Galway Football Senior, Intermediate & Junior Championship 2024 Draw Preview

The Galway football season is set to be thrilling with the Bon Secours Senior, Peter Curran Electric Ltd Intermediate, and OCC Construction Primary Junior Football Championships 2024. From established clubs like Corofin and Mountbellew/Moylough to rising teams such as Annaghdown and Barna, each group promises intense competition and exciting matches.

Bon Secours Senior Football Championship 2024

Group 1:

• Mountbellew/Moylough
• Salthill/Knocknacarra
• Caherlistrane
• Naomh Anna Leitir Moir

Group 2:

• Maigh Cuilinn
• Dunmore MacHales
• St. James
• Monivea/Abbey

Group 3:

• Corofin
• Oughterard
• Tuam Stars
• Claregalway

Group 4:

• Milltown
• Killannin
• Annaghdown
• Barna

Peter Curran Electric Ltd Intermediate Football Championship 2024

Group 1:

• Kilconly
• Oileáin Árann
• St. Brendan’s
• Clifden

Group 2:

• An Spidéal
• St. Gabriel’s
• Corofin
• Williamstown

Group 3:

• St. Michael’s
• Oranmore/Maree
• Menlough
• Glenamaddy

Group 4:

• Cortoon Shamrocks
• Kilkerrin/Clonberne
• Caltra
• Mícheál Breathnach

OCC Construction Primary Junior Football Championship 2024

Junior 1 – North:

• Headford
• Ballinasloe
• Athenry
• Killererin

Junior 1 – West:

• Renvyle
• Fr. Griffin’s/Éire Og
• An Cheathru Rua
• Clonbur
• Carna-Caiseal

Junior 2 – North:

• Annaghdown
• Corofin
• Mountbellew/Moylough
• Tuam Stars

Junior 2 – West:

• St. Michael’s
• Salthill/Knocknacarra
• Claregalway
• Barna
• Maigh Cuilinn

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O’Brien took charge of the club in 2016 after previously working under Stephen Rochford as a selector and became one of the most decorated club managers in the sport.

The esteemed club manager then took the reins and built on Rochford’s three Galway titles in a row, extending the streak to seven in his time, and led them to an unprecedented three All-Ireland titles in three seasons.

The club also won four Connacht Senior Football Championships in his time with them.

“It’s been a phenomenal journey and a great period of success for the club,” O’Brien told Galway Bay FM yesterday.

Rival club Mountbellew-Moylough proved to be their kryptonite and the last two years have yielded no titles as a result, with the team’s two losses in the Galway Senior Football Championship since O’Brien took charge coming at the hands of the current county champions.

Mountbellew-Moylough also drew with Corofin in the 2018 county final but lost the replay in what was to be the first of three All-Ireland triumphs for O’Brien’s team.

However, Corofin’s almost-spotless record under O’Brien remains a fantastic feat – the side won 51 of their 56 Championship games with their former selector holding the reins.

“I think you have to be very grateful. There were days on the sideline where games were gone from us, and we got the luck that day. Teams evolve as well, and last Sunday was the pinnacle of that with Mountbellew’s success – and fair play to them.

“I’ve been very proud, in winning three All-Irelands, everybody in that dressing-room was from Corofin and that really, really shows the success we have within the club and the calibre of people.

“I’ve no doubt the position will be filled, and I certainly will be there to support them in whatever way I can.”

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Mountbellew dethrone Corofin. Val Daly’s underdogs ended Corofin’s seven-year reign as Galway’s Senior football champions.

Crucial second-half goals from Patrick Kelly and Paul Donnellan helped Mountbellew-Moylough cause a sensational shock in the Galway Senior Football Semi-Final as they dethroned Corofin.

Mountbellew-Moylough started the game as 6-1 outsiders against the three in a row All-Ireland champions.

Val Daly’s underdogs began well with Barry Mchugh and Eoin Finnerty firing over their first two points either side of a Michael Lundy score for Corofin. Patrick Kelly also rattled Bernard Power’s crossbar in an impressive opening spell, from the rebound Finnerty tapped over his second point. Ian Burke got a neat score at the other end to cut the gap to a point.

