SECRETARY'S REPORT 2012 FOR A.G.M. 27 September Cumann Lúthchleas Gael Na Fianna Cómdháil Bhliantúil 2012 Áras Na Fianna.

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1 SECRETARY'S REPORT 2012 FOR A.G.M. 27 September Cumann Lúthchleas Gael Na Fianna Cómdháil Bhliantúil 2012 Áras Na Fianna.

2 Cumann Lúthchleas Gael Na Fianna Comdháil Bliantúil 2012 Áras Na Fianna Clár (a) Adoption of Standing Orders. (b) President's Address. (c) Chairman's Address. (d) Minutes of AGM 29 September (e) Secretary's Report. (f) Treasurer's Report. (g) Appointment of Tellers. (h) Motion and Election of Officers (a) Uachtarán (b) Leas-Uachtarán (c) Cathaoirleach (d) Leas-Cathaoirleach (e) Rúnaí (f) Leas-Rúnaí (g) Cisteoir (h) Leas-Cisteoir (i) Cathaoirleach Cluichí na nóg (j) Cathaoirleach Cluichí Shinsearacha (k) Oifigeach Caidreamh Poiblí (l) Oifigeach Teanga agus Cultúr (m) Ionadaí na nimreoirí (n) Ball den Choiste (2) (o) Oifigeach Tiomsú Airgid (i) Motions and Recommendations. (j) Appointments of Auditors. (k) Any Other Business. CLG Na Fianna AGM 27 September

3 CLG Na Fianna AGM 27 September 2012 Standing Orders for Annual General Meeting The proposer of the motion or an amendment thereto, may speak for five minutes but no longer. A person speaking to a motion or amendment shall not exceed three minutes. The proposer of a motion or amendment may speak a second time for five minutes before a vote is taken, but no other person may speak a second time to any motion or amendment. The Chairman shall, at any time he considers that a matter has been sufficiently discussed, call on a proposer to reply, after which a vote must be taken. A person may, with the consent of the Chairman, move that the question now be put after which, when the proposer has spoken a vote must be taken. CLG Na Fianna AGM 27 September

4 Secretary s Report for 2012 AGM This year we celebrated the magnificent achievements of the athletes who achieved such outstanding performances in the Olympic and Paralympic games. We were enthralled by the performances of the hurlers and footballers as they strove to win provincial and All-Ireland medals throughout the Spring and Summer. Alongside all this headline grabbing activity thousands of energetic and enthusiastic individuals spent hour after hour planning, training and coaching the young players, a tiny percentage of whom will, in turn, grab the newspaper headlines as they represent their counties in the future. All of these boys and girls are given the opportunity to dream the dream and to see themselves as capable of competing with the best thanks to the work of dedicated mentors. These mentors inspire thoughts of greatness and immeasurably contribute towards developing self-esteem and confidence in their charges. In Na Fianna we are blessed with several hundred men and women who fulfil these roles as they look after teams in hurling, football, camogie and handball at all ages and at all levels. All of us are indebted to them for their efforts. A glance through the team reports gives some idea of the extraordinary number of hugely committed and competent individuals who, all year round, look after our club teams from the Nursery to the senior teams in all codes. A sincere thank you to each and every one of you and please keep up the good work and never under-estimate the value of that work on many different levels. There are many other roles to be filled within a club such as Na Fianna. Crucially, we need people to look after the finances, people to manage the facilities, to cut the grass, to maintain the clubhouse, to decide policies, to plan for the future. The list is endless. Again, thanks to all of you. One of the main items on the agenda for every Executive Committee is finance. In the current financial climate it is vital to keep close control of expenditure and to create as much income as possible. As you will see from the Treasurer s report, Brendan Roddy and Karen Fox have done a magnificent job in this regard. Our main sources of income are subscriptions and bar receipts. I would appeal to all members to pay their subscriptions sooner rather than later. The bad news is that they become due immediately after the AGM! My other suggestion is that groups of mentors or players, and their friends, would occasionally choose the Na Fianna bar for a night out. In addition to supporting the bar this would help people to get to know each other better and to enrich their experience of Na Fianna. Mobhi Rd and its environs are filled with a huge amount of activity each week ranging from the smallest children to adults, from training to inter-county games and a whole range of social events from birthday parties to funerals. The recent Glasnevin Expo showed the club at the centre of the community. A highlight of the year was our Ladies Senior Football team reaching the All-Ireland. Will anyone who witnessed the Gaelic Global Challenge forget the excitement engendered by the huge crowd present and the thrill of entering the Guinness Book of Records. The spectacle of hundreds of people removing water from the pitch in order to host a Féile na ngael semi-final also remains vivid. Finally, a sincere thank you to each member of the Executive Committee who have served during the past year. Each person has made their own unique contribution. Thanks again to all who contribute in any way to the community that is Na Fianna. I wish you all continued success for the coming year both on and off the field. CLG Na Fianna AGM 27 September

