The Derryleigh Diary

There were no junior games for the club last weekend but last Tuesday night they bowed out of the Div 1A O’Halloran Cup at the quarter-final stage, following a disappointing 2-1 defeat to last year’s beaten finalists, Mungret Regional, who avenged their cup final defeat with two late, late goals. Brian O’Sullivan scored Newport’s goal. This coming weekend both the Junior As & Bs are away in league action on Sunday morning. The A’s play Hospital and the B’s face Aisling Annacotty.

In the underage section both our under 15 & under 11 boys suffered defeats on the road. The 11’s lost out 3-0 to Geraldines, while the 15’s lost 6-3 to Shannon Town with our goals coming from Brian Keane (2) and Elliott Slattery with a penalty. Unfortunately our under 12 girls lost 5-0 away to league leaders, Nenagh AFC. The score line does not do justice to the girls as we were well in the game but just had one of those days in front of goals.

This Saturday the under 8’s begin their blitz campaign in Mungret, where they will face teams from Mungret-Regional, Aisling-Annacotty & Moyross United. Our under 12 girls are away to Borrisokane in the Cup, while our U10/11’s girls are playing in a blitz in Holycross. The U12 boys are away to Corbally. Both our under 10 teams begin their competitive league campaigns when the U10 Reds travel to play Mungret Regional and the U10 Greens welcome Parkville to Derryleigh Park. Continue reading →

Pride of place this week goes to our Junior B team, who defeated Murroe 2-0, in their divisional cup semi-final  thanks to a two goal salvo from Stevie O’Connor. The B’s will now meet Ballylanders in the decider, in Jackman Park on a date to be confirmed, to contest the Div 3A Power Cup Final. Newport took the lead on twenty minutes with a well taken goal from Stevie O’Connor. However it was not all one way traffic and at times Newport rode their luck and it also took a great double save from Mark Shinners to deny Murroe an equaliser. However the game was sealed in the dying minutes when Stevie scored his second after a lovely through ball from Aidan O’Brien. The A’s had no game last weekend and none of the Junior teams have games scheduled for the coming weekend. Continue reading →

Unfortunately the Irish weather, once again, was the big winner last weekend with all schoolboy and junior games postponed in the Limerick leagues. However the North Tipp league games proceeded as normal and our under 12 girls welcomed BT Harps from Templemore to the Derryleigh Park astro-turf pitch for a league game. Unfortunately the result didn’t go our way as the girls lost out 2-0 in a very evenly matched contest. Some of the girls who played in this match were not finished, as after the game, an U11 blitz game v Birdhill took place and a lot of the girls were eligible to play in this as well as Newport have a young U12 squad. Well done to all the girls who took part. This Saturday, the U12 girls are home to Ballymackey ‘B’.

Meanwhile our Newport U9s were in action for the first time this season, playing at home in a 7-a-side blitz against Lough Derg. All four matches were very competitively fought with great tackling, passing and shooting on show in all games. As it was this team’s first ever match, all the lads can be extremely proud of their performance. Continue reading →

NEWPORT TOWN AFC
The Junior A’s had a free weekend as other teams in their division were playing their games in hand. Unfortunately the weather took its toll on our junior fixtures last Sunday with both the B’s cup semi-final and Under 17 league game both called off. However the weather was much more spring like on Saturday with three under age games all going ahead. Our under 16’s enjoyed a fine 1-0 home win over Mungret Regional to consolidate their third place position in Division 1. An early goal from Ben Cusack was enough to secure the three points on offer. The U16’s have just one league game left and also have the cup to look forward to.

Our under 12 boys team maintained their position at the top of the table with a comfortable 9-0 victory away to Corbally with the goals coming from Calum Grant (3), Johnny Ryan (2), Sean McNamara, Diarmuid O’Riordan, Cian Kennedy & Cillian O’Sullivan. With just four league games remaining, this team are firmly in the running for league honours but the lads are very grounded and are taking each game one at a time. Continue reading →

On the Field
Newport A’s travelled to Kilmallock on Sunday morning for a crucial Div 1A league encounter against their fellow promotion rivals full of confidence after a recent good run of league wins. Unfortunately Newport lost out to the only goal in the game, with nine minutes remaining after the ball was bundled into the net from a scrappy corner. This was only our third league defeat all season and it was a very disappointing result but with four games league left to play, we still remain in the shake up for promotion but realistically cannot afford too many more slip ups in the run-in. Newport had their chances during the game and had a big claim for a goal after Newport players were certain that the ball had well passed over the goal line but the ref was unsighted and waved play on. It was looking the game would end in a draw until the concession of the late goal. This result really tightens things up at the top of Division 1A and realistically any two teams in the top five can still be promoted to the Premier League. A fine crowd travelled from Newport to support the lads and before the kick-off, referee Mike Kiely, sounded the whistle for a minute’s silence in memory of the late Patsy ‘Whacker’ O’Neill, one of the club’s stalwarts, who sadly passed away the evening before the game. Ar dheis Dé go raibh a hanam. Continue reading →

