< Previous© September 2020 The Meath Coaster 40 Club news W e have been busy training and get- ting our fitness back ready for the new season ahead. We are adjusting well to our new normal with all the Covid measures in place. Some of our teams are playing 9 and 11 aside for the first time so we have been getting some friendlies in to help us get used to the new formats. We are excited for the new season to start as we can't wait to get back to play. We have a new u8s team starting and they are very excited to get playing. We are very thankful to have some new sponsors for some of our teams and we will be highlighting them in next months edition. C2 General Stamullen F.C. Academy news Stamullen FC academy is starting back soon, please email the club to register your interest. Stamullen FC gardening edition! We would like to thank all our volunteers who came down to help out get our new pitches match ready for the new season ahead. We had lots come and help which made the big job a much easier task. We are down again next Monday to hopefully finish the job. Great to see such communi- ty spirit which is the essence of our club. U9 girls team update MGL U-9's Our girls head in to their new season with lots of new faces onboard,we wish the Coyne Family all the best heading of to Belgium.© September 2020 The Meath Coaster 41 Sharon McInerney,Derek and Emer Ó'Byrne come into the management team. We also have players that have come up through our girls Academy,with the likes of Hannah Tadgh, Heidi Byrne,Erin McInerney,Sophie Thicker and Sophia McEvoy all making the step up to playing competitive matches. We have a squad of over 20 players which is great too see at grassroots level. Club Contact Details: Email - stamullenfc@gmail.com Facebook - www.facebook.com/stamullenfc Club Secretary Marcus Kelly – 0851477825 Website – www.stamullenfc.com §© September 2020 The Meath Coaster 42 A s we return to something approach- ing normality, it’s wonderful to have some very exciting news to report on the competition front! Congratulations to Holly Brennan and Aaron Smith, Holly was victorious in the Junior women’s 5000m at The Irish Life Health national senior and U23 T&F Championships and Aaron came second in the men’s junior 5000m. All their hard work and dedication and that of their coaches has paid off. It’s a wonderful accolade for our club and a tribute to the work put in by both the athletes and coaches. We couldn’t be prouder of them. Holly Brennan National Junior Gold Medalist “The race was a slow pace. I didn’t mind so I decided to tuck in behind the girls as the wind was strong. With 2k to go, I slightly picked up the pace but nothing much. It soon came down to myself, Celine Gavin and Aoife Coffey. In the last 400m, myself and Celine Gavin were neck in neck and I decided to just go for it with 250m to go” Aaron Smith National Junior Silver Medalist “Pretty much (the) race started off really slow so I just tried to sit in 2 nd place the whole race, that went to plan with the odd person going ahead for a lap or 2, few surges every once in a while but I stayed calm and covered the moves, with 600m to go a few of the lads boxed me in so I went straight to the back of the group that had broken away from the rest of the field, I worked my way straight to the front and made a strong move with 400m to go I had the lead which I held for Cilles Athletic Club www.cillesac.ie www.facebook.com/CillesAC© September 2020 The Meath Coaster 43 about a hundred meters, Michael Morgan kicked ahead and I held on for a while, I glanced back and we both had a gap of the field, I pushed on and held on for 2 nd ” The wonderful B-5 race couldn’t go ahead in it’s usual format this year, we did however find a silver lining to this turn of events, we went virtual! 439 runners took up the five mile chal- lenge in their own time during the month of July and ran to raise funds for Cystic Fibrosis Ireland and The Irish Hospice Foundation. We had entries from as far afield as Australia and Germany. Each charity will receive €1,635.33, which is an outstanding figure. Huge thanks must go to our run- ning buddy Graham at NSP who very generously added €500 to the pot. Moving onto our current status amidst the Covid-19 pandemic. Our youth(older juveniles) and senior groups are back to training. Younger juveniles haven’t re- started yet due to issues securing training facilities, we’re working on this, watch the Facebook page for updates. The waiting list for under 12’s isn’t operational at the moment until we get training go- ing again. So we are moving towards some- thing approaching normal but still a ways to go. Thank you all for being so patient as we get to grips with a new way of doing things and to each of you for working with us to keep yourselves and others safe while we run. Looking forward to running with you all soon. §© September 2020 The Meath Coaster 44 Naomh Colmcille C.L.G. www.cilles.com A fter months of lockdown things re- ally blasted off in August. Apologies in advance for anything we have missed ! Adult Championships To say August was busy is something of an understatement with the 3 Adult men’s and 2 Adult ladies teams completing their group stage campaigns. A condensed champion- ship brought some real challenges to teams but all did us so proud. Following wins over Seneschalstown and Rathkenny/Slane our Junior Ladies have reached the semi final of the Junior C championship which takes place this Thursday 3 rd September in Piltown. The girls have put in a huge ef- fort and hopes are high that they can take It’s a big few weeks for our Intermediate ladies Well done to the Premier 3 men on making the Championship final © September 2020 The Meath Coaster 45 another huge step forward and reach a sec- ond final in three years. The Intermediate ladies found themselves in the proverbial Group of Death with beaten 2019 finalists Dunshaughlin, perennial semis finalists, Ratoath and old rivals, Dunsany. Despite a huge effort the truncated nature of the Championship now sees us face the for- mer senior kingpins the mighty St Ultans in the relegation playoffs. The date has to be confirmed but keep an eye on social media. The men’s Senior team also found them- selves in a Group of