Cusack Cup medals presentation function

St. Josephs Miltown senior team will receive their medals for winning the Cusack Cup 2010 at a function at the Armada hotel on Wednesday 29th Decemeber. The medals will be presented by Kerry footballer and multiple All-Ireland winner Tomas O'Se. Tickets are available from local outlets, any committee member or management of the senior team. Please come along to enjoy a great night out.
Finally, Merry Christmas to all players, club members and supporters. Best wishes to all for 2011.

AGM Report

The following is the report of the St. Josephs Miltown Malbay GAA club AGM as printed in the Clare Champion newspaper:

Cusack Cup win a highlight for Miltown

GERARD “Twin” McMahon is the new chairman of St Joseph’s GAA Club Miltown Malbay taking over from the outgoing chairperson, Caragh Griffin, who did not seek re-election.

The outgoing chairperson in her address, to the large attendance, highlighted the main achievements of the club during the year particularly winning the Cusack Cup. She thanked her fellow officers and the club executive for their hard work. She thanked those who managed and trained the clubs team and all who worked for the club during the year particularly the stand development committee.
The club secretary Shane O’Connell gave a detailed account of the club’s activities in 2010. He said, “The club’s momentum is moving in the right direction and while great work was being done at under age level and is showing fruit, more people need to become involved”.
He had a special mention for the senior team management and players. He congratulated Gordon Kelly on captaining the Clare senior football team.
The treasurer Tommy Byrne gave a detailed account of the club’s income and expenditure showing a closing balance of €3,260 in the clubs coffers.
The stand development committee chairman, John Reidy, reported on the development including income and expenditure to date. Phase 2, which includes the construction of four dressing rooms under the stand and a gym has commenced.
The committee, Martin Curtin, Maurice Reidy and Mickey Wilson, which had been assigned to source new officers for the club reported its findings. They proposed a full executive with four new members but had been unable to secure a new secretary. Mickey Wilson paid tribute to the outgoing officers, Caragh Griffin and Shane O’Connell
The following officers were elected for the coming year: president, Very Rev Canon Mullin; vice-presidents, Aidan Carroll and Martin Marrinan; club executive, Gerard Twin McMahon (chairman); Tommy Byrne (treasurer), Noel Walsh, Willie Healy, Michael O’Loughlin, Gordon Kelly, Francis Cahill, Tomás McKenna, Paddy Joe Egan, Jonathon Wilson and Cathal O’Loughlin; senior team management, Michael Neylon (manager), John O’Malley and Martin Flynn.

AGM - Sunday 21st November @ 5pm

St. Josephs Miltown Malbay AGM meeting will be held at the clubhouse on Sunday 21st November at 5pm. All members and potential members are actively encouraged to attend to have your say in the running of the club for 2011.

U-13's triumph in 'A championship final

St. Josephs Miltown u-13 side claimed victory in the u-13 West Clare championship final on last Saturday after an extra time victory over Cooraclare. Miltown stormed into a 4-3 to 0-4 half time lead but a strong Cooraclare performance in the second half pushed the game into extra time. Miltown regained control in extra time to take the title on a 7-10 to 4-9 scoreline. The team lined out as follows: Paul Tubridy, Shane Crowe, Sean Hanrahan, Padraig Murray, Colin Hehir, Shane McMahon, Sean Malone, Cormac Murray, Chris Mongan, Martin Mongan, Niall Hehir. Subs: Joe Marrinan, Gearoid Burke, Daithi Curtin, Tadhg O'Neill, Rory Sexton, Cian O'Malley, Diarmiud Meade, Cormac Burns, Jamie O'Connor, Darragh Lynch, Daniel Curtin, Tom Clancy. EWell done to all mentors and players involved

Men of '85 honoured

St Josephs Miltown county title winning side were honoured at Cusack Park during the half time interval of the county final on Sunday. Preceding this, a night of celebration was held in Cogan's bar to honour the great men of the team. The article below is from the Clare Champion which remembers the county final day of twenty five years ago:

GOING into the 1985 Clare Senior Football Championship race, Miltown St Joseph’s had not won the blue riband of Clare football since 1959.

In the late '70s, 1977 and ’78 to be precise, Miltown had won back-to-back Clare U-21 A titles and the seeds of their 1985 senior success were laid. Twenty-five years on, the team that brought the Jack Daly Cup to Miltown for the eleventh time will be honoured at Cusack Park on Sunday
That team was captained by full-back Gerry McMahon and it included Johnnie McMahon, Joe Cullen and Martin Lafferty from the team that had contested the county final in 1975.
The panel included five sets of brothers: Gerry, Noel and Martin Curtin, Michael and Pat Murray, Peadar and Sean Cleary, Andrew, Noel and Paudie Clancy and Brendan and Paddy Kyne.
The Murrays and John Jones followed in the footsteps of their fathers and grandfathers, that day winning senior football championship medals with Miltown.
Miltown’s 1985 campaign began on Sunday, July 7 when the team comfortably defeated Shannon Rangers on a scoreline of 2-12 to 1-4.
In the second round, Miltown faced old rivals Cooraclare in Doonbeg on August 17. The dressing room atmosphere before the game was tense on two fronts. Firstly, since the first round Miltown’s goalie John Marrinan had tragically lost his life in a traffic accident. His death left a cloud over the entire club but the players decided that a special effort was required to win the championship in John’s memory (His father, Martin ‘Dot’ Marrinan was later presented with John’s medal).
There was also consternation when Joe Cullen failed to show-up. In fact, he didn’t appear until shortly before half-time when it was learned he had crashed his car on the way to the game and his wife had to be taken to hospital.
It was lucky for Miltown that Cullen did arrive at the venue, as his performance in the second half went a long-way in turning the game in Miltown’s favour. Goals by John Jones and Martin Flynn won the day for Miltown, who progressed on a scoreline of 2-6 to 1-8.
In the semi-final, Miltown played Doonbeg in Cooraclare on September 1. Doonbeg scored a goal in the first minute but a Sean Burke goal in the ninth settled Miltown. After Gerry Curtin’s goal in the second-half, Miltown ran out winners 2-8 to 1-3.
In the final on September 15, Miltown met St Breckan’s at Cusack Park. Miltown played with a strong wind in the first-half but only led by three points at half-time. However, following goals from Gerry Curtin, Peadar Cleary, Sean Burke and Martin Flynn, Miltown were crowned county champions for the eleventh time on a scoreline of 4-5 to 0-4.
In the four games, Miltown scored 10-31 and conceded 3-19, with sharpshooter full-forward Martin Flynn the top scorer with 3-16.
After the game, Gerry McMahon was presented with the Jack Daly Cup by Gabriel Keating, football board chairman.
The winning panel comprised Pakie O’Loughlin, Martin Curtin, Gerry McMahon, Noel Clancy, Noel Curtin, Joe Cullen, Michael Murray, Pat Murray, Sean Cleary, Gerry Curtin, Sean Burke, Peadar Cleary, Martin Killeen, Martin Flynn, John Jones.
Subs: Brian Flynn, Johnny McMahon, Martin Lafferty, Paddy Kyne, Brendan Kyne, Paudie Clancy, Andrew Clancy, Francis O’Loughlin, Patrick Queally, Kieran O’Friel, Brian Fitzgerald

Final heartbreak for minors

St. Josephs Miltown minor side went down to Corofin on a 1-7 to 0-7 scoreline in the Minor Div 2 final on Saturday. A strong breeze blew down the field with Miltown facing the elements in the first half. Corofin lead by 0-4 to 0-0 at the break with Miltown failing to register on the scoreboard. Miltown began the second half brightly but were hit by the sucker punch of a Corofin goal ten minutes into the second half. Miltown proceeded to dominate the remainder of the game and were most unlucky not to draw the game with a penalty miss and an over obsession with going for goals in the closing minutes proving costly. Overall, the team and management will look back on a season of progress. However, the loss of key players through injury and unavailablity proved a bridge too far on this occasion.
Miltown Team: Ciaran Flanagan, Eoin Corbett, Martin Rynne, Ciaran Kennelly, Donal Keane, Damien Lafferty, Sean O'Malley, Niall NcGuane, Conor Cleary, Cian Talty, David Meade, Tommy Howard, Liam O'Connell, Eoin Cleary, Francis Gray. Subs: Cathal Hogan, Luke Reidy, Sheamie Parra, Paudie Flynn.

Minors qualify for county final

St. Josephs Miltown minor side defeated Kilmihil on a 0-13 to 1-8 scoreline last Saturday to qualify for a first Minor B county final since 1992. Miltown entered the game as underdogs due to the absence of some key players and a loss to Kilmihil in the group stages. However, many players produced much improved performances to fashion the win. They will now face Corofin in the final.

Minors finish group stage with loss

Corofin 6-3 Miltown 2-3

@ Miltown 26/09/10

Wayward shooting and at times calamitous defending ensured that Miltown minors finished the group stages with a loss to table toppers Corofin. Given that both sides were already through to the knockout stages the game was played without the usual intensity. Miltown, who were without a number of regulars, were under pressure early on and managed to concede 5 goals in the first half, most of which were as much about defensive errors as great forward play. Miltown did have a number of effective performers, Niall McGuane and Damien Lafferty did well at midfield and Donal Keane and Ciaran Keneally were competitive at the back. Corofin led at half time 5-3 to 0-1.
After the half time break Miltown improved and Kevin Long got Miltown's first goal with a powerful shot midway through the half. At this stage St.Joseph's were putting the North Clare side under sustained pressure when Niall McGuane's quick free was well saved by the Corofin goalkeeper. In the end it was a bridge too far for the home side, as time ran out Sheanie Parra added Miltown's second goal from close range.
Miltown now face Kilmihil in the semi final.

Miltown Team: Ciaran Flanagan, Paudie Flynn, Ciaran Kenneally, Eoin Corbett, Sean O'Malley, Martin Rynne, Donal Keane, Damien Lafferty, Niall McGuane, Sheamie Parra, David Meade, Cian Talty, Francis Gray, Kevin Long, Luke Reidy. Sub: Michael Hamilton for Kevin Long.

u-21's bow out at semi stage

St.Josephs Miltown u-21 side bowed out to Lissycasey on a 1-12 to 2-5 scoreline at the u-21 A semi final stage on Saturday. A ridiciously long gap of more than 10 weeks since the quarter final games were played resulted in a very lethargic Miltown display for the first 40 minutes. Lissycasey started much the brighter and raced into a 1-5 to nil lead before Joe Curtin opened Miltown's account. The half time scored stood at 1-7 to 0-2 with Lissycasey in firm control. A Joe Curtin penalty midway through the second half sparked a Miltown revival which was added to when Seanie Malone added a goal in the closing minutes which cut the deficit to three points. Miltown now sensed an escape route which would have been out of keeping with the general trend of the game. However, an otherwise generally sporting game degenerated in the closing minutes which killed the momentum that Miltown were building. Lissycasey kicked the insurance point while a player from each side was dismissed following a mini brawl. Overall, management will point to some key injuries which resulted in missing key players and will wonder what would have been if the championship had been completed as scheduled in July. The team lined out as follows: David Cleary, Brendan O'Brien, Shane Curtin, Colin McGuane, Tiernan O'Friel, Enda O'Gorman, Eoin O'Brien, Gearoid Curtin, Gerard Malone, David Talty, Micheal Malone, Tommy Flynn, Seanie Malone(1-1), Joe Curtin(1-4), Enda Fox. Subs used: Peter Cleary for Enda Fox, Damien Lafferty for Tommy Flynn

Minors Qualify for Division 2 Semi Final.

