Sports
Rugby dominates Galway Sports Stars awards
IN a year in which the Connacht rugby team broke new ground in spectacular style, it’s highly appropriate that the Galway Sports Stars Hall of Fame award for 2016 will be presented to a former Irish captain and a man who also led the Lions tour of 1983 to New Zealand.
Loughrea native Ciaran Fitzgerald, skipper of the triumphant Ireland Triple Crown teams of 1982 and 1985, will have his exploits on the rugby field honoured at the 52nd annual Galway Sports Stars banquet in the Galway Bay Hotel on Saturday night, February 4.
It’s going to be an occasion dominated by the sport of rugby as Connacht’s mould-breaking Guinness Pro12 success will be celebrated with three different awards – Coach of the Year: Pat Lam; Player of the Year: John Muldoon; and the Team of the Year accolade
It will also be a big night for the Sarsfields Camogie Club as their great exploits at different levels, including a first ever county senior title, is recognised with the Club of the Year award, while multi-medal winner Siobhan McGrath will pick up the individual Camogie honour.
Galway captain David Burke, who also central to St Thomas’ regaining the Galway title, has been chosen as the Hurler of the Year, with the Gaelic Football award going to Corofin’s defensive dynamo Ciaran McGrath, a player who has twice recovered from career-threatening injuries.
McGrath’s clubmate, Dáithí Burke, is honoured with a Special Achievement award following a hectic season which saw win a hurling All Star and play a leading role in Corofin capturing the Galway football title for a fourth year-in-a-row and also regaining the Connacht crown.
Jockey Paddy Brennan, who enjoyed a landmark season thanks to the exploits of Cue Card and reaching 1,000 career winners, picks up the Horse Racing award for the fourth time, while another multi-award winner Sean Breathnach, Irish Shot Putt champion, takes the Athletics accolade again.
Also, no strangers to these awards are Daryl Horan, whose fantastic season with Dundalk ensures the Salthill man wins the Soccer accolade for the second year in succession, and Ronan Mullarney, who followed into the footsteps of some legendary Irish golfers by winning the prestigious Mullingar Scratch Cup.
Newcomers to the honours list are Niamh Duggan (Ladies Football), Gabriel Dossen (Boxing), Eoin Rockall (Basketball), and Aoife Shorten (Swimming), while National champions, the NUIG Coxless Fours, will be feted with the Rowing award.
Another highlight of the presentation banquet promises to be the honouring of TJ Beatty as the Special Dedication award winner in recognition of his lifetime’s involvement with athletics between competing, coaching and administrating. Gold medal cycling winner in Rio, Eoghan Clifford will have his great achievement recognised with the Paralympics award.
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 Eamonn Coughlan, the former World 5,000m champion.
Galway’s biggest private employers and medical devices company, Medtronic, continue as sponsors of the Sports Stars awards, and the panel of local journalists who adjudicate on the awards are indebted to the company for its valued support.
The selection panel comprised of: John McIntyre, Connacht Tribune; Billy Coss, 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; Keith Kelly, Connacht Tribune; and Dara Bradley, 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.
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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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