Masita GAA Post Primary Schools Paddy Buggy Cup (Senior B Hurling) semi-finals
St Louis’, Ballymena v Coláiste Naomh Cormac, Kilcormac (Sunday Inniskeen, 12.30pm)
Holy Rosary, Mountbellew v Hamilton High School, Bandon (Saturday, Cappamore, 1pm)
IT is a dilemma faced annually by the winners of the Danske Bank Mageean Cup; the gap between the provincial decider and the Paddy Buggy Cup semi-finals at the start of March.
Admittedly that gap has narrowed from the traditional set date for the Mageean final of the weekend before Halloween to a date close to the break for the Christmas holidays. Nevertheless, it still seems a long time since Aodhán McGarry and Ronan McCollum jointly captained St Louis' to their third Mageean title.
McGarry scored a goal and eight points that evening to collect the James O’Kane Player of the Match award. His goal in the 54th minute pushed the game beyond neighbours St Killian’s.
McCollam was also pretty effective in the final with 1-5 to his name, while Jack McCloskey was also a threat for them going forward.
Kilcormac also had to come through a derby final to set up a date with St Louis – but that was just a fortnight ago. St Brendan’s, Birr pushed them all the way before falling away towards the end of a hard-fought encounter that ended 1-12 to 0-10. Adam Screeney scored the last five points of the game in the final 10 minutes.
Many of the Offaly side who narrowly lost the All-Ireland final to Tipperary last July played in that Leinster final, most of them on the Kilcormac side who were hot favourites, but didn’t play to their full potential.
Seven of Screeney’s 10 points came from frees and the rest of the attack was fairly well held by the hard-working Birr defence. But the Kilcormac defence was also excellent with James Mahon and Brecon Kavannagh standing out.
St Louis' look to have a big challenge ahead of them, particularly on the defensive side of the game. As Screeney proved with the final two points in the Leinster final, at some stage he is going to break free and pick off scores. Other times he is good for seven or eight points from open play and a goal or two as well.
The last time that St Louis' came through to this level they won the semi-final, but lost the All-Ireland final in extra-time. It will take a huge effort to equal that achievement – but with the likes of Jack McCloskey and Ronan McCollum up front and Aodhán McGarry pushing through from midfield it isn’t impossible.
Masita GAA Post Primary Schools Michael Cusack Cup (Senior C Hurling) semi-finals (Saturday, 2pm)
St Mary’s, Magherafelt v Terenure College (Dowdalshill, Dundalk)
Mitchelstown CBS v Clarin College, Athenry (Gurteen)
ST MARY’S, Magherafelt claimed a first-ever Danske Bank Casement Cup title just 10 days before they exited the MacRory Cup at the quarter-final stage five weeks ago.
There was a small but significant overlap of players – James Sargeant and Niall O’Donnell in the half-back line and Conchuir Johnstone up front. All three scored in the semi-final win over St Malachy’s and Sargeant and Johnstone were on the mark once more in the final against Rathmore Grammar.
Indeed, Johnstone, an Antrim senior football medallist with Cargin last year, ended up top-scorer overall for St Mary’s in the competition even though he has played little hurling through the underage ranks.
Sargeant, though, is one of half-a-dozen Lavey players in the team. They won the Derry minor title last year and lost the Ulster semi-final to a very useful Loughgiel side.
There is a question mark over O’Donnell’s participation. He has joined the Derry senior panel this season and has got game-time under Rory Gallagher in the McKenna Cup. With Derry involved in a top-of-the-table clash with Dublin in Celtic Park, it appears that he will not be released for the school’s hurling semi-final.?Magherafelt, under the guidance of St Gall’s player Niall Burke, could well do with all the resources they have as a winner of the Casement Cup has yet to break through at All-Ireland level.
Their opponents, Terenure College, met Cisterian College Roscrea, another prominent rugby school, in the Leinster final and came away with an impressive 2-15 to 1-8 victory.
Many of the clubs on the south side of Dublin are represented in the Terenure panel with seven from Ballyboden St Enda’s and four from Faughs making up the bulk of the starting team.
Of those the Ballyboden midfield pairing of Darragh Smyth and Simon Norris and Faughs full-forward Oisin McKenna pose the biggest threat to Magherafelt’s chances of progress.
Victory is a tough ask for the first time Ulster champions.
Masita All-Ireland Senior D Hurling Championship semi-finals
Mercy College Woodford v Coláiste na Trócaire Rathkeale (Saturday, Clarecastle, 2pm)
Gaelcholáiste Dhoire v Lucan CBS (Monday, Stabannon Parnell’s, 5.30pm)
IT IS a quick enough turnaround for the new Danske Bank Casement Shield champions. Galecholáiste Dhoire only won the trophy for the first time on Wednesday in Owenbeg and five days later they have to face Lucan CBS in the All-Ireland series.
This is new ground for the Dungiven-based gaelscoil, and also for Ulster schools’ hurling, as the Casement Shield winners have never had the opportunity to progress to All-Ireland level during the seven years the competition has been running.
Gaelcholáiste were very impressive 4-18 to 1-3 winners over Carndonagh on Wednesday with Mikey Ó Dubhghail-Cinnéide deadly accurate on frees and Finbarr Ó Muirí and Ger Ó Diolúin regular scorers up front.
However, their key player is Derry U20 and Slaughtneil senior Ruairí Ó Mianáin, who captains the team and directs operations from centre-half back. Team manager Cian Waldron will hope that Ó Mianáin came through Friday evening’s Ulster U20 game against Down unscathed.
Mention Waldron, and the new recruit to the Gaelcholáiste staff could be a valuable asset in the preparation for this game as he has been a coach in recent years with several underage Dublin teams including their minors last year.
He should be familiar then with the Lucan midfield diamond of captain Michael Cunningham, midfielders Patrick Ryan and Liam Garrigan, and Darragh Lyons at centre-forward. All have been involved at minor level over the past two years with Cunningham and Garrigan currently in the county squad at U20 level.
It will therefore be a big challenge for the Derry school, but if they approach it with the same appetite they displayed last Wednesday, they stand a good chance of getting a result.
