donnovan

 The season kicked off with a squad of 24 plus players and canvassing within the local schools helped the recruitment campaign where our numbers grew steadily to 34 registered players. Our average number at training ranged from 20-28 players a night. We also had two transfer players from Fermoy and Castlelyons.

 Training then commenced from Easter Monday onwards on the outdoor Astro Turf. Training finished up at end of September.

 The age profile of players ranged from 4 to 8 years of age so therefore we had a mix of abilities. As numbers grew we were able to split the age groups into U6 and  U8 to give girls an opportunity to develop their skills at their own pace. Both age groups played together and it was amazing over the course of the summer how they progressed. 

 Most of our coaches attended the half day programme delivered by Irene Hogan, in April on the Code of Conduct for juveniles. There was a clear message that all coaches need to be Guarda vetted in order to coach juveniles.

 The course delivered by Nora Aherne in June, was also well attended by all our coaches and some parents. It was well received and provided some useful techniques and skills to the participants. All we need do now is practice it. Another output from this course was the need to encourage parents to participate more in the organising of training and matches. This might be something to take into next year.

 We played 7 matches over the course of the season both at home and away with 3 of these being blitzes at Passage West, Fermoy and Glanmire. The Passage West was particularly successful and was very well attended. Many thanks to, Pat Cullotty and Liam Barry who helped out on the day. There was a great fun atmosphere that day, with players and parents relaxing in between matches having their picnics and chats on the side line. Matches played this year were as follows:

Rock Ban (7^th June), Na Piarsaigh (15th June), Fermoy (21st July), Glanmire (22nd August),Glanworth (5th Sept), Passage West Blitz (10th Sept), Glanmire (September),  Fermoy Blitz (August)

Attendance at matches was very good. On average we had up 18 for away matches and the home matches were always nearly always maxed as sell-out events. At home we played mainly in Pynes pitch and the Astro Turf. 

 We ended the season with a small party in the club house along with a fun training session which included a goal knock out session with the parents.

 We will have 12 players progressing to U10 in 2017, which will hopefully leave us with a healthy squad of players who have at least one season of training under their belts and are accustomed to basic football skills and some fun experience of match play. 

Our coaches for the season were Maria Barry, Anne Marie O’Donovan, Anna Marie Barry, Sinead Cotter, John Lynch, Pat Culloty and Joe Finn. John Lynch will be concentrating his efforts on the U8 boys next year, so unfortunately he will not be coaching with us any longer, I would like to thank him for his loyal contribution throughout the season. Aside from him, we hope that we will hang onto the same coaches for next y

 Many thanks to our local club referees for refereeing our matches .e.g. Grace Barry.

Overall, it was a very successful season and I believe the girls gained great experience in learning basic football skills and had fun in learning the game. I hope we have nurtured some key talent for the future of the Ladies Football Club!

U10 Football by Pat Culloty

Our U10 ladies footballers started training in March this year and we got a great response from the beginning. Most of the players were new to ladies football and to the club and only a couple had played much previously. However, they all showed fantastic enthusiasm and their skills really improved as the year went on.

Our early league matches were tough for us because of our relative inexperience but by the end of those games in August, we were starting to become very competitive. This was shown in the practice matches and in our games at the Munster ladies football blitz and the Passage-West blitz where our record was much better. In summary, we can be very happy with the progress of the group throughout the year and we also ended the year with many more players than we started with (23).

During the year, we played Aghada, Mayfield, Fermoy, Inch Rovers, Glanmire, Erins Own, Rockban, Youghal, St Colmans, Ballyhooly, Watergrasshill (x2) and participated in the Munster LGFA Blitz and the Watergrasshill blitz.

 Many thanks to Emma O’Regan, Niall and Denise Harte, Deirdre Kiely, Sean and Caitriona Mohally, Michael and Tina Birmingham, Caitriona O’Grady and Alan Barry for all the help throughout the year. Thanks also to Grace Culloty who did some coaching and Sarah Murphy who provided some specialist goalkeeping coaching. Finally, thanks to the officers of the Bride Rovers Ladies football and Camogie club for all their support and also to the officers of Bride Rovers GAA who we depend on so much to train and play our games.

