31/05/2023: Here’s the latest weekly update from Kildysart GAA Club

Results:

The Senior Men have qualified for the O’Gorman Cup Final after their third win in a row in this competition. Tap here for the full match report.

The U12 Girls played the first round of their competition and lost out to a strong Liscannor team, 1-4 to 2-7.

Fixtures:

The June bank holiday Saturday sees the U11 boys travel to Ballynacally for their 6th blitz of the season.

On Monday, the U12 girls host round 2 v Burren Gaels in the school pitch at 7:30.

Also on Monday, the Senior men are away to Doonbeg in a crunch match to secure their semi-final spot in the last round of the Cusack Cup. All round 7 matches throw in a 2pm. A win for us plus other matches to go our way is needed to keep our Cusack Cup campaign from ending. (ICYMI see the Cusack Cup Round 7 preview below).

The Junior Men have a bye this weekend while the round 7 matches in the Division 7 League finish up over Monday and Tuesday. Kildysart has secured a semi-final spot and is awaiting to see their opponents.

Kildysart/Coolmeen U15’s are away to Miltown on Monday in Round 6 of Division 2-3 competition (time TBC) and they play their final round next Friday 9th June. They are currently second in the table in Group B, behind KIB, with a game in hand. All will be known by the end of next week.

The U15 Academy are travelling to Clooney/Quin on Wednesday for round 5 with a throw-in at 7pm.

Kildysart/Coolmeen U13 boys will be playing in Division 1 championship along with Clooney/Quin, Cratloe, Doora Barefield, Eire Og, and Lissycasey. The top 4 teams qualify for the Championship semi-finals and the bottom 2 bottom teams play for the U13 Shield. Their first match is at home to Clooney on 24th June.

Please check the Clubzap Games tab or the website fixtures listing for all up-to-date fixtures and results. The club wishes to thank our neighbouring clubs, Kildysart Soccer Club, St. John Bosco and the Clare County Board for facilitating us during our current pitch development.

Munster Championship:

Best of luck to Emmet McMahon and the Clare senior footballers as they head to Clones to face Monaghan on Sunday 4th June. A win is a must here to keep their hopes of getting to the Prelim Quarter finals alive. Tickets can be purchased here.

Best of luck to the Clare Minor Hurlers in the All-Ireland Minor Final v Galway in Semple Stadium, Thurles on Sunday 4th June. The club is not being allocated any tickets but they can be bought here.

Munster Final: We are awaiting confirmation of club ticket allocation from the county board for the Munster Final. Any adult member interested in a ticket, please text Pauline at 086 063 7447. All stand tickets will be allocated via the clubs and we will hold a draw if demand exceeds supply. Terrace tickets go on sale to the general public on Thursday 1st June at 12:00 and be purchased here.

U14 Ladies All Ireland Final:

Congrats to Anna Cleary and the U14 Clare Ladies as they overcame Antrim in the U14 Ladies All Ireland Semi-final on Saturday last by a scoreline of 8-9 to 4-15. They will face Wickow in the All Ireland U14 Bronze final on Saturday week, 10th June in Macdonagh Park, Nenagh. Throw-in is at 1:30 and tickets can be bought here.

Field Development: Please tap here for a field development update and photos. Many thanks to Johnny Murtagh for the great photos.

Training Tops: Training tops for 2023 are available to purchase here until Friday 9th June 2023.

Cusack Cup Round 7 Preview:

With the table so close, there are many permutations as to how the final three will be determined. The bottom three are also fighting to avoid relegation so there will be no dead rubbers in the ultimate round.

Doonbeg v Kildysart: Kildysart’s chances of reaching a semi-final are still very much alive as they travel to Doonbeg for the last round. Kildysart had a 6-point win over Doonbeg in the opening O’Gorman Cup match in early March, but a lot of football has been played since then. Doonbeg is in last place but is fighting to avoid relegation and a win for the Long Village here would improve their prospects. Cusack Cup finalists in 2022, Kildysart are hoping for another chance at the title but first must secure their semi-final spot. Though there are other permutations for Kildysart to achieve this which depend on results and points difference, the simplest path is:

· Kildysart win, and

· there’s a winner in Clondegad v Breckans – i.e. no draw, and

· KIB loses/draws or

· KIB wins and their Round 7 winning margin is less than or equal to Kildysart’s Round 7 winning margin plus 7. For example, if KIB win by 9 and Kildysart win by 5, Kildysart goes through as 9 is less than or equal to (5+7)=12

Clondegad v Breckans: The top two teams going head to head in the final round has all the makings of a cracker. Clondegad will be hoping to reverse their recent drop in form, having won the first 4 matches and then drawing and losing in the last two. A win or a draw here for the Ballynacally boys puts them straight through to the final, their first Cusack Cup final appearance since 2019. Breckans will be fighting to retain their title and a win for them gets them the top spot, while a draw guarantees second place and a home-based semi-final. However, even a loss for either team still keeps them in contention for a semi-final spot.

Lissycasey v Kilmurry Ibrickane: KIB’s situation is similar to Kildysart's as both teams are in joint third on 7 points. However, KIB has zero points difference, which may lead to their downfall. KIB need a big win here and other results to fall in their favour. Lissycasey also needs to win here to move out of the drop zone, where they currently sit with Corofin, 1 point ahead of bottom-placed Doonbeg.

Ennistymon v Corofin: Ennistymon are in 5th place on 5 points but are still in with a chance if they win and if both Kildysart & KIB lose and points difference goes their way. However, Corofin boosted by giving Clondegad their only defeat this year, is also fighting to get out of the relegation area, though even with a win, their negative points difference could come against them.

The matches are all scheduled for 2pm on the June bank holiday Monday.

Lotto: The lotto jackpot is €7,000 and 3 tickets can be purchased for as little as €5 with no commitment by tapping here. Lotto is also available in the pubs and shops and outside Centra on Friday and Saturday from 10-1pm.