Cuala U14 Boys at South East 7s Tournament

Cuala U14 Boys travelled to the wilds of County Carlow to participate in the South East Sevens Football Tournament on July 6th. Tinryland GAA host this annual event throughout June and July for boys and girls across the age ranges, and last Sunday it was the turn of the 2011 Boys. It was a great event, with strong representation from 16 Clubs around the country. Having played the opening group games against Graiguecullen (Laois), Rathvilly (Carlow) and Shelmaliers (Wexford) our lads qualified for the quarter final. Cuala succumbed to a few quick goals in the first half but rallied strongly to outscore the opposition in the second half, but it was not to be this time, and Rathgormack (Waterford) earned themselves a semi final place. A good team display from Cuala, with the lads seeking a return to the tournament in the coming years. A big thank you to our sponsors Carron-Walsh and to the Coaches and Parents who helped make it a memorable day for the lads. Cuala Abú!

U16 Boys South East 7’s Tournament

Sunday 22nd June saw the 2009 boys hit the road very early in the morning & head towards the townland of Rathcrogue in Co. Carlow. That was the destination in the satnav for the annual South East Sevens Football tournament hosted by Tinryland GAA club. The club hosts seven-a-side football competition for a variety of age groups across a number of weekends in both June and July each year, for both male and female teams.

The u16 boys tournament started with a parade at 9.30am and the Cuala banner was raised high amongst 16 participating teams arriving from all over Leinster and beyond, including the football stronghold of Crossmaglen GAA in Co. Armagh. The 7-a-side format was completely new to the boys but they quickly absorbed the intensity and physical demands required for the non-stop action. Shorter picthes and shorter games were a complete ruse! It was tough.

The lads lost their opening game but won their next two to qualify for the Cup competition. In the Cup they were to lose out to a very strong Naas team who went on to win the overall tournament and were really impressive in every game they played. No shame going out to that team. The lads did their club proud on the day and really adapted to the tactics involved in sevens extremely quickly.

The host club put on a splendid tournament. The facilities and organisation on the day was first class and is a credit to all their club volunteers. Their tournament motto is ‘Where friendships are born’ and that appears very apt reflecting back on the day. Thanks to all the parents who travelled to support the 2009 boys on the day.

Celtic Challenge Cup Success

Congratulations to Paddy Walsh who was part of the Dublin Electric Ireland Celtic Challenge team that won the Corn John Scott Final against Clare last weekend with Cuala’s Finbarr Murphy as part of the management team.

The Celtic Challenge Cup was established in 2016 with a developmental ethos. It is named in recognition of the original juvenile hurling club known as ‘Celtic’, with the John Scott cup named after John William Scott who was shot in Croke Park on Bloody Sunday in 1920. The 2025 Electric Ireland Celtic Challenge had 38 teams from all 32 counties taking part. Find out more about the Celtic Challenge Cup  here.

Hurling Féile Finals

Our U15 boys were in action last weekend for their hurling Féile finals, with some fantastic skills on display during thrilling games. The A team (pictured above) beat Naomh Barróg in a Shield semi-final, but lost out in the final (by a mere point) to O’Tooles. The Bs (below) won an excellent Cup semi-final, beating Naomh Barróg by two points in extra time. Unfortunately, they were beaten in the final by hosts BBSE, by two points.

Well done to the two teams for reaching the finals and with thanks to hosts O’Toole’s and Ballyboden St. Enda’s.

U11 Boys Jersey Presentation

The U11 boys were presented with their new jerseys by senior players Tom Magee, Cal Doran, Charlie McMorrow, Cillian Dunne and Michael Fitzsimons at their training session on Monday evening. Needless to say, there was great excitement.
A big thank you to the sponsors Warbble Digital and LetsGetChecked. And of course, thank you to the senior players who took time from their busy schedules to help with the presentation.

U13 Boys play half-time at Croke Park

 

Following the recent exploits of our Senior Footballers it was the turn of a mixed grade team from our 2013 Boys to take to Croke Park. Last Saturday, our boys hurled against Scoil Uí Chonaill during the half time interval of Dublin V Offaly.

