Hamilton Park, Strandhill, Sligo, Ireland – Founded 1890
On Sunday those of you who can’t make it to the final league game of the season in Strandhill can listen in to live radio coverage brought to you by Daragh Cox of Ocean FM and by Ken O’Neill of Sligo RFC.
Tune in to 102.5-105fm for all the action sponsored by Flanagan Ford Financial Advisors, Raftery & Co. Accountants and main club sponsors McHugh’s Bar.
Listeners online can catch all the action here – Ocean FM
iPhone users click here for the Ocean FM app.
Next Sunday sees a watershed day in the history of Sligo Rugby Club. Sligo take on Castlebar in their final Connacht Junior League Division 1A match knowing that a win will guarantee that the league trophy will be residing at Hamilton park until next season. Sligo have not won this league since 1972.The added incentive for winning the league this season is that the winners will automatically be promoted to Division three of the All Ireland League and this fact ensured that this seasons league was extremely competitive.
This season Sligo have been a revelation. 7 bonus points secured from 10 league games and currently three points clear of second placed Monivea. Sligo have scored 70 trys and conceded only 9. Sligo are currently the highest scoring Junior Club in the country and following their heartbreaking one point defeat in the semi final of the All Ireland Junior cup they are guaranteed to be fired up for next Sunday’s encounter.
Sligo’s success this season has being based on a solid platform from their highly competitive forwards combined with a powerful athletic backline. Props Adrian Mc Hale, Wesley Maxwell and Martin Feeney have superbly dealt with all opposition threats. Hookers Ross Mannion and Gary Conneely have been accurate at lineout time as well as showing continued dynamism in the loose exchanges. Second Row James Wilson’s lineout play has been a handful for all comers and his partner Jamie Bowes is having a superb season with his trademark driving runs causing problems for all defences.
The back row forwards, Cathal Culhane, Paddy Conlon, Peter Mullan and Simon Coulter have shown a physicality lacking in previous Sligo teams and their work at the breakdown has been a feature of all of Sligo’s games this season.
At scrum half Paddy Pearson is the veritable box of tricks and as team captain his decision making has been excellent, Frankie Feeney has proved an invaluable back up fitting seamlessly in when needed. Outhalf Mark Butler is a constant threat and his excellent goal kicking has ensured the Sligo scoreboard is constantly ticking. Mata Fifita and Gavin Foley have formed an excellent centre partnership in both attack and defence. Full back David Gerrity always displays his football ability, Winger Aaron Spring has scored crucial trys with powerful running style and fellow wingers Billy Leahy,Brian Hynes and Roger Burrows have never been found wanting when called upon.
With Ireland playing at 3pm, the Kick off next Sunday is at 12.30pm and the Ireland match will be shown in the Clubhouse afterwards so come along and cheer the team to what we hope will be a historic victory.
With the Sligo first team on a free weekend before their vital final league game of the season the Sligo second team had the opportunity to lay a claim for a place in the first squad when the faced Ballina in their Connacht Junior League division 11A encounter at Strandhill on Sunday.
The Sligo men scored a magnificent seven trys without response as the put their mayo counterparts to the sword in every facet of play.
Sligo kicked off with the aid of the fresh breeze and immediately put the visitors under pressure. Some fine tactical kicking from outhalf Niall O Hara gave the Sligo pack the chance to set up camp in the Ballina 22.
The opening score arrived after five minutes when following some good driving play by second row Dermot Kiely a ruck was formed short of the line. The ball was quickly recycled and scrum half Finn Considine fed O’Hara who stepped inside the cover and touched down under the posts. The outhalf added the extras to put his team seven points to the good.
Fifteen minutes in and Sligo added their second try. Following a Ballina lineout Flanker David Cawley blocked an attempted clearance allowing the Sligo pack the opportunity to pour forward and turn over possession. The ball was quickly moved wide and winger Brian Mullan raced through to score out wide on the left. Continue reading ‘Seven up for seconds!’
