30th June 2008

• The Fun day and Fun run: A big thank you to everyone who helped to make the Fun Day/Run such a big success. Everyone participated from the U-8 boys and girls, to the over 40's. A word of thanks also to the East Down Athletic Club who helped with the road race. We hope to make the Fun Day an annual event.

  Overall winners at the Fun Day in Loughinisland were Niall Carville at Under 8, Conor Cassidy (10), Calum Noade (12), Declan Corrigan (14) and Matthew Nugent at Under 16. Special mention to Conor, Calum and Matthew for each winning three out of six events contested.

  Special Request - All club members please bring their Fun Day sponsorship money to their next training session.

• The Senior team finished off the first half of their league campaign with a 1-11 to 1-11 draw with Liatroim. This is a match we should have won but were glad to settle for a draw at the end. This week's match is away to Rostrevor.
• U-10's & U-8's Loughinisland under 10s visited St John’s on Saturday morning for a blitz. They won all 7 games played. Highlights included young Brandon Boyd scoring a hat-trick of goals, Tiernan Casement’s spectacular own goal, and Caoilan Bolton scoring his first score for Loughinisland. Many thanks to St. John’s for a very well organised tournament.

  The Under 8s played an exhibition match on Saturday to kick off the fun day at Loughinisland. All kids involved showed a high level of skill and determination and were rewarded with medals. Eddie Nixon and Peter McMullan were outstanding on the day.

  Date for the Dairy – Under 10s at Kilkeel on Saturday August 2nd. Bus leaving at 09:15.

  Under 10 training on July 7th and 21st. NO training on July 14th and 28th.

• Members Email Address: To enable the club to keep all it's members up to date with the latest club information we are asking members to send us your email address. For all members interested can you send your email address to Peter Fitzpatrick: loughinislandgac@hotmail.co.uk

  ISLAND LOTTO RESULT 25-06-08

  NUMBERS: 6, 9, 24, 25

  1 person with 3 numbers: Angela Sloan who wins £50

  This week's jackpot is £2800

  Club 150 June Draw: Willie Russell, Mary Brennan, Helen Rice, James McClements Junior, Martin Toman - Each receive £100.

23rd June 2008

• The Senior team had a great victory over Clonduff on Friday night with a scoreline of 3-6 to 1-6. Trailing at half time by 1-5 to 1-3, the Blues had a great second half performance with goals from sub Stephen Molloy and Ben O'Reilly with Clonduff's only score coming in injury time. The next game is home to Liatroim.
• Best wishes on Sunday to Dan Gordon and Down when they take on great rivals Armagh in the Ulster Semi-final in Clones. Fermanagh await the winners in the Ulster Final which takes place on Sunday 20 July.
• U-12's continued their magnificent run in the league by recording their 10th win in a row. On a wet and windy day in Drumnaquoile St John’s opened the scoring with a pointed free before Rory Mahon scored the first of his two goals. Following his second three pointer the Blues fired over 4 unanswered points from play, Christopher & Calum Noade, Brett Ritchie and Dean McLoughlin the scorers. The defence played very well throughout the first half and restricted St John’s to one more point. The home team started the second half well with two more well taken points before Peter Nugent, Bailey O’Connor with his first point for Loughinisland, Calum Noade, Conal Fay and Declan McClements all scored points for the Blues. St John’s scored their fifth point from another free before Rory Deegan became the 10th Loughinisland player to score on the day when he slotted over a point from a free. Joint captains Declan McClements and Rory McCalvey were two great leaders on the day. Final score was 2.10 to 0.5.
  • There will be no Under 12 match on Sunday 29th.
  • Under 10 blitz at St John’s this Saturday at 10:00. Contact Gary or John for transport arrangements.
  • All members please remember to bring their sponsorship forms and money to the Fun Day this Saturday.
• The Fun day and Fun run will take place on Saturday 28 June. The day commences with an U-8 match at 1pm. Fun Run takes place at 3pm, with the main race at 3.30pm. Registered athletes £6, unregistered £7. There will be various side shows and games on the day. An Old Crocs match will take place at 5.30pm. Anyone interested in playing should contact Jim Carvill on 07768825827. There will be folk music in the club rooms from 8pm.
• Cultural Week from 30 June - 4 July from 9.30am-2.30pm. Activities include drama, music, Irish dancing, gaelic football, hurling and practice of the Irish language. The scheme will cater for P4-P7 children. This week is limited to 30 places. There may still be a few places available. Contact Joan Noade for further details.
• Members Email Address: To enable the club to keep all it's members up to date with the latest club information we are asking members to send us your email address. For all members interested can you send your email address to Peter Fitzpatrick: peterfitzpatrick811@hotmail.com