Michael Daly added a fine point from distance before the holders showed their undoubted quality by reeling off four scores on the spin from Ian Burke, Colm Brady, Gary Sice and Martin Farragher. Corofin held a 0-06 v 0-04 lead at the water break.

The rain that had been threatening all afternoon turned into a downpour at the start of the second quarter. Scores became harder to come by as the conditions deteriorated. Ian Burke scored his third point of the day and Liam Silke added another Corofin point after some quick thinking from Burke. However, Barry McHugh and Eoin Finnerty cut the deficit to a single point before the break.

Half-time: Corofin 0-08 Mountbellew-Moylough 0-07

When Gary Sice pointed after the restart it look like business as usual for a Corofin side who traditionally push on in the third quarter. However, the underdogs obviously hadn’t read the script. Mountbellew soon hit the front. A pacey move down the left-hand side, in the shadow of the main stand, led to a shooting chance for Patrick Kelly. He rattled his shot past Bernard Power into the righthand corner of the net.

The assembled contingent of 100 Mountbellew fan let out a deafening roar that echoed around the empty stadium, sounding more like they number in their thousands. Corofin responded to this setback well and level up the game.

However, the Mountbellew fans were in full voice again ten minutes later when a Barry McHugh free dropped short and was rifled to the net by Paul Donnellan.

Suddenly the champions were looking down the barrel, five points in arrears with five minutes to play. Mountbellew- Moylough finished strongly. Barry McHugh added further scores to ensure a novel county-final pairing of Mountbellew-Moylough v Moycullen next weekend.

Scorers:

Mountbellew-Moylough – Barry McHugh 0-5 (3f), Eoin Finnerty 0-04, Patrick Kelly 1-0, Paul Donnellan 1-0, Michael Daly 0-1.

Corofin – Ian Burke 0-4, Gary Sice 0-3, Micheál Lundy 0-1, Colin Brady 0-1, Martin Farragher 0-1, Liam Silke 0-1.

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Corofin cruised past the challenge of Salthill-Knocknacarra to book their spot in the last four of the Claregalway Hotel Galway Senior Football championship.

Despite playing into the wind at Pearse stadium in the first half, they held a slender 0-06 v 0-05 lead at interval. An early Robert Finnerty free had got the hosts off to a good start. However, Salthill were wasteful with the wind at their backs as a tally of five first half wides drained their confidence somewhat. Corofin were far more economical with their chances. Their patient probing passing suited playing into the wind.

A brace of points from both Jason Leonard and Gary Sice, along with points from Kieran Molloy and Conor Cunningham kept the scoreboard ticking over during the opening half. Salthill were overly reliant on the accuracy of Robert Finnerty from placed balls. Three frees and a mark from the son of their manager Anthony Finnerty were Salthill’s only scores during the first half until Tomo Culhane added a point from play in first-half stoppage time.

Half-Time: Corofin 0-6 Salthill 0-5

Kevin O’Brien’s side upped the intensity after the break and began to pull away from the Seasiders.

On the restart Corofin extended their lead with a point from play and a Gary Sice free. Further scores from Liam & Darragh Silke (2) and Michael Lundy, as well as a fine effort from Jason Leonard were only interrupted by a solitary Robert Finnerty free in reply. A goal from substitute Dathai Burke ten minutes from time sealed the win. The Dual player squeezed the ball past Ruairi Lavelle in the Salthill net after a beautiful reverse pass from Gary Sice. Further late points from Gary Sice and Ciaran McGrath added to the final tally of 1-18 to 0-9.

Full time: Corofin 1-18 Salthill Knocknacarra 0-09

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All-Ireland champions Corofin’s incredible undefeated streak in the Galway senior football championship now stretches back over 50 games. They put their record on the line against a Salthill-Knocknacarra side that blends youth with experience.

Last years finalists Tuam Stars are up against surprise package CLG Bhearna, while 2018 finalists Mountbellew-Moylough play Killannin. The final tie sees Moycullen face the Mervue based St.James GAA.