5 CLG Na Fianna AGM 27 September 2012 Committee Reports Executive Committee Sincere thanks to every member of the Executive Committee for their commitment and hard work during the year. At time of writing, the Committee has met on 18 occasions. Facilities Committee Chaired by Brian O Sullivan, this committee is responsible for the upkeep of the club s pitches and premises. Its members include : Dermot Moran, Fintan Brennan, Phil Kelly, Oliver Casserly, Pat Clinton, Pat O Shea, John Bridgeman, Frank Gray, Brian (Gow) O Sullivan, Charlie O Reilly, Gerry Donohoe, Fergus McNally, Martin Quilty, Jim Heffernan, Martin O Leary, Seán Ó Laoire, Dave Buckley, John Campbell, Tom Ryan and Jim Aughney. These and others are always on call whenever work needs to be done. Special mention must be made of Dermot Moran for the condition of our main pitch. Bar Committee Our Bar and Function Rooms remain vital elements in maintaining our financial stability. Ciara May continues her good work as manager while Aidan Irwin looks after the catering. These are overseen by a committee chaired by Eoin Ó Ceallacháin and including : Tom Gilligan, Charlie O Reilly, Domo Weir, Joe Walsh, Pádraigín Breathnach and Ronan Nolan. Saturday Morning Teas Many thanks to Mary Doolan, Essie 0 Hara, Mary Donohoe, Marie Campbell, Patricia O Sullivan, Patricia Lowry, Marie Kirwan, Fionnuala Neville and Mary Behan for providing a lovely service for those who come down to the club on a Saturday morning. Céilí Committee The Club Céilí continues on the second Friday of each month. It continues to be held in the Scoil Chaitríona hall agus táimid buíoch do mhúinteoirí agus Bord Bainistíocht na scoile. Thanks to Ann Ryan, Mary Murphy, Teresa O Sullivan, Kathleen Taffe and Michael Cooney. We were all sadded during the year by the passing of John Hallanan. Ar dheis Dé go raibh a Anam. Lotto Committee This committee meet every Monday night and comprises Bob Courtney, Seán Behan, Ann Ryan, Seán Lohan, Paddy Hughes and Brian (Gow) O Sullivan. Well done to Vinny Caffrey for his immense contribution each week. CLG Na Fianna AGM 27 September

6 Delegates Our Delegates are our link with the various County Boards. Many thanks to Charlie O Reilly, Kieran Redmond, Dave Fenton, T.J. Gleeson, Rachel Quinn, Ann Ryan, Fiona Greene, Richard Dunne and Eugene McHugh. Club Shop Special thanks to Sean Behan, Sheila Quinn and their helpers for their ongoing work in the Club Shop. Seosamh Breathnach is now providing a great service as he repairs and sells hurleys and helmets in his workshop at the back of the building. Administration Roisín O Sullivan continues to do a marvellous job in her role as part-time administrator. She is available in the office from 9am to 1pm Mon to Fri. School Pitches Without access to the pitches at Scoil Chaitríona and St Vincent s School, Na Fianna simply could not function. These facilities are absolutely vital to the future of the club and we have a duty to treat them and their surrounds with respect. We are grateful to the authorities in both schools for their continued co-operation and good will. Tomás Ó Riain Rúnaí CLG Na Fianna AGM 27 September

7 CLG Na Fianna AGM 27 September Juvenile Team Reports It has been a busy year at juvenile level. There have been many memorable occasions on and off the pitch and in the handball alley. It was a great privilege for the club to host the National Feile in July. Well done to Brian O Sullivan and his team for superb organistion of this most memorable event. I would like to acknowledge the commitment and hard work of our coordinators, Pat Brennan, Lesley Jamieson, Richard Dunne, Billy McLaughlin, our County Board Delegates, Dave Fenton, Eugene McHugh, Richard Dunne, Fiona Greene and Anne Ryan, and also our referee coordinators Anne O Dea and Ann Ryan. Many thanks to Colm Crowley for promoting gaeilic games in our local schools, in coordinating the nursery on Saturday mornings, providing support to our juvenile mentors and for organising the Summer Camp in July and Cul Camps in August. A special thanks to Anne O Dea for her dedication and commitment to the Saturday morning nursery. Congratulations to Paul McCarville, Anne O Dea and Colm Crowley on yet again providing our younger players with a great month of Camogie, Football and Hurling during the mini leagues in June. I also wish to pay tribute to Clíona Ní Dhálaigh and Frank Daly for their continued dedication to the development of Na Fianna s juvenile handball section. Many thanks to Róisín for all her support in the club office and to Anne Foley for her help re the vetting of juvenile mentors Best wishes to our former GPO James Mangan in his new career. James was always a great support to all of our juvenile mentors and a very active member of the juvenile committee was also a time for some reflection regarding the structure of our Juvenile Games. Many thanks to Bernie Caffrey for facilitating the sessions and to all participants for helping to identify the following areas in need of further development; Appointment of a nursery coordinator Further development of our juvenile mentors handbook to incorporate all policies and procedures relevant to juvenile games. Structured coaching support for mentors. Development of communication through the club website. The juvenile committee will focus on the above in the 2013 season. Finally I wish to thank and pay tribute to all of our juvenile mentors and helpers, all of whom give a considerable amount of time on a weekly basis to provide all of our young players in CLG Na Fianna the opportunity to develop their skills in our national games. On behalf of the club and all of our young players I say, Go raibh míle, míle maith agaibh go léir!! CLG Na Fianna AGM 27 September

8 Juvenile Chairman - Pairic Clerkin Juvenile Secretary - Pat Brennan GPO - Colm Crowley Girls1 coordinated by Lesley Jamieson. (Girls football and camogie up to and including under 12). Girls 2 coordinated by Billy McLaughlin (under 13, 14, 15, 16 camogie and ladies football). CCC1 coordinated by Pat Brennan (under 8, 9, 10, 11 and 12 boys). CCC2 coordinated by Richard Dunne (under 13, 14, 15 and 16 boys). Eugene McHugh - CCC1 Delegate. Richard Dunne - CCC2 Delegate. Dave Fenton- Ladies Football Delegate Fiona Greene - Minor Board Camogie Delegate Pairic Clerkin CLG Na Fianna AGM 27 September

