The Derryleigh Diary

Even though the playing season is officially over, it’s still busy times in the club. Our week long Summer Soccer Camp , which ran from July 6 – 10 is just over and it proved to be a huge success. 150 boys & girls took part in the club’s second FAI summer camp, which is one of the largest and most popular camps in the country. Thanks to all the children who take part, the FAI coaches who did such a great job and to everyone in the club who assisted in the lead up to the camp and during the week of the camp. Thank you one and all.

The junior teams commence their pre-season training next week and the club is delighted to announce a brand new management set-up for the Junior A team next season. Peter Clarke (Manager) and Brian Cosgrove (Assistant Manager) will be the brains trust in 2015/2016 and everyone in the club wishes them the very best for the season to come. Last season we came agonisingly close to gaining promotion to the Premier League and hopefully next season, we will finally get to reach the holy grail. We will have more details on this announcement in the coming days. The Junior B team have also resumed pre-season training.

Planning has also commenced for next season’s schoolboy & schoolgirl teams and next year we will have more players and teams than ever before. Details are here. We welcome any new players at any age and especially welcome anyone who wishes to give a hand out with teams, either coaching or in any way at all. Do not be shy to offer assistance.

We hope everyone is having a great summer so far and we look forward to the season to come.

Last weekend our under 8’s brought the club’s playing season to a close when they played their final blitz of the season. It’s been a very long season with the first games kicking off at the end of last August and the final ball being kicked in mid-June. The players can now all enjoy their summer break and we look forward to an even bigger & better season starting in August. Thank you to the record number of players who put on the club jersey during the season and thanks also to their parents and families for their support, co-operation and patience throughout the season. A special mention to all the managers & coaches who voluntarily give up lots of their time during the year to train and look after the players. These are the unsung heroes of the club, without whom there would not be such a thriving soccer club in Newport. Thank you.

Newport Town AFC’s annual end-of-season awards ceremony took place in a packed Community Centre on Sunday, June 14 and proved to be a very enjoyable evening for all. The size of the crowd and the number of players in attendance really shows that the club is getting bigger and stronger every year. The club’s new chairperson, Micheal Lenihan welcomed everyone and thanked James Scott, the FAI’s Regional Development Officer for taking time out of his busy schedule to attend the event to present the medals and trophies.

The club’s FAI Summer Camp is now fully booked and on Monday, July 6, 150 children will arrive at Derryleigh Park for a week of football, fun & friendship. It’s going to be an amazing week.

There was no on-field activity last weekend due to the Bank Holiday. However our league winning U10 Greens received their league trophy. Thanks to Gerry Flynn of the LDSL who attended Derryleigh Park to present the trophy to team captain, Sean Reddington, and the winners medals to the rest of the players in front of a large crowd of parents and families. Well done to all the players and their manager, Richard Egan.

The previous week our under 11’s lost out by one goal to nil to a good Shannon side in the Div 1 Cup Final. The lads played their heart out but on the night it just wasn’t to be. The boys were obviously disappointed after the game League runners-up and cup finalists is a very good season and no doubt this squad will be in the running for trophies in the seasons to come. Continue reading →

It was another great week for the club’s schoolboy & schoolgirl sections. Our under 12 schoolboys secured the league & cup double after a 4-1 cup final victory over a gallant and very good Shelbourne side in UL in front of a large Newport crowd. Johnny Ryan continued his remarkable goal-scoring run with a cup final hat-trick, ably assisted with a goal from Diarmuid O’Riordan.

Well done also to our U10 Green team, under the guidance of Richard Egan, who won their league with a 3-1 win away to Fairview last Friday with goals from Michael Gibson (2) & Alex O’Toole. This team played 7 league games, winning 4, drawing 2 and just 1 loss. Continue reading →

Well done to our league-winning U12 side who have set themselves up for a possible League & Cup double after advancing to the Div 2 Cup Final, following a hard fought 2-1 victory over Regional Utd in Derryleigh Park on Saturday, thanks to a 2 goal salvo from top scorer, Johnny Ryan. On the day, the boys were also presented with their league trophy & medals by Gerry Flynn of the LDSL.