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Claregalway Hotel Senior Football Championship quarter-finals

Corofin v Salthill-Knocknacarra: Saturday 12th, Pearse Stadium @2:30pm

Corofin set down a marker in their opening group game with a 27 point hammering of last years Intermediate All-Ireland winners Oughterard. They followed that up with comfortable wins over Monevia-Abbey and An Cheathrú Rua. The depth of Kevin O’Brien’s squad was also well illustrated as former All-Stars Dathai Burke and Ian Burke both made cameos off the bench. Few county teams, nevermind club sides can boast such depth of quality in their squad.

Salthill were less convincing as they plotted their way out of their group. A win, defeat and draw in that order saw them claim second spot in their pool behind group winners Bearna. An apparent score-keeping error in their favour in their final group game against An Spidéal saw the game finish 0-16 v 1-13 rather than a one-point defeat. Salthill have a largely youthful team mixed with club stalwarts like Finian Hanley and Sean Armstrong. When they click, as they did in their opening-round win over St.Michaels (3-13 v 0-10), they can be formidable opponents. Robert Finnerty, son of their current manager and former Mayo star Anthony, is top scorer for the club with 1-14 so far. Tomo and Paddy Culhane have also chipped in on the scoring stakes.

The sides met at the semi-final stage last year. On that occasion, Corofin won an entertaining game by 1-16 to 2-09. However, on the evidence of what we have seen from both sides thus far in this campaign, Salthill have been too inconsistent and it would take an incredible performance for them to dethrone the holders.

Tuam Stars v CLG Bhearna: Saturday 12th, Pearse Stadium @5:30pm

The Stars came within seconds of clinching a surprise win in last years drawn county final. A superb display saw them two points up against the Corofin as the clock ticked into the red. Two late Gary Sice frees salvaged a draw for Kevin O’Brien’s side who went on to win the County final replay. They then powered on all the way to Croke Park to lift a third successive Andy Merrigan cup.

Tommy Carton’s side looked to have a hangover from that replay defeat as they slumped to a surprise two-point loss in their opening group game against Caherlistrane. Tuam bounced back with wins over Killannin (0-14 v 1-09) and Claregalway (1-18 v 1-12) to reach the knock-out stages again this year.

Bearna have proved to be the surprise package of this year’s championship in Galway. Starting the campaign as one of the favourites for the drop to Intermediate, they caused a big shock with an opening-round win over Salthill-Knocknacarra. Sean Conlon’s side then backed that performance up with further wins over St.Michael’s (0-13 v0-11) and An Spidéal (2-07 v 0-10) to top their group.

Free taker Donal Ó Cualáin leads the way in the scoring stakes with 2-14 (1 pen, 10f), while Tom Curran and Oisin Gormally have also chipped in.

Mountbellew-Moylough v Killannin: Sunday 12th, Pearse Stadium @2:30pm

Mountbellew-Moylough won their opening two rounds of group games to nail down a quarter-final spot. Annaghdown were defeated by 1-07 v 0-08 before Mícheál Breathnach’s were accounted for on a scoreline of 0-22 v 2-07. Val Daly’s side took their foot off the gas somewhat in their final group game as Moycullen cruised to a 4-14 v 1-09 win over the men in black and amber.

The retirement of club stalwart Joe Bergin, along with injury ruling John Daly out until the new year, was a blow to one of the few clubs capable of presenting a stiff challenge to Corofin. However, there is still plenty of quality in this squad. Barry McHugh has notched up 16 points so far, while Michael Daly, Patrick Kelly and Eoin Finnerty have also helped keep the scoreboard ticking over.

It’s twenty years since Killannin have reached a county final. Frank Noone’s charges have reached this stage thanks to wins in rounds 1 & 3. A narrow 0-11 v 0-10 win over Claregalway was followed up with a two-point defeat against last years finalists Tuam Stars (1-09 v 0-14). A 1-13 to 2-07 win over Carherlistrane in their final pool game clinched second spot in their pool behind Tuam. County stars Johnny Heaney and Patrick Sweeney are their main scoring threats to date.