9 CLG Na Fianna AGM 27 September 2012 CCC1 It has been a busy and exciting year at CCC1 level - Na Fianna entered a record numbers of teams in all CCC1 competitions across both football and hurling. In 2012 Na Fianna entered at CCC1 level ( 25 Football Teams and 21 Hurling Teams ) covering age groups from Under 8 to Under 12 in both Hurling and Football U8 ( 7 a-side ) : 7 Football / 7 Hurling U9 ( 9 a-side ) : 5 Football / 5 Hurling U10 ( 9 a-side) : 5 Football / 4 Hurling U11 ( 11 a-side) : 5 Football / 3 Hurling U12 ( 13 a-side) : 3 Football / 2 Hurling A special Thanks to both Eugene McHugh for his sterling work as CCC1 Delegate. NURSERY The Na Fianna nursery continued to flourish this year both boys and girls sections. This is in no small part due to the enthusiasm and commitment of the mentors who turn up every Saturday in all weathers to coach the young children. Our Saturday attendance is the envy of many clubs around Dublin. However, there is no room for complacency and the enthusiasm and dedication of the mentors will not allow this to happen. There was also sad news and good news for the nursery this year! James Mangan aka Mango left us to take up a new position away from the GAA. Mango was a very popular GPO and everyone was sad to see him leave both from Saturday mornings and also from the local schools. He has not forgotten us though and can often be seen on Saturday morning dropping in to check up on his successor! The good news was the appointment of our new GPO Colm Crowley. Colm came to us from St. Maurs and we are delighted to welcome him. In the few months he has been with us, he has already made a very positive impact at the nursery, mini leagues and summer camps. Continued success to him! The club is also very happy to welcome on board the involvement of VHI Swift Clinic and look forward to a successful partnership which will benefit the boys and girls in the nursery. The Mini Leagues attracted large numbers again this year and introduced many new children to Na Fianna. Many thanks to Lisneys for their continued support. A recent development is the appointment of Cormac Ó Donnchu as Nursery Co-ordinator. This is a very positive step for the nursery and Cormac is the ideal person to promote its development. Cormac is hoping to develop a team around him to support him in his post as Co-ordinator. A big thank you to all the juveniles mostly boys and girls from the U16 age groups - who came down regularly on Saturday mornings to assist the nursery mentors. It s great to see older boys and girls return to help out at the nursery where they began their Na Fianna careers. We look forward to their continued support in the coming year. Finally, not forgetting the Saturday morning ladies who provide much needed refreshments for parents and mentors each week and particularly on those cold Saturday mornings. CLG Na Fianna AGM 27 September

10 ACTIVITY REPORTS Adult Field Games ADULT FOOTBALL 2012 has seen the continuation of progress of football development within Na Fianna. All our adult teams, Senior, Intermediate and Junior as can be seen from the following reports, are continuing to improve their positions year on year. We fielded four teams this year and all have had successful seasons. The Football Development process put in place 3 years ago to ensure that all the time spent in developing players at juvenile level is capitalised on at adult level, in terms of success for the club and enjoyment for players who have spent the last 12 to 15 years coming through from nursery. Football is in good health at the moment and the commitment of a whole raft of mentors is ensuring that every player who has come through the nursery/juvenile/minor system will have a place on a team that suits his level of ability and commitment. Senior (AFL1) The Seniors team ended 2011 with a defeat in a league play-off, which while disappointing, represented a major step forward for our Senior team, since we are now again contesting for honours. Stephen McGlinchey stepped down as Manager having given massive commitment to this squad for the preceeding three years. Mick Downes, who was already involved with Stephen in 2011, took the helm and with Sean Forde and James Mangan have continued the progress of this group of players The lads followed up 2011 progress with a top four place already secured with two matches still to play and will again contest the play-offs for the league in We have also gotten through first two rounds of Championship and will be playing in third round on the week ending October 6 th. Each year has seen a couple of lads come straight through from Minor level and are all making progress into Senior ranks. Intermediate Football The intermediate football team has continued in the same vein in 2012 after such a successful 2011 campaign where the team gained promotion from Division 4 without dropping a point, won the Joy Cup and were unfortunate to fall to St. Jude s in the Intermediate Championship. Larry Norton has continued as Manager along with Pat Boylan. Lar Maguire who had trained the team so successfully during 2011 stepped down due to business commitments and Kevin Stritch took over as Fitness Coach and Selector. Ger Fleming continued in his role as Nuts and Bolts man making sure all the little things that are so important for training and match day are in place. There were a few changes to the squad due to retirements, injuries and players being promoted to the Senior Team. The nucleus though has remained with the experienced players Ronan O Hagan, Danny and Ian McGowan, Mark Bennett, John Kearns, Richie Kinsella, Mark Cooper, Darragh Kearney, Shay Cloherty, Barry Newman and Fionn Coughlan continuing to set a great example for the younger players. Goalkeeper Cian Kelleher and Danny Murphy were promoted to the Senior Team and Kevin Reilly who was brought in from the junior team joined them a few months later. The team was strengthened by the arrival of Barry Boland from the Junior team and the four Dublin Minor squad members that had been unlucky to have been beaten in the All Ireland final, Mark O Dea, Tim (T) Foran, Neil Flannery and Ciaran McKane all have had starting roles in their first season. They were joined by new arrivals to the Club Sean Harran and Emmett Flood from Sligo and Fionnan Ó Duibhir from Donegal who have turned out to be incredible assets to the team. CLG Na Fianna AGM 27 September