 The 2016 U10 ladies football panel were:

Siún Hickey, Allanah O'Sullivan, Emily Manley, Clara Mohally, Nikita Parle, Ruby Broderick, Emma Dorgan, Clodagh Cody, Aoibhe Kiely, Abbie Barry, Lucy Barry, Francesca Meaney, Aoibhe Rice, AislingO'Riordan, Ellie Johnson, Katelyn Roddis, Sarah Birmingham, Kayleigh Birmingham, Aisling Harte, Eimear Harte, Aoife Harte, Keira Barry, Emily Finn.

U8/U10 Camogie by Liam Barry

This year saw the re-introduction of U8 & U10 Camogie. Niall Harte was the coach and training was held most Saturday mornings in Scannells Field.

The numbers were encouraging and the plan is to start a little earlier next year.

The girls took part in a camogie blitz in Castlelyons & considering this was the first time most of them played camogie matches they accounted for themselves very well. They played matches against Dungourney, Eire Óg and Castlelyons and played very well.

Any player interested in playing camogie can get Hurleys and helmets from the club at a reduced rate.

U12 Football and Camogie by Irene O’Connell

Our u12 girls had a very eventful and successful year with a very strong panel of 26 girls. 

We started the East Cork League back in April. With every match the girls grew stronger and more confident. They were a very determined and hard working team and this got them to the East Cork Final against Inch Rovers in Glanmire.

We also played Camogie games throughout the year. The girls got to play in both Semple Stadium and Croke Park which was a great experience for the girls who took part. In September we had a cake sale to raise funds, to help with cost of taking the girls to see the Cork Camogie teams play in the All Ireland Finals in Croke Park. This was a brilliant day out.

The highlight for everyone this year was the U12 girls becoming County Champions. What a well deserved achievement it was and a fantastic way to finish of 2016. 

To celebrate all their hard work they got to go to Ballyhass Lakes where they enjoyed zip wiring and canoeing.

On behalf of Pat, Terry, Mark, myself, Eileen and Corina we would like to thank everyone for their help and support throughout the year.

The Panel was:

 Cliona E, Ava B, Naoise McC(Captain), Michelle G, Abbie H, Abby K, Niamh O S(Vice Captain), Lilly M 0-4, Leah H 1-0, Ruby H 0-2, Caoimhe G 0-1, Megan B, Mollie O C, Kate L, Caoimhe B 1-0, Ciara M, Ruby B, Nicky P, Rachel W, Sarah B, Abbie O C, Oonagh N, Aoife McC, Ella B, Mai C, Roisin C, Ellen D

U14/U15 Football and Camogie by Allie Murray

The U14 footballers competed in the East Cork League playing Cobh, Cloyne, Midleton, and Mayfield. Coming third in the group, Bride Rovers advanced to a Plate Final against Glanmire B. This was played in May and the girls won by a five-point margin after a great and competitive performance. Rebecca Walsh (captain) received the Plate on behalf of the team.

The footballers also competed in the East Cork Championship, beating Glanmire B in the first round. They met Watergrasshill in the second round and despite a close-fought game, they lost by three points.

The U14 camogie team participated in the 2016 Camoige Feile at Nemo Rangers playing Erin’s Own, Nemo and Rockban. They also competed in the East Cork League and Championship and although, Bride Rovers did not secure any wins, the team played with great spirit and determination in every game and never gave up trying. Considering that many of the players only started playing camogie last year, they have improved greatly over the season and the numbers participating have increased. This is very promising for camogie in the club going forward.

The U15 camoige team had superb wins in all their matches in the Imokilly Summer League beating St. Catherines, Erin’s Own and Castlelyons. They qualified for the final meeting Castlelyons again and they won this by a substantial margin. Katie Quirke received the cup on behalf of the team.

On behalf of the u14 panel, I would like to thank Bride Rovers for the use of the astro turf and pitches. I would also like to thank our trainers, Aidan Hayes and Terry Broderick, who have given huge commitment and worked extremely well with the players throughout the year.

U16 Football by Mary Barry

We started of the 2016 season with a panel of 21 players, eight U14 and thirteen U16 on the panel.

Training commenced in the Astro turf joining forces with the minor panel with good attendance at most training sessions.

 Six Championship matches were played in total, failing to field a team in the last game against Aghada.  Numbers were tight for some of the games and with fixture congestion in April and due to bad weather, we had to play some of the play games in quick succession and without a full panel to choose from. Hence the Rovers failed to qualify for the County Championshipsreturning in September to commence training.