Mountbellew overcame Killannin by four points when the sides met in last years’ championship. They look to have the stronger side to repeat that feat again this year.

Moycullen v St.James: Sunday 12th, Pearse Stadium @5:30pm

Moycullen (Maigh Cuilinn) will be looking to secure a semi-final spot for a second year running. They lost out to Tuam Stars at the penultimate stage last year and Don Connellan’s side will be looking to get another bite at reaching a county final for the first time since the 1970’s. Standing in their way are St.James’.

Moycullen have racked up big scores en-route to the quarter-final. They have found the net 11 times in their three matches. Mícheal Breathnach’s (3-12 v 1-06), Annaghdown (4-09 v 2-14) and Mountbellew-Moylough (4-14 v 1-09) were all defeated on their way to top of group 2. Dessie Conneely has racked up an impressive 3-16 and Conor Bohan has notched 4-03.

One crucial battle could be Johnny Duane against Dessie Conneely as St. James look to nullify Moycullen main attacking threat. This may somewhat stifle Duane’s own attacking instincts that have see him chip in with 1-01 from wing-back.

St. James, captained by Eoin Concannon, have shown great form so far this campaign. Last year saw them in a battle to stave off relegation. This year wins over Milltown (3-20 v 2-16) and Oughterard (3-16 v 1-14) were enough to clinch a quarter-final spot after an opening round defeat to Cararoe (0-15 v 1-10).

County star Paul Conroy has led the way with 20 points (14f), while Concannon (1-09) and Aaron Connolly 2-04 have also contributed handsomely.

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Galway GAA

Claregalway Hotel Senior Football Championship – Group 4A

Sunday, 2nd August – 2:30pm 2020 at Pearse Stadium. Live on TG4

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The opening weekend of the Galway Senior Football Championship saw the clash of the All-Ireland Champions. Corofin lifted the Andy Merrigan Cup for the fifth time after defending their title with an extra-time win over county Down side Kilcoo at Croke Park last Janurary. The following weekend Oughterard defeated Magheracloone Mitchells of Monaghan by 2-16 to 0-12 to claim the Intermediate title.

Despite the retirement of their captain and club stalwart Kieran Fitzgerald, Corofin manager Kevin O’Brien had a host of experienced players to call upon to step up to the mark. It was to be a baptism of fire for Tommy Finnerty’s Oughterard side.

There was a clinical freshness to the Corofin attack, who at times looked tired during last years campaign. This bunch of players had been on the go non-stop for the last four years. During this run the end of their county title campaign each year signalled the start of their all-Ireland winning campaigns.

First Half

The first-half was a story of missed chances for the newcomers when contrasted with Corofin’s clinical dispatching of scores. Corofin played against a fresh breeze in the opening half. Michael Lundy was given the role of the lone operator in the full-forward line, with support runners coming from deep.

In the early exchanges, a Matthew Tierney point for Oughterard was cancelled out by a Darragh Silke score at the other end. Corofin’s Kieran Molloy was black carded for an incident in the fourth minute. But despite the numerical disadvantage, Corofin outscored their opponents by 1-3 to a single point during the next ten minutes.

Darragh Silke raised the first green flag of the game running onto a lay-off from Lundy, which he duly drove home past Jordan Waller in the Oughterard goal. Lundy and Oughterard’s Ronan Molloy exchanged scores before Oughterard spurned a glorious goal opportunity. Ronan Molloy dragging his effort wide of Bernard Power’s net.

Indeed that was to be the first of three goal chances that Oughterard engineered in the opening half. None of which were converted.

1. Scores from Cian Harte, Matthew Tierney and Enda Tierney saw Ougherard close the gap to two points after twenty minutes. Enda Tierney had a fine chance to put Oughterard ahead, but blazed his goal effort to the left of Bernard Power’s goal. From the resulting kick-out Corofin swept downfield and Michael Lundy laid the ball on a plate for the onrushing Michael Farragher to fire Corofin into a 2-7 to 0-6 lead.