11 CLG Na Fianna AGM 27 September 2012 The new season began with a home game against St. Bridgid s in the Loving Cup on 12 February 2012; the team soon realised the improvement in class and earned a deserved draw 1-7 to The new adventure had begun. The team followed up this draw with four successive victories in the competition before losing their final game to St. Patrick's, Donabate 0 11 to 0 13 but qualified for the semi-final of the competition as runner-up in the group where they are due to play Kilmacud Crokes. The league campaign started with a big win over St. Margaret s 0-17 to 0-8, this was followed up with good win over Naomh Olaf before the team lost its first league game in two seasons - a two point defeat to Naomh Fionnbarra. Clontarf got the better of the team in their next game 0 11 to 0 12 but rather than being rocked by the defeats the team buckled down and went on a winning run which saw them win their next seven games before being undone by Whitehall Colmcille 0 13 to The team currently lies second in the league and in prime position for home advantage in the play-offs for promotion. The team drew St. Jude s in the first round of the championship. Having been beaten twice by the same opposition in the championship the previous year, there was an old score to settle and the players rose to the occasion winning a fantastic game 0 13 to The team followed this victory up with an outstanding display against St. Margaret s winning 0 19 to 0 06 and are due to play the Garda in the last sixteen. The squad s ambition from the outset was to succeed in each of the competitions, the standards set in the previous year continued to be raised. The team continues to train four times a week, a gym session on Mondays, followed by pitch sessions Tuesdays and Thursdays and a game at the weekend. The squad now has only one dual player, Stephen Behan, Stephen is one of the stalwarts of the team and should be commended for his dedication to both codes. Eoin Butler replaced Cian Kelleher as goalkeeper having been his understudy for the previous year and Conor McCarthy joined the team as the reserve goalkeeper. The younger players now have gained valuable experience James Higgins, Eoin Neville, Jackie Dolan, Stephen Dunne, Jack Caffrey, Kieran Holohan and Hugh Gallagher have begun to realise the great potential from their under-age days. The management wishes to thank Colum Cronin, Pillar Caffrey and Gerry Donohoe for all their assistance over the past two years. A big thank you to McGowan s in Phibsborough and Access Oil for the sponsorship of the team. The continued support of the parents and other family and friends is appreciated. The management also wish to acknowledge the dedication, huge commitment and spirit within the team of players and each player should be proud of the role that they have played in the success of the team. Everything won has been earned through hard work and they continue to set a very high standard for this team and for other teams in the club to match. Junior A Football Following promotion for the second successive season this team is now playing in AFL5 (Junior 1).We didn t qualify for the semi finals in the Cup competition. The League began well but a few points dropped in mid season will mean that the team will finish in the Top 6 with great potential for next season as this is a very young team. The team were beaten in first round of the Championship after extra time by St Monica s who play in AFL3. Ciaran Gray CLG Na Fianna AGM 27 September

12 Junior C Football The previous season had ended with both the AFL9 team and AFL 11N teams finishing in midtable. Unfortunately as the season started we had to withdraw the AFL 11N team as the squad was not big enough to accommodate two teams. The squad of players that started out was mainly the same panel as last year with a few experienced players dropping down from the AFL 5 team and a few new players to adult football up from minor level joining. Training resumed in January and an offer from Pillar Caffrey to take a training session on the Tuesday night for the AFL 9 and AFL 5 teams was accepted and well attended. Pillar obviously enjoyed it as the six week offer has turned into the majority of the season, so a big thank you to him for that. The season kicked off with some decent enough cup performances. But we settled straight in to the league with our mixture of youth and experience and have been challenging at the top of the table since. As we now stand we have one league game left which we need to win to be in with a good chance of promotion We played in the Junior 'C' championship and had good wins away to Clann Na Gael and Liffey Gaels but our championship run came to an end at the quarter final stage against Lucan Sarsfields when we lost by two points. The season as a whole is going well with a great effort being put in by all the players, hopefully this effort will be rewarded by promotion. A big thank you to Ciaran Gray and the AFL 5 panel for the training sessions that we have shared over the season. Mentors: Colin O Reilly, Pat O Connell, Aidan Collins, Brendan Mc Guinne Under 21 A Football 2011 was a year of achievement and growth for the two Na Fianna Under 21 football squads. The U 21 A championship was captured in Parnell Park with a performance memorable for the blistering start, clinical finishing, dogged resistance to a determined Kilmacud Crokes and a Na Fianna team resolute and able to stamp their authority in the closing minutes. The Under 21 B squad were equally ambitious, organised and focussed and dominated their opponents to win the honours in Mobhi Road just a fortnight earlier. Success was built on the players ability, work and raw ambition, diligent preparation and critically, close integration of all adult squads mentors and players. The Under 21 mentors would like to acknowledge the support and contribution of all who helped to achieve the breakthrough, go raibh maith agaibh. Pat Naughton. Under 21 B Football The club entered a second Under 21 team in the D championship. The first round opponents were Cuala B and a comprehensive victory was achieved. We met St Brigid s away in the second round and won a tight encounter. The semi final was away to St Sylvester s and the lads put in a tremendous performance to win. The final was eventually played at the end of January in Mobhi Rd against Kilmacud Croke s B team. The Na Fianna team were magnificent keeping Kilmacud scoreless until near the end of the game winning by a substantial margin in the end. It was a very successful campaign with a young team. Ciaran Gray. CLG Na Fianna AGM 27 September

