Membership
Right now we have 370 Aodh Ruadh members registered for 2016, that’s 180 short on our usual tally. The deadline for registration is this coming Thursday. There will be one further open registration session on Wednesday 30th March in the club rooms in Aras Aoidh Ruaidh at the park from 7.30pm to 8.30pm. Gerry Ferguson’s Jewellers can also facilitate registrations, while Betty McIntyre’s can also take registration at her house on the Mall. It is particularly pressing that players ensure they have their form and fee in by Wednesday at the latest. After that players can still register, but they will not be eligible to play for five days. We regularly have the situation where players have to sit out important early season games because they are not registered. It is unfair to put managers in the position where they have to tell players they can’t allow them to play. Make sure your manager is not put in that position. Players can download registration forms from aodhruadh.org and submit this along with the relevant fee directly to their manager. Please bear in mind you must be a club member to be in consideration for All-Ireland final tickets should Donegal reach that stage. Also, only club members have a say in club decisions and a vote at the AGM.
Inaugural Easter camp
Aodh Ruadh are preparing their first ever Easter Camp. The camp will run from Wednesday 30th March to Friday 1st April. Under 6s and under 8s will be catered for from 10am to 12.30pm. Then the under 10s and under 12s come in from 1pm to 3.30pm. It’s excellent value at just €25 for the three days. Brian Roper is organising the camp and you can contact him on 0876139065 to book a place or get further information.
Football
Aodh Ruadh opened the sixth attempt in their ongoing quest for promotion from division three with an encouraging away win in Portsalon. They did it the hard way though, coming from a point behind at half time to emerge nine point victors over Fanad Gaels on a scoreline of 3-14 to 1-11. They dominated the first 20 minutes of the second half to roar out into a 14 point lead, before easing off the gas coming down the home straight. David McGurrin was instrumental, bagging 2-2 while Philip Patton hit 1-2 and David Dolan registered 0-2 as the full forward lined chalked up 3-6 between them. We have a full match report and team sheet from the game up on aodhruadh.org.
The reserves didn’t fare quite so well on the peninsula, coming out on the wrong side of the odd score in 11 against Fanad Gaels, 0-6 to 0-5 the final scoreline.
The next fixtures for the adult footballers is set to be the visit of Letterkenny Gaels on Saturday, 10th April.
The minors travelled to Glencolumbcille on Sunday and came away with a 5-9 to 7-19 win over Naomh Columba. That victory takes the Ernesiders level on four points with Bundoran and Saint Naul’s at the top of Division 1B. The picture at the top of the division should become a little clearer when Aodh Ruadh travel to Bundoran for the local derby this Wednesday.
Under 14 boys training on Wednesday at 4.15pm sharp. We expect to have an away game this weekend. We should have further details at Wednesday training. Players are asked to ensure they have club membership paid as they cannot play if they are not registered.
Some 29 members of the under 12 squad accompanied by parents and family members had a great day out on Easter Saturday. Our first two games against Cavan Gaels were battles as much as matches and both teams showed that fire in the belly makes for great games in any conditions. Ciaran Fitzpatrick and the Cavan Gaels put on welcome refreshments after which we were back on the road to Dublin heading for Erin’s Isle club in Finglas. Donegal man, Cara Mac Aodhan looks after the under 12s for Erin’s Isle. We played two games against the Dubs, recording one win and one loss. Although it rained here too the conditions were better than they had been in Cavan and the standard of football from Aodh Ruadh stepped up a notch too. A great feature of both our challenge matches was the warmth and hospitality we received in Cavan and Dublin. Soup, sandwiches, tea, buns, etc all laid on with more to take with us if we wanted. Not only this but also how happy these clubs were that we came to play them and got such quality performances out of both sets of players.
We spent an hour touring the Croke Park museum and although the main event on Saturday wasn’t one of Donegal’s greatest matches it was a night that will probably stay with us when better games have been long forgotten. Another Donegal man, John Cassidy, greased the wheels to open up the backstage areas of Croker and some of Donegal’s greatest ever servants, Rory Kavanagh, Michael Murphy, Eamonn McGee, Colm McFadden, Leo McLoone, Ryan McHugh, Marty Reilly, Frank McGlynn and our own Peter Boyle chatted to the kids, signed autographs and took pictures. This, all the more commendable from them because it was not at a time when they were riding high on the joys of victory. Kevin Byrne kept us on schedule all day and was readily agreeable to late night stops for toilet breaks and refreshments even when we should all have been long in bed. Special thanks must go to Conall Sweeny for refereeing and team management duties. Thanks also to Gabby McGloin, Mary McGinley, Paul Gillespie, Alan Sweeny, Barry Sweeny, Stephen Gallagher, John Meehan, Michael Daly, Paddy Campbell and Kevin Gallagher who carefully steered them around the crowded areas of Croke Park without one lost sheep. A big shout out too to Rory Kavanagh, Ciaran Kelly, John Cassidy, Seamus Meade, Ciaran Fitzpatrick and Cara Mac Aodhan.
