Link

The 2023 McCartan Cup kicked off with Gortskehy taking on the reigning champions Robeen. The game was competitive with some fabulous skills being showcased throughout the field. Gortskehy finished on top with a scoreline of 4 – 3 to 1 – 4.

The next preliminary game featured Gortskehy v Roundfort. The referee threw in the ball at 6.30pm and Roundfort opened the scoring with a fine point. The next score came from Eoin Hession, Gortskehy, who slotted over to level proceedings. This would prove to be Gortskehy’s only score of the half with Roundfort adding a point and finding the net towards the end of half-time (Gortskehy 0 – 1, Roundfort 1 – 2).

Gortskehy came more into the game in the second half with Jamie Delaney tapping over. He added to his tally shortly afterwards following a beautiful pass from Eoin Hession which found Jamie one-on-one with the goalie and making no mistake to leave the teams level. Roundfort responded with a goal and a point of their own to once again take control of the match. A fine goal by Cian Slattery left the bare minimum between the teams but Roundfort finished stronger scoring another two points to see out the game with a three-point win.

Next up was Robeen v Roundfort with the latter finishing stronger and setting up a final where they would once again face Gortskehy. The crowd roared as Mark Tuffy threw in the ball and Roundfort once again opened the scoring with a well-worked point following a lovely passing move. Gavin Murphy was quick to restore parity for Gortskehy who quickly got into their stride and knocked over a string of three unanswered points thanks to Cian Slattery (2) and Jamie Delaney (1). Roundfort continued to press and scored a fine goal on the stroke of half-time to leave the teams level on a scoreline of 0 – 4 to 1 – 1.

The excitement grew as the second half got underway with Eoin Hession blasting home a goal after three minutes of play. Roundfort responded with a point but Cian Slattery extended the lead with a great goal and cemented Gortskehy’s advantage with a great point shortly afterwards. Roundfort hit back with a point but this proved to be their final score as, arguably, the point of the game came from Corey Jennings who somehow managed to slot between the posts from a very tight angle.

Gortskehy ran out winners on a scoreline of 2 – 6 to 1 – 3. It’s the first time in twenty years that Gortskehy have won the competition on their own. The fine, open football and fantastic skills shown by all teams bode well for the future of our local clubs.

Congratulations to our boys and girls who have reached the County Semi-Final of the Cumann na mBunscol football competition. Both teams play the North Mayo winners, Ardagh NS, on Wednesday next (May 17th) in Mulvey Park, Castlebar, F23X651.

The girls play on Pitch 1 (higher-ground pitch on the left-hand side) with throw-in at 11.30am. The boys play on Pitch 2 (lower-ground pitch on the right-hand side) with throw-in also at 11.30am. Everyone is invited to come along and support the teams.

Congratulations to our boys and girls who made their Confirmation on Saturday.

All is not well in the castle as Christmas draws near. The queen is a diva who looks down on the king and is always giving out to her ladies-in-waiting. Sometimes she gets so angry that she loses her mind and feels the sky is falling in.

The king and his friends are unhappy as royals and much prefer the open road and performing in theatres around the kingdom. A reporter from the Daily Star is sent to investigate. Can anyone restore the Christmas spirit and transform the king and queen?

Some angels may be able to help.

Link

On Wednesday last, September 28th, the girls’ football team won the South Mayo Mini-7 final for the first time as a stand-alone team. The competition was held in the dome at the Connacht Centre of Excellence and the teams taking part included Ballyhaunis, Gortskehy, Irishtown/Meelickmore (Group A); Bekan, Balla, Aghamore (Group B); Ballindine, Knock, Mayo Abbey, Gaelscoil Uileog de Búrca (Group C); Barnacarroll, Taugheen, Tooreen, Claremorris boys/girls (Group D).

Link

Gortskehy overcame Ballyhaunis and Irishtown/Meelickmore to meet Balla, as the winners of Group B, in the semi-final. Barnacarroll and Knock faced off in the other semi-final with Gortskehy and Knock progressing to the final stage.

Grace played fantastic in goal, making a number of key saves at crucial times in the game. Aoife and Sorsha commanded the back line while Faye & Alaois were excellent in mid-field. Alaois fielded some superb high balls matched with fine scores while Faye’s relentless marking of Knock’s key player was instrumental in Gortskehy gaining the upper hand.

The movement of Holly H on the forward line left her marker struggling to keep up and unable to prevent Holly taking a number of excellent scores. Holly M gathered a number of key balls, laying them off to our runners, and taking some fine scores herself, rasping the crossbar on one occasion. Gortskehy ran out winners on a scoreline of 7-7 to 4-4. Niamh, Aoibhinn and Alisha completed the panel but, because of age limits in this competition, they couldn’t join the field of play on the day.

The girls will now represent South Mayo in the County Quarter Finals in November. The last time the school enjoyed such success at this level was in March 2012 when an amalgated team of Gortskehy/Meelickmore won the South Mayo Final. The Gortskehy panel at that time included, Nicola Hession, Diane Tierney, Orla Beddows, Marie Mulhern, Amy Frizzell, Rachel Hession and Rebecca Flanagan. A video of that presentation can be viewed here.

We cannot forget the boys who were also group winners, defeating Ballyhaunis and Irishtown/Meelickmore before meeting Balla and being beaten by the narrowest of margins in the semi-final (5-6 to 5-7). Following their win, Balla went on to overcome the Gaelscoil in the boys’ final. Our boys didn’t let their disappointment impact the joy and celebrations led by the girls. We are so proud of them all. It was a fantastic achievement and we look forward to the county finals in a few weeks’ time.