13 CLG Na Fianna AGM 27 September 2012 Minor Football 2011 Season: The Minor football 2011 season was an eventful one stretching from February 2011 to November With over sixty players in the ranks, we were able to field three league and championship teams. All teams acquitted themselves well in their respective league divisions. In the Championship the 'A' team was narrowly beaten at the semi-final stage, the 'B' team won the 'D' championship and the 'C' team narrowly failed to qualify for their championship final. The mentors would like to commend the players for their dedication, application and commitment through the year in what was a long and challenging season. Minor Football 2012 The 2012 season started with a new minor management team led by Jimmy Ward, taking over from Philip McElwee & Pat Naughton and their support team. Special thanks to both Pat and Philip for their invaluable assistance and continuing advice in the changeover after their eleven years of sterling service at this grade. Joint training for the new Minor Football season began in early December 2011 and with our very large numbers Na Fianna successfully fielded three minor football league teams in Divisions 1, 3 and 5. The league campaign has progressed satisfactorily with players given opportunities to develop and show their skills across the teams. The 'A' team finished second in Division 1 losing only one game to Kilmacud Crokes by two points to qualify for the Division 1 league final. The 'B' team was up in Division 3 for the first time along with the first teams of other clubs they played twelve matches, won nine and finished joint second in the table, hopefully qualifying for a league final play-off. The 'C' team played in Division 4c and played nine matches winning five and lost only in matches involving other clubs' first teams. During the summer, training continued along with challenge games for a blend of panel players. At the time of writing, the championship now beckons with Na Fianna entering four teams across the 'A'/'B'/'C'/'D' Championships. The Championship format for 2012 will require each of our four teams across the different grades to play at least four championship games in league format before progressing to the semi-final and final stages. We would like to thank the many parents and supporters for their encouragement and for consistently providing transport, patient line/umpire and detailed stats, endless jersey care and generous catering for visiting teams. We would also like to thank our sponsors who quietly helped us provide the players with the care they deserve Minor Management personnel - Jimmy Ward, Dave Buckley, Pat Brennan, Fearghal Scanlon, Tommy McKane, Frank Mc Grath, Michael Griffin, Des Ó Dubhlainn, Jackie Dolan, Austin Kilcommins, B Reid, Dave Williams, Brendan Roddy ADULT HURLING AHL Senior 2012 has been a year of progress thus far for the Senior hurling team and at the time of print, all is still to play for. With three games to go in the league we are well positioned to gain promotion but all three games must be won including a key game against fellow promotion hopefuls Raheny. In the championship we are into the quarter finals and have been drawn against Crumlin in the quarter finals which by the evening of the AGM will have taken place last weekend. The 2012 season began in the Aviva Stadium in late 2011 where more than fifty players were present to discuss and plan the coming year; the panel was opened to anyone who had the required CLG Na Fianna AGM 27 September

14 commitment, desire and skill. Collective training resumed on January 16th. While our first competitive game of the year was a disappointing loss to St. Brigids in the AHL1 play off from 2011, there were aspects of the performance that night that gave us plenty to work on as we looked forward. Players have put in a significant commitment all year and they are a credit to themselves, their parents and the club. From January 16th to the end of May, the team met collectively four times per week and players worked on their own individual programmes outside of these collective sessions. June and July were "down" months in many ways and the season began in earnest with the players back in full training to prepare for the huge quarter final in September. The onset of youth has once again been a huge positive and long may it continue. Danny Flaherty and Denis Forde made the step up from last year s minor team and have contributed handsomely to the year so far. In addition players from the second team were closely monitored and as a result of some impressive performances Mikey Brennan, John Sharpson and Marcus O Brien received call ups to the panel. They have been a breath of fresh air to the squad and along with the return of Kieran and Diarmuid Murphy, gave the squad a new and fresh feel to it. The championship group pitted us against Faughs, Naomh Fionnbarra and O Toole s. We managed to win our first two games which guaranteed us safe passage into the Quarter Finals and we were beaten by O'Toole s in our final game in the group. It leaves us in the Quarter Finals and we are all looking forward a titanic battle with Crumlin in September. This is a huge game for the club and all support would be appreciated for this game. We were very well represented at inter county level again this year and we are very proud of the lads achievements. Joey Boland, Tomás Brady and Máirtín Quilty were all key components of the Dubs Senior Hurling team and Odhran O Maoileidigh and Sean Burke were selected for the Dublin Under 21s this year. We wish Máirtín well in his continuing recovery from the serious knee injury he suffered during the year. It's also been wonderful to see Shane Barrett and Conor McHugh doing so well with the Dublin Minors and also very pleasing that Na Fianna is so well represented with AJ Murphy, Eoghan McHugh and Sean Ryan also on the panel. We look forward to their progression over the coming years. Special thanks to the management team of Fran Larkin, Sean Ó Laoire, Liam Burke, Robbie Bourke, Pat Fanning and Colm Ó Ceallacháin. Thanks also to Colm Burtchaell, Colum Cronin, Mick Loftus, Mick Downes, Finbar Gaffney, Richie Grimes, Aoife Burke & Exwell, Donal Buggy, John Campbell, Aidan Irwin, Eamonn Rainsford & Ebano, Fionán O Connell and Cormac Ó Donnchú who contributed to the group during the year. It is really appreciated. Finally, the team and the club lost a very special friend and huge supporter in Louis Davis during the year. Louis in more recent times was a selector with the team and loved the banter with the younger lads. A true gentleman, he will be sorely missed by everyone involved with the team, and our thoughts and prayers remain with Mary and the family. Ar dheis dé go raibh a anam. CLG Na Fianna AGM 27 September