Finally the day out was really all about the young club members of Aodh Ruadh who represented the club proudly on and off the field. They looked out for each other, played, sang and got over their own wee hassles. They saw how the GAA reaches out into our wider community and hopefully the answer he got wasn’t lost on him when one of our young players asked Peter Boyle there in Croke Park in the middle of his Donegal team mates if he was ever going to play for Aodh Ruadh again. “I’ll always play for Aodh Ruadh,” says Peter.
Under 12 training moves outdoors from now on. Training will last an hour and 15 minutes from 5.15pm to 6.30pm and will take place on Mondays and Fridays, in Páirc Aoidh Ruadh [Munday’s]. Check out the Aodh Ruadh CLG Facebook page for pictures from the trip, with thanks to Mary McGinley for photography.
Under 10 training is back this Friday 1st April from 6.30pm to 7.30pm at Páirc Aoidh Ruadh [Munday’s].
Under 8 and under 6 training is also back this Friday 1st April from 6.30pm to 7.30pm at Páirc Aoidh Ruadh.
Ladies
Under 14 training continues on Tuesdays and Thursdays at Páirc Aoidh Ruadh at 5.45pm. The first under 14 league game will be at 12 noon this Saturday, 2nd April, against Four Masters in Father Tierney Park.
Under 12 training continues Thursday from 6pm to 7pm and again on Saturday from 10am to 11am.
Indoor training for under 8s [2008s and 2009s] and under 10s [2006s and 2007s] will commence this Wednesday 30 March from 7pm to 8pm at the Mercy Hall. The cost is €2 and remember to bring a bottle of water. Please ensure that your child’s registration is paid before training starts though, as the deadline for that is March 31st. We will train indoors for the month of April and go out doors on Mondays from 6pm to 7pm. If you have further enquires please contact Gabby on 0872902245 or Louise on 0876388562.
We would like to remind all who intend to play this year that they must ensure they are registered with the club by March 31st. Players not registered with the club are not insured and as illegal players they endanger any potential success their team might enjoy.
Hurling
The senior opened their Ulster Táin League campaign against Saint Eunan’s in Father Tierney Park on Bank Holiday Easter Monday. Unfortunately, despite a battling Aodh Ruadh display, the spoils went the way of the visitors on a scoreline of 1-10 to 2-14. We have pictures from that game up on aodhruadh.org.
The underage hurling leagues began last Thursday, and Aodh Ruadh got off to a great start with both the under 14s and minors winning.
The under 14s fresh from their Féile success were worthy winners at home to Dungloe / Gaoth Dobhair. Their ability to take their points was the difference as they put up a score line of 7-11 to to 5-1. They conceded a number of soft goals in the second half, which they will have to work on in training. But overall it was a good start to their campaign winning by 16 points.
The minors had just the bare 15 as they made the trip to the Setanta. A number of players have made themselves unavailable this season leaving us with a very young team and seven of the starting 15 were under 16. Setanta opened the scoring with a goal, as the Aodh Ruadh lads showed a lot of rustiness earlier on. But gradually the lads clawed their way back into the game and ran out convincing winners 4-14 to 1-6. These lads have a very difficult campaign ahead of them with such a small panel, but knowing their commitment we can be assured they’ll give it their all for the season ahead.
The under 14s have a bye this week while the minors are at home to a strong Carndonagh team this Thursday.
On Saturday last we had a bucket collection in the town to raise funds for the under 14’s upcoming trip to Féile na nGael. Despite the awful weather, we got a great response to this fund-raiser. Thanks to all the parents who played their part on the day. Many thanks to all who contributed on the day your support is much appreciated.
Training for all age groups as normal this Sunday 12 noon.
In other hurling news, Father Tierney Park hosted the NHL Division 3A final with Roscommon running out 4-15 to 0-7 victors over Monaghan in an entertaining game. We have a gallery of images from the final up on aodhruadh.org.
Recreational football
Recreational football returns to Páirc Aoidh Ruaidh this Saturday at 6.30pm for the warm with the game getting going at 7pm. If you haven’t pulled on the boots in a while, it’s a great opportunity to get out and active. It’s excellent value at just €3 for the session. The main rule is no touching of the hair or face, but if you need further information text or call Alan on 0868052816.
Abbey Centre Bingo
The March big bingo jackpot of €800 was won by Eileen Maguire of Donegal. There was no winner of the spring snowball so next week’s snowball prize will be €300 on 46 numbers or less. Bingo as usual at 9pm this Friday at the Abbey Centre. Books priced at just €10.
Aodh Ruadh Lotto
There was no winner of last week’s Aodh Ruadh Lotto jackpot of €3,800. The winning numbers drawn were 2, 4, 8, 12, 16 and 17. In the lucky dip €20 went to Marie Gallagher, Erne Street; Gerry Carty, c/o McGinley’s; Frances Daly, Abbeylands; Celia Burns, Garrison; and Teresa Herron, Bishop Street. Next draw is on Sunday in Owen Roe’s Bar with a Jackpot of €3,900 on Sunday at 8.30pm.
The lotto team for McCosker’s Centra Saturday is: JUVENILE HURLERS.
You can receive the club notes by e-mail every Tuesday morning. To subscribe, enter your details on the website, www.aodhruadh.org, or e-mail your request to info@aodhruadh.org.
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