Crosshaven RFC 6 :: Sligo RFC 5
Sligo’s dream of All Ireland glory came to an end in the cruellest of manners when they went down by a single point to Crosshaven at Myrtleville on Saturday in the semi final of the all Ireland junior cup. Sligo lead by two points with two minutes remaining on the clock but a well taken Liam Delaney drop goal secured the win for the home side.
With a howling gale blowing down the pitch the match was always going to be a battle of the forward packs. Sligo played the first half with the favour of the breeze but Crosshaven started well with their strong forward pack causing Sligo to concede some early penalties. As the game went on Sligo settled into their own pattern and began to pressure their hosts. The first scoring opportunity fell to Sligo in the form of a Mark Butler penalty on the 10 metre line but the wind made kicking extremely tricky and the outhalfs attempt was pushed wide of the posts. Sligo continued to press and were eventually rewarded with a Jordan Farrington try. A James Wison lineout take was taken down and driven towards the line by the Sligo pack. A series of pick and drives were stopped short before the ball was moved right to Mata Fifita. The centre timed his pass perfectly to give Farrington the chance to dot down ten metres in from touch.
Butler was narrowly wide with the difficult conversion attempt. Sligo looked to increase their tally before half time but their cause was not helped with the sin binning of scrum half and team captain Paddy Pearson for a high tackle five minutes before the break. However, to a man Sligo raised their game and the score remained the same until Pearsons return.
Crosshaven kicked off the second half and immediately used the now strengthening gale to gain field position. Kicking out of defence was impossible so Sligo had to keep the ball in hand to make their way up the park. The Sligo pack, with the outstanding Paddy Conlon leading the charge continually drove up the pitch to keep Crosshaven at bay. Adrian Mc Hale , Jamie Bowes and Fifita all carried well and trademark tackling from Gavin Foley and Cathal Culhane constantly frustrated the visitors.
Crosshaven narrowed the gap to two points twelve minutes into the half when a Liam Delaney drop goal effort was awarded by the referee. The ball appeared to have drifted wide of the left upright but the referee raised his arm and to the dismay of the visitors the score stood.
Sligo continued to up the work rate and were gaining ascendancy in the scrum and hooker Ross Mannion was linking well with Wilson and Peter Mullan in the line out. The pick and drive game was continually pushing the visitors back and the back three of David Gerrity, Aaron Spring and Farrington were fielding well and running back at their hosts at every opportunity.
The game was at a knife edge but Sligo were the team in control. Dynamic prop forward Wesley Maxwell had to retire with an injured shoulder but his replacement Martin Feeney scrummaged superbly and ensured that Sligo continued to dominate.
With three minutes remaining Crosshaven were awarded a controversial penalty for feet up at a scrum inside their own half. The ball was kicked deep into the Sligo half and from the resulting lineout Delaney was given field position in front of the posts allowing the outhalf the chance to bisect the posts for the winning score.
Time had run out for the visitors and two minutes later the ref blew the final whistle which signalled heartbreak for Sligo and their large travelling support.
Sligo. David Gerrity, Jordan Farrington, Matele Fifita, Gavin Foley, Aaron Spring, Mark Butler, Paddy Pearson, Wesley Maxwell, Ross Mannion ,Adrian Mc Hale, James Wilson, Jamie Bowes, Cathal Culhane, Paddy Conlon, Peter Mullan. Reps Martin Feeney, Frankie Feeney, Simon Coulter, Billy Leahy, Brian Hynes, Gary Conneely, Darragh Cox.
Match photos by Rory Raftery – see more here.
Full match commentary by Daragh Cox and Ken O’Neill from Ocean FM – download full match commentary here.
Sligo 53 :: Ballymoney 26
The Sligo womens team advanced to the semi-final of the Ulster plate in a high scoring 53-26 battle with Ballymoney at Strandhill on Sunday. Sligos all action game led by big performances from Jackie Carraway, Laura Feeney, Michelle Byrne and Ruth Goodwin was too powerful for their northern visitors. Sligo now meet Ballyshannon Women in the semi final and a similar performance could see them advance to the final in their inaugural season.