Miltown 1-10 Kilrush 0-4

@ Hennessy Park

Miltown secured qualification for the semi final of the Minor Division 2 championship, with one game to spare, following a comprehensive win over Kilrush Shamrocks. Miltown went ahead after 2 minutes, when Eoin Cleary converted a penalty after he had been fouled. Points from Cian Talty and Eoin Cleary gave Miltown a 1-4 to 0-3 lead at half time.

Miltown added six points in the second half, with some excellent scores coming from Darragh McDonagh and in particular Sean Malone. Martin Rynne, Niall McGuane and Ciaran Kenneally were solid in defence as St.Joseph's cruised to victory. The final group game against Corofin will decided if Miltown face Kilmihil or Kilrush in the semi final.

Miltown Team: C.Flanagan, E.Corbett, C.Kenneally, D.Keane, N.McGuane, M.Rynne, S.O'Malley (Capt), D. McDonagh, D. Lafferty, C.Talty, D.Meade, T.Howard, S.Malone, E.Cleary, F.Gray. Subs: S.Parra for T.Howard, S.Mahoney for D.Lafferty, P.Flynn for F.Gray.

Canny Cup 2010

Miltown U10 Canny Cup Team.
Back Row LtoR:C.Devitt, Z.Whelehan, J.Clancy, J.Downes, M.Murray, C.Flanagan, R.Meade, O.O'Looney, E. Reidy. T.Flynn. Front Row: E.Crowley, D.Grimes, M.Cunningham, S.Reidy, B.Whelehan, L.Carton, C.O'Malley

Miltown U10's gave a good account of themselves at the recent Canny Cup tournament in Kilrush. They managed to beat Killimer 2-4 to 0-2 with both goals coming from Jack Downes. A narrow 4 point defeat by Ennistymon 4-4 to 3-3 with the goals coming from again, the in form, Jack Downes and Oisin O'Looney (2). Kilmihil were the next opponents for St.Joseph's and they ran out easy winner 4-6 to 0-2. With goals from Euan Reidy (2), Micheal Murray & Jack Downes. The final group game against O'Curry's/Naomh Eoin was to decide qualification to the quarter finals. Unfortunately a tired Miltown side went down easily 5-4 to 1-2 with Micheal Murray getting the goal. Overall a very credible performance in what was the more difficult qualification group. 

U12 Garda Tournament Final

Miltown U12 Team that contested Garda Tournament Div4 Final.
Back Row: C.Keane, Daniel Curtin, T.Clancy, S.Crowe, R.Sexton, N.Hehir (capt), E.Looney, Daithi Curtin, P.Murray, P.Haran.
Front Row: D.O'Sullivan, C.Lenihan, O. O'Looney, M.Murray, D.Meade, T.O'Neill, J.O'Connor, J.Marrinan, E.Reidy.
Missing from Photo: Cormac Byrne & Sean Clancy

Na Fianna 2-3 Miltown 0-7.

Played @ Cusack Park 03/09/10

Miltown went down by 2 points in a closely fought Division 4 Garda tournament final. Playing with the wind in the first half Miltown started well, Padraig Murray was well on top at midfield and Miltown had Na Fianna under sustained pressure for long periods. However St.Joseph's struggled to convert their dominance in to scores and a number of goal chances went unconverted. When Joe Marrinan rattled the crossbar just before half time you had to feel Miltown's luck was out. At half time Miltown led 5 points to 1.

The second half was more balanced and Miltown's defence were holding Na Fianna forwards at bay. Unfortunately for Miltown, Na Fianna got a fortuitous goal when a long range shot dipped under Thomas Clancy's crossbar. Na Fianna added a further goal and despite very tenacious play in the second half Miltown were unable to regain the lead.

Overall Miltown played the better football on the day but just could not convert their chances when they came.

Miltown Team: T.Clancy, E.Reidy, S.Crowe, P.Haran, O. O'Looney, T. O'Neill, E. O'Looney, P.Murray, D. Meade, J.Marrinan, J.O'Connor, N.Hehir (C), Daniel Curtin, Daithi Curtin, R. Sexton. Subs: C.Keane for D.Meade, C.Lenihan for Daniel Curtin, M.Murray for P.Haran.
Scorers: N.Hehir (0-2), J.Marrinan (0-2), R.Sexton, Daniel Curtin & Daithi Curtin 1 pt each.

Comfortable win for minors

St Josephs Miltown minor side continued their winning run with a 5-12 to 0-2 victory over Doonbeg on Saturday evening. Miltown have two remaining group games to play against Kilrush and Corofin. One additional win would like guarantee a semi final place.

Miltown Team: C.Flanagan, J.Organ, C.Kenneally, D.Keane,S. O'Malley,  S.Malone, N.McGuane, C.Cleary, D.McDonagh, L. O'Connell, D.Meade, C.Talty, F.Gray, E.Cleary, T.Howard. Subs: D.Lafferty, P.Flynn, S.Parra & S.Mahoney.

Seniors complete their season

St. Josephs Miltown senior team completed their 2010 season on Saturday when they bowed out of the Senior B competition with a semi final defeat to Ennistymon on a 2-13 to 2-10 scoreline. Motivation was always going to be a problem for this game following from the disappointment of narrowly missing out on scoring differences for a quarter final spot. Missing five starters from the championship team, it was a much depleted team that fielded on the day. However, many of the newcomers played very well but some poor turnover of possession on the day which lead to at least 2-2 was to prove costly. Miltown lead 1-8 to 1-4 at half time with Dessie Molohan slotting home a goal. Miltown continued to hold the upperhand in the second half with Michael Barry continuing his good form of recent games with a fine goal. Miltown lead by 2-10 to 1-10 entering the closing stages but Ennistymon hit 1-3 in the closing stages to take the win. One worrying note from the day was an injury picked up in the opening minutes by Seanie Malone which could prove costly to the minor side in upcoming games. The team lined out as follows: Conor O'Loughlin, Michael Talty, Shane Curtin, Enda Malone, Ian Sexton, Gearoid Curtin, Michael Hehir, Cathal Lafferty, Michael Barry (1-2), David Talty, Gary Egan, Seanie Malone, Joe Curtin(0-1), John Meade, Eoin Curtin(0-3). Subs used: Dessie Molohan(1-4) for Seanie Malone(inj), Dara McDonagh for Cathal Lafferty, Michael Talty for Enda O'Gorman(inj).

In other news, the u-14 side completed their campaign with a 8-9 to 4-4 victory over Cratloe but missed out on a semi final spot.

Seniors edged out on score difference

St. Josephs Miltown senior side missed out on a quarter final spot by two points on scoring difference following a 2-14 to 1-11 defeat to Kilmurry Ibrickane. Kilmurry started very brightly and lead 2-5 to 0-2 after 15 minutes. The slow start was to prove costly but inspired by some great high fielding by Michael Barry, Miltown hit 1-2 without reply to bring the lead back to four points. Eoin Curtin blasted home a goal from the penalty but had another point ruled out for a controversial square ball call. The five minutes of injury time played at the end of the first half was a key factor in the game as Kilmurry Ibrickane hit three points while Graham Kelly was sent off for a clash with Odran O'Dwyer. Miltown made two changes at half time but couldn't penetrate the Kilmurry Ibrickane for a second goal. However, the team battled all the way to the end. Ultimately, the game against Liscannor when Miltown were missing a number of key players through injury was to prove the difference between qualifying and not. The team lined out as follows: Conor O'Loughlin, Enda Malone, Graham Kely, Shane Curtin, David Cleary, Gordon Kelly(0-1), Enda O'Gorman, Sean Meade, John Meade, Micheal Malone(0-1), Gary Egan, Kevin Keavey(0-1), Eoin Curtin(1-5), Michael Barry(0-1), Joe Curtin(0-1). Subs used: Ian Sexton for Shane Curtin(inj.), Dessie Molohan(0-1) for Gary Egan, Cathal Lafferty for Kevin Keavey, Gearoid Curtin for John Meade, Seanie Malone for Joe Curtin

The Junior A side capped off a disappointing evening for the club when they bowed out of the championship following a one point defeat to Ennistymon on a 2-8 to 1-10 scoreline. The sides were level at 0-5 each at the break. Ennistymon started the second half strongly and raced into a 1-7 to 0-5 lead. However, inspired by Peter Cleary returning after a two year lay off due to injury, Miltown hit back to lead by 1-10 to 1-7 with five minutes remaining. Needing to win by four points to book a quarter final, Miltown had to push forward and Ennistymon scored a breakaway goal to level the tie. The winning point quickly followed and despite some late attacks, Miltown could not find an equaliser. The team lined out as follows: Robbie Healy(0-1), James O'Brien, James Galvin, Kieran Shannon, Gearoid Hynes, Dara McDonagh, Noel Sexton(0-1), Michael Neylon, Gerard Malone, Eoin McDonagh, Michael Talty(0-2), Enda Fox(0-1), Tomas Meade, Peter Cleary(1-1), Niall Quinn(0-5). Subs used: Michael Crehan for Eoin McDonagh

Massive weekend of championship action

The coming weekend could be defined as the biggest of the year for St Josephs Miltown at senior and Junior A level. Both are in championship defining action on Sunday evening in Ennistymon. The Seniors face Kilmurry Ibrickane at 5:15pm with the Junior A game versus Ennistymon to follow at 6:45. The permutations due to the new scoring difference systme introduced this year are too complicated to go into here, safe to say the best chance of progressing to 1/4 final action are to win both games.
The week is off to a positive start with the minor side recording a 4-14 to 1-3 victory over the North Clare amalgamation of Liscannor/Michael Cusacks/Tubber/Kilfenora. There is a now a break unfortunately until after the All Ireland minor final which is making the campaign very disjointed.
The Junior A side will hope to progress to the 1/4 final but will face a tough challenge against Ennistymon who could be still alive provided Naomh Eoin beat Meelick on the Saturday.
The Senior game does not need any hyping-up save to say, a massive challenge awaits against this years All Ireland club finalists. The following is the preview of the game from this week's Clare Champion. Best of luck to both teams on Sunday!