 Despite this, they certainly saved their best till last with a very impressive performance in the East Cork Final when they defeated Fermoy. This game was played last Monday night in Kilworth ending the season on a high with almost a full panel on the night, we came out on top after a good competitive game winning on a score line of 7-05 to 1-09. They showed great skill & determination in winning this game in what can only be described as a frustrating season for this talented team.

  conclude I would like to thank all the parents, mentors, supporters and the top table for all the work done with this age group during the year.

 U16/Minor Camogie by Oliver O’Connor

The U16 team performed well in the League, where they lost the play-off match with Fr. Oneils. They then lost in the Championship to Blackrock by two goals.Minor training started early in the new Astro Turf in conjunction with the Junior team, attendance was good, with numbers up to 26 some nights. Minor League was very difficult with us failing to field teams, on two occasions out of four. The Minor team won the County Championship by beating Rock Ban in the Final.

Bride Rovers have a fine young camogie team, but I feel the club needs to do more to promote the game.

I would like to thank all the club officers, players and fellow mentors and wish the club well for 2017.

 Minor Football and Camogie by Valerie Culloty

At Cork Cm Rockbán.

This was an exciting and enthralling game from start to finish where both teams showed off the skills of camogie with some excellent fielding, striking and some delightful scores.
Both teams lined out 15 a side (normally 13 a side) which was a credit to both teams the county board to promote the game.

Aislinn O Connor was first to score for the Rovers in the 4th minute but Rockban struck back with a goal 2 minutes later and followed this up with a point. Three points in a row by the impressive Sally McCarthy for the Rovers and a point from Grace Culloty had the sides level at 0-5 to 1-02 after 27minutes. Another point from Sally followed by a great goal by Grace Culloty had the Rovers in front 1-06 to 1-03 at Half time.

But back came Rockbán, after the interval with 2 points to reduce the Rovers lead to a point. Some wayward shooting by the Rovers saw a few opportunities missed before player of the match Sally McCarthy restored Rovers two point lead, 2 minutes later Sally was to strike again, this time with a fantastic goal, Rovers were now 2-07 to 1-05 in front.

However Rockban fought back and scored a goal in the 47th minute to reduce the lead to 2, the Rovers defence were under pressure now but some outstanding play from the full back line of captain Sarah O'Flynn, Emily Larkin & Aisling Finnegan kept Rockban at bay, these were ably assisted by the assured goalkeeping of Rachel O Flynn & the excellent half back line of Aine Keating, Sarah Murphy & Emma Roche.

With three minutes to go, Rockban reduced the deficit to the minimum but an excellent point by Siobhan O Sullivan with a minute to go restored Rovers 2 point lead. The final whistle was greeted with Cheers from the Rovers crowd present. The girls showed great determination throughout the game with the goalie & backs playing well to reduce the threat of the Rockban forwards, Aislinn O Connor was excellent in midfield while Emma Hazelwood, Claire Hickey, Emma Barry worked hard in the half forward line. The full forward line of Arianne O Flynn, Grace Culloty & Sinead O Sullivan were also a goal scoring threat. However Sally McCarthy's performance in midfield was outstanding, she showed great skill and scoring ability and was a constant threat to Rockban.
Both Sally & Aine Keating hail from Kildorrery but have being a tremendous asset to the camogie team in Bride Rovers.

Congrats to successful mentors Oliver O Connor & Alan Murphy for training the girls.
Team: Rachel O Flynn, Aine Keating, Emily Larkin, Sarah O Flynn (Captain), Emma Roche, Sarah Murphy, Aisling Finnegan, Aislinn O Connor, Sally McCarthy, Emma Hazelwood, Emma Barry, Claire Hickey, Arianne O Flynn, Siobhan O Sullivan, Grace Culloty.

  Our Minor Football Ladies were beaten by Carrigaline in the County B Quarter Final

 Carrigaline 1-20 Bride Rovers 5- 6

 U21 Football by Betty Cahill

 Our U21 campaign was short with just the one quarter final game against Bantry, who beat us on a score line of 6-18 to 2-7.

 It was played in Redmond's and unfortunately on the day we were without some of our older players. 

But credit to all that played, for some of the U16 players it was their first outing with one of our senior teams and they accounted for themselves very well, and as a result played further games during the year with our Junior team. 

Junior Football by Shane O’Connor

Our league campaign proved to be very fruitful for us again this year as we recorded wins against Ballyphehane and Fermoy to qualify for a league final for the third year in a row. We faced a very strong opposition in St.Peter's in the final, and also were missing a few players on the day. Unfortunately, things didn't run our way & we were beaten by St. Peter's in the final.

