Date : 30th March 2013
Venue: Crumlin Community Centre
Brid Og were invited to a six team hurling tournament which had been postponed from the previous week due to the weather conditions. Unfortunately 2 teams Ballygalget and Lamh dhearg Belfast did not field so the 4 competing teams were Brid Og, Bredagh, Keady and the hosts Glenavy.
Before the games started the club mentors were brought together and the rules explained. The games would be played in a league format with the top 2 teams competing in the cup final and the bottom 2 teams in the shield. The matches would be full rules and 9 a side. The scoring structure was also changed with a “point” being awarded 3 points and a goal scoring a single point. The games were also 2 halves of 7 minutes each. The new rules were explained to the players and they were told to strike high were possible.
Brid Og 1:1 Glenavy 0:1
Matches against Glenavy are always tight and this was no exception. As the Og’s had a panel of 12 players we had 3 rolling substitutes during the games, Young Niall D got the first score with a well taken point and brother Shane added to our total with a goal. The match became very tense when Glenavy scored a late point but the Og’s held out for the win.
Brid Og 0:0 Bredagh 0:1
The Og’s next match was against Bredagh. In this game Jack in nets was fantastic and he produced some great saves. Our defensive lines and midfield of Niall M , Conlan, Gerard, Shane and Pearce S played as a unit and produced some great blocks to give our forwards of Samir, Niall D, Pearse, Zack, Oran and James a chance to win the game however on several occasions the sliotar went narrowly wide. In the second half of a very even game our opponents were awarded a free deep in their half and their young player duly obliged and put the sliotar over the bar from distance to give Bredagh the narrowest of victories.
Brid Og 0:0 Keady 4:2
The Og’s final league game was against Armagh side Keady. This was the hardest game the Og’s faced on the day as we were up against a larger, stronger team who could hurl brilliantly and over the two halves they amassed a total score of 4 : 2.
When the results were all totaled up Bredagh would play Keady in the Cup Final and the Og’s would play hosts Glenavy
Shield Final
Brid Og 0:1 Glenavy 0:0
As Glenavy had 11 players it was decided to play the Final as an 11 a side match. This may have made the game more start – stop as there was limited space for the players to express their skills. At half-time the Og’s had the majority of the chances but unfortunately had no scores for their efforts. The mentors reassured the players that if they continued to play in the same manner the match was there for the winning.
The second half continued with both teams looking more nervous about losing the match than winning the game. The talk from the side lines was a single score could win the final. The winning score of the game was indeed controversial but for once it went in the Og’s favour. We were awarded a free close to the left hand side line and young Pearse struck the sliotar well from a difficult angle. One umpire raised his hand for the score whilst the other umpire signalled for a wide. The ref awarded the point and the Og’s had a couple of nervous minutes to play out before the final whistle signalled a victory for this young team and jubilant celebrations from the players.
The Og’s were summoned to the club house for refreshments for both the parents and players and joint captains Jack and Shane were presented with the shield to a large chorus of cheers from the other players and their supporters.
BRID OG ABU!!
Thanks
I would like to thank Glenavy for inviting us to this tournament and providing the refreshments. I would also like to thank Ciaran Grant, Gavin Kane, John Duffy, Tara Baird and Darren Hamill for helping with the U8 and U10 teams. As usual our parental support was very vocal and this urged our players on during all the games.
Final thanks goes to the kids who hurled brilliantly in such cold conditions.
All twelve players in our panel helped in the teams victory but special mention to the performances of Conlan, Niall D, Pearse H, and Zack who also played in the U8 games that preceded the U10 tournament.
Brid Og Panel
Conlan
Gerard
Jack
James
Niall D
Niall M
Oran
Pearce S
Pearse H
Samir
Shane
Zack
