Corrib U16s make big splash

CORRIB Water Polo Club had two teams participating in the All-Ireland U16 Cup tournament which was held last weekend in Lisburn, Co. Antrim.

The B team comprised players who are still U14 or have just moved up to U16 level this year. In the luck of the draw, Corrib A and Corrib B ended up in the same qualifying group and had to play each other in the opening group game on Saturday morning.

Corrib A ran out comfortable winners 12-1 over Corrib B putting the As into the quarter-finals against Clontarf and giving Corrib B a much more difficult task against the much fancied Cathal Brugha of Belfast.

Corrib A started poorly against Clontarf, conceding the first goal but the strength and depth of the Corrib squad soon shone through and they went into half-time with a commanding 6-1 lead with goals coming from Evan Naughton at hole forward, captain Bill Jennings and Jonathan Regan.

Peter Crotty, Mark Moran, Davey Knight and Lorcan Gavin added to the tally in the second half and Corrib ran out easy 14-1 winners over their Dublin opponents.

Corrib B then played Cathal Brugha and their older and more physical opponents had a good first half with a commanding 5-1 lead at half-time. In the second half, some fantastic play from Michael Murphy saw him score four goals in a row with a further goal added by David O’Connor to give a respectable final score-line of 10-6 to Cathal Brugha, but unfortunately Corrib B were out of the competition.

Corrib A were now set up for a semi-final on Sunday morning against Grads, Belfast while the other semi-final was contested by St Vincent’s and Cathal Brugha. This semi-final was a bruising encounter, but in the end St Vincent’s speed and stamina saw them pull away in the second half to win 9-4. Corrib easily dispatched Grads in their semi-final with a powerful 12-0 win.

For more, read this week’s Galway City Tribune.