Galwegians RFC 9 :: Sligo RFC 3
The Sligo U17s suffered the heartbreak of a final defeat when the lost out in the Connacht U17 league decider at the sportsground in Galway on Sunday. Galwegian’s kicked three penalties to Sligo’s solitary effort in a closely fought battle that was in the balance right to the final whistle.
Galwegian’s started brightly and looked to bring their pacey backline into the game as quickly as possible. Sligos’s defence remained firm and big tackles from James O Hehir and Mark Gerrity ensured the early threat was snuffed out .
Then it was Sligo’s turn to attack and the pack with Eddie Connell and Diarmuid O Dowd-Hill prominent were gaining inroads into the blues territory. A promising move put together by Sligo in the tenth minute looked set to gain a reward but a loose pass was intercepted by Gawegians and only a superb chase and cover tackle by winger Enda Roche kept the Sligo line intact. From the ensuing ruck Sligo were penalised and ‘Wegians used the opportunity to open their account with a well struck penalty.
Sligo responded and some astute kicking by outhalf Enda Gavin gave them field position in the ‘wegians half. Pressure at the breakdown resulted in a penalty award and Full back Colm Egan made no mistake with a well judged effort to equalise, putting the scoreline at three all at the break.
The second half began with Sligo on the attack but their pick and dive game was well defended by the Galway outfit and no reward was gained for the packs endeavours. Galwegians went took the lead midway through the half with a well struck penalty and further increased their lead with a drop goal with fifteen minutes remaining. Sligo were stung into action and good play by the pack gave outhalf Enda Gavin the opportunity to position his team in the ‘wegians 22. A planned line out move almost resulted in a try but the ‘Wegians defence held firm.
Sligo continued to hunt for the all important try and with time almost up on the clock were awarded a series of penalties close to the ‘wegians line. The forwards drove over the line three times but incredibly the referee was unsighted on each occasion and did not award the try to Sligo.
Sligo Colm Egan, Sean Finnegan, Jason Mc Goldrick, Mark Gerrity, Enda Roche, Enda Gavin, Ross Gordon, Fabian Zawada, Matt Davey, Jamie Mc Govern, Niall O Rourke, Shane Boyle, Diarmuid o Dowd-Hill, James O Hehir, Eddie Connell. Reps Conor Kerins for Gordon, Daragh Burke for Egan, Patrick Saba for Davey.
Sligo RFC are holding a fundraising Monster Auction on the first Weekend in May. The auction commitee are actively seeking out items to auction such as Antiques, Curiosities, Sports Memorobilia, Service pledges etc. You never know whats in your attic so have a look and contact Michael at 086 8198540
Sligo RFC are participating in the Irish Daily Mail sports equipment giveaway.
To recieve 1000 euros worth of Sports equipment for the Club ,we need all of our members/Friends/Parents etc to collect the tokens printed each day in the Irish Daily Mail and return them to Justin Harte.
Sligo RFC V Crosshaven RFC in the All Ireland Junior Cup semi-final this Sat at 14:30hrs. Listen live from Crosshaven on Ocean FM. For Sligo rugby fans outside the radio coverage area you can tune in online here – http://www.oceanfm.ie/page/Home
The IRFU has launched a new website for the summer Tag rugby season. Tag rugby captains can now register their team to play in the summer league in Sligo Rugby Club,by going to www.irishrugby.ie/tagrugby . The season will begin in Hamilton Park on May 5th and will run for 11 weeks every thursday night. For more information on Sligo tag rugby you can email sligotag@gmail.com or join the sligo tag facebook.
Sligo RFC will be running a Supporters bus to the All Ireland Junior Cup semi final between Sligo and Crosshaven on the 12th of February. The bus will be travelling down on the Friday night and returning on Saturday evening after what is hoped to be a successful match for Sligo. Accommodation has been provisionally booked. Anyone interested in travelling are asked to contact John at 087 6212414 as soon as possible.