Before Miltown beat Doonbeg in the semi-final of the Cusack Cup and subsequently won it, they wouldn’t have been given any chance of defeating Kilmurry-Ibrickane in their final championship group game. The landscape has changed significantly in recent weeks however, and the Clare and Munster champions will prepare for their neighbourly Group 4 battle knowing that if they are not ready, Miltown have what it takes to beat them in Ennistymon at 6.15pm on Sunday evening.
What might soften Kilmurry’s approach is their knowledge that, unless they are hammered, they will still make the quarter-finals. Miltown know that they must win to remain in control of their own destiny.
So far, Kilmurry have won both their group games against Kilkee and Liscannor, while Miltown lost to Liscannor but impressively defeated Kilkee last time out.
If Miltown lose, they need Kilkee to defeat Liscannor and hope that scoring averages help the Cusack Cup holders into the last eight and a meeting with a team from Group 1, which includes Cratloe, Doora-Barefield and Ennistymon.
Michael Barry played outstanding football against Kilkee two weeks ago, while Miltown also had excellent displays from John Meade, Gary Egan and Eoin Curtin. Conor O’Loughlin is having a great year in goals, while Graham and Gordon Kelly added real steel to the Miltown rearguard.
Under Martin Keavey, Martin Cahill and now Seán Dempsey, Kilmurry are still the team to beat in Clare. Beaten in the March 17 All-Ireland club final, Kilmurry are chasing three in a row, something that the club has never achieved. Although they didn’t exactly torment the umpires with a succession of scores against Liscannor a fortnight ago, Kilmurry still won and all but secured their place in the quarter-final with a match to spare.
Players such as Declan Callinan, the O’Dwyer’s, the Hickeys, Stephen Moloney and Enda Coughlan know that they are now just six weeks away from county final day on October 3. If they can build up some steady momentum, they will be very difficult to stop.
First though they wouldn’t mind calling a halt to Miltown’s recent gallop and in the process help to end their championship season. As long as Kilmurry are focused and ready for a big battle, they should see off Miltown.

Cusack Cup Final Highlights - relive the win

Paschal Brooks has kindly forwarded match highlights of the recent Cusack Cup final for use on the website. It is a super package showing clips of the game with match commentary by James Murrihy, player interviews and some scenes from after the game. It can be viewed at the following link (copy & paste the link to a browser to view): http://vimeo.com/13681953

For further information on services available, please visit brooksvideo.com

Impressive win for seniors

St. Josephs Miltown senior side recorded an impressive 2-11 to 1-9 win over Kilkee in Round 2 of the senior championship on Sunday evening in Doonbeg. Miltown started very sluggishly as Kilkee raced into a 0-6 to no score lead. It appeared at this stage that Miltown were about to be caught cold after their Cusack Cup win. However, a great run by Enda O'Gorman up the wing resulted in Michael Barry finishing the cross to the net. Miltown added three further points before the break to retire at half time on a 1-3 to 0-6 scoreline. It was certainly all to play for at this stage and Miltown got a good start to the second half with an Eoin Curtin point from play. However, Kilkee hit back for a rapid-fire 1-1 to take a three point lead. The goal was a little controversial with Michael O'Shea appearing to pick the ball off the ground before scoring a fine goal. Miltown hit back instantly when Michael Barry raced through to fire home the equaliser. Miltown assumed control in the last 20 minutes to hit a series of fine points to seal the win thanks to a powerful performance from Sean Meade at midfield. Dessie Molohan hit two fine points along with scores from Michael Barry, Gary Egan and Eoin Curtin. The team lined out as follows: Conor O'Loughlin, Enda Malone, Graham Kelly, David Cleary, Gearoid Curtin, Gordon Kelly, Enda O'Gorman, Sean Meade, John Meade (0-1), Kevin Keavey, Gary Egan, Micheal Malone (0-1), Joe Curtin, Michael Barry (2-2), Eoin Curtin (0-4). Subs Used: Dessie Molohan (0-2) for Joe Curtin, Seanie Malone for Micheal Malone, Cathal Lafferty for Enda O'Gorman, Michael Hehir for Kevin Keavey

Narrow defeat for Junior A's

St. Josephs Miltown Junior A team went down to Meelick on a 0-10 to 0-7 scoreline in their second championship group game on Saturday. A lack of cutting edge in the forward line was to prove costly on the evening. Miltown opened brightly but three early wides failed to settle the team. Meelick came very strong into the game and lead by 0-7 to 0-3 at the break. Michael Neylon hit two points from midfield with Niall Quinn pointing a free. Miltown came much stronger into the game in the second half and had cut the deficit to 0-7 to 0-5 midway through the half. Two very dubious frees awarded to Meelick cut the comeback short however as Meelick re-established a four point lead. Miltown however battled to the end with Niall Quinn and Enda Fox hitting two long range points from play. Meelick held on however to leave Miltown needing a win against Ennistymon in their final game which would likely guarantee a quarter final spot. The team lined out as follows: Robbie Healy, Brendan O'Brien, Eoin Corbett, James O'Brien, Dara McDonagh, Ian Sexton, Eoin O'Brien, Michael Neylon (0-2), Gerard Malone, Tommy Flynn, Michael Talty, Gearoid HYnes, Tomas Meade, Niall Quinn(0-4), Colm Haugh. Subs used: Noel Sexton for Tmmy Flynn, Enda Fox (0-1) for Tomas Meade, James Galvin for James O'Brien, Peter Cleary for Colm Haugh

Round 2 loss for Minors

Minor Championship: Round 2 @ Kilmihil

Kilmihil 2-11 Miltown 0-14

Following their opening round thrashing of Parteen, Miltown were eager to add 2 more points to their division 2 championship tally against a fancied Kilmihil outfit. Miltown started poorly and found it hard to get to grips with Kilmihil's free flowing football. The home side raced to a four point lead. Francis Gray, then had to make two good saves in the Miltown goal. At this stage Kilmihil were rampant and their goal came following a deflection off Miltown corner back Ciaran Kennelly which diverted the ball out of Gray's reach. Kilmihil led at half time 1-8 to 0-5.

The half time break rejuvenated Miltown and the gap was closed to 2 points 1-8 to 0-9 very quickly after the restart. Fine scores from Sean Malone and Eoin Cleary had Kilmihil on the back foot as Miltown attacked with purposed. Darragh McDonagh and Conor Cleary at midfield, were now dominant, with center forward David Meade mopping up the breaks. However, against the run of play, the home side were awarded a dubious penalty when John Organ was adjudged to have fouled the corner forward, when he appeared to have slapped the ball away legitimately . Martin O'Leary converted and added a point to open the gap to six, again. Back came Miltown, points from both the Cleary brothers and Sean Malone reduced the gap to two. Miltown were then denied a penalty claim when Sean Malone appeared to be tripped but referee Brian Keniry was not convinced. Kilmihil tagged on a point in the closing minutes to give them a 3 point win.

Miltown Team: Francis Gray, Ciaran Kennelly, Martin Rynne, John Organ, Declan O'Brien, Eoin Corbett, Donal Keane, Darragh McDonagh, Conor Cleary, Sean O'Malley, David Meade, Patrick McCaw, Tommy Howard, Eoin Cleary, Sean Malone. Subs: Michael Hamilton for P.McCaw & P.Flynn for D.O'Brien

Under 14's record home win

Under 14 Championship Rd 2 @ Miltown

Miltown 4-8 Kilrush 3-9

Following the first round loss to St.Breckan's, Miltown Under 14's were eager to get their championship back on track with their first home game. Kilrush got the opening point following a good start but Miltown dominated the first half going in 3-5 to 0-4 points up at half time, with goals from Shane Mahoney, Cormac Murray and Michael Greene.

Kilrush put Miltown under severe pressure in the second half and closed the gap to two points after Paul Tubridy saved a penalty only for the rebound to be slotted home. Sean Malone increased Miltown's advantage again with a long range goal, which he followed with a good point. The Shamrocks continued to narrow the gap as Miltown came under sustained pressure. Good defending from Colin Hehir, Brian Talty and in particular Sean Hanrahan kept Miltown in front at crucial stages, while Cormac Murray and Sean Malone looked dangerous in attack. In the end, time was to beat the south clare side and Miltown hung on for a good victory which will please the management team of Michael Howe, Robbie Healy and David Talty.

Miltown Team: Paul Tubriby, Liam Gray, Sean Hanrahan (Capt), Darragh Lynch, Colin Hehir, Martin Mongan, Brian Talty, Michael Marrinan, Eoin Deveraux, Shane Mahoney, Christopher Mongan, Sean Malone,Cormac Murray, Michael Greene, Eoin Hurley. Subs: Gearoid Burke for M.Greene, Rory Sexton for E.Hurley.

Cusack Cup Champions

St. Josephs Miltown bridged a 15 year gap on Sunday evening when they defeated Shannon Gaels on a 1-7 to 0-7 scoreline. On a wet and misty evening, a solid defensive performance which nullified the threat on Shannon Gaels main scoring threats was the key to victory. Miltown started very slowly and were fortunate to be only 0-2 to 0-0 down after a hectic opening 20 minutes which was high on intensity but low in quality football. However, Miltown gained a foothold in the last ten minutes and only trailed 0-4 to 0-3 at half-time. Two Eoin Curtin frees and a point from Joe Curtin being the scorers. Miltown notched the opening two scores of the second half through Joe Curtin and a long range effort from Sean Meade. With the scores tied at 5 each, Miltown got the crucial score of the game when Joe Curtin fisted to the net from a '45 that dropped short. Eoin Curtin then fired over from long range to open a four point gap. Shannon Gaels however dominated the last ten minutes of action but were denied by a well organised defence and with Conor O'Loughlin in superb form in goal all evening, Miltown held on to record a magnificent win for the club. A particular noteworthy feature of the evening was the massive support for the team at the game which was great to see from the parish. The evening finished with captain Eoin Curtin receiving the trophy and Joe Cullen entertained the crowd with a rendition of "Lovely Old Miltown". Well done to all involved with the team. The team lined out as follows: Conor O'Loughlin, Enda Malone, Graham Kelly, David Cleary, Enda O'Gorman, Gordon Kelly, Gearoid Curtin, Sean Meade(0-1), John Meade, Micheal Malone, Gary Egan, Kevin Keavey, Joe Curtin (1-2), Michael Barry, Eoin Curtin (0-4). Subs used: Seanie Malone for Micheal Malone, Cathal Lafferty for John Meade, Dessie Molohan for Kevin Keavey

All set for Cusack Cup final

St.Josephs Miltown senior side will have their biggest game in a number of years on this Sunday when they face Shannon Gaels in the Cusack Cup Division 1 league final. Both teams recorded surprise wins in their respective semi finals last week and will enter the game full of confidence. Miltown still have a long injury list and players who would be starters like Dessie Molohan, Kevin Burke, Shane and Brian Curtin will sit the game out. However, the management team of Michael Neylon, Martin Flynn and John O'Malley will place their faith in the team that performed well against Doonbeg last Sunday. Shannon Gaels enter the final as favourites but all involved will feel confident that victory can claimed if Miltown can reproduce their form from the last ten minutes against Doonbeg for a more prolonged period on this occasion. The following is the preview of the game as taken from the hoganstand.com website:

