Ardglass triumph in O’Shea sevens

Ardglass triumph in O’Shea sevens

27 June 2012

SEVEN teams took part in Ardglass GAC’s inaugural Paddy O’Shea memorial tournament at a drizzly Ardtole on Saturday.

Paddy was a native of Belleek and Erne Gaels GAC travelled from his home town to take part in the tournament. The tournament included teams that currently play in senior, intermediate and junior championships and it was hard to tell the difference given that all games were closely contested.

In Group A Ardglass opened the tournament with a 3-4 to 0-4 win which they followed up with wins over Aughlisnafin and Kilclief to top the group. Erne Gaels overcame their initial loss and turned on the style to win their remaining two games and also qualify for the semi-finals.

In Group B, only three teams competed, with Saul and Loughinisland playing out an enthralling draw that ebbed and flowed from start to finish in the opening game.

Loughinisland followed this by defeating a determined Dundrum side to qualify for the semi-finals, which left Saul requiring a point to progress while Dundrum required a win.

This was a replay of the recent Junior Feis sevens final and a tight encounter ensued with the lead changing hands on several occasions.

With the final whistle approaching and Dundrum leading by a point, Saul were awarded a 45. As is the current trend in Gaelic football the Saul goalkeeper came up the field to take the kick, however unlike Stephen Cluxton’s famous kick last September the ball drifted wide and Dundrum progressed.

The semi-finals line up saw the hosts play Dundrum and Loughinisland take on the Fermanagh men. The derby between Ardglass and Dundrum was a tight encounter which saw Dundrum take a three-point lead at the break.

Ardglass burst out of the blocks in the second half, hitting five unanswered points to take a three-point lead. Chasing the game, Dundrum gallantly tried to score a goal, but Ardglass held out for a 0-12 to 1-6 victory.

The second semi final between Loughinisland and Erne Gaels was a hard-hitting and fast-paced game of sevens football.

The Blues took a four-point lead into the break. Erne Gaels rallied and drew level again only for Loughinisland to extend their lead by three again.

The closing minutes saw some frantic defending from the Down men as Erne Gaels attempted to snatch a draw, but Loughinisland held firm and progressed to the final with a 1-6 to 0-6 win

The final did not disappoint. Ardglass took an early lead with goals from Michael Magee and Malachy Crangle and points from Ryan Curran and James Telford.

The Blues fought back and added several points from play to leave a five-point margin at half time. They started the second half sharply to hit to quick-fire goals and it could have been more but for two tremendous saves from Mark Armstrong.

Ardglass seemed rattled, although they regained their composure as Curran and Magee again found the net to record a 4-6 to 3-4 victory.

The Paddy O’Shea Memorial Trophy was presented to Ardglass captain Michael Magee by Paddy’s wife, Carmel, who thanked the club in their efforts in providing a fitting memorial to her husband.

In a wonderful gesture the Erne Gaels Club presented Ardglass and the O’Shea family with a beautiful piece of Belleek china modelled in the style of Sam Maguire to be presented to the outstanding player of the tournament. Paddy’s son, Peter, and his brother, Tony, jointly picked a worthy recipient of this award in Ardglass captain Michael Magee.

• The committee of Ardglass GAC and the O’Shea Family would like to thank all the teams that competed on the day, especially Erne Gaels for travelling from Fermanagh, and the match officials, Martin Brady and Mickey Curran.