Under 13
Sligo RFC V Castlebar
After the rain fell all night on Saturday, the Under 13 game took place on the astroturf in Sligo IT because of a flodded pitch at Sligo Rugby Club. Castlebar took the lead after 5 minutes after they got a try between the post. They dominated the first half in all areas of the game where they scored once again. The half time score was Sligo 0 Castlebar 14. Sligo commenced the second half more confidently. However Castlebar remained the stronger team on the pitch. They rapidly totted up their score securing three other tries. Nevetheless Sligo’s fighting spirit gained them a well deserved try. The final score on an overcast day was Sligo 5 Castlebar 35.
Ballina RFC 0
Sligo RFC 11
On Sunday last in Ballina Sligo passed another huge examination in their quest for Connacht glory when they defeated Ballina 11 nil in Heffernan Park. This has been a graveyard for many a Sligo team over the years but on this occasion Sligo showed why they are the best Junior team in Connacht.
This was a very mature performance against a very good side. Sligo bossed this game from start to finish and could have had several scores were it not for excellent last ditch defence from Ballina.
What made this result so great was that the team knew all they had to do was win and coach Simon Galvan has to be lauded for the tactics on the day. Gone was the open fancy rugby to be replaced by pragmatism. No loose passes or throwing it wide for the sake of it , Sligo got stuck in and simply demolished the Ballina forward unit.
Sligo’s success this season has been based on a fifteen man game with the backs totally dominant. On this occasion the forwards and the half backs were asked to step up and they responded in spades.
For the first 15 minutes it was all Ballina but despite their dominance they had very little to show for it as Sligo defended superbly. Having defended for that opening spell Sligo went on the offensive. A great move from right to left saw Jordan Farrington sail in for a try. For the rest of the half Sligo kept Ballina pinned in their half. This tactic proved very fruitful as a penalty offense was punished just before the break to push Sligo in front 8, nil.
The second half saw Sligo dominating territory and possession in a very tense battle but Sligo were always in control and a further penalty by Mark Butler put them 11 nil ahead. Sligo was in no mood to give anything away and that was the final score of another epic battle.
Without a doubt this is the best Sligo team ever seen in the last thirty years or maybe ever. On Sunday their forwards to a man were magnificent. Their front row of Wesley Maxwell, Ross Mannion and Adrian McHale were simply awesome with Maxwells scrummaging just superb. Wilson and Bowes, as they have been all season, just exuded physicality. The back row again were super against very good opponents and for Cathal Culhane this will banish those bad memories against Westport in the play offs a few years ago. He was just so good on the day showing all his experience.
All season Sligo backs have been amazing- scoring close to ninety trys in all competitions and a huge part comes down to their brilliant half backs Paddy Pearson and Mark Butler. On the day against Mick Murphy and Kiwi Corey Brown they directed operations with great skill and intelligence. Outside them Mata Fifita and Gavin Foley were just superb with veteran Foley having the game of the year. Gavin put in some amazing tackles to stymey what is a very good Ballina back line. The back three of Spring, Farrington and the impeccable David Gerrity put in a great days work to round off a fantastic team effort.
Sligo now have one hand on the Connacht League trophy and it is unlikely they slip up at home in two weeks time against Castlebar. However before that game they have a very important assignment against Crosshaven next Saturday in the All Ireland Junior Cup semi final.
Sligo; David Gerrity Aaron Spring Gavin Foley Mata Fifita Jordan Farrington Mark Butler Paddy Pearson Adrian McHale Ross Mannion Wesley Maxwell James Wilson Jamie Bowes Paddy Conlon Cathal Culhane Peter Mullan Subs Simon Coulter Dara Cox Billy Leahy Frankie Feeney Gary Coneeley
Photos by Rory Raftery – see more game pics here