  ISLAND LOTTO RESULT 18-06-08

  NUMBERS: 13 14 15 24

  one person wins £50 - Barra Shields.

  This week's jackpot is £2750

16th June 2008

• Congratulations to Dan Gordon on leading Down to a superb victory over Tyrone on a scoreline of 1-19 to 0-21 after extra time. This was one of the best games seen in the Ulster Championship for many years. We wish Dan and Down every success in the Ulster semi-final. Any members requiring tickets for the Ulster semi-final on Sunday 29 June should give their names to Mark Brennan Tel: 07793819727, before Saturday 21 June.
• Loughinisland G.A.C will be holding a Fun Day and Fun Run on Saturday 28 June from 1pm-6pm. The day commences with an U-8's match (1pm). The Fun Run takes place at 3.00pm, while the main road race takes place at 3.30pm. The registration fee is £6 for registered athletes and £7 for unregistered. We also hope to have an over 40's match. There will be various sideshows and games on the day as well. There will be folk music in the clubrooms from 8pm.
• The Senior team lost to Kilcoo at home on Friday night 1-5 to 0-11. A Ben O'Reilly goal put the Blues in front at half time 1-5 to 0-5 but they failed to score in the second half while Kilcoo hit six unanswered points. Their next match is away to Clonduff on Friday night.
• The Minors had a great away victory over Bright. Shane Walsh scored his first ever point for the Minors. This was a great team performance. Paddy McKenny and Raymond Nixon played for the Down U-17's against Tyrone.
• The club will be holding a cultural week from 30 June - 4 July from 9.30am-2.30pm. Activities include drama, music, Irish dancing, gaelic football, hurling and practice of the Irish language. The scheme will cater for P4-P7 children. This week is limited to 30 places. Registration will take place on Saturday 21 June at 10am in the clubrooms. Registration will be based on a 'first come first served basis'. The fee for the week is £20 to be paid at registration.
• Under 12’s defeated a brave St Paul’s team on Sunday at St Macartan’s Park. Joint captains Rory Deegan and Fergal Murray led the side out, the team playing with the wind in the first half. Straight from the throw in Loughinisland moved the ball quickly to Brett Ritchie to fire over the bar. The team continued to pressure St Paul’s with Ethan Orr deflecting the ball to the net and Calum Noade adding a point. St Paul’s open their account with a well taken point before Ethan added two more points to make the half time score 1.4 to 0.1. The opposition needed a good start to the second half but Christoper Noade with a point, Rory Mahon with a rasper of a goal and Peter Nugent with two well taken points put 12 points between the teams. Not a team to quit St Paul’s responded well and outplayed Loughinisland for the remainder of the match. Five points were answered by three from Dean McLoughlin, Peter Nugent and Ethan Orr. The defence played particularly all match with Rory McCalvey, Donal Mckay, Hugh Dornan, Christoper Noade, Declan McClements and Conal Fay keeping scoring opportunities to a minimum. Midfielder Calum, top scorer Ethan, and Peter were the best of the rest.
• Members Email Address: To enable the club to keep all it's members up to date with the latest club information we are asking members to send us your email address. For all members interested can you send your email address to Peter Fitzpatrick: peterfitzpatrick811@hotmail.com

  ISLAND LOTTO RESULT 11-06-08

  NUMBERS: 3, 9, 12, 23

  2 people with 3 numbers - Tommy McLeigh and Paul Toman. Each receive £25.