Division 1 (Cusack Cup)

St. Joseph's Miltown v Shannon Gaels

The main prize on offer this weekend sees the meeting of St. Joseph's Miltown Malbay and Shannon Gaels. Both sides upset the odds to qualify for this final with St. Joseph's narrowly defeating Doonbeg and Shannon Gaels overcoming the holders Kilmurry Ibrickane. Ironically Shannon Gaels could have been battling it out in Division 2 this year only for the county board to review the relegation structure from Division 1. It is a unique pairing in that neither side has contested a Cusack Cup final in recent years, you have to go back to 1995 when St. Joseph's last contested a final while it's nearly another twenty years since, 1976 to be exact, then that the Gaels were involved in a Cusack Cup decider. Back in 1995 the St. Joseph's Miltown men won their sixth ever league title with current team manager Michael Nealon the victorious captain. He was joined on that team with his fellow selectors, Martin Flynn and John O'Malley. Similarly the last time the Gaels contested a final they won it, back in 1976 they claimed a third league title for their club when they overcame Doonbeg. Indeed the 70's was a great time for the Labasheeda based club as they also claimed two county senior titles in the early 70's and followers of the Gaels will be hopeful that they have a team capable of capturing for senior championship honours. The same can be said of Miltown who last tasted championship success in 1991 and although the talent is there they have failed to live up to their promise when it comes to capturing senior crowns. This weekend's encounter promises to be an excellent game with the Gaels narrowly getting the nod. Both sides have injury worries with both sides hoping that they will have a clean bill of health come Sunday at 7 pm. Miltown will look to the Kelly bothers Gordon and Graham, Eoin Curtin, Enda and Micheal Malone, Michael Barry and Conor O'Loughlin to lead the way. For the Gaels, John Paul O'Neill, Armagh native Barry Toner, Tomas Cleary, John Bermingham, Keith Ryan, Tomas Madigan and teenager Ruairi Norby will lead their challenge.

Verdict: Shannon Gaels

Seniors into Cusack Cup final

St. Josephs Miltown senior side have qualified for their first Cusack Cup division 1 final since 1997 following a dramatic 2-9 to 1-11 victory over Doonbeg on Sunday evening in Quilty. After a very even first half, the sides were level on a 1-3 to 0-6 scoreline. Eoin Curtin grabbed the goal early on after a great through pass from Enda Malone. The third quarter went score for score with the sides remaining deadlocked on a 1-6 to 0-9 scoreline. Doonbeg then appeared to have made the decisive move in the game when Colm Dillon cracked home a goal either side of two David Tubridy points. This put Doonbeg into a 1-11 to 1-6 lead with 10 minutes remaining. Michael Barry then sprung into life and cracked home 1-1 to cut the lead to one point. Kevin Keavey then levelled the game before Eoin Curtin hit the winner. The final is scheduled for next weekend. The opponents will be Shannon Gaels who will be full of confidence after defeating Kilmurry Ibrickane on a 2-9 to 0-10 scoreline in the other semi final. The team lined out as follows: Conor O'Loughlin, Enda Malone, Graham Kelly, David Cleary, Enda O'Gorman, Gordon Kelly, Gearoid Curtin, Sean Meade, John Meade, Kevin Keavey 0-2, Gary Egan 0-1, Seanie Malone, Joe Curtin, Michael Barry 1-2, Eoin Curtin 1-3. Subs: Micheal Malone 0-1 for Seanie Malone, Cathal Laffery for John Meade, David Talty for Joe Curtin

Results & Fixtures update

It has been a very successful week to date on the underage front. The minor side got their Division 2 group campaign off to a winning start with a comprehensive 9-16 to 2-2 victory over Parteen. While management will be delighted with the winning start, all are well aware that much tougher tests lie ahead in the coming games.
The u-21 side recorded a very good 1-9 to 0-10 win on Thursday evening over Kilrush who had shocked Kilmurry Ibrickane in the previous round. They now advance to a semi final of the u-21 'A' championship against Lissycasey. Lissycasey will enter this game as favourites having defeated the Cooraclare-Kilkee amalgamation and winning last year's minor A championship. However, with a county final place at stake, it is all to play for.
This weekend sees another crucial weekend of games at adult level. The Junior B side are due to face Michael Cusack's in the first round of the championship on this Saturday in Ennistymon. Having failed to field in the last number of league games and with several players lost to the Junior A side after last week, Manager Sean O'Brien will be hoping any possible players make the effort to be available so that a team is fielded at this level.
The big game of the weekend is the Cusack Cup Division 1 semi final on Sunday in Quilty at 5 where Miltown face Doonbeg. Doonbeg will enter the game as favourites but a win would be a massive boost to Miltown's season. The following is the preview of the game from this week's Clare Champion:
The Cusack Cup semi-finals will be staged at separate venues at 5pm on Sunday. Following their O’Gorman Cup final win over Lissycasey last Sunday evening, Doonbeg will play Miltown in Quilty for a place in the final.
Two years ago they reached the decider, only to be beaten by Kilmurry-Ibrickane in Kilmihil. The Mapgies topped the Cusack Cup table, winning six games and losing just twice to Cooraclare and, ironically, to Miltown. That latter game meant more to Miltown in that if they had lost, they could have been relegated. Instead, their win led to Miltown qualifying for the last four, which indicates how tight the Cusack Cup was this year.
Doonbeg were already sure of top spot and knew that if Miltown won, they would be likely to meet in the semi-final. Not alone will Miltown be highly motivated to reach the final, the fact that they will be given little chance of beating Doonbeg a second time should further spur them on.
If Miltown are to stun the Mapgies, players such as Eoin Curtin, Gordon and Graham Kelly, Enda Malone, Dessie Molohan, if fit, and Micheál Malone will have to produce their best form. Molohan limped out of Clare’s All-Ireland qualifier against Offaly in Tullamore two weeks ago, while Shane Curtin, Kevin Burke, Dessie and Brian Curtin are also expected to be absent this weekend.
Graham Kelly played against Doonbeg two weeks ago but was restricted by an arm injury that he has to recover from.
Doonbeg will look to Colm Dillon in the middle, David Tubridy, Shane Ryan and Kevin Nugent up front, Conor Whelan, Richie Vaughan and Padraic Ahern in defence to see them through.
Doonbeg haven’t won the Cusack Cup outright since 1994, although the 1998 final against Kilkee was not finished. They will be heavily favoured to qualify for this year’s final however, and should have a few points to spare over Miltown.

Winning start in Junior A championship

St Josephs Miltown Junior A side caused a major surprise in the first group game of the championship when defeating Nsomh Eoin on a 2-5 to 0-9 scoreline. Naomh Eoin would be among the championship favourites but in a game played in very wet conditions, Miltown showed great battling qualities to pull of the win. Goalkeeper Robbie Healy sealed the win in the closing stages when coming upfield to convert a 45. The management will now hope that no more players are lost from the team and go on to build on this performance. Miltown's next two group games are against Meelick and Ennistymon both of whom defeated Miltown in last years championship.

Miltown through to Cusack Cup semi final

St. Joseph's Miltown reached the semi finals of the Cusack Cup following a 0-9 to 0-6 victory over Doonbeg on Saturday evening in Miltown. Miltown opened brightly against the breeze and lead by 0-2 to 0-1 after 10 minutes. Two further points from Kevin Keavey had the game tied at 0-4 each at half time. With the wind to their backs in the second half, Miltown were dominating possession but some poor shooting meant the sides were level at 0-6 each with ten minutes remaining. In the concluding stages, two points from Gordon Kelly running from deep and the some crucial turnovers from the hardworking Seanie Malone secured the win. Gary Egan also chipped in with two points and Eoin Curtin got one in the second half. Miltown now face a re-match against Doonbeg in the Cusack Cup semi final on the weekend of July 17/18th. The team lined out as follows: Conor O'Loughlin, Enda Malone, Graham Kelly, Enda O'Gorman, Gearoid Curtin, Gordon Kelly, Michael Hehir, John Meade, Sean Meade, Kevin Keavey, Gary Egan, Seanie Malone, Eoin Curtin, Michael Barry, Joe Curtin

Deciding round of games in league action this weekend

St. Josephs Miltown Senior and Junior 'A' sides face a mammoth weekend of action this weekend to decide their fate for the season in terms of league football.
Due to extremely competitive nature of Division 1 this year, Miltown face table toppers Doonbeg in the knowledge that a win will guarantee a semi final spot whereas defeat could like lead to relegation to Division 2 next year depending on results elsewhere. This game is down to take place in Miltown on Saturday evening at 7:30pm.
The Junior A side have been dealt a cruel hand by the fixtures committee with a semi final playoff for Division 4 pencilled in for 12 noon on Sunday in Kilmihil against Cooraclare. The loss of a number of players to the senior side due to recent championship action coupled with the "potential attraction" of Saturday night of Willie Clancy will leave management with a tough task to keep minds focused on this crucial game.
Best of luck is extended to both teams where two victories would be a big boost to the season for Miltown football at adult level.

Disappointing championship start for Seniors

St. Josephs Miltown senior side kicked off their championship campaign for 2010 against Liscannor in Quilty last Saturday. Such was the injury crisis that hit the panel, one would be forgiven to return to Miltown to check how many black cats had been killed in the area recently. Such a collection of crutches on the sideline would have presumed that training had been pretty fearsome in the build-up. Unfortunately on the day, the side were deprived of certain starters such as Graham Kelly, Micheal Malone, Kevin Burke, Niall Quinn with Dessie Molohan only fit for a role from the bench all due to a range of injuries. The game itself was one that the team will feel slipped away due to bad wides and poor shot selection at crucial stages of the game. The lack of options from the bench due to the injury crisis was also crucial considering the bearing the Liscannor bench had on the outcome. Miltown now face a prolonged break until they face Kilkee in game 2 which has assumed a must win encounter to keep hopes alive. The match report from the Clare Champion on the game is as follows:

