Dublin Minor & Colleges Hurling

Quote from Ford95

Offaly schools didn't have any Colaiste Naomh Cormac lads i think . They didn't have Screeney on that Offaly schools team anyway

CNC, having won Leinster & All Ireland 'B' honours with Screeney et al last year are now in the top tier on their own and therefore no longer eligible to play with Offaly schools. They are a mixed school with <300 students so not sure how much staying power they will have there. They won the 'C' and 'B' titles in back to back years.

It's a pretty strong Offaly side that played vs North alright. 6 lads that featured in the AI final vs Tipp. This Offaly combined schools outfit will be considerably weaker in the next couple of years however.

Quote from Tayto

Sounds like they had a special group going through, Screeney would help of course! little wizard.

I think 6 lads from the school started that minor final which is a massive number

Quote from Tayto

Sounds like they had a special group going through, Screeney would help of course! little wizard.

Indeed, Screeney scored 2-13 in that final last year so obviously a huge impact there. They are all KK lads too, as opposed to a wide spread, so on the club scene KK have won 4 U-20s in a row and will make it 6 by 2025.

https://www.irishexaminer.com/sport/gaa/arid-41096362.html

Faithful What’s the story with Birr? They seem to have regressed badly.

Huge progress around Kilcormac between school and club. Is underage coaching a factor? Or proximity to Faithful Fields?

Quote from DUB09

Faithful What’s the story with Birr? They seem to have regressed badly.

Huge progress around Kilcormac between school and club. Is underage coaching a factor? Or proximity to Faithful Fields?

They have. In Birr's heyday, they had a great bunch of players, there were Brs. In St Brendan's doing great work and ultimately 4 all Ireland club titles. That seemed to just fade away. The school fell down to B level and stayed there. Now they are 15 years and counting without a county title (there have been a couple of near misses in recent years to be fair).

The attitude of some hurling people in Birr and South Offaly in general would have been a little backward tbh. It took a while for the penny to drop and realise that the game had changed (at a meeting circa 2013, one old timer now infamously suggested that the way back for Offaly was to return to ground hurling! My god). Thankfully, there was eventual acceptance of where the county was. They are working hard again. (Birr specifically did not have a starter on the 2 All Ireland final teams that Offaly have contested in the past 2 years, so nit quite a Renaissance for them yet).

It's often noted that all except Kevin Martin from the 1990s team came from an 8 mile radius of Birr. In truth, that heartland is struggling. The mini golden generation that Offaly have now aged 18-19 is largely, but not exclusively, driven by Kilcormac and nontraditional North Offaly clubs.

On Kilcormac, they deserve immense credit to be fair. They've done a lot of great work and they've done it themselves. A model for others to follow, in so much as is possible.

Mind you, sometimes you are fortunate when a particularly special group comes along. I went to an 'A' underage football final that K/K won in 2021 - Screeney ran riot! Talent plays its part.

Numbers are a factor too. Hard to relate this when comparing Offaly vs a more urbanised county - but for example, at underage level they pull from 7 different primary schools and an enormous catchment area. We can see this at adult level now with KK winning the Senior A, Senior B championships, semi finalists at Junior A and Junior B...

Excuse the essay...

Kk have always been strong in offaly, winning 5 in a row at senior level not too long ago. Really have turned it on now with championship s been won across all their team from u13 up to senior. Think they won every championship last year at juvenile level up to u20.

Birr like most of South offaly have failed to keep up with the times.Ballinamere , kk seem to be producing a lot of players and seem to be on course to be contesting championship s in the coming years. Kk are out ahead of everyone at the moment.

Harrys_Tiles Cup is it Tayto?

Quote from Ford95

Yes they've been in 3 senior cups i recent memory . They'd have plenty of hurlers . Joe Cannings nephew Jack went there . He won a minor All Ireland for Galway

They used to win the Leinster B title regularly at hurling

Lot of Tipp minors went there over the years . Liked of Paddy o Brien who terrorised Dublin clubs when playing for UCD

Colaiste Eoin, having lost last week to a strong Johnstown team, hammered the Screaney less Kilcormac today and will now play Offaly Schools next in two weeks time at home

Yes. Kilcormac are in A this year having won the B last year with their loaded crew from that Offaly minor team. Eoin won 8-24 0-08

Who have Eoin got on their team this year kenny, O Riain, David Purcell?

Yes for the three above. Also Gearóid Flannery from Crokes and Liam Cooney from Faughs who both would have been Dublin minor this year and then Conor Mac Ruairc and Paddy Egan from Cuala.

Quote from Faithful

They have. In Birr's heyday, they had a great bunch of players, there were Brs. In St Brendan's doing great work and ultimately 4 all Ireland club titles. That seemed to just fade away. The school fell down to B level and stayed there. Now they are 15 years and counting without a county title (there have been a couple of near misses in recent years to be fair).

The attitude of some hurling people in Birr and South Offaly in general would have been a little backward tbh. It took a while for the penny to drop and realise that the game had changed (at a meeting circa 2013, one old timer now infamously suggested that the way back for Offaly was to return to ground hurling! My god). Thankfully, there was eventual acceptance of where the county was. They are working hard again. (Birr specifically did not have a starter on the 2 All Ireland final teams that Offaly have contested in the past 2 years, so nit quite a Renaissance for them yet).

It's often noted that all except Kevin Martin from the 1990s team came from an 8 mile radius of Birr. In truth, that heartland is struggling. The mini golden generation that Offaly have now aged 18-19 is largely, but not exclusively, driven by Kilcormac and nontraditional North Offaly clubs.

On Kilcormac, they deserve immense credit to be fair. They've done a lot of great work and they've done it themselves. A model for others to follow, in so much as is possible.

Mind you, sometimes you are fortunate when a particularly special group comes along. I went to an 'A' underage football final that K/K won in 2021 - Screeney ran riot! Talent plays its part.

Numbers are a factor too. Hard to relate this when comparing Offaly vs a more urbanised county - but for example, at underage level they pull from 7 different primary schools and an enormous catchment area. We can see this at adult level now with KK winning the Senior A, Senior B championships, semi finalists at Junior A and Junior B...

Excuse the essay...

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Great to read details of the scene in other counties. Keep the faith, pun intended.

Quote from beeko

Great to read details of the scene in other counties. Keep the faith, pun intended.

Indeed, days of All Ireland glory may be dead and buried, but you've got to keep plugging away with what you've got.