  This week's jackpot is £2700

9th June 2008

• Down secured a great draw against Tyrone in Healy Park 2-8 to 2-8. Dan Gordon played a real captain's part in the midfield sector. All Down supporters are looking forward to the replay in Pairc Esler on Saturday night in Newry. The Down Minor team put up a brave performance before going down to a Down defeat 0-16 to 0-14. Ben O'Reilly's men led until the last 10 minutes, but were just pipped at the post.
• The Senior team won their fifth game of the season when they defeated Saval at home 1-13 to 1-10. There were good performances from Alan Molloy. Jamie O'Reilly and John McCarthy. This week's game is at home to Kilcoo.
• The minor team had a good victory over Darragh Cross 3-18 to 0-4. Good play from Jonathon Flynn, Chris Turley in goals. James Grant scored his first point for the Blues and played a real captain's part. Darren Treacy and Paddy Rogan hit the net. The Minors were understrength and the U-16's that came in all played well. The Minors are away to Bright on Wednesday.
• Under 10s travelled to Dromara for a friendly fixture on Saturday morning. After a hard fought game the boys in Blue won by 15 scores to 11. Under 12 players Declan McClements and Rory Deegan registered the majority of scores, sharing four goals and eight points. Goals by Calum Fernie and captain Kieran McKeating added to the total. Bailey O'Connor also got his name on the scoresheet with a great point. Apart from the scoring the most pleasing aspect of this game was the defensive positioning of the players, in particular Connor Cassisy, Tiernan Khalili and Niall Flynn. Another plus was the number of high catches and blocks registered by the team. Congratulations to Gavin McDonald who played his first game for Loughinisland.
• The Under 8s made only their second appearance as a team when they played against Teconnaught on Sunday morning. In a very entertaining match the team lost out by one point. All players were presented with a team photograph from the recent event at Kilkeel. A return match against Teconnaught has been scheduled as the opening event at the Loughinisland Fun Day on June 28th. Please do come along and support the budding stars of Loughinisland GAC.
• Loughinisland Ladies were in top form against Carryduff. They had an excellent team performance and played an enthralling match right to the very end. Brenda O'Hare the Centre Half Forward had yet another outstanding game scoring 2 goals and 3 points. She was well supported by her other forwards and Brenda Valentine who also scored 1 goal 1 point. Lorraine Colgan the Midfielder played every ball superbly and scored 1 goal by running through the Carryduff Defence. She was well supported by Michelle and Karen McClements who then in turn passed the ball up the field to Brenda O'Hare who then smashed the ball into the back of the net right through the Carryduff defence. Carryduff's forwards were kept at bay by the strong Loughinisland defence and 10 minutes into the 2nd half neither team had scored. Laura Mason covered the pitch from top to bottom keeping Carryduff on their toes at all times. Helen Rice, the Loughinisland goalkeeper as usual did an outstanding job ensuring that all kick outs were won by Loughinisland and she also made a couple of fabulous saves. Loughinisland can now look forward to their next game as they are going from strength to strength. Scores from B O'Hare (2-3), B Valentine (1-1) L Colgan (1-0).
• Fun Run!Sponsorship forms for the fun run are available from team managers, all players from Under 8s through to Seniors are expected to participate on the day.

  ISLAND LOTTO RESULT 04-06-08

  NUMBERS: 1, 3, 7, 13

  3 Numbers: Julie Digney, Patsy McMullan, Nicole O'Hare, Paul Kelly, Sean Kelly, Jonathon McDowell, Daniel Savage. Each get £10.