The under 11’s have also advanced to their Div 1 cup final, after a superb 2-0 victory over Janesboro on Monday evening in Pearse Stadium. The Newport goal scoring heroes were Ben Noble & Thomas Hickey but this was an excellent performance from all the squad. Continue reading →

With the Junior season now over, only our Schoolboy/girl teams are in action until the season comes to an end in a few weeks’ time. Our under 11 team wrapped up their league campaign with a 2-1 victory at home to Shelbourne to secure the runners-up spot in their league, which was a very good position in a very competitive league. Both our under 10 teams recorded away wins. The reds beat Coonagh 3-2, while the Greens also beat Granville on the same scoreline. Our under 12’s advanced to the cup semi-final after a comfortable 8-1 win away to Corbally in their quarter-final replay. Unfortunately our under 15’s bowed out of the cup at the quarter-final stage after a 3-4 defeat to Star Rovers in a 7 goal thriller. The 15’s are now finished for the season and look forward to a few months off until they return for pre-season training. Continue reading →

The Junior A’s played their final league game away to Caherconlish on Sunday. Minus a few regulars they went down on a 3-4 scoreline, with the goals coming from Brian Cosgrove, Paul Ryan & Dave Murray. The lads will now take a much needed break before pre-season begins in a couple of months’ time.

In schoolboy football, congratulations to our under 12’s who wrapped up their league away to Mungret Regional to secure their 100% record, winning 14 games out of 14. The lads are now hoping to win the double and they face Corbally away this Wednesday in a quarter-final. In other schoolboy action our under 15’s finished their league campaign with a comfortable 4-1 home victory over Caherdavin to secure fifth place in the league. Continue reading →

The Junior A’s played Wembley Rovers in a crucial game in Derryleigh Park, which we needed to win to keep our promotion hopes intact. Played in front of a large crowd on a perfect pitch, we lost out 3-4 in a titanic encounter with our goals coming from Brian O’Sullivan, Mike O’Brien & Paul Ryan. This defeat saw the visitors secure the Div 1A title and Mungret Regional also promoted, while we are left to reflect on a season in which we gave our all but just fell short coming to the final hurdle. Hard luck to all the players and management but well done on a great campaign. We have one final league game away to Caherconlish on Saturday before a well-earned break after a long roller-coaster season. The squad will regroup and come the start of the new season in August will launch another assault on the Div 1A title, a bit more experienced and seasoned in what’s needed to earn promotion. Continue reading →

The Junior A’s had no game last weekend but this Sunday they have one of the biggest games of their season and possibly in the club’s history when we take on Wembley Rovers in Derryleigh Park at 10.30am. Both teams are in contention for promotion to the Premier League and the permutations are very simple. We must win our final two games, home to Wembley and away to Caherconlish to guarantee promotion to the Premier League. This game is Wembley’s final game of the season and they know that a draw will be enough to guarantee them promotion at our expense. We are asking as many of our supporters as possible to come along to Derryleigh Park to get behind the lads and give them lots of encouragement in this must win game. Continue reading →

Our A team continued their push for promotion to the Premier League after a topsy turvy nail-biting 3-2 win over Shannon Town on Easter Sunday morning in front of a large support in Derryleigh Park. Newport’s scorers were Brian O’Sullivan (2) & Paul Ryan.

Newport are now top of the Div 1A league with just two games left, albeit having a game more played than our nearest rivals. Now with an away game to Caherconlish and a home game to Wembley still to come, 2 wins would guarantee promotion but one thing’s for sure there are still plenty of twists and turns before this season is over and it’s going all the way to the wire.

The B team contested the Div 3A Cup Final in Jackman Park against Ballylanders on Easter Monday and were unlucky to lose out 5-4 on penalties. 2-0 down at half-time, the lads made a great comeback to draw the game level with goals from Dave Murray & Stevie O’Connor. Extra time could not separate the sides and Newport lost the dreaded penalty shootout. Hard luck lads. Continue reading →