Conor Brady and Paul Walsh exchanged points before the interval. Corofin took a healthy seven-point lead into the half time break.

Half-Time: Corofin 2-8 Oughterard 0-7

After the restart, a brace of points from Darragh Silke bookended a Michael Lundy score as Corofin extended their lead. Eric Lee got Oughterard off the mark in the half with a point before Corofin found the net again.

Michael Lundy took a quick free on the right, which was work in and across goal, when the initial effort was blocked Michael Lundy was on hand to fire home a third Corofin goal.

Another Oughterard goalbound effort was kicked off the line by Conor Cunningham as the gulf On the scoreboard continued to grow. In truth, the remainder of the game was a damage limitation for Tommy Finnerty’s men.

Corofin showed their strength in depth by springing a pair of All-Stars off the bench. Ian Burke and dual star Daithí Burke joined the action and the former made his mark with two fine points.

Jason Leonard raised a fourth green flag for the holders when he fired home from the left of goal. A  fifth arrived shortly after, this time Dylan Canney fired home from the opposite side of Jordan Wallers net, which by now was almost under constant siege. Darragh Silke got in on the act with a goal, as he took his personal tally to 1-7 from play. The seventh goal came from substitute Matthew Cooley who tapped home a rebound after Waller had saved his initial effort.

Corofin were imperious at times in the second half as Oughterard were ruthlessly exposed in their first game back at senior level. In truth, it’s doubtful that any side in the country could have kept pace with Corofin at times today. Kevin O’Brien’s side recorded only three wides during the entire game. Scoring 24 times from 27 efforts on goal, which showed the clinical nature of this side.

Full Time: Corofin 7-17 Oughterard 0-11

Scorers:

Corofin- Darragh Silke 1-7, Michael Lundy 1-3, Jason Leonard 1-1, Dylan Canney 1-1, Dylan Wall 1-0, Matthew Cooley 1-0, Mike Farragher 1-0, Gary Sice 0-2 (1f), Ian Burke 0-2, Liam Silke 0-1, Colin Brady 0-1.

Oughterard- Matthew Tierney 0-3 (2f), Paul Walsh 0-3, Ronan Molloy 0-2, Enda Tierney 0-1, Cian Harte 0-1, Niall Lee 0-1 (1f).

Team Squads

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The Tuam Herald report the 39 year old bows out at the highest level after winning an All-Ireland club title with Corofin in January, his fourth in all. It was the Galway sides third All-Ireland title in a row. An excellent corner back, the Garda by occupation, was instrumental in Galway winning their last football All-Ireland in 2001. He would go on to claim an all-star award that season also.

With his club Corofin Fitzgerald won an astonishing 14 county titles between the years 1998 to 2019. He would go on to win 6 Connacht titles, as well 4 club All-Ireland titles in 2015, 2018, 2019 and then 2020. With Galway Fitzgerald won an All-Ireland title in 2001, as well as 3 Connacht titles. He also won an U21 All-Ireland title in 2002. He retired from inter-county football in 2011.

In a statement to the Tuam Herald he said, “It’s hard to put into words the enjoyment and satisfaction I have experienced while playing the sport I love for over 30 years.” He continued,“It was an absolute honour to play for Corofin GAA Club and for Galway. Although we had ups and downs, I loved it and if I could do it all again – I would!“I am continually overwhelmed and humbled by the support and goodwill I have received down through the years from all corners of the GAA community both in good times and bad.

Fitzgerald thanked all his family, coaches and team mates saying “I want to thank all the great coaches I have had the pleasure to work with over the years, who guided me, mentored me and encouraged me to push myself to reach my potential. One man in particular stands out, Frank Morris. From my first days at U8s in Rusheens right up to the present day, Frank has left an indelible mark on me, both on and off the field. His legacy will live forever in Corofin GAA. “I want to thank my wife Emer, my parents and my family who have all travelled this bumpy road with me along the way. They have always picked me up after so many lows and I owe them a huge debt of gratitude. I am just so happy we could all share and experience some really great days also.

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