  This week's jackpot is £2650

2nd June 2008

• Sunday 8 June will be an historic day for Loughinisland as Dan Gordon will captain the Down Senior team against Tyrone in Healy Park while Ben O'Reilly will captain the Down Minor team. We wish both players every success and also best wishes to minor panelists Paddy McKenny and Luke Turley.
• We wish our minor player Michael Brannigan a speedy recovery. Michael got injured in a recent minor league game against Ardglass.
• Under 12’s: Two late points by substitute Barry Forsythe and midfielder Calum Noade secured the points for Loughinisland Under 12s in a very exciting match at home to Saul on Sunday, a game which had the teams level on seven occasions. In the first half Loughinisland relied heavily on their free takers with Conal Fay, Rory Deegan, Peter Nugent, Christopher Noade and Rory Mahon all scoring. Joint captains Conal Fay and Dean McLoughlin played a major role in keeping a skilful Saul team to just six points, four of which came from play. Christopher Noade opened the scoring in the second half with his second free only for Saul to nudge ahead once again with a well taken point. Loughinisland then moved up a gear starting with a point from the left foot of Nugent. Half time substitute Conor Feeney rounded two defenders before crashing the ball past the Saul goalkeeper. Brett Richie and Ethan Orr added points, then 1st half goalkeeper Connor Cassidy bundled the ball home to move the boys 8 points clear. Much too good a team to lie down Saul then took the game to Loughinisland and stunned them with three quick goals. Loughinisland’s only score during this scoring blitz came from a well taken point by Orr to level the match for the 7th time. Substitute Barry Forsythe was introduced and with his first touch put the Blues ahead. Calum Noade, who never stopped running all match, became the 11th Loughinisland player to score when he added a point and shortly afterwards Ardglass referee Paul Savage blew the final whistle. Final score was 2.12 to 3.7 in a pulsating game that thrilled the spectators.
  • Under 12 training is on Saturday at 3.30.
  • Under 10s play Dromara at 10:00 on Saturday. All players to be at the pitch for 09:00, Bus leaves at 09:15.
  • Under 8s play Teconnaught on Sunday at 11:15. All players to be brought to the pitch at Teconnaught for 11:00
• Congratulations! to St Patrick's Downpatrick who defeated Carrickmacross in the final of The Corn Colmcille Cup. The club was represented by Sean and Peter Cochrane, Gary Stranney, Declan Corrigan, Aaron McClements and Philip Martin.
• Fundraising night: The St Macartan's Primary School Parent Support Group will be holding a fundraising night in the club rooms on Saturday 7 June. Music by Andrea Rice.

  ISLAND LOTTO RESULT 28-05-08

  NUMBERS: 5, 6, 16, 28

  Lucky Dip winner is Phylis Rooney who wins £25. This week's jackpot is £2600

  Club 150, May Draw: Anne Toman, Barry Smith, Libby Carville, Hugh O'Toole, Claire Rogan - Each receive £100.

27th May 2008

• The senior team lost for the second time this season, going down to a one point defeat at Burren 0-7 to 0-8. Owing to the conditions, the scores were hard to come by. The Burren keeper denied Dan Gordon a goal near the end by making a good save.
• Under 12’s Loughinisland Under 12 boys recorded their second win of the season against a brave Dundrum team who could easily have got something out of the game were it not for the superb form of the Loughinisland goalkeepers.

  Rory Deegan scored two points for the Blues but these were matched by two from Dundrum, who then scored a goal from a high kick which deceived the Loughinisland defence. Playing against a strong breeze the team hit a couple of wides from shots that could easily have been converted.

  Defenders Donal McKay, Rory McCalvey and Declan McClements played very well, and another one of the defence unit, Christoper Noade, found time to get up the pitch and score a point to leave just two in the match at half time.

  At the start of the 2nd half Fergal Murray injured himself making a brave save resulting in Connor Cassidy moving to the goalkeeping position. Dundrum had started strongest but it was Loughinisland, with a move starting from defence, who opened the scoring with a well taken goal from Conor Feeney.

  Rory Deegan then cut in from the right hand side and slotted the ball to the back of the net. Barry Forsythe added to the score with a well taken free after which it end to end with Loughinisland kicking some terrible wides and C Cassidy saving the team by making two wonderful saves.

