Co Op Superstores Cork U21 Hurling Championship Draws;

The draws for the County Under 21 Hurling Championships took place at the County Committee meeting on Tuesday 5th November;
The Divisional deadline is Sunday, November 17th. The CCC will be setting fixtures after this point.
The draws are as follows;
———————
Under 21 A Hurling
Quarter Finals
A: Carrigdhoun – v – Carbery
B: Avondhu – v – Muskerry
Semi-Finals
Imokilly – v – Winner of A
Seandun – v – Winner of B
———————
Under 21 B Hurling
Quarter Finals
A: Carrigdhoun – v – Bye
B: Avondhu – v – Muskerry
C: Imokilly – v – Carbery
D: Seandun – v – Duhallow
Semi-Finals
Carrigdhoun – v – Winner of B
Winner of C – v – Winner of D
———————
Under 21 C Hurling (13-a-side)
Quarter Finals
A: Carbery – v – Muskerry
Semi-Finals
Imokilly – v – Winner of A
Duhallow – v – Avondhu

Cork Minor Football & Hurling Team Managements confirmed;

The Cork Minor team managements for 2025 were ratified at the County Committee meeting on Tuesday 5th November;

The football management, led by Keith Ricken (St Vincents), were put in place for a two year term;

Keith
Ricken
St. Vincent’s
Manager
Maurice
Moore
Carbery Rangers
Lead Coach
Billy
O’Connor
Cullen
Coach / Mentor
John
McNulty
Uibh Laoire
Selector / Parental Liaison
Clive
Cremin
Carrigtwohill
Selector / Player-Juvenile Liaison
Paul
Holland
Argideen Rangers
Selector/Performance Coach
The Minor Hurling team management led by Fergal McCormack (Mallow) were appointed for a one year term;
Fergal
McCormack
Mallow
Manager
Trevor
O’Keeffe
Aghada
Selector/Coach
Sean
Barrett
Carrigtwohill
Selector/Coach
Diarmuid
Corcoran
Courcey Rovers
Selector/Coach
Mark
Austin
Sarsfields
Selector/Coach

Aghada GAA Club Positive Mental Health Talks;

Aghada GAA Club Positive Mental Health Talks:
Join us for an empowering evening dedicated to nurturing your mental well-being! Hosted by Aghada GAA Club, this transformative event is designed for everyone aged 16 and older.

Our enlightening lineup of speakers will explore the pillars of positive mental health, offering insights into cultivating a resilient mindset, understanding the impact of nutrition on mental strength, and harnessing the power of resilience to take on life’s challenges head on.

Open to all ages, this event provides essential support and guidance for navigating the complexities of life at any stage. Come and be a part of an evening filled with insight, inspiration, and empowerment as we embark on a journey towards greater mental resilience and well-being.

Brought to you by Healthy Ireland & Cork County Council and supported by Aghada GAA Club.

 

Aghabullogue & Kilshannig in Final replay of McCarthy Insurance Group PIFC;

Preview by Denis Hurley (The Echo)

The 2022 Co-op SuperStores Premier IHC final went to a replay and last year’s senior A hurling decider did so too, while the 2020 premier senior hurling final – the first year of the new championship system – went to extra time.

In contrast, however, the first four years since the restructuring had not required a second day out in any of the top four (2020-22 inclusive) or five (2023 onwards) football grades – a total of 17 finals, with the Premier JFC and IAFC deciders last weekend producing winners before Aghabullogue and Kilshannig played out a draw.

With such a quick turnaround time, there will have been little for the two clubs to do this week beyond recovery and so a close game should surely be in prospect once more. Ideally, it would be of the same quality as the drawn match, where both sides approached the game positively, making for an entertaining hour of football.

As with any draw, each side will have a feeling that they should have won but, equally, they will surely know that it would not have taken a lot to have ended up on the losing side.