Winning start for Liscannor
Liscannor 1-9 Milown, St Joseph's 0-9
’’A RATHER soft goal separated the sides at Quilty on Saturday as Liscannor made a good start to their championship campaign, securing the points after a fairly testing evening, writes Owen Ryan.
The decisive score came midway through the second half from sub Dara Blake. It arrived after a rather hopeful ball from Niall Considine, which seemed to be drifting wide, was brought back into play. When it fell to Blake, the Miltown rearguard were caught out of position and he was left with a fairly handy task to finish.
That gave them a three-point lead and although Miltown brought it back to a single point, a strong finish by Liscannor got them over the line. Overall, it was a very even contest with the outcome in doubt until the dying moments.
The first 10 minutes was Miltown’s best spell, as they were winning the lion’s share of possession in the middle of the field and, as a unit, their backs looked very comfortable. Unfortunately for them, they weren’t particularly successful in turning pressure into scores during this period.
Despite having the wind, Liscannor conceded the first two points, while Miltown also kicked three wides and dropped another effort into Noel Kilmartin’s hands, before the winners really settled or had an attempt on goal.
However, they did find their feet, with Alan Flaherty getting them on the board in the eleventh minute, before Alan Clohessy levelled from a free.
Miltown secured a 45’ in the 14th minute, which goalkeeper Conor O’Loughlin came up to take and he duly nailed it. Following that, a shot from the capable Eoin Curtin scraped over the crossbar, restoring the two-point Miltown advantage.
But Liscannor were well in the game now and Brian Considine kicked an excellent score from distance in the 22nd minute. Their final score of the half came on 26 minutes, which left the sides tied at the break, 0-4 apiece.
Points were traded in the opening minutes of the second period but a series of Miltown wides, some from quite scorable positions, stopped them from taking the lead.
It stayed nip and tuck, with a free from Dessie Molohan, who succeeded in drawing a couple of fouls from the Liscannor backs, levelling the score at 0-6 each after 12 minutes, before Blake’s goal arrived.
On 17 minutes, a low, direct ball to Eoin Curtin paid dividends as he turned and pointed, before a fine score from Gary Egan left a single point between the sides with just over 12 minutes to go.
Further points were traded before a late surge from Liscannor, in which Brian Considine and Kieran Considine added minors, while Miltown didn’t really look like getting the goal they needed to take a point.
On the day, Miltown’s better performers included Enda Malone, Gordon Kelly, Gary Egan and Eoin Curtin. For the winners, Ronan Slattery, Brian Considine and Kieran Considine did well.
Liscannor: Noel Kilmartin; Shane Canavan, David McDonagh, Michael Foley; Niall Considine, Ronan Slattery, Robbie Lucas; Brian Considine, Alan Flaherty; Joseph Considine, Alan Clohessy, Gerry Considine; Declan Fawl, Kieran Considine, Paul Guerin.
Subs: Tom McDonagh for Declan Fawl, Dara Blake for Joseph Considine and Johnny Considine for Paul Guerin.
Scorers: Brian Considine (0-3, 2f), Kieran Considine (0-3, 1f), Dara Blake (1-0), Alan Clohessy, Ronan Slattery and Alan Flaherty (0-1) each.
Wides: 5; Frees for: 24; 45s: 0
Yellow cards: Ronan Slattery, Alan Flaherty and Alan Clohessy.
Miltown, St Joseph’s: Conor O’Loughlin; Enda Malone, Seán Meade, David Cleary; Shane Curtin, Gordon Kelly, Enda O’Gorman; Cathal Lafferty, John Meade; Seánie Malone, Michael Barry, Gary Egan; Kevin Keavey, Eoin Curtin, Joe Curtin.
Subs: Dessie Molohan for John Meade, David Talty for Kevin Keavey and Gearóid Curtin for Seánie Malone.
Scorers: Eoin Curtin (0-6, 3f), Conor O’Loughlin (0-1 45), Gary Egan (0-1) and Dessie Molohan (0-1f).
Wides: 9; Frees for: 21; 45s: 1
Yellow cards: Enda Malone and Cathal Lafferty.
Referee: Rory Hickey (Éire Óg).

Senior championship underway on Saturday

St. Joseph's Miltown senior side get their 2010 championship underway this Saturday in Quilty at 4pm with Rory Hickey as referee. Miltown have been plagued with injuries in the run up to the game with definitely Graham Kelly and probably Gordon Kelly both our inter-county players likely to miss the game.
The third member of the Kelly clan Barry has a major milestone in his refereeing career on Saturday when he takes a charge of his first senior championship game betwen Cratloe and St. Josephs Doora Barefield also at 4pm on Saturday in Cusack Park.
Miltown will enter the game against Liscannor as underdogs but all within the club are hoping that the effort put in is reflected in the performance on the day and a winning start is secured.

The following is the preview from this week's Clare Champion of the game:
Liscannor v Miltown, St Joseph’s
LISCANNOR’S defeat of Cooraclare in their last Cusack Cup game came at the perfect time. Defeat would have relegated them to Garry Cup, while the win means that they could escape demotion. Even if they don’t, winning that game set Liscannor up nicely for this weekend’s game against Miltown. Although short of a number or regulars, St Joseph’s recorded an impressive win away to Clondegad to given themselves a morale boost, similar to Liscannor.
Liscannor manager Martin Guerin is focusing purely on Miltown and is hopeful that his team’s form has picked up at the right time.
“It would be foolish to be thinking past the first game. That’s going to be a real battle against our neighbours who beat us in the Cusack Cup but we’ll give it 110% and hopefully the result will be in our favour,” the former Liscannor footballer said.
“Everybody seems to think that this is the group of death but at the same time people would fancy Kilmurry and Kilkee to come out of the group. But you have to take every game as it comes and just see what happens,” he added.
His Miltown counterpart, Michael Neylon feels that a win this weekend would set his team up for a good eight weeks, before the second round of the championship on August 7.
“The focus from the beginning would always have been to try and get off to a good start, particularly given there’s a lay-off of eight weeks. It’s a long time to dwell on a defeat,” he reflected.
“There’s a lot to play for in the group and there’s local derbies all round. Liscannor and ourselves were actually linked up for a 21 campaign some years back,” the Miltown manager noted.
Miltown have a solid goalkeeper in Conor O’Loughlin and good defenders in Enda Malone and Gordon Kelly, if he is fit to play. His brother, Graham, is very unlikely to have recovered from an arm injury in time.
Elsewhere, they will need big performances from Dessie Molohan if he is recovered from injury, Seán Meade, Micheál Malone and Eoin Curtin if they are to get the better of Liscannor.
The 2002 and 2008 county finalists will once again turn to players like Brian and Niall Considine, Kieran Considine, Ronan Slattery, Alan Clohessy and Darragh Blake to steer them to what should be a narrow victory.

Crucial victory in Cusack Cup

Report from Clare Champion on Clondegad game:
Miltown 0-12
Clondegad 0-10
Miltown recorded a crucial Cusack Cup win when they defeated the home team in Ballynacally last Saturday. The teams are now tied on six points each with a game apiece remaining. A win for either in their remaining game would secure Division 1 status and in Clondegad’s case they would qualify for the semi-final.
At the end of a high-scoring first half Miltown led 0-9 to 0-7 at the interval.
While Gordon and Graham Kelly were absent for Miltown, Clondegad lined out without Paddy O’Connell and Eoin Griffin.
Michael Barry, Seán Meade, Eoin Curtin, Gary Egan and Kevin Keavey scored Miltown’s first-half points, while Ken Kelly, Gary Brennan and Paudge McMahon pointed for Clondegad.
Curtin and McMahon traded early second-half points, while the introduction of Dessie Molohan, who scored two points, proved crucial in helping Miltown to both points.
Gary Brennan, Paudge McMahon and Brian Carrig hit the target for Clondegad, while a late McMahon goal effort was well saved by Conor O’Loughlin in the Miltown goalmouth.
Miltown: Conor O’Loughlin; Shane Curtin, Kevin Burke, Enda Malone; David Cleary, Gearóid Curtin, Enda O’Gorman; Seán Meade, Cathal Lafferty; Seánie Malone, Gary Egan, John Meade; Kevin Keavey, Michael Barry, Eoin Curtin.
Subs: Dessie Molohan for Kevin Keavey; David Talty for Seán Meade; Michael Talty for Kevin Burke.
Clondegad: Declan Flynn; Conor Gavin, Brian Carrig, Cormac Ryan; Brian Murpny, Kieran Browne (capt), Seán Clohessy; Gary Brennan, Cormac Murphy; Gearóid O’Connell, Kenneth Kelly, James Murphy; Eoin Donnellan, Shane Brennan, Paudge McMahon.
Sub: Flan Enright for Seán Clohessy.

Salty Faces 10k

The Salty Faces 10k run goes ahead at the weekend, with the club set to benefit from the proceeds.
Entries are still being accepted at www.saltyfaces10k.ie

Under 10s - Successful Tralee Trip

Under 10 Squad who recently traveled to Kerin's O'Rahilly's for the Munster Towns blitz.
Back Row: (L to  R). Micheal Murray, Cian Flanagan, Oisin Looney, Ronan Meade, Zack Whelehan, Liam Bryant, James Clancy, Tadhg Flynn, Cillian O'Malley, Mikey Foley. Front Row: Grainne Meade, Liam Carton, Diarmuid Grimes, Euan Reidy, Alex Coughlan, Paul Keane.

The under 10s defeated Fr. Caseys Abbeyfeale and drew with Kerins O'Rahillys but were defeated by Ballygarvan of County Cork.

Results & Fixtures update

St. Josephs Miltown senior side went down to Cooraclare last weekend on a 2-8 to 2-5 scoreline. With three teams to be relegated this year from Div 1, this result unfortunately plunges Miltown into a relegation battle with only two games left to play. Goals from Gary Egan and Joe Curtin were not enough on the day where Miltown were short several players due to an ever increasing short and long term injury list. Miltown's last two games are against Clondegad and Doonbeg and these now take on a must win scenario.
The Junior A side continued their impressive recent form with a 5-7 to 2-7 victory over O'Callaghans Mills. Niall Quinn bagged a hat-trick on the evening which proved the difference.
The Junior B side unfortunately struggled badly to field on Sunday morning with Sean O'Brien keeping Vodafone in business for 30 minutes before the game as he gathered a team toegether. A younger and physically fitter Parteen side recorded a comfortable victory on the day. The highlight from a Miltown viewpoint was a tally of 1-3 from veteran Michael Howe with all his scores from play.
This coming Wednesday the senior side will hope to return to winning ways when they face Lissycasey in the 1/4 final of the O'Gorman cup.

La na gclub activities on Sunday May 9th

This Sunday has been declared as La na gclub and will see a fun filled afternoon for all the family at Miltown GAA pitch. The Pete Cleary and John Marrinan undergae leagues will be played for at the pitch commencing at 2pm. A bouncing castle will be also be provided to cater for the younger age groups. For people wishing to make a day of it, the Junior B side entertain Parteen in a league game commencing at 12:30pm. All are encouraged to get out and about and enjoy the festivities.

Unlucky final defeat for u-16's

Despite a tremendous second half comeback that displayed real guts and character, Miltown's u-16 side went down to Wolftones in the u-16 Div 1 final in Cooraclare on Monday evening. Wolftones ability to grab goals at the most opportune moments along with some frantic goalmouth scrambles that denied Miltown goals during a second half onslaught proved the difference.
The following match report is taken from the hoganstand.com website:
The Clare U16 "A" Football cup is back in Shannon after an absence of six years after Wolfe Tones defeated St. Joseph's Miltown Malbay in an exciting final played in Cooraclare on Monday evening.