  Dundrum scored a point which Peter Nugent cancelled out, He then scored a goal from a 30 yard free which evaded the Drumdrum defence. Conor Gordon scored the final point of the day to make the final score Loughinisland 3.6 Dundrum 1.3. Joint captains Hugh Dornan and Ethan Orr, worked hard for the team all day to ensure the Blue’s winning steak continued.

  • Next match is at home to Saul on Sunday at 12:00 noon.
  • Training will be on Saturday at 4:00 this coming week. All players expected to attend
  • Congratulations to the managers and players of the Loughinisland Under 8 team who participated in a very well co-ordinated blitz at An Rioch on Saturday past. This is the first time that the club have fielded an Under 8 team in competition, a sure sign that the youth structure in the club is working better than ever.
• Down v Tyrone: Any member requiring tickets for the Tyrone v Down Ulster Championship game in Omagh on Sunday 8 June, should contact any committee member.
• The Under 8's Sponsorship: Louginisland GAC have recently established an Under 8's team. Anyone interested in sponsoring jerseys and/or socks and/or shorts should contact John Nugent on 028 44 831257
• The Under 8's blitz : Congratulations to the managers and players of the Loughinisland Under 8 team who participated in a very well co-ordinated blitz at An Rioch on Saturday past. This is the first time that the club have fielded an Under 8 team in competition, a sure sign that the youth structure in the club is working better than ever.

13th May 2008

• The senior team had a narrow 1 point win at home to Ballyholland on Friday night. The next league game is on Thursday night away to Mayobridge.
• Loughinisland U14 boys have started the season with 4 consecutive league wins against St Johns, Liatroim, Saul and Carryduff B. Comprehensive wins against the young but spirited sides of St Johns and Liatroim were followed by hard fought victories at home to Saul and away at Carryduff. The well balanced Loughinisland team have benefited from consistently good performances from the Cochrane brothers Sean and Peter, brothers Niall and Aaron McClements and Gavin Morgan. With free scoring Rory Mason and Gary Stranney in great form, scores have been flowing from all the forwards and midfield to give Loughinisland an average match score of 29 points. A back line bolstered by Declan Corrigan and Cormac Deegan with Ryan Mason in good form between the posts, has limited the opposition to only 8 points on average per game. A good run in the recently held Feile came to a halt in the semi final at the hands of a very physically strong Warrenpoint side. Despite the valiant effort of the Loughinisland boys, they eventually went out in a very low scoring game played in blustery conditions.
• Under 12’s finished the first half of the league with a resounding victory over a Carryduff team weakened by injuries to key players. Every member of the panel played their part in what was a wonderful display of free flowing football that any of the Loughinisland teams, from under 8 to senior, will find hard to match this season.

  Peter Nugent opened the scoring with a point, but Carryduff hit back immediately with a goal and two points. Defenders Declan McClements, with one point, and Christopher Noade, with three wonderful scores, brought the sides level. Loughinisland then went on a scoring streak; Calum Noade added a goal before Ethan Orr took over, adding two goals and one point to the scoreboard. P Nugent and Rory Deegan added a point each to put the Blues into a very strong half time position.

  Carryduff needed a good start to the second half. However, Loughinisland continued where they left off with a goal from P Nugent followed by points from D McClements and Calum Noade. All of the substitutes were put on at this stage and Carryduff took advantage by scoring 5 unanswered points. The defence held firm and Fergal Murray pulled off a couple of terrific saves. Two points from Dean Mc Loughlin and another from Calum Noade rounded off the scoring, resulting in a final score of 4.14 to 1.7. Significantly, only one of the Loughinisland scores came from a free.

  Loughinisland currently sit proudly at the top of the table. The team know that remaining in this position will be very difficult as each of the teams they have defeated will be out for revenge during the second half of the season.