15 CLG Na Fianna AGM 27 September 2012 Junior A Hurling This year saw the appointment of a new management team of Finbar Gaffney, Frank Foley, James Jesson, Colum Meleady and Dick Shanahan. Training started in January with joint sessions with the seniors which worked very well. The senior and junior teams separated for training in March and this proved very challenging for the juniors due to lack of numbers (only 19 on the panel). Training was subsequently curtailed to one night per week due to lack of availability of players. Training with the seniors resumed in July which has again proved most beneficial. The panel grew to 24 over the season with additional players recruited from their early retirement and some players departing. During the summer months numbers were very tight and two minors were successfully integrated into the panel. The league started with a home match to Thomas Davis who had just come down from intermediate and resulted in a loss they since went on to win the league. A number of good league wins brought us into contention however the absence of several players for two league matches resulted in bad losses. At the time of writing, there are two league matches left and the team are in with an outside chance of promotion. The championship format was two groups of six with four teams qualifying from each group for knockout. Having lost our first two matches we beat Cuala and then faced a strongly fancied Castleknock team in Mobhi Road. We were outhurled in the first half and put in a sterling performance in the second half to deservedly win. A final group stage victory saw us qualify in fourth place where we faced a strong Ballyboden side, who had won their group, in the quarter final. The game was played in typical summer conditions in Pairc Uí Mhurchú and the team put in their best sixty minutes performance to win by two points having being behind at half time. Next up was the Clanna Gael senior team (!) who play two leagues above us in Division 2 (same as our senior side). It is fair to say that outside of our dressing room there were very few who gave us any chance of competing with them. This semi final was played in O Toole Park (the graveyard of hurling) and having played against the wind & hill in the first half we found ourselves three points down. This was a game where no quarter was asked or given and was not a place for the faint hearted. Led by captain Fanno the team came out in the second half with fire in their bellies and won 3-10 to 1-10 in front of a proud Na Fianna crowd and a stunned Clanna Gael. Remarkably we now find ourselves in the final of the Junior A championship against Faughs who also play in a higher division than us. We have used a total of thirty-eight players in competitive matches this year which is a measure of the challenge faced by all team managers. Players need to look at themselves and fully commit to their team by attending training and matches. Finally, we would like to thank Colum Cronin and Dermot Moran for their support. Finbar Gaffney Junior D Hurling Starting off the year saw John Maloney (fitness Instructor) put the lads through fitness regimes which the Army would be proud of. Red faces and buckets of sweat saw the team take shape. However if takes more than fitness to win games and with the absence of a hurling trainer training sessions saw us short on numbers on a regular basis with the exception of the training sessions that Declan Feeney obliged us with. This was very disheartening for the real hurling enthusiasts in the team. We soon welcomed a few new players on board which were a real boost to the team and with them on board we went into our games with some real talent and spirit but alas not too much success. CLG Na Fianna AGM 27 September

16 Eoin Behan was appointed Captain and what a good Captain he makes! These are a great bunch of guys, with great ability and skills abundant!!! They desperately need someone to take them in charge and I ve no doubt they will be on a winning streak for next season. I am not available to Mentor for the coming year and I would love to see someone take on these guys and help put the mojo back into the team. We have a lovely new set of Jerseys that Neil Loftus (Loffo) helped buy, bringing them into 2013 looking the part. They just need a little help from someone willing to train and manage them. It s been an honour guys, thanks. Dee Kernan Minor Hurling To be honest, minor hurling did not get off to a good start this year. Firstly, the club struggled to put a management team in place and it was not assembled until end of January, with four of the U16 mentors staying on to help out. We lost our main trainer Jack Nicholas as he had to move to Limerick for work reasons and we wish him the best of luck. After lots of phone calls, texts and some convincing we had a panel (on paper at least) of 37 players. This gave us some confidence that we could enter two minor hurling teams and would make sure every player was getting game time. However, as it turned out fielding two teams in the league would not have been possible without the support of our U16s. From looking at the calibre of players available we would have had hopes that our first team would have a good run at the Division 1 league and finish in the top half, however we had mixed performances and were unable to put a consistent team out each match day. We did win two games but lost five which placed us in the bottom half of the table. Our second team competed in Division 4. Between walkovers (3), concessions (1), and the effects of the weather, we only managed to play three league matches, all of which we lost. This was discouraging for the players but at least several of them got to turn out regularly for the first team. As the league progressed it was proving difficult to field one team, never mind two. Particular credit is due to those players from the second team squad who consistently turned out for the either team whenever they were asked. Looking forward to next year, serious consideration should be given to separate set ups for the two minor hurling teams as this would help to build a team identity and might aid in the retention of players. To reiterate the message from last year s minor hurling report; the fall-off in numbers between juvenile grade and minor grade and between first year minor and second year minor is alarming. Some interesting stats - Started out with 37 players on the panel at the end of January Currently only 28 active minor hurlers - Only 8 of which are second year minors - 9 hurlers from last year s Under 16s opted not to play minor hurling in Average attendance at training 12 Communication We chose to send the text messages directly to the players as have other teams at this grade, however due to poor responses and suggestions from parents I would recommend that texts still go out to parents at minor grade. CLG Na Fianna AGM 27 September