Death with 2018 Champions Dunboyne, perennial semi fi- nalises Gaeil Colmcille and former king- pins Dunshaughlin. A massive effort just saw us fall short against the Gaeils but Action from the recent A League Our Gaelic 4 Dads team played St Oliver Plunkett’s Dublin recently rekindling glory days © September 2020 The Meath Coaster 46 we atoned for that disappointment with a great win v Dunshaughlin. At the time of going to press we are preparing to play Dunboyne and whilst qualification for the semi-finals is not possible we wish the lads the very best. Our Premier 3 team have qualified for the Championship final following a draw with Dunderry and wins v Dunsany and Donaghmore/Ashbourne. We have yet to play to our potential and hopefully we can do this against Walters- town who we face off in the final (date to be set). At the time of going to press the Premier 5 team are preparing for a win- ner takes all clash with Skryne. Follow- ing wins v Simonstown and Moynalty the winners of this clash with the Tara men will go to final but a draw will be enough to see us through. Good luck to all the lads Minor Boys Championship Well done to both minor teams on ex- cellent campaigns. The Division 1 boys have made it to the semi finals and now play Dunboyne at Piltown. It is hoped that this game may be streamed live by Meath GAA TV so keep an eye on social media for this. The Division 3 boys nar- rowly missed out on a semi final when 2 late goals away to Donore knocked them out but what a great campaign they had with some very fine football played. The lads now play St Ultans in the shield and competition and we hope they can bounce back from the disappointment of the main competition to continue their excellent performances Shane Black Cúl Cilles Academy The Shane Black sponsored academy is back with TWO sessions this year to en- sure we meet current government guide- lines. The younger groups are at 9:30 and older groups at 11am as normal. Full de- tails on www.cilles.com All welcome Thanks Everyone These are strange times for all with at- tendance at games currently heavily re- stricted. We want to say a huge thank you to all our COVID supervisors, supporters and guardians who are working so hard at keeping this horrible disease at bay. Just a reminder to all to keep social distancing, washing hands and obeying all restric- tions and guidelines. It is for everyone’s benefit Exciting times for the Saints Hurlers© September 2020 The Meath Coaster 47 Hurlers High Hopes It has been a great couple of weeks for The Saints Hurlers (the St Colmcilles/St Patricks combination) who are currently competing in u15 and u13 Champion- ship. The u13’s have set Roinn B on fire and are currently topping the table, with one match to play following wins over Loughcrew Gaels/Gaeil Colmcille, Kilm- essan 9 to 6-2) and Drumree qualifying for a semi-final place and hopes are high that they bring home the silverware. The U15’s have been training hard and dug deep and battled their way to a recent vic- tory against Drumree last weekend. With some cracking games to come, with a bit of luck they can also qualify for a semi- final spot in the coming weeks Underage Round Up Like the adult teams it has been all sys- tems go for the underage teams this month. The festivals of games that are Go Games and Little Ladies commenced this month with the next generation of young Cilles making their debuts. Well done to all. The girls U12, U14 and U16 leagues are reaching the final stages with all our teams in contention. The Boys U13 and U15 leagues are also heading towards the semi final stages with the latter very well progressed with the Division 1 team se- curing a home semi-final and the Premier and Division 3 teams set to know their faith in the next week. Stay tuned on so- cial media for updates Graham Reilly Summer Camps David Bell drives home a crucial goal v Dunshaughlin in the championship © September 2020 The Meath Coaster 48 Well done to all who took part in the Gra- ham Reilly Summer Camp. Thankfully the weather cooperated and everyone lucky enough to attend had a great time. A big well done to all involved. Thanks to all who took part and helped out includ- ing all our coaches and volunteers who assisted in any way Lotto Please support all our club by playing the club lotto. The jackpot is now at a very at- tractive €7,200. Down through the years it has been one of the most won lottos in the country so don’t miss out on your chance. You can play online at www.cilles.com during these pandemic times Cilles And Affinity Advisors Link Up And It Could Save You Money ! It’s important at this time to support all our sponsors and we ask all our members to ensure you support local business at all times but especially now in these pan- demic times. One such sponsor are Af- finity Advisors www.affinityadv.ie/ , the mortgage and protection specialists. Af- finity support our ladies senior teams and team mentor, Mark Murphy is one of Af- finity’s specialist advisers Did you know that many mortgage hold- ers can make large savings by switching mortgage providers? Very often we don’t have time to think about our outgoings and very often the effort involved can seem like a huge chore. However voted as Mortgage Broker of the year 2018 and 2019, Affinity Advisors can cut through the complexity and provide you with high quality, independent and professional mortgage advice and services. If you would like to review your current The minor boys have qualified for the Championship semi finals for the 7th season in a row The u15 boys have secured a semi final © September 2020 The Meath Coaster 49 mortgage and consider if savings can be made then why not contact Mark Murphy on 087-9783205 or at mark@affinityadv.ie who will guide you through the maze 50 th Anniversary The club will make 50 years of service to its community in 2021. Plans are afoot to mark the year and make it very special. If you have any old photos/news cuttings or stories from those 50 wonderful years then we would love to hear from you. Please contact us on info@cilles.com or through any member § The latest generation of Young Cilles commenced their Little Ladies League recently A championship semi final awaits the Junior C ladies Next >