Sports
Galway Sports Stars of the Year
SOME of the county’s top sporting personalities will be honoured for their achievements over the past 12 months at the 49th annual Galway Sports Stars awards banquet in the Ardilaun Hotel on Saturday night, January 18.
They will be joined by Hall of Fame recipient, Jimmy Duggan, who won an All-Ireland senior football medal with Galway as a teenager in 1966 and also captained St. Jarlath’s College, Tuam to the Hogan Cup during an outstanding playing career.
It will also be a big night for Galway camogie on the back of the county’s greatest ever season. Therese Maher wins the individual Player of the Year award for the fourth time; double winning All-Ireland supremo Tony Ward is honoured as Manager of the Year; while the Galway seniors will pick up the Team of the Year award.
New Galway captain Joe Canning, a huge influence in Portumna’s return to the top of the local championship scene, is chosen as the Hurler of the Year, with the Gaelic Football accolade going to the county’s lone All Star nominee, St. James’ Paul Conroy.
Another highlight of the presentation banquet will be the honouring of St. Thomas’ as Club of the Year after their memorable All-Ireland hurling triumph last March, while the Special Merit award is bestowed on the Galway U-21 footballers who produced a series of great displays, especially against Kildare and Cork, on their way to ultimate championship glory.
World Colleges champion Martin Mulkerrins is a popular choice for the handball honour, with the golfing award going to Portumna GC’s Suzanne Corcoran, who won the Irish Senior Women’s Close Championship and played a starring role in helping Ireland to win the European title at the same level.
Though the achievements of Irish Age Groups swimming champion, David O’Sullivan, are being recognised for the second time, there are a number of individuals earning their first Sports Stars award as Greenfields goalkeeper Sinead Collins (Hockey); Connacht full back Robbie Henshaw (Rugby); Republic of Ireland goalkeeper David Forde; and colourful trainer John Monroe (Horse Racing) will all be new names on the roll of honour.
Previous award winners who are being feted again are Alanna Lally (Athletics); Kieran Molloy (Boxing); Annette Clarke (Ladies Football); Claire Molloy (Women’s Rugby); and the Bish Junior 18 eights who have completed an historic All-Ireland three-in-a-row at both club and schools level
The Special Achievement award will be presented to the remarkably versatile Ciana Ní Churraoin, who captured All-Ireland medals in three different sports – handball, camogie and ladies football – during 2013.
The Sports Stars awards are the definitive benchmark of sporting achievement in the county and special guest at the presentation banquet – the social highlight of the local sporting year – will be Billy Walsh, seven times Irish senior boxing champion and Head Coach of the IABA’s High Performance Unit.
One of Ireland’s most successful companies, Supermac’s, remain on board as Sports Stars sponsors and the panel of local journalists who adjudicate on the awards are indebted to Pat and Una McDonagh for their continued support.
The selection panel comprised of: John McIntyre, Connacht Tribune; Jim Carney, Tuam Herald; Mártan Ó Ciadhra, Raidio na Gaeltachta; Frank Farragher, Connacht Tribune; Stephen Glennon, Connacht Tribune; Michael Glynn, Connacht Tribune; Seán Bán Breathnach, Raidio na Gaeltachta; Ciaran Tierney, Connacht Tribune; Noel Carney, Tuam Herald; Keith Kelly, Connacht Tribune; and Dara Bradley, Connacht Tribune. Full details of the 2013 Galway Sports Stars in this week’s Connacht Tribune.
Galway 3-18
Cork 1-10
NEW setting; new opposition; new challenge. It made no difference to the Galway minor hurlers as they chalked up a remarkable sixth consecutive double digits championship victory at Semple Stadium on Saturday.
The final scoreline in Thurles may have been a little harsh on Cork, but there was no doubting Galway’s overall superiority in setting up only a second-ever All-Ireland showdown against Clare at the same venue on Sunday week.
Having claimed an historic Leinster title the previous weekend, Galway took a while to get going against the Rebels and also endured their first period in a match in which they were heavily outscored, but still the boys in maroon roll on.