Even from the early stages of this championship it was apparent that both sides would be the teams to beat in 2010. The Shannon club were the favourites from the start of the championship race and indeed they kept that tag right through to this decider. Wolfe Tones defeated their final opponents in the group stages 2-7 to 0-4 and if you were to go further back to the Feile Peil na nOg final in 2008 when these two respective sides clashed the Tones had a convincing win. Therefore Miltown were eager to get one over their rivals and bring back the U16 crown for the first time since 2006.

The game started with both sides having early chances but it was Miltown who got off to the better start despite the fact that they were playing against the breeze. The West Clare team had the best of the early exchanges with Conor and Eoin Cleary to the fore. It was Conor Cleary who opened the scoring for Miltown before a Luke Reidy point from play and a Eoin Cleary free saw the West Clare side soar into a three point lead. It took ten minutes for the Shannon team to open their account but for them it was well worth waiting for as William Flynn fired home from close range to level it at 1-0 to 0-3. This goal seemed to ignite the Shannon side and they started getting on top by playing a nice brand of football. It was not long before they scored again and this time it was wing back Dylan Birchall whose long range effort was fortunate to have evaded Kevin Downes in the Miltown goal. Perhaps the score of the game came next when a fine move for Wolfe Tones involving eight players starting from their goalie Mark Hehir was worked into the box where substitute Stephen Tuohy was on hand to expertly finish it first time into the roof of the Miltown net. Wolfe Tones showed that they could score points also with centre forward Daniel Brennan and the lively Jack Kelly scoring from play before a free on the stroke of half time from Damien Casey gave Wolfe Tones a nine point lead at the break.
Unbelievably this was to be the Shannon team's last score until the 25th minute of the second half as Miltown made the most of their chances in the second half with the aid of a strong wind. The Shannon side did have a few scoring chances in the first quarter of the second half but they either dropped short into Kevin Downes' arms or went wide. Impressive midfielder Conor Cleary opened Miltown's account in the second half with a free and his twin Eoin got in on the act as well with two points, one of which was a free, to give his side some hope. Pacy corner forward Luke Reidy got his second point of the game when he tapped over a nice score minutes later before Eoin Cleary fielded the resultant kick out and a fine passing movement saw a Jonathan Marrinan shot well saved by Wolfe Tones keeper Mark Hehir. The momentum was with Miltown and with Conor Cleary winning vital ball at midfield and linking up well with his forwards the gap was further reduced due to Wolfe Tones giving away scoreable frees. Another Eoin Cleary free with ten minutes remaining left the score at Wolfe Tones 3-3 to Miltown 0-8. A Conor Cleary point from distance narrowed the gap to three points and the tide seemed to be with the underdogs. Indeed shortly afterwards the same player saw his shot cannon off the crossbar after he had made a good run through the Tones defence. This seemed to shake the Shannon side and their defence did well to clear the danger with the hardworking Damien Casey making a great solo run up the field, much to the delight of the Shannon supporters. However when Eoin Cleary converted another free moments later spectators were going to be treated to an exciting finish. Credit to Wolfe Tones, led by Daniel Brennan, William Flynn and Darragh Downes, as they started to get on top and when Jack Kelly pointed his side's first score since the end of the first half it seemed like they might just come away with the title. This was further added to when corner forward Michael Hasty scored a late goal two minutes from time to give his side a six-point advantage. This was a lead they were not going to surrender and the Shannon side held out for a first victory at this grade since 2004. On the day both sides gave it they're all and made the game an exciting one with some excellent passages of football and score taking on display by both sides over the hour. Best for the new champions were William Flynn, Damien Casey, Darragh Downes, Mark Hehir, Daniel Brennan, Dylan Birchall and Jack Kelly. For Miltown, Conor and Eoin Cleary were a constant threat throughout and they were well aided by Donal Keane, Luke Reidy and John O'Brien.

Wolfe Tones: Mark Hehir, Andrew Shanagher, Sean Reidy, Cathal McCoy, Dylan Birchall (1-0), Darragh Downes, Kieran O'Callaghan, Damien Casey (0-1, 1 free), William Flynn (Captain) (1-0), David Murphy, Daniel Brennan (0-1), Jason McNally, Michael Hasty (1-0), Jack Kelly (0-2), Jack Carrig.
Sub: Stephen Tuohy (1-0) for Murphy (Injury) (10 minutes).

Miltown Malbay: Kevin Downes, Sheamie Parra-Haran, Ciaran Kennelly, Eoin Hennessy, Donal Keane, Aidan McGuane, John O'Brien, Conor Cleary (0-4, 3 frees), Eoin Cleary (0-4, 2 frees), Drew Clancy, Michael Hamilton, John McGuane, Luke Reidy (0-2), Johnathan Marrinan, Eoin Hurley.
Sub: Sean Hanrahan for Clancy (half time).

u-16's reach county final

St. Josephs Miltown continued their successful season when they defeated Doora Barefield in the semi final of the u-16 championship on a 1-15 to 2-4 scoreline.
Miltown were always in control in the game played at Quilty and deservedly booked a final spot. The final is scheduled for bank holiday Monday evening in Cooraclare with a 7pm start. Everyone is encouraged to get out and provide support in this big occasion for the club.

The extract below is taken from a preview of the game as available on the hoganstand.com website.

Wolfe Tones na Sionna v St. Joseph's Miltown Malbay

Both sides are here on merit with some of the county's best U16 Footballers in action next Monday evening in Cooraclare at 7 pm. Wolfe Tones went through the group stages unbeaten defeating Miltown previously on a score of 2-7 to 0-4 in round 5. They continued their impressive form with a hard fought 5-10 v 1-8 victory over Cooraclare last Monday evening to reach their second final Division 1 final in a row. On the other hand Miltown, apart from their prior loss to the Shannon team and one slip up against St. Joseph's Doora/Barefield, went on to play some outstanding football in reaching the last four. Here they inflicted revenge on Doora/Barefield with an eight point win, 1-15 to 2-4. Wolfe Tones who were defeated at this stage by Kilmurry Ibrickane last year, have key operators in Daragh Downes, William Flynn, Damien Casey, Sean Reidy, Jack Carrig, Daniel Brennan and Sixmilebridge duo Mark Hehir and David Murphy. Milltown will enter the game as outsiders and they have a number of fine footballers in the form of Donal Keane, Seamie Parra, Eoin and Conor Cleary, Aidan McGuane, Kevin Downes, Michael Hamilton and Luke Reidy. This promises to be a good game between the two best sides in the county at this level. Indeed the two clubs have clashed regularly at all underage levels and when they last met in a final it was the Shannon team who were victorious when they beat the Maroon and Amber in the U14 Feile Peil na nOg Final of 2008. As for Monday's game, Wolfe Tones seem to be the better team and they should have enough to bring back the U16 Division 1 cup to the town of Shannon for the first time since 2004.

Results & Fixtures update

St. Josephs Miltown senior side went down to Kilkee in round 5 of the Cusack cup on a 0-9 to 1-4 scoreline. The absence of several regulars on the evening was to prove costly in what was a crucial game between two teams with aspirations of making a semi final spot. Kilkee led by 0-4 to 0-2 at half time but Miltown hit back with a Michael Barry goal on the resumption to hit the front. Unfortunately, Kilkee wrestled back control to edge a narrow victory.
The team lined out as follows: Niall Quinn, David Cleary, Gordon Kelly(0-1), Shane Curtin, Enda O'Gorman, Graham Kelly, Ian Sexton, Sean Meade, John Meade, Gary Egan(0-1), Michael Barry(1-0), Micheal Malone(0-1), Kevin Keavey(0-1),Joe Curtin, David Talty Subs used: Michael Hehir, Gearoid Curtin

The next game against Cooraclare has been deferred to Saturday next week due to a number of the team attending the wedding of Brian Curtin in foreign climes. Best of luck to Brian for the big day.

This weekend sees the Junior sides in further action. The Junior A side face a tough encounter away to Coolmen on Friday evening while the Junior B side make the trip to Ennis to play the Banner on Sunday morning.

Table Quiz Friday April 30th @ Cogans

The St. Josephs Miltown senior men's team are having a quiz on this Friday night April 30th at 9.30 in Cogan’s bar.
All support for the event would be much appreciated to assist financially with preparations for the upcoming championshiup campaign.

Results & Fixtures Update

Another successful weekend prevailed last weekend as the adult sides all had positives results.
The senior side played Liscannor in round 4 of the Cusack Cup and recorded a 2-9 to 0-10 victory. Liscannor were the better side for the first 40 minutes but a very strong finish by Miltown led to victory. Liscannor led 0-6 to 0-2 at half time but a Kevin Keavey goal midway through the second half threw the game wide open. Liscannor then had Ronan Slattery sent off for a dangerous high tackle on Micheal Malone. This combined with the switch of Gordon Kelly to midfield which nullified the previous dominance of Brian Considine were key factors in the win. Two Michael Barry points and a goal from Joe Curtin sealed the win.
The team lined out as follows: Conor O'Loughlin, Enda Malone, Kevin Burke, David Cleary, Ian Sexton, Gordon Kelly, Graham Kelly, Sean Meade, Michael Barry(0-2), David Talty, Gary Egan(0-1), Micheal Malone(0-1), Niall Quinn(0-1), Eoin Curtin(0-2), Joe Curtin(1-0). Subs used: Shane Curtin for Enda Malone(inj), John Meade for David Talty, Kevin Keavey(1-1), Enda O'Gorman for Sean Meade, Michael Talty for Ian Sexton.
The Junior B side received a walkover from St. Josephs Doora Barefield in their league tie. On Monday evening, the Junior A side continued their recent impressive form with a 1-14 to 2-8 victory over Ennistymon.
This weekend sees the senior side away to Kilkee in round 5 of the Cusack cup. A win here would set Miltown up with a good chance of a semi final slot but Kilkee will be a formidable challenge on the back of an impressive win over Clondegad last weekend.

The under-16 side face Doora Barefield in the semi final of the Div 1 championship this Monday. Miltown played Doora Barefield last Monday in their final group game last Monday and lost out on a 2-7 to 1-7 soreline. All concerned will be hoping the boys can produce the goods when the stakes are higher this Monday. Best of luck to all involved and all support would be much appreciated. The tie is to be played in Ennistymon on Monday evening at 7pm.
The preview below appeared on the hoganstand.com website:
"St. Joseph's Doora/Barefield v St. Joseph's Milltown @ Ennistymon

The battle of the Saint Joseph's is expected to be a good game with little separating either side. They played each other last Monday in Gurteen where the home side came through by a goal. Doora/Barefield are showing a lot of form recently and aside from their opening day loss to Wolfe Tones they have only lost one game since which came against Ennistymon in round 4. They have a skillful side with players such as Donal O'Halloran, David Clancy, Aaron Lundy, Daragh Keirn, David Conroy, Finn O'Reilly and Ciaran Browne in their ranks. They will be hoping to revenge the defeat of two years ago when Milltown beat them in a cracking semi final tie of the Clare U14 Feile Peil na nOg. On the other hand, Milltown are the dark horses for this championship. Their path to the semi final is similar to Barefield in that they only lost two games, the already mentioned tie last week and to Wolfe Tones in round 5. They are likely to include the Cleary twins, Eoin and Conor, Seamie Parra, Daragh Pender, Aidan McGuane, Kevin Downes and Donal Keane. This could be very tight with both sides having some fine players and this was evident in their clash last week. It will be close but on their recent impressive form St. Joseph's Doora/Barefield might just shade it.

