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Munster Cup Trophy Two in a Row
It is difficult to win one Munster title and retaining it was a mammoth task. Due to the limitations placed on us by dates of birth we had only a handful of players returning to defend the trophy. After some initial selection headaches and trying a huge number of players we decided on a panel of thirty but our first years blended in excellently.
In our first round we beat St. Nessan’s 4-2 and Gaelcholaiste Lumni 5-0 in round 2. We also beat Dunmanway Community College 5-4 on penalties after a one all draw and extra time. This was due to Michael Sexton’s well struck winning penalty.
In the semi-final we played away to Carrick CBS in Carrick-On-Suit. In an entertaining game we won well 3-0 to play for the second year running in the Munster Trophy final.
Getting to the Munster Trophy Final put us in to contention to play in the Quarter Final of the Munster Cup which is open to all schools. Our quarter final was against Tarbert Comprehensive. We won this game handsomely 6-1. This qualified us for a semi-final against the High School Clonmel in Clonmel.
We performed excellently on the day and were extremely unlucky to lose one-nil. We lost to the eventual Munster Cup winners, which is no disgrace.
Our final was played in damp conditions on Friday, April 1st 2011. We anxiously awaited the arrival of Comeragh College to Ballygowan Park for a 12.30 kick off. Desmond College were all fired up with a new set of jerseys from O’Neill’s and kindly sponsored by Coach House Travel.
In a tight game we achieved our goal 2-1 thanks to goals from Brian Hurley and Cormac Long. It was a great day of celebrating for the school and the game was enjoyed by all our junior school students.
Our principal, Mr. Padraig Flanagan capped off a fantastic day by presenting the trophy to our jubilant captain, Darragh O’Donovan. It was an excellent team performance. Indeed I want to pay tribute to all our squad of players whose competition for places ensured success throughout the year.
It is important at the end of a long season to thank all those who have helped our soccer teams to succeed: Our Principal and Deputy for their continuous support; Mr. Nash, Sports Co-ordinator of Desmond College; Mr. Casey and Mr. Goulding (manager); Newcastle West AFC for allowing us to use their wonderful facilities and finally our local referees, Mr. Colm Dalton, Mr Pat King, and Mr Tony Fitzmaurice for officiating at our games.
Roll on season 2011/2012 and we will build on our success this season. I am looking forward to viewing our new crop of talent in September.
Overall Record of Desmond College at all Levels:
- PLAYED: 16
- WON: 9
- DRAW: 3
- LOST: 4
- GOALS FOR: 43
- GOALS AGAINST: 28