17 CLG Na Fianna AGM 27 September 2012 At the time of writing, we are working through a series of challenge matches to keep players hurling and to see what options we have for the championship. Due to the fantastic success of both Dublin minor hurlers and footballers the championship is delayed, and will most likely run well into December. Training for the championship will begin shortly, and although there have been many setbacks this year, this panel of players have great potential and with the addition of some outstanding U16 players can make a strong push in the championship. Finally thanks Firstly, thanks to the core group of players who turn up week in, week out. Thanks also to Colm Burtchaell, Niall Ó Ceallacháin and the Under 16s for support during the year. Thanks to the Under 16, Junior and Senior hurling management teams for the various combined training sessions during the summer months when player numbers were low. Mentors: Tom Ryan, Martin Rabbitte, Neil Loftus, Oliver Power, Dave Williams, Joe Murphy CLG Na Fianna AGM 27 September

18 ADULT CAMOGIE Senior 1 Camogie (Senior) In 2012 we welcomed new members to the panel: Lucy Collins, Ciara Berkley and Ellen Keatley and Julianne Cooper who returned from travelling who added hugely to the strength and depth of this team. During the year we welcomed back, with open arms, former members of the panel: Nicola Gavin, Sarah Quinn and Orlagh Egan. We started back training in the second week in January, with league matches commencing the start of March We had an unusual start to the league under lights in St. Margaret s against Naomh Mhearnog but that did not put our team off and we had our first win of the season. Currently we are the only unbeaten team in the league with one more game to play and the Top 4 play-offs to come. One major highlight of the league was beating our local rivals St.Vincent s for the first time in twenty-one years!! It was a fantastic performance coming from five points down to win by seven points (scoring twelve unanswered points!). Throughout the year we were strongly represented on the Dublin Senior and Junior Panels. We were very proud when our own Elaine O Meara was announced as the Dublin Senior Camogie Captain. Elaine is a fantastic leader on and off the pitch and the honour was well deserved. We also had a number of players on the senior panel during the year: Muireann O Gorman, Arlene Cushen (who was awarded Player of the Match for the Quarter-final play-off, scoring the winning point for Dublin), Ciara Berkley and Hannah McInerney. Unfortunately the results did not go Dublin s way and the senior team left the championship after a narrow defeat in the Quarter-final to Offaly. We were also represented on the Dublin Junior Panel by: Gráinne Ryan, Ellen Keatley and Eve O Brien. The junior team won their league and had great success in reaching the All-Ireland Final but were beaten on the day by Westmeath. As a team we are delighted to support the county team and hope for greater success in the 2013 season. Particular congratulations to Muireann O Gorman who was voted Senior Player of the Year 2011 for county Dublin by the Dublin clubs. This was a great honour for Muireann and richly deserved. With the end of the inter-county season our championship commenced. Despite a bumpy start to the group stage, we are back on track after winning our last two matches well and face Naomh Mearnóg in a playoff for a Quarter-final spot on Sunday September 16th. At the time of writing we are still active in all major competitions, League and Championship and we are optimistic we can challenge in both. We have had a lot of support during the year from numerous people who we would like to thank. Firstly the mangers of the Senior 3 camogie team: Sandra Tarr, Brendan Cooper and Colm King have helped us in everyway possible from facilitating training with us during the summer to allowing players to play-up for us when needed. I know they want success for the Senior 1 team as much as we do and we are very grateful for their support. Furthermore, we thank the management of the Ladies football team for working together to support all the dual players and allowing them to play successfully for both teams. Secondly, we would like to thank Colum Cronin who has supported us all year long, with pitches for training and matches and training equipment, without either of which the team could not function. We would also like to thank all the members of the club who keep the pitches in such fantastic condition all year round despite the crazy weather we have had. CLG Na Fianna AGM 27 September

19 CLG Na Fianna AGM 27 September 2012 We would also like to thank Aoife Burke, our ATT, for always getting the girls onto the pitch when we need them most. We also want to thank our new sponsors The Grafton Lounge and look forward to developing the relationship over the coming year. Finally we want to thank this fantastic bunch of girls who have given such wonderful commitment to this team and truly deserve the success they have achieved so far. The work ethic on the pitch is second to none and it is an honour to be manager of such a talented team. We are very much looking forward to the final stages of this season and hopefully more victories!!!! Ciara O'Reilly Senior 3 Camogie (Intermediate) With a new management team in place, at the start of the season there was a number of internal matches played to familiarise ourselves with the adult players available to us. From these games a panel of twenty-seven was formed. This was a very difficult task because there were so many good players to choose from. Once the panels were established, the players were set two goals. 1. Win the Senior 3 league. 2. Win the Senior 3 championship. It is great to report that at the time of writing, which is a critical point of the season, both targets are still within reach. The team has played ten league games with a narrow defeat to St. Finbarr's being the only points dropped. The team now faces a league semi-final for first place. We also played our first championship match, which was a tremendous victory over St. Jude's. There is a lot of talent on this team with quite a number of 'experienced heads' such as Karen Fox, Yvonne Duggan, Paula Lohan, Naoise Webb, Clodagh Burke, Mairéad Walsh and Brid Ní Laoire who played at this level over the past few years, We also have quite a number of youngsters who have just came out of the minor grade at the end of Brigitte Walsh, Lisa McKenna, Khloe Dillon-Coote, Katie King, Lauren Coulihan(Vice Captain) and Susan Clinton. We also welcomed the following girls who are still eligible to pay Minor Championship later this year - Eleanor Buggy, Isabelle Kelly, Clíona McCollough, Lisa Kelly, Róisin Baker, Claire Murray and Emer Ni Eafa (who transferred to Na Fianna at the end of 2011). Sinéad O Donnell, Sarah Kelly, Christina Kelly (Captain) who moved up from our Junior team (Senior 6) have really added to the quality of this team. We welcomed back Emma Cloherty who had not played for a year or two and welcomed to the club Muireann Kelleher from Clare and Carmel Flannery from Galway who are working in Dublin and now play camogie for Na Fianna. Lucy Collins who helped us get to the League semifinal has now moved up to our senior team for the Championship and we thank Lucy for her contribution during the Top 4 league play-offs. Management Team - Brendan Cooper, Sandra Tarr, Colum King, Anne McInerney CLG Na Fianna AGM 27 September

