A big thank you to James, Dearbhlá, and all the staff at The Chelsea for hosting a fantastic Dinner Dance for Glenavy GAC. It was a brilliant evening with over 60 attendees, including players from the men’s and ladies’ senior teams, committee members, coaches from across the club, and our dedicated grounds team.
Club Chairman Eddie Forester opened the night with a speech thanking all coaches, players, and volunteers for their commitment throughout the year. He also spoke about the importance of community and volunteering within the club, and shared some of the exciting plans for the future.
The first award of the night — the Francie Doone Club Person of the Year — was presented to Catherine Nelson, in recognition of her outstanding contribution to Glenavy GAC, particularly her work on the New York Draw which raised over £20,000 for the club.
Next up were the Senior Ladies’ awards, presented by coaches Cathal McManus and Marie-Anna Forester, who reflected on the team’s incredible journey in recent years — from Junior football to the Intermediate Ulster Final, and now firmly established as a Senior side in Antrim football. Players’ Player of the Year: Cassie Shannon Player of the Year: Bronagh Forester
The evening concluded with the Senior Men’s awards. Nick McNally was named Reserve Footballer of the Year after an excellent season that saw the team win their Championship, reach the McCormick Cup Final, and enjoy a strong league run. Coach Martin Clenaghen praised Nick’s development from a new senior player into a leader within the group. The Senior Men’s side finished their league campaign strongly and reached the Championship semi-final.
Young Player of the Year: Pádhraic McKevitt
Player of the Year: Pearse O’Neill
A big thank you also to Bert Trowlen for attending and capturing fantastic photos of the event — always much appreciated by everyone at Glenavy GAC.
A strong second half in which they scored two goals and six points saw Gort na Móna get the better of Glenavy in Sunday’s Under 21 Hurling Championship game at Enright Park. Visitors Glenavy had done well in the opening half and led by 0-08 to 0-05 at half time but the home side dominated after the break and were deserving winners in the end.
Manus McMullan put the Gorts ahead with a point in the second minute but Finn Jack Shannon levelled for Glenavy six minutes later. A two pointer from Gorts centre forward Tarlach Enright put his team two clear but Glenavy came back strong and two points from Leon Laverty and a 2pointer from a Darragh Brown free put them three ahead. Daire Keenan pulled on back for Gort na Móna but three in a row from Laverty saw the visitors lead by double scores, before Enright pulled on back for the home side to leave them trailing by 0-05 to 0-08 at the interval.
Rian Brown and Matthew McDonnell got the first two points of the second half for the Gorts to bring them back to within one but Laverty pushed the Glenavy lead out to two by the forty second minute. Three minutes later the game changed completely when Matthew McDonnell got in for a goal for the home side which saw them take control. Points followed from Daire Keegan and Daithi MacEoghan to push them four ahead and though Lavery brought it back to three with a Glenavy point, that was to be the visitors final score and the Gorts finished with a goal and a point to book their place in the semi-final.
Ulster Camogie Senior Club Championship 2nd November 2025
Loughgiel 7-11 Slaughtneil 0-05
Match report and photos from Michael Corcoran in Emmet Park, Slaughtneil.
Loughgiel set out their Ulster stall with an emphatic 7-11 landslide win over a rebuilding Slaughtneil squad that were pinned over the sixty minutes to just 0-05. It was an exquisite display of camogie from Loughgiel of the highest level. Slaughtneil never got going such was the might and dominance from Loughgiel. In truth, the Emmets were Shamrocked.
On a breezy day on the lower pitch at the foot of the Sperrins, Slaughtneil hosted Loughiel in the AIB Ulster Camogie Senior semi final. Match official Philip McDonald from Cavan and his select group of officials got the game underway promptly after a minutes silence for Marie O’Hagan, associated with Loughgiel and Con Magees in Glenravel in many ways.
Loughgiel’s Amy Boyle won the toss and in typical fashion, opted to turn around and play into the diagonal wind blowing up the hill towards the top pitch. It would prove to be a chilly affair and took a small toll on long pucks but it didn’t play a part in how Loughgiel would eventually dismantle the Emmets over the hour. A sharp Annie Lynn pick pocketed a ball mid air from Aoife Ni Chiaside and over the bar it flew within the first minute to register the first score.
Slaughtneil replied with three points on the trot from Aoibh Mulholland, Dervla McGuigan from a free and another point from Mulholland as she worked up a ball from the ground that flew in from a prior free that didn’t have the legs to reach the goal mouth. It could have been an ominous sign as the Emmets pulled away by two points but Annie Lynn, protagonist of Loughgiel’s county final, steadied the ship with a strike over the Emmet’s bar from an Amy Boyle offload in the twelve minutes.
Within less than a minute, Loughgiel would return and hit heavy and hard from a Caitrín Dobbin strike to goal after a sumptuous pass from Katie McKillop. The Shamrocks would build on that with two more points, both frees from an on form Roísín McCormick. The Emmets could have closed the gap somewhat by two consecutive points from frees, only Cliona Mulholland found some difficulty in the drift from the breeze.
At the opposite end of Emmet Park though, the Laverty sisters weren’t bothered by the breeze. Marie Laverty made a run into the scoring zone but good defending from the Emmets offered up the only sensible option, which was a pass to sister Ciara and from the Loughgiel dugout, floated a high and dropping sliotar that slipped in behind the keeper for the second green flag in twenty three minutes.
Ciara Laverty made good of a pass from sister Marie for the Shamrock’s second goal.
There would be no respite for Slaughtneil in the torrent of Shamrock activity as Annie Lynn broke free to puncture the silence with roars from Loughgiel supporters as the net bulged from her strike. And within two minutes, the deadly duo of McCormick and Dobbin