Our Junior A team recorded their seventh league win on the trot to continue their excellent run of league form with a determined & hard-fought 2-0 victory away to Granville on a freezing & foggy Sunday morning, with both goals coming from captain, Brian ‘Clemy’ O’Sullivan. Newport took the lead in the 22nd minute when Brian O’Sullivan scored his 25th goal of the season, in all competitions, with a clinical strike, after Dave Murray, who had a very good game in the middle of the park, played him through on goals with a precision pass. 11 minutes into the second half, Brian O’Sullivan, scored his second to double the lead and secure the win, when he ran on to a superbly weighted long ball from centre-half Christy O’Connor and calmly rounded the keeper to slot the ball home. Best on the day was stand-in keeper, Mark Shinnors, who was in inspired form as he pulled off a collection of great saves to keep a clean sheet. Having picked up another precious three points, we have now closed the gap on league leaders, Wembley Rovers to just 1 point, although we have one more game played. With just five league games left for us to play, it’s looking likely that that this campaign is going to go right down to the wire. Next up the A’s are away to Kilmallock in a crucial league game on Sunday morning. Continue reading →

The Junior A’s continued their recent run of good league results with a convincing 6-2 victory over mid-table side, Charleville AFC, in Derryleigh Park last Sunday morning. Goals from Dean Lenihan (2), Dave Murray (2), Brian O’Sullivan & Ross Dunne scored the goals to consolidate our second place position and keep the pressure on league leaders, Wembley Rovers. Newport remain in a promotion spot, with just six games remaining. This was a very professional performance, with the fitness work being done in training, very evident on the pitch today. The lads’ confidence is high at the moment but football can have a nasty habit of biting you, so it’s a case of more of the same and one game at a time as there are still lots of tough games and plenty of twists & turns before the end of the season. Next up for the A’s is an away league game to Granville on Sunday morning. Continue reading →

Five games and five wins, which led to a clean sweep for the soccer club last weekend. In junior action, our A’s bounced back from the previous week’s disappointment in the Munster Junior Cup with an emphatic 4-0 away win over fellow promotion rivals Mungret Regional. This was a crucial victory stemming from a superb team performance with our goals coming from Dean Lenihan with a brace, Sean ‘Bond’ O’Brien & captain, Brian ‘Clemy’ O’Sullivan. This win now consolidates our second place position and closes the gap to leaders, Wembley Rovers to just 4 points. Newport now have 7 games left in the league but with continued performances like last Sunday’s, will be pushing hard for promotion to the premier league. This was a very determined display, full of skill, hard work and effort and was probably one of the best performances of the season. Continue reading →

Unfortunately Newport exited the Munster Junior Cup last weekend after a home defeat to high-flying Clonmel Celtic of the Tipperary Southern District League. Newport came into the game full of confidence but on the day Clonmel gained the upper hand and had a well-deserved victory. Clonmel are one of the best junior teams in the country and this was all part of the learning curve for our young team. Sometimes you learn more in defeat than victory. Our minds are now fully focussed on gaining promotion to the Premier League and this effort continues on Sunday in a crucial away game to our fellow promotion rivals Mungret Regional. The soccer club sincerely thank the huge crowd who came to Derryleigh Park last Sunday to support the lads and if the game could have been won on goodwill and support, it would have been a different result.

For a full selection of images from last Sunday, just click here. Continue reading →

This Sunday, all roads lead to Derryleigh Park, when Newport Town AFC play host to Clonmel Celtic of the Tipperary Southern District League in the fourth round (last 32) of the Munster Junior Cup. Clonmel Celtic are the current leaders of the South Tipperary Premier league and last week progressed to the last 16 of the FAI Junior Cup. No doubt this will be a mighty challenge. We may be underdogs but one thing’s for sure and that will be that we are well up for this game. We are currently in solid form, playing good football and are really looking forward to the encounter. Kick off is at 2pm and we are hoping for a large home crowd in Derryleigh to give Clonmel a real Newport welcome and to get behind the lads from the kick off. Please come along with family & friends to support the team. We are expecting a large crowd, so please arrive early and co-operate with the car park stewards.

Despite the poor weather last weekend all games involving Newport teams went ahead and great credit is due to the club for the excellent conditions of both grass pitches. The Junior A team moved into second place in Div 1A after a resounding 7-0 win at home to Caherdavin Celtic. It was an excellent team performance and the result now leaves us 5 points behind leaders Wembley Rovers after 12 games played, with 8 wins, 2 draws and 2 losses. However Newport have a game less played and with 8 games left to play, we’re well positioned in the chase for the league title and promotion. Continue reading →