Thank you to Dublin GAA, Scoil Uí Chonaill for a great game and Cuala’s own Nicolai Callaghan for officiating the match.

U15 Boys Féile Campaign

The U15 boys started off their Féile campaign last weekend with the presentation of their kit in the Halla on Saturday afternoon. Senior footballers Conor Groarke, Tom Magee and Michael Conroy came to share their Féile memories and give advice for the campaign before presenting each of the boys their kit. A few trophies were brought along too for inspiration (!).

A huge amount of work went into getting ready for Féile, from fundraising at the Mini All Ireland, Christmas tree collecting and recruiting sponsors. Sincere thanks to all involved and in particular to our sponsors:

– PWC
– ⁠Moondance Business Consultants
– ⁠IT Quotes
– ⁠Spirit Radio
– ⁠Professional Development
– ⁠Louise Phillips
– ⁠Jason White

The campaign kicked off on Sunday with football in Thomastown v Templeogue Synge Street and away v Skerries Harps. Hurling starts on Feb 23rd, best of luck!

Find out more about Féile here.

CMán Cuala Hurling Festival

Last Sunday more than 160 boys from age groups U10 to U14 took part in the CMán Cuala Hurling Festival at Thomastown, which was the culmination of a summer hurling initiative for juvenile boys. The initiative was focused on integrating players and coaches from the different age groups and giving the players an opportunity to be coached by some inter-county and club stars before the season commences. The festival on Sunday saw inter-county stars Cian Kenny and David Blanchfield from Kilkenny, Offaly’s Adam Screeney, as well as our own Sean Brennan and Liam Murphy manage (and even play with!) the juvenile teams for what was a fun-filled day of hurling.

Thanks to all the coaches who supported the training throughout the initiative and in particular our Cuala senior hurlers. A special mention to Ryan Malone who coordinated all the coaching slots with Cuala senior hurlers. Thanks to Stephen Butler, Jamie Conroy, Conor Groarke, Jack Twomey, Cormac Spain, Conor Lowry, Michael Conroy, Eoghan O Callaghan, Donal Murphy and our Dublin senior hurlers Sean Brennan and Liam Murphy. A massive thanks to Finbarr Murphy, Luke Hand and Neil Casey who have have been instrumental driving forces behind the scenes.

Thanks to all the lead coaches (Glenn, Aonghus, Damien, Tim, Neil, Fintan, Denis, Tim) who helped with all the logistics and of course to all the other parents and club members who volunteered in so many ways to make Sunday’s event happen.

And finally, a sincere thanks to Shane O’Brien who led the organisation of this hugely successful initiative throughout the summer.

See more images over on the gallery page of the website: Gallery – Cuala GAC – Official Website (cualagaa.ie)

U15 Boys Football Féile 2024

The Feile campaign for both teams kicked off in February 1st, with a presentation of vibrant new club kit presented by senior players Peadar and Emmet, followed quickly by games which continued into late April. Poor weather impacted fixtures leading to some delays.

Cuala A played three tough games in the group stages with the highlight being an away win versus St Kevins-Killians which resulted in them topping their group and into the cup competition. In the cup-semi-final they played host to near neighbours Naomh Olaf. On the day they came up short and went down 1-9 to 2-9 in a game that was in the melting pot right up until the end. A disappointing end to a Cuala team who went down giving their best for the red jersey.

The highlight for the B team in the group stages was a resounding win over Round Towers Lusk. Their results had them enter the shield competition with a good deal of confidence as there was a incremental improvement in performance with each passing game. This culminated in them saving their best performance of the campaign for the knockout stages. A comprehensive win over Maurs in the semi-final saw them face Templeogue Synge Street in the final in Thomastown on the 28th April. A beautifully manicured Thomastown played host to a fantastic display from the lads with Cuala winning out 1-14 to 1-7. A great reward for a great bunch.

The 2009 boys enjoyed great support from coaches, parents and supporters throughout all the games. The effort involved in getting teams beyond the white line is real, so they would like to thank all who contributed their time and effort to their campaign. They would especially like to recognise the support from the sponsors who supported the team.

  • HSOC
  • Pebble
  • Core Real Estate Advisors
  • Your Parking Space
  • Silva Corp
  • Eyelids Limited