They say it's a long road that has no turning and so it is and at last on Monday next June 7th, the Bank Holiday Monday, the 2021 Club GAA Season commences. Last year we had two months of Spring action and then a lazy, crazy, hazy summer of nothing happening. It was the end of July in 2020 before we got to see games so at least this year wee can look forward to having a summer of hurling and football. Were jut three weeks away from the longest day of the year but as June, July and August stretch before us all we can say is 'Tis great to be back!  It will still be games 'behind closed doors' for a while yet with a limit of 100 at matches and that includes teams and officials. The covid pandemic isn't fully gone away so we must all keep up our guard and abide by the rules still in place. Our playing season gets underway with a Junior Football League game at noon on Monday and it's action all the way after that. The growth of the Juvenile Club over the last five years has been phenomenal reflecting the increasing population in our parish. Thirty years ago we couldn't field an under 16 team with under 12's lining out and we often had lads of 13 playing Minor. All's changed for the better now. Take next Saturday week for example, June 12th. On that day four hurling teams from the Juvenile Club will be in action. The under 9's are at home to Blackrock while the under 11's are away to the Rockies. The under 16 hurlers face Mallow at 2 0 clock in Carrigoon while at 5 o clock the under 15's are away to Fermoy. Fielding at 13 different age groups takes some organising so well done to all involved.   

Fixtures

Our Fixture List for the week is as follows. 

Monday June 7th, JAFL Group 2 v Carraig na bhFear in Carrignavar at 12 noon. 

Tuesday June 8th SH challenge v Shamrocks in Pairc na Bride 

Wed June 9th Under 18 Hurling challenge  vs Aghada Wednesday  in Aghada at 8pm

Sat June 12 - Under 9 hurling, Home to Blackrock  at 11am

Sat June 12 Under 16 Hurling away to Mallow at 2-00

Sat 12th June Under 11  hurling away to Blackrock.

Sat 12th June Under 15  Div 1Hurling L away to Fermoy  5pm . 

Sun June 13th, Red FM Division 1 Hurling League v St Finbarrs in Togher at 2pm.  

Mon June 14th, JBHL Group 4 v Carrigtwohill in Pairc Na Bride at 7.45pm.  

So we start with an away game v Carrignavar in the East Cork JFL followed the following night by a visit from the Pat Walsh trained Shamrocks from the triple parish of Knockanore/Kilwatermoy and Glendine. Our first game in the RED FM sponsored Div 1 County SHL is a visit to Togher to play the Barrs on Sunday June 13th. Then on the following night our second hurling team will be in League action at home to Carrigtwohill. The under 18 hurlers -I don’t know whether to call them Minors or under 18's now there's so much chopping and changing at age grades, well our lads start their season with a challenge game v Aghada below in Rostellan. It's a hectic games programme but isn't it just great to see so many teams in action here, there and everywhere. Bride Rovers Abu.! 

Bride Rovers Weekly Lotto

 Results from our Draw on Tues May 25th, the Jackpot was €20,000 and the 4 numbers drawn were 8, 11, 19, and 25 and there was no winner. Those who won €30 each were as follows Ellen Savage Ballyhooly, Caitriona Mulhally, Nollaig Murphy

Brian Shinnick Fermoy, Edward Finn Ballihassig

You can join the Bride Rovers weekly lotto online at http://briderovers.ie/  or purchase tickets from any of the retail outlets locally that are open. Tickets can also be got locally from Bride Rovers GAA Club Members throughout the parish. Your support of the weekly Lotto Draw is deeply appreciated. If you're not in you can't win and each €2 is a help for our ongoing promotion of Gaelic games. A yearly ticket at €90can also be purchased. 

DOWN MEMORY LANE.

Last week I mentioned some Senior Championship game we have played against Na Piarsaigh. This week we look at two contests, fourteen years apart - 2004 and 2018. Having won the Intermediate Title in 2003 we stepped up to the Senior Grade the following year. In our first ever Senior Championship game we met Na Piarsaigh in Fermoy in May. It was a hard game but the City side came out on op by a margin of two points 1 12 to 2 7. One national Newspaper reporter  wrote 'if last years Intermediate champions had just a few more minutes they could well have toppled Na Piarsaigh' Brian Murphy with 1  1 was our top sorer, Dinny Fitzgerald got a cracker of a goal from a penalty while Barry Johnson scored two frees and a 65 and Terry Broderick,  Richie Cahill and Brenda Walsh all raised a white flag. Midleton beat us in Ballynoe in the 'back door' game that year. In 2018 the banner headline on one paper was 'The pride of Bride breeze past Piarsaigh' That was after our 2  24 to  0  17 win on Saturday night August 12th in Midleton's Clonmult Memorial Park. In one of our best ever performances at Senior level we had a great win. That year Einne O hEochaidh from An Spideal in Galway threw in his lot with us. The Galway man was working down South and joined us. His goal just before half time and an earlier green flag from Shane O Connor helped us to a  2 12 to 0 10 half time lead. We kept up the pressure in the second half. Both sides added four points in the third quarter to leave it 2 16 to 0 14 but then we took over. We struck six  points in a row and went on to win by 13 points. Team and scorers J. O Driscoll, E. Roche, B. Walsh, F. Collins, J. Pratt, Brian Murphy,  S. Walsh, S. O Connor 1 0, B. Johnson 0  6 (5 frees), M. Collins, C.O Connor 0 3, D. Dooley 0  7(2 frees), J. Mannix, E. O h Eochaidh 1  2, B. Roche  0 5. Subs S. Kearney, C. Ryan.   