Beating a decent Cork outfit by 14 points sums up how formidable Galway are. No team has managed to lay a glove on them so far, and though Clare might ask them questions other challengers haven’t, they are going to have to find significant improvement on their semi-final win over 14-man Kilkenny to pull off a final upset.
Galway just aren’t winning their matches; they are overpowering the teams which have stood in their way. Their level of consistency is admirable for young players starting off on the inter-county journey, while the team’s temperament appears to be bombproof, no matter what is thrown at them.
Having romped through Leinster, Galway should have been a bit rattled by being only level (0-4 each) after 20 minutes and being a little fortunate not to have been behind; or when Cork stormed out of the blocks at the start of the second half by hitting 1-4 to just a solitary point in reply, but there was never any trace of panic in their ranks.
For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.
Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App
Download the Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App to access to Galway’s best-selling newspaper.
Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.
Or purchase the Digital Edition for PC, Mac or Laptop from Pagesuite HERE.
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GALWAY United need to guard against any kind of complacency when they make the short hop down the M18 this Friday to take on Treaty United at the Markets Field (7.45pm).
The game is a meeting of the two form teams in the division, and as in previous meetings between the sides, will have an additional edge given the number of former United players in the home side’s ranks, and the pair of Limerick lads playing for United.
There might have been just the eight meetings between the sides since Treaty became the latest iteration to represent Limerick in the League of Ireland in 2021, and while United have yet to lose to the men in the candy-cane strips, there has never been more than a goal in four of their eight wins.
The most recent of those was back in February, when Rob Slevin scored the only goal of the game in Eamonn Deacy Park after a tough battle against a side who made a slow start to the season, before finally finding their groove in the past month.
Having taken just three points from their first six games before finally getting a win against Longford Town, they reverted to type with just one point from their next three games, but are now on a run of four wins on the spin, scoring 12 goals and conceding just one.
Their most recent win was a 3-0 victory away to Longford Town last Saturday, and they could have won by double that against the only side to have beaten United this season. That in itself is a warning.
For more, read this week’s Galway City Tribune.
Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App
Download the Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App to access to Galway’s best-selling newspaper.
Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.
Or purchase the Digital Edition for PC, Mac or Laptop from Pagesuite HERE.
Get the Connacht Tribune Live app
The Connacht Tribune Live app is the home of everything that is happening in Galway City and county. It’s completely FREE and features all the latest news, sport and information on what’s on in your area. Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.
Soccer Wrap with Mike Rafferty
While the Salthill Devon men’s team might have lost their grip on the Connacht Junior Cup that they held for two seasons, the club’s women’s side have picked up the mantle and on Sunday last in Headford were crowned provincial champions with a 4-3 win over Manulla.
Following midweek wins for Maree/Oranmore and Knocknacarra, the stage is now almost set for the semi-finals of the Michael Byrne Cup with Salthill Devon meeting St Bernard’s on Sunday in an outstanding quarter-final, with the winners advancing to a semi-final against Maree/Oranmore, while Colga will face Knocknacarra in the other last four contest.
Just one league issue remains to be decided, with the Championship runners-up position up for grabs, as Dynamo Blues have to win their two remaining games in order to overtake Colemanstown United who have finished their programme.
WOMEN’S CONNACHT CUP FINAL
Salthill Devon 4
Manulla 3
Ellerose O’Flaherty scored twice as Salthill Devon were crowned provincial champions with a win over a Mayo side who were losing in the final for the second year in succession.
Backboned by a number of players who previously had League of Ireland experience with Galway WFC, Devon suffered an early set back when Jess Nolan put Manulla ahead, before O’Flaherty levelled matters with a cracking finish on 20 minutes, which was quickly followed by a long-range free-kick from Aoife Walsh.
For more, read this week’s Galway City Tribune.
Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App
Download the Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App to access to Galway’s best-selling newspaper.
Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.
Or purchase the Digital Edition for PC, Mac or Laptop from Pagesuite HERE.
Get the Connacht Tribune Live app
The Connacht Tribune Live app is the home of everything that is happening in Galway City and county. It’s completely FREE and features all the latest news, sport and information on what’s on in your area. Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.
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