  • Training is on Saturday from 10:30 to 12:00.
  • The next match is at home to Dundrum this Sunday at noon. More support for the team will be appreciated.
  • The Loughinisland Under 8s will participate in a tournament at Kilkeel this Saturday and at Newry the following Saturday. Please contact John, Gary, Lorraine or Una for more information.
  • Matches are being arranged for the Under 10s. If other clubs are interested in playing matches against Loughinisland Under 10s please contact John on 028 44 831 257.

13th May 2008

• The senior team lost their unbeaten league record away to Castlewellan. The final score was 1-14 to 1-10 in favour of the town side. The next league game is on Friday night at home to Ballyholland.
• Congratulations to our minor player James Grant who came on against Castlewellan to make his senior debut.
• A table quiz for the Loughinisland Girl Guides will take place on Friday 16th May in the clubrooms.
• The minors put up a brave challenge against Kilcoo in the minor championship going down by five points 2-17 to 2-12. A big crowd turned out to watch this game. Both teams put up an excellent show. Paul Digney had to go off early in the first half with a broken collar bone. We wish Paul a speedy recovery. The minors will now take part in the B championship and they will be a handful for whoever they meet. A word of thanks to the Kilcoo physio who helped Paul Digney when he got injured.
• Under 12’s continued their winning ways with a one point victory at Drumaness. On a day when the forwards seemed to have left their shooting boots at home it was the defenders who won this game for the Blues.A bigger Drumaness team started well and had three points on the board before a shot by Rory Mahon was well saved by their keeper. Another point for the winning team was followed by a Rory Deegan free to leave the score 4 points to 1 at half time.An inspiring team talk by the managers along with some positional changes resulted in a much improved performance in the 2nd half. The forwards continued to play some good football but poor shooting ensured this was not reflected on the scoreboard. At the other end of the pitch Loughinisland’s man of the match Declan McClements, together with Ryan Crothers and Ethan Orr kept the Drumaness boys scoreless. A goal by Rory Deegan brought the game to life. It was followed by points from defenders Christopher Noade and Ryan Crothers to give the team a slender lead. However Drumaness responded with a goal and a point to leave two points in the game with time running out.A good run from Peter Nugent was followed by an accurate pass to marauding defender Conor Cassidy, who lashed the ball to the back of the net. Drumaness mounted a couple of attacks but could not get the equalising point they truly deserved. Final score was 2.3 to 1.5. This week’s training has been moved to 6:00 on Saturday evening. Sunday’s match is at home to Carryduff at 12:00 noon, all support welcome.

  ISLAND LOTTO RESULT 07-05-08

  NUMBERS: 1 12 20 21.

  One person with 3 numbers - Conor Corrigan who wins £50. This week's jackpot is £2450

6th May 2008

• The Senior team kept their unbeaten start to the season in tact with their third victory in succession with a 3 point home victory over An Riocht. They can count themselves rather fortunate because with 2 minutes remaining they were trailing by a point 0-11 to 0-10. Seamus O'Hare pointed a free to level matters. Then in injury time Jamie O'Reilly passed to Gareth Johnson and he fired an unstoppable shot to the net to secure the victory.
• The Minors host Kilcoo in the first round of the minor championship tonight (Wed) at 7.15pm. The Minors are still unbeaten after drawing away to Drumaness 3-6 to 1-12.
• Parents of the U-8's and U-10's girls and boys are asked to help as supervisors at the coaching sessions which take place on Monday evenings from 5.45- 7.00pm. Contact Lorraine Colgan on 44811144 or John Nugent on 44831257.
• Committee meeting will take place on Monday 12th May at 7.30pm.

  ISLAND LOTTO RESULT 30-04-08

  NUMBERS 1 6 12 13

  1 person with 3 numbers - Paul Burke, Downpatrick who receives £50.

  This week's jackpot is £2,400.

  CLUB 150 - APRIL DRAW:

  The following recieve £100:

• Declan Valentine
• Eugen Harte
• Brian Rooney
• Shane Brennan
• Joseph Leahy