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Kestrels swoop for victory in under 12 Ballyshannon Shoe Company indoor winter league title

Under 10 football
30 October 2015

The final night of the under 12 Ballyshannon Shoe Company Indoor Winter League took place last Friday last with nearly 30 under 12s battling it out in the new hall at Coláiste Cholmcille.

The second set of round robins saw the Eagles and Hawks facing off in the Plate Final, the Falcons and Raptors paired in the Shield final, with the Harriers and Kestrels meeting in the Cup final. The Kestrels were undefeated over the two nights of the round robins up until the final game where the Harriers needed a win to put themselves in contention for the Cup final. The Harriers duly won 3-0 and earned three points which saw them finish level with the Raptors. It was the Harriers better score difference put them into the Cup decider.

The Plate final was an closely matched affair, with the sides locked at a goal apiece for much of the game, but a late two goal burst from the Eagles gave them the victory. Cian Rooney was nominated as Eagles captain with Daire Warren, Jake Foley, Adam Hoey and Pauric Daly also contributing handsomely to the win.

The Shield final between the Falcons and Raptors was perhaps the best game of the evening with fortunes tipping back and forth between two evenly matched sides. In the end it was the Raptors who emerged victorious by the odd goal in five. Aoibheann McGarrigle was nominated as captain of a Raptors team which also featured JJ Doran, Kyle McCaffrey, Matt Gillespie and Ryan Keenaghan. By way of clarification for those who asked incessant questioms on the matter, check out http://www.thefreedictionary.com/raptor. Never let it be said that the GAA isn't an enlightening force.

The final game of the night and the six weeks of highly enjoyable football was played between the Harriers and a well-balanced Kestrels side. The Kestrels took a two goal lead, but Eugene Doherty is nothing if not a motivator and his men never let up and they grabbed a well-deserved goal to leave matters in the balance until close to the end when the Kestrels swept in a third insurance score for a Cup victory which was merited over the two nights. Aaron Neilan was named Kestrels captain and collected his cup trophy from tournament sponsor Gus Culkin of Ballyshannon Shoe Company. The Kestrels impressive team also included Art Mag Fhionnghaile, Diarmaid Flood-Dolan and Shane Duffy

Afterwards medal presentations were made to all the players who took part over the two nights of the under 12 Ballyshannon Shoe Company Indoor Winter League. Club PRO John Hughes praised the players for the great exhibition of football they put on and thanked Sylvester Maguire, Val Murray and Kerry Ryan for reffing over the course of the six weeks. There were thanks for Brian Roper, Mary Flora Scott, Shelly Loughlin, Dylan Gallagher, JC McGarrigle, Eugene Doherty, Nessa Warren, Síofra Hughes, Alicia Clyne, Bridín Maguire and Leah Travers for managing the teams over the two nights of the under 12 league. There was a special word of thanks for Gus Culkin and Ballyshannon Shoe Company for their generous sponsorship which had allowed the club to award each of the 80 plus players who took part over the six weeks medals and trophies for team captains.

Last modified: Monday, 1 June 2020 at 1:10pm