 In our junior championship campaign, we came up against a few very experienced & very capable first teams. And despite the girls' best efforts, we failed to qualify for the latter stages of the competition.

We also took part in the East Cork junior championship losing out to a very good Fermoy B team in the semi final, we put in a great effort but were missing a number of key players due to injuries and other commitments on the night.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the girls for their efforts and commitment over the past few years, and would like to extend my best wishes to the junior team next year.

Junior A Camogie by Tom Malcahy

We took part in both League and Championship at this grade in 2016. 

We had three games in the League which resulted as follows: Round 1: Bride Rovers 1-7 Banteer 2-12, Round 2 Bride Rovers 0-5 Youghal 4-12, Round 3: Bride Rovers 3-4 St Vincents 4-14. We fulfilled all our League fixtures but found it difficult to get out our strongest team.

 In preparation for Championship we played Tracton in a challenge match, this game ended in a draw Bride Rovers 3-3 Tracton 1-9.

 In the Championship we played Na Piarsaigh in round 1, which we lost 2-13 to 0-4. Round 2 we came up against Newtownshandrum which after a great effort we were beaten 2-17 to 3-7. Newtown went on to win the Championship. We were due to play St Vincents in Round 3, but as the group was already decided this game was not played.

 In summary 2016 was not a great year on the playing field.  But I feel with a bit more commitment we are well capable of competing at Junior A level. 

 The highlight of the year from a camogie point of view was the progress of Jennifer Barry at Inter-County level. She was involved with both Intermediate and Senior Panels, who both made All Ireland Finals and although both teams lost on the day, I’m sure that with the talent available those results will be reversed in the near future.

Senior Football by Liam Barry

 Following on from the historic success of winning the Senior B County in 2015, this year was a disappointment.

 In the A grade championship we were defeated by Inch Rovers at the Quarter-final stage. This defeat left us in the B Championship and having received a walkover from Eire Og in the semi-final we qualified for the final v Fermoy. 

 In the final itself we played fantastic football for 50 minutes and were leading 3-14 to 1-11 with less than 10 minutes to go but Fermoy staged a remarkable comeback to force the game into extra-time and with momentum on their side went onto win by 3-20 to 3-17. This was a devastating defeat but I am sure the girls will bounce back in 2017.

 In the earlier rounds of the A grade championship we had an great win over Fermoy in Rathcormac on a scoreline of 2-12 to 1-11, on the night the game was refereed by Dominic Rooney who unfortunately passed away a few weeks while doing a camogie match. 

In the league we played 4 games, we defeated Eire Óg but lost out to Inch Rovers, Mourneabbey & St. Vals, The game v Fermoy was not played.

  I wish to thank the players for their commitment during the year. I also thank Darren Cody who coached the team and Pa O’Driscoll who joined us as a selector during the year.

A special thanks again to our sponsors SPAR Rathcormac & David Quirke Plant Hire for their generous support of the team.  

 Congrats to both the Adult & Juvenile club on their success in 2016 and also the girls who enjoyed success with their schools & colleges.

Sponsorship

A huge thank-you to all our sponsors for their generous sponsorship throughout the year, their on-going support is invaluable to the club and greatly appreciated. We have also been very fortunate this year to receive several generous donations from different sources and would like to pass on our thanks for those.

Fundraising

We held a number of successful fundraisers throughout the year. Included in these were the annual bag packing and street collections, as well as the very reliable clothes collection.  The Fun Run/Walk is also proving to be a great addition to the fundraising events and we hope it will continue to grow.

 Going forward, new ideas of fundraising are continuously being discussed for the future. 

I would like to thank all volunteers who keep the fundraising events ticking over, particularly Pat Culloty and Catherine Murphy for the facilitating the monthly clothes collections. 

Inter County Players 

We are once again extremely proud to be so well represented by our players on the County Panels, Grace Culloty and Laura Quirke for the Minor, Sarah Murphy and Katie Quirke with the U16s, and Jen Barry with the Cork Camogie Team. You are fantastic representatives of the club, and wonderful role models for the younger generation. Well done girls!

Bride Rovers GAA

 A big thank you to the Senior Men’s Club for the ongoing use of the pitches and facilities. The Club grounds continue to grow and improve in infrastructure and are becoming a brilliant facility for all aspects of training and matches, and we greatly appreciate the use of them.