20 Senior 6 Camogie (Junior) This year, one Junior team competed, with an amalgamation of the Junior 'A' and 'B' teams at competitive level. The team took part in the Senior 6 league with Naomh Bríd 'B', Setanta, Naomh Mearnóg 'B', Erin's Isle 'B', Whitehall Colmcille, St Pats/Round Towers and Good Counsel. Five wins and two defeats saw Na Fianna qualify for the Top Four play-offs. The summer months saw the team numbers hit hard by holidays with the result; an early exit from the Summer Cup, despite defeating Naomh Barróg, defeats to Setanta and Craobh Chiaráin ended Na Fianna's involvement in the Cup. The League play-offs were also a major disappointment as they were played over the holiday months and despite good showings we were defeated in all three games, but are still in the play-off (knockout) section of the league. The Championship saw Na Fianna paired with Erin's Isle 'B', St Pats/Round Towers and Naomh Bríd 'B'. Two big wins over Erin's Isle and St Pats/Round Towers put Na Fianna into the knockout stages and we were unlucky not to defeat Naomh Bríd 'B'; which would have put Na Fianna into the penultimate stage of the championship. Na Fianna are now in a quarter-final versus Whitehall Colmcille (week ending September 16th) for a place in the last four against Setanta. As this is Na Fianna's third team it is encouraging to see us compete with first and second outfits from other clubs. The team was trained this year by Sean Ó Cinnéide and Brian 'Gow' O Sullivan. We would like to thanks all players for committing to playing Camogie for the year and wish Mairéad Cassidy well on her recent engagement. LADIES FOOTBALL (ADULT) Senior Ladies Football Last October the senior ladies team were involved in the Ladies Senior Leinster competition. They played Killoe (Longford), and Leixlip (Kildare) and were crowned Leinster Champions for the first time ever after beating Mountmellick (Laois) 23 rd October on a very wet day in Newbridge. The girls went on to play Donoghmore (Cork) in The All-Ireland semi-final played in Mobhi Road. The club put on a fantastic show on the day and all of Mobhi Road looked fantastic. The girls won and went on to play Carnacon (Mayo) in Ballymahon (Longford) in the All-Ireland final but were unfortunately beaten. The 2011 season was the most successful season of the Ladies Senior team to date. The 2012 season senior ladies squad is made up of 27 players and 4 backroom staff. The senior ladies have played 7 games in the league, have won all of them and have won the league division 1 competition. We have also won the cup competition with playing 7 games and winning all 7. The senior team were also in the county final after qualifying top of their side in the qualifiers. Unfortunately this year they were not successful. This year we were fortunate to have a championship training weekend in Aspire (Clara Offaly), where we had team building sessions, training sessions and a challenge game against Westmeath. The team, have also entered the All-Ireland 7 s competition taking place Saturday 6 th October in Naomh Mearnog/Sylvestors. We would like to thank the club, especially Colum Cronin for his time and patience with us. And also Tom Gillian, The Duke and Dtwo Harcourt Street. CLG Na Fianna AGM 27 September

21 CLG Na Fianna AGM 27 September 2012 Junior Ladies Football This year has been a difficult one for our squad. Having achieved promotion in league and championship previously, we faced into our league and cup campaign against first team club opponents with a depleted panel and no club management structure or club coaching support. Despite this, thanks to the outstanding loyalty and perseverance of the panel we completed our league and cup schedule during spring and early summer. We would like to thank those who gave guest sessions, to external coaches who gave us training during that time and to family and friends who helped us. In June, we began our championship preparation with a temporary club management structure in place. The players responded, and during the summer put in over 50 hours of work at challenges and sessions in field and gym with consistent attendances of 20 players. Our championship campaign began with a win over favourites Craobh Chiaráin, followed by a defeat by a talented O Toole s side and a single point loss in our final game, just narrowly missing qualifying by score difference. We would like to acknowledge the contribution of the Na Fianna minor and other panellists who stepped in to fill key positions during that campaign. Post championship, we have already begun game based activity to better our skills and consolidate our improving fitness. The panel has shown our loyalty to the club and our determination and willingness to learn and improve. We need consistent management and coaching support. There is clear potential for the growth of ladies football in Na Fianna with the success of recruitment and developments in the juvenile section. That potential is at serious risk and unlikely to be realised if the backup is not in place. CLG Na Fianna AGM 27 September