While the majority of the first half was even, points from John Corkery and Pádraic O’Sullivan sent Aghabullogue in at half-time with a 0-7 to 0-5 lead and the Coachford side then looked set to push on in the second half.

They had moved 0-10 to 0-7 in front by the time Corkery struck for a goal and a six-point lead, but Kilshannig were never going to allow their challenge to peter out, certainly not in a final.

Four points in a row, two each from Darragh O’Sullivan and Diarmuid O’Sullivan, were the immediate response to the setback and then Alan O’Connell’s goal had them in front before Éanna O’Hanlon’s point left two in it.

But Aghabullogue came again – David Thompson halved the lead and then Corkery levelled, 1-12 each, before Aaron O’Sullivan and Luke Casey had them in the driving seat as the clock moved into the red.

And yet, Kilshannig would not relent. Twice, Darragh O’Sullivan was called upon to kick pressure frees and twice he delivered, ensuring that the sides would have to do it all over again.

The winners – and one of the teams will be lifting the trophy this evening – will go straight into an AIB Munster Club IFC clash next weekend against the Limerick champions. Whichever it is should be well primed.

Advanced Ticket Sales only from gaacork.ie/tickets and from SuperValu & Centra Stores  U16’s FREE

St Catherine’s put Munster title on the line as they try to rebound from last seasons county final loss;

Preview by Denis Hurley (The Echo)

When the Cork county championships were reconstituted for 2020, there were 12 clubs in the fifth tier, which was then known as the Co-op SuperStores Lower IHC.

Castlemartyr became the inaugural winners and then went on to claim the intermediate A title at the first attempt; however, none of the other 11 sides involved has had an upward move out of the grade.

Aside from the east Cork club, the other three champions at this level – renamed the Premier JHC in 2022 – were Lisgoold, Ballygiblin and Erin’s Own, all of whom had won the JAHC the year before.

It means that none of the first three beaten finalists – Russell Rovers in 2020, Kilbrittain in 2021 or Tracton in 2022 – had made it back to a decider. In fact, while Tracton did end up exiting the grade, it was downwards after relegation last year while Russell Rovers had to beat Grenagh in a play-off in 2021 to avoid that fate.

With the 2023 JAHC winners Nemo Rangers unable to maintain what had been a phenomenal run, this year’s Premier JHC champions will be one of the original 12 – and it will be one of the previous defeated finalists.

A year ago, St Catherine’s fell to Erin’s Own in the decider, the disappointment compounded by the lack of star attacker Daniel Mangan to injury. However, with the Caherlag side unable to compete in Munster, Catherine’s regrouped and bounced back to claim provincial honours before making it to the All-Ireland final.

They lost there to Kilkenny’s Tullogher-Rosbercon and, unfortunately, their next championship outing was also a defeat – the group-stage opener against Glen Rovers. It left little margin for error but the response has been strong, with wins over St Finbarr’s and Argideen Rangers sending Denis Walsh’s side into the knockout stages.

In the quarter-final, Rory Galvin scored 1-4 in the win over Milford while goalkeeper Eoin Davis landed five points, including the injury-time equaliser and winner. That set up a semi-final tie with Ballygarvan, where 12 points from Galvin were central to an 0-18 to 1-14 victory.

Catherine’s did reach the Lower IHC semi-finals in 2020 but they lost to Russell Rovers – that was the only year before this one where the two Imokilly clubs reached the knockouts.

The Ballycotton/Churchtown/Garryvoe/Shanagarry outfit impressed in the group stages, racking up an aggregate scoring difference of 30 in beating Milford, Douglas and Meelin.

After that, they had a six-week lay-off before facing Nemo Rangers in the semi-finals but they came through that on a 1-19 to 1-12 scoreline in Carrigtwohill, with Josh Beausang accounting for 1-11 of their total while Brian Hartnett and Kevin Moynihan also weighed in on the scoresheet.

Rovers will go in as slight favourites in this East Cork derby but Catherine’s will hope that they can draw upon the experience of playing in three finals inside the past year.

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