EYES DOWN RESULTS 

On Saturday night last we held our final Bingo Session for the summer.The Bingo online was a joint venture between the Senior, Juvenile and ladies Clubs and was a fantastic success during the month of May. Thanks to the hard-working 'behind the scenes' group who masterminded the four sessions. Thanks to Mossy Dooley, Wm O Leary, Michelle Barry and Marie Gubbins who were the callers and all did a wonderful job. Last Saturday night as Marie was shouting the number s our Cisteoir Liam Barry was out and about on the highways and byeways of Bartlemy and Rathcormac, knocking at doors 'live' on the air, delivering surprise hampers. Well done Liam and thanks to Fermoy Print for the brilliant promotional material. last Saturday night our raffle sponsors were Hannah's, Fermoy , The Little Farm, Paul Howard and Ger Gubbins Construction and a big 'thank you' to these and all who donated prizes. The Bingo final night results were as follows

For the summer now it's eyes up and in the autumn we hope to have the Bingo again. Thanks to all who supported this fundraiser over the last four weeks.

PLAYERS INJURY FUND DEBATE.

There has been much debate in recent weeks on the GAA's Player Injury Fund. A few months back the GAA announced an anticipated shortfall of €1.5 million in the Fund for 2021 and said that where players got injured in playing or training and were out of work that no loss of wages would be paid. This naturally caused outrage in Clubs around the country. A heated debate was held in Cork when the GAA more or less offered a 'take it or leave it' fallback position where Clubs should pay so much per player or players themselves should pay. It's very unsatisfactory to be asking Clubs to shell out more cash at a time when fund raising is difficult. Personally I feel the GAA should cover this cost centrally. We are always told the 'grassroots' are the most important part of the GAA and must be looked after. As they say the proof of the pudding is in the eating, talk is cheap.

UNDER 9's back in action .

The under 9s returned to contact training in the past week and are itching to show what they can do during a match. They will get their wish soon enough as the Go Games Fixtures were released this Monday and has thrown up clashes against Blackrock and Carrigtwohill in hurling and St.Finbarrs and Bandon in football. With 33 players registered for the season, we hope to see plenty of game time for all in the coming weeks starting on Sat June 12 when we are at  Home to Blackrock in hurling at 11am. Other Fixtures planned are Sat June 19 - Home to St.Finbars in football at 11am, Sat June 26 - Home to Carrigtwohill in hurling at 11am and on Saturday  July 3 at home to Bandon in football at 11am

Under 16 Fixtures. After the under 16's have the opening game v mallow on Saturday week their other June games are as follows; 

Sat June 19 Football home to Buttevant at 2-00 & Sat June 26. Hurling home to Aghada at 2-00

Under 14 Football. Our first game in the Rebel Og under 14 League is a Premier grade game awy to Castlelyons on June 16th at 7pm.

Cork Under 20's preparing. 

In a little over a month's time the 2020 All Ireland Hurling Final will take place. The game has been pencilled in by the GAA for the weekend of July 10th/11th. It looks likely that Dublin and Galway will play the Leinster Final a week earlier. Cork will then face the Leinster winners in the National decider. I suppose it will be a big plus for whoever comes out of Leinster to have had a good championship game as preparation but Pat Ryan and his fellow Cork selectors will have the Rebels well prepared. Cork defeated both Galway and Dublin to win the 2017 All Ireland 'special' under 17 Hurling competition. On that ay the Roche twins Brian and Eoin were the proud Cork joint Captains. Perhaps they made history that day in Croke Park as a recent GAA Rule change has 'outlawed' the concept of joint captains going forward. The logic behind that decision has never been adequately explained. 

Club Gear.

We still have a certain amount of Bride Rovers shorts and stockings available from our Club Shop. Please contact Betty on 086 1540902 or Kathleen on 086  3807784. Also several new Product Lines in our Colours with the Club Crest are now available from O Neills at very reasonable prices. To look at the items go to the O Neills website www.oneills.com 

BRIDE ROVERS CLUB SPONSORS are; Rathcormac Tyres,Fermoy Print & Design,Veolia