Verdict: St. Joseph's Doora/Barefield"

Go Games Blitz - U10

The Miltown U10 squad competed in the first Go Games blitz of the year last Saturday in Cooraclare. The squad beat Killimer, Kilmihil and Cooraclare 2. Some great football was played by the team particulary the younger players who had their first taste of under 10.

Miltown Squad: Oisin Looney, James Clancy (C), Mark Cunningham, Cillian O'Malley, Euan Reidy, Zack Whelehan, Ben Whelehan, Tadhg Flynn, Evan Crowley, Cian Flanagan & Micheal Murray.

Under 12s get first win.

Miltown 3-8 Kilmihil 3-4

After a heavy defeat to Lissycasey in the first round Miltown came back with a good win at home to Kilmihil. Goals from Daniel Curtin (2) and Daithi Curtin gave Miltown the edge in this close fought contest.

Miltown Team: Thomas Clancy, Patrick Haran, Padraig Murray (C), Eoin Looney, Shane Crowe, Rory Sexton, Cormac Byrne, Niall Hehir, Diarmuid Meade, Sean Clancy, Tadhg O'Neill, Joe Marrinan, Jamsie O'Connor, Daithi Curtin, Daniel Curtin. Sub: Adam O'Mahoney for J. O'Connor.

Results & Fixtures update

St. Josephs Miltown senior side qualified for the 1/4 final of the John O'Gorman cup with a 0-13 to 0-8 victory over Doora Barefield last weekend. The result means that Miltown emerge from the four team group along with Cooraclare.
The team lined out as follows: Sean O'Brien, Eoin Corbett, David Cleary, Kevin Burke, Enda O'Gorman, Michael Hehir, Enda Malone, Sean Meade, John Meade, Micheal Malone, David Talty, Eoin Curtin, Kevin Keavey, Joe Curtin, Shane Curtin

The under-16 side have successfully qualified for the semi finals of the under-16 division 1 championship. They defeated Kilrush on a 0-13 to 1-1 scoreline and will now play Doora Barefield in their final group game. Well done to all concerned with the team and best of luck when the semi final comes around.

This weekend sees all three adult teams play at home in their respective leagues.
The senior side host upcoming championship opponents Liscannor on Saturday evening. This game is much looked forward to as a potential championship pointer and also to see if the team can build on their victory in the previous round over Kilmurry Ibrickane.

The Junior B side host Doora Barefields second string on Sunday while the Junior A side are to play Ennistymon on Monday evening. Both teams will be hoping to build on victories in the previous round.

Success on all fronts

On a most successful Easter weekend, all three adult teams recorded victories in their respective league games.
The Junior A team got the ball rolling with a very good 1-12 to 2-3 victory away to Lissycasey. This was a very important result for the team who will aim to build on this victory in the coming league games.
Saturday saw the Junior B team take to the field against Kilkee and duly recorded a 2-5 to 0-6 victory. A strong first half performance playing with the breeze saw Miltown lead 2-4 to 0-1 at half time. James O'Brien and Enda Fox netted the goals with Jonathan Wilson scoring some impressive points from play.
On Monday, the senior side faced up to All-Ireland finalists Kilmurry Ibrickane at a very windy Miltown pitch. The large attendance were most appreciative of the newly built stand for shelter on such a cold day. After a tremendous battling performance, Miltown recorded a fine 1-6 to 0-4 victory for their first Cusack Cup victory of the season.
Miltown lead by 1-1 to 0-3 at the break having played against the breeze. Michael Malone netted the crucial goal early on.
In the second half, Miltown played a nice mixture of the long and short game to record the victory.
The team lined out as a follows: Conor O'Loughlin, Enda Malone, Kevin Burke, David Cleary, Graham Kelly, Gordon Kelly, Ian Sexton, Cathal Lafferty, Sean Meade, John Meade, Michael Barry, Michael Malone 1-1 , Kevin Keavey 0-2, Eoin Curtin 0-2, Joe Curtin 0-1. Subs: Gary Egan for Cathal Lafferty (inj)

Results & Fixtures update

It has been a busy week on the football front as the season gets firmly into action at both adult and underage level.
On Saturday last, the senior side recorded their first competitive victory of the season when they defeated Eire Og on a 1-6 to 1-5 scoreline in the O'Gorman cup. A victory over St. Josephs Doora-Barefield in the final group game will gauarantee a 1/4 final spot.
The under-16 side remain firmly on course for a semi final spot after a 3-14 to 1-4 victory over Eire Og on Monday evening. This game was played in very difficult weather conditions but the team turned in a good performance on the evening.

This weekend sees a full weekend of fixtures. The Junior A side get the action underway with a fixture away to Lissycasey at the unusual time of a Friday at 5pm.
Next up on Sunday afternoon, an attempt is being made to resurrect a Junior B side within the club after an absence of a number of years. It is hoped that some ex-players will dust down the boots and return to the playing fields to ensure the survival of this team. The Junior B side are down to play Kilkee's second string in Miltown at 4:3O on Sunday.
The big fixture of the weekend is on Monday when the senior side are away to All-Ireland club finalists Kilmurry Ibrickane in Quilty in Round 3 of the Cusack Cup. This game will provide a very good barometer of Miltown's form at this juncture of the season.
Finally, the under-16 side will be away to Wolftones on Monday evening in Shannon.
Best of luck to all teams in action

U-14 Fixtures announced for 2010

The fixtures for the under-14 Division 2 championship in which Miltown will participate are as follows:
Monday July 19th: St. Breckans (away)
Monday July 26th: Kilrush (home)
Wednesday August 11th: Liscannor/Kilfenora/Ml.Cusacks/Tubber (home)
Monday August 16th: Clondegad (home)
Monday August 23rd: Cooraclare (home)
Monday August 30th: Cratloe (away)

The top four teams will qualify for the semi finals.

Under 16 make it three wins in a row.

Miltown 3-8 Kilmihil 3-5

Michael Murray and John O'Sullivan's under 16 side continued their good run in the under 16 championship, with a hard fought win over Kilmihil at home today. Despite Miltown having the better of the early exchanges, Kilmihil were in front 2-1 to 2 points when good work by Eoin and Conor Cleary released Michael Hamilton, who finished from close range. Martin Lineen replied for Kilmihil with a fine run and shot to the extend their lead. When Butcher McCarthy blew the half time whistle Miltown trailed 3-1 to 1-4.

St.Joseph's rallied in the second half and Johnaton Marrinan goaled following a point from Luke Reidy to put Miltown in front for the first time. Kilmihil fought back to edge in front again 3-3 to 2-5 before Marrinan goaled again after the ball rebounded off the post following a Conor Cleary shot. Eoin Cleary scored a fine point following a 80 metre solo run, to give Miltown the edge in the closing stages. In the end, only good defending from Donal Keane, Ciaran Kennelly and in particular Seamie Parra Haran, allowed the home side to hold on.

Miltown Team: S.Hanrahan, E.Hennessy, C.Kennelly, S.Parra Haren, E.Hurley, D.Keane, J.O'Brien, C.Cleary, A.McGuane, E.Cleary, L.Reidy, J.McGuane, J.Marrinan, M.Hamilton, K.Downes. Subs: S.O'Malley for J.McGuane, J.Maloney for M.Hamilton.

U16 team v Cooraclare

The following was the line up for last weeks U16 championship win versus Cooraclare:

Miltown 1-16 Cooraclare 2-6

Miltown Team: C.Murray, A.O'Brien, C.Kennelly, J.O'Brien, E.Hurley, D.Keane, S. Parra Haran, C.Cleary, A.McGuane, E.Cleary,L. Reidy, J.McGuane, K.Downes, M.Hamilton, J.Marrinan.

Under 16 team v Ennistymon

The following is the team which defeated Ennistymon in the opening round of the U16 championship

Miltown 1-16 Ennistymon 1-9

Miltown Team: S.Hanrahan, D.Clancy, C.Kennelly, J.O'Brien, A.O'Brien, D.Keane, S. Parra Haran, C.Cleary, A.McGuane, E.Hurley, E.Cleary, J.McGuane, K.Downes, M.Hamilton, J.Marrinan. Subs. M.Greene for D.Clancy, S.O'Malley for J.McGuane, P.Rynne for E.Hurley.

Junior A championship details

St. Josephs Miltown Junior A side have been drawn in a very similar group to last year in the championship having been paired with Meelick, Ennistymon and Naomh Eoin. It is a tough ask for the team with the opening game against one of the championship favourites in Naomh Eoin. Meelick have beaten Miltown for the last two years and Ennistymon also won the corresponding fixture last year.,
The primary focus for Miltown this year will be to get a solid team structure in place as over half of last year's league team was lost by the time the championship campaign began. Best of luck to all involved.

Result Update & Senior championship draw 2010

The Miltown under-16 side made it two wins from two last Saturday in the Division 1 championship with a 1-16 to 2-6 victory over Cooraclare. They face Kilmihil in round 3 this Saturday.

Meanwhile, the draw for the 2010 Clare Senior Football championship took place last night and Miltown have been drawn in the toughest possible group with Kilmurry Ibrickane who line out tomorrow in the All Ireland club final versus St. Galls of Antrim, beaten 2009 county finalists Kilkee and beaten 2008 county finalists Liscannor.
Miltown's opening game will be against Liscannor in June and this is really looking like a season defining game. Interestingly, Miltown will play each of their championship opponents in upcoming games in Division 1 of the Cusack cup before the championship commences.

Results & Fixtures update

The under-16 side were the highlight of the weekend's action from a Miltown perspective over the weekend. The John O'Sullivan managed side recorded a 1-16 to 1-9victory over Ennistymon in the opening round of the Division 1 championship. Their next game is at home to Cooraclare this Saturday followed by a home game to Kilmihil on the following Saturday.
The adult sides had a disappointing weekend on the results front. An experimental senior side went down to Cooraclare on a 3-10 to 2-6 scoreline in the opening group game of the O'Gorman cup.
A very much understrength Junior 'A' side due to a clash with the senior game went under to Kilmurry Ibrickane on a 1-10 to 0-4 scoreline in their opening league fixture.

Weekend adult fixtures

This weekend sees the first outing of the year for the Junior A side in the Division 4 league. It will be very much a new look Junior side this year with a restructured management setup and a large turnover of players who featured prominently in recent years. They open their season with a home game on Saturday @ 2:30 against a Kilmurry Ibrickane side who have played Intermediate championship football in recent seasons. A winning start would be a fantastic opening for all involved.

Immediately after @ 4:30, the senior side will be looking to kickstart their season when they open their O'Gorman cup campaign at home to Cooraclare. Due to limited playing numbers and the age old fixture problems, it looks like that a number of players will have to play in both games or a compromise will have to be reached which is unfortunate for all involved. Miltown will also have games against Eire Og and Doora Barefield in the O'Gorman cup with the top two teams to reach the quarter final.

Update on u-12 & u-16 fixtures

The fixture list for the upcoming season has been announced. Miltown will compete in a combined Division 1 & 2 league which will then split into Div 1 and Div 2 1/4 finals after the initial league section.
Miltown's games in the initial league section are as follows:
Wed 7th April: Lissycasey (away)
Wed 21st April: Kilmihil (home)
Wed 28th April: Kilrush (home)
Wed 5th May: St. Breckans (away)
Wed 12th May: Liscannor/Kilfenora/Michael Cusacks/Tubber (away - take your pick on the venue!!)
Wed 19th May: Cooraclare (home)
Wed 26th May: Kilmurry Ibrickane (away)
Wed June 2nd: Ennistymon (home)

The updated under-16 division 1 fixtures are as follows:
Sat 6th March: Ennistymon (away) @ 12 noon. Ref: John Hannon
Sat 13th March: Cooraclare (home)

Miltown lose to Gaels in League 2nd round

Miltown 0-8 Shannon Gaels 3-6

Its two defeats from two games for Miltown following last Saturdays loss, at home, to Shannon Gaels. Miltown started really well and raced into a 5 points to no score lead with scores from Sean O'Connell (2), Joe Curtin, Kevin Keavey & Micheal Malone. However, mid way through the half, confusion in the Miltown full back line allowed David Neylon get a free shot on goal, which he buried. This seemed to knock the wind out of Miltowns sails and further damage was done when confusion between Conor O'Loughlin and Enda Malone allowed Brian Toner to fist the ball to an empty net, for the Gaels second goal. The Labasheeda side took full advantage of their momentum and tagged on three points from frees, before Toner got his second goal following a fine shot. Miltown added a free from Dessie Molohan to leave the half time score 3-3 to 6pts.

Miltown replaced Conor McKenna at half time with Gearoid Curtin and made a few positional changes at the back but little changed. Miltown had plenty of possession but found it hard to create chances as Shannon Gaels were happy to sit back and defend their lead. Miltown only added 2 points from Sean O'Connell and Dessie Molohan in the second half, while Shannon Gaels looked dangerous on the counter attack and added 3 points, as Miltown left gaps at the back as they chased the lead. Perhaps it would have been a different story if Miltown could have got a goal and put some pressure on the Gaels defence, who looked more comfortable as the game went on.

Miltown Team: C.O'Loughlin, D.Cleary, E.Malone, I.Sexton, C.McKenna, Gordon Kelly, E.O'Gorman, C.Lafferty (C), S.Meade, M.Malone, G.Egan, S.O'Connell, D.Molohan, K.Keavey,J.Curtin.

Subs: G.Curtin for C.McKenna, S.Malone for D.Molohan, N.Quinn for J.Curtin, E.O'Brien for I.Sexton, G.Malone for G.Egan.

Footage of 1962 County Final Miltown v Kilrush

At the link below is footage from the 1962 county senior final between Kilrush and Miltown. Some shots of the Miltown players and hopefully some of our older members will be able to make who they are.
Unfortunately Kilrush won on the day but still this rare footage is worth a look.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_IZz7iT79zw

Narrow defeat in Cusack Cup opener

St Josephs Miltown senior side suffered a 0-7 to 0-6 defeat to Eire Og in the opening round of Division 1 league in Quilty this Friday night. A cold but dry night attracted a much larger attendance than normal for this time of the year as the evening throw-in proved a hit. Miltown started slowly as Eire Og kicked two early points. Miltown recovered to dominate possession but failed to translate it to the scoreboard as Eire Og lead 0-4 to 0-2 at the break. A gilt edged goal opportunity was missed when Gary Egan was adjusted to have touched the ball on the ground when a goal seemed certain. Eire Og lead 0-6 to 0-3 midway through the second half. Conor O'Loughlin came up from goal to blast over a '45 to kickstart a strong finish from Miltown. However, the lack of a cutting edge up front apart from Micheal Malone who kicked three long range points was to prove costly on the evening. Round two of the Cusack Cup takes place next weekend with a home game against Shannon Gaels. The team lined out as follows: Conor O'Loughlin (0-1), David Cleary, Enda Malone, Ian Sexton, Enda O'Gorman, Graham Kelly, Michael Hehir, Sean Meade (0-1), Cathal Lafferty, Gearoid Curtin, Niall Quinn, Micheal Malone (0-3), Joe Curtin (0-1), Kevin Keavey, Gary Egan. Subs used: Sean O'Connell & Seanie Malone

First Home Challenge Yields Win

Miltown 3-7 Ennistymon 0-12

New manager Mikey Neylon got his first home victory of the season with a win over Ennistymon on Saturday afternoon. It was definitely a game of 2 halves with Miltown making 13 changes at half time. Ennistymon started brightly and Miltown took time to get into their flow but once they did they were well in control. The Miltown goals came through Joe Curtin & Micheal Malone. David Cleary and Enda O'Gorman did well at the back. Sean Meade and Michael Barry were effective in the middle of the park and Michael Hehir, Micheal Malone and Joe Curtin looked sharp up front. Score at half time was 2-5 to 0-4 with Miltown squandering a hatfull of other chances.

In the second half a completely different team took the field, with many youngsters playing their first games at senior level. Sean O'Brien was excellent in goal, making a save from a penalty and also a fantastic save from a one on one when a goal seemed certain. Eoin O'Brien improved as the game went on and Eoin Corbett and Conor McKenna showed promise in the half back line. Gerard Malone had some good moments at midfield but tired as the game went on. Up front Tommy Flynn played well at at centre forward getting on plenty ball and covering back on numerours occassions to help out the under pressure back line. Niall Quinn took his goal nicely and would have scored more if he got the possession.

Miltown now face Eire Og in the opening round of the league on Friday night with mounting injury worries. Conor McKenna, Ian Sexton, Kevin Burke and Cathal Lafferty all suffered some form of injury on Saturday to added to the growing list. David Talty, Peter Cleary, John Meade, Brian Curtin, Eoin Curtin & Dessie Molohan are all currently sidelined.

1st Half Team: R.Healy, E.Malone, K.Burke, D.Cleary, E.O'Gorman, M.Talty, I.Sexton, M.Barry, S.Meade, M.Malone, C.Lafferty, M.Hehir, J.Curtin, K.Keavey, G.Egan. Subs: G.Malone for Lafferty and D.Murrihy for I.Sexton.

2nd Half Team: S.O'Brien, K.Shannon, S.Curtin, E.O'Brien, J.Galvin, C.McKenna, E.Corbett, G.Malone, M.Barry, J.Wilson, T.Flynn, J.Clancy, N.Quinn, K.Burke, S.Malone.

Opening fixture for u-16's

The fixtures have been announced for the opening round of the under-16 championship. Miltown will host Ennistymon at 12 noon on Saturday 6th March.

The full round of fixtures are:
Wolfetones V Doorabarefield
Kilrush V Eire Og
Cooraclare V Kilmihil
Miltown V Ennistymon

Captaining the Banner to victory

St.Josephs Miltown clubman Gordon Kelly captained the Clare senior footballers to a very encouraging 1-9 to 0-11 victory over a fancied Wicklow side in the opening round of the National Football league. Gordon and his brother Graham played key roles as Clare fought back from a seven point deficit at one stage in the second half. All involved with the Miltown club wish both Kelly's the best as Clare aim to build on today's victory in the forthcoming games.

Underage divisions for teams in 2010

The gradings have been announced for 2010 for underage football in Clare.

At under-12 level, Miltown will compete in a combined Division 1 & 2 groups which will split into Div 1 + 2 1/4 finals after a full round of group games. Miltown are in a group with:Kilmurry Ib, Kilrush, St Breckans/Ballyvaughan, Ennistymon, Cooraclare, Kilmihil, Lissycasey, & Kilfenora/Liscannor/ Ml Cusacks/Tubber.

At under-14 level, Miltown will compete in Division 2 with: Cratloe, Clondegad, Kilrush, Cooraclare, St Breckans & Kilfenora/Liscannor/ Ml Cusacks/Tubber. The top 4 teams will make the semi finals.

Miltown will compete in Division 1 at under-16 level with: Wolfetones, Doorabarefield, Eire Og, Kilrush, Cooraclare, Kilmihil & Ennistymon.
The top 4 teams will make the semi finals.

Miltown will compete in Division 2 at minor grade with: Parteen, Doonbeg, Kilrush, Corofin, Kilmihil, Kilfenora/Liscannor/ Ml Cusacks/Tubber & Kilkee.
The top 4 teams will make the semi finals.

Lotto Rota - 1st half of 2010

Tommy Byrne has taking over the co-ordination of the lotto from John O'Sullivan who has done great work for a number of years in the role.
Tommy has created the Rota for the 1st half of 2010 as outlined below. Any group leaders who are not available on their assigned week are asked to switch with a leader from a nearby week.
The Rota is as follows:
NAME Week
1 Gerry Curtin 02-Jan
2 John O Malley 09-Jan
3 Tony O Connell 16-Jan
4 Francis Lynch 23-Jan
5 Martin Curtin 30-Jan
6 Breda Keane 06-Feb
7 Michael Neylon 13-Feb
8 Enda Malone 20-Feb
9 Eoin McDonagh 27-Feb
10 Shane O Connell 06-Mar
11 Pat Keane 13-Mar
12 John O Sullivan 20-Mar
13 Maurice Reidy 27-Mar
14 Joe Talty 03-Apr
15 Tommy Byrne 10-Apr
16 Caragh Vaughan 17-Apr
17 Gary Egan 24-Apr
18 Ladies 01-May
19 Ladies 08-May
20 Ladies 15-May
21 Ladies 22-May
22 Francis Cahill 29-May
23 John Meade 05-Jun
24 Gordon Kelly 12-Jun
25 Shane Curtin 19-Jun
26 Tom Flynn 26-Jun
Half Team Leaders Willie Clancy Week
28 Half Team Leaders Willie Clancy Week

2010 Senior Management

Mikey Neylon will manage the Miltown Seniors for the upcoming season. This is the appointment most club members would have wanted to see as Mikey has a great reputation at schools level, he was also involved successfully at intercounty level with the Clare Ladies a few years back and most recently was trainer of the under 21 winning side of 2002. He commands a huge level of respect within the dressing room and hopes are high that last years work can be built on. Mikey is to be assisted by John O'Malley, last years junior manager and Martin Flynn who was manager with Mikey in the 2002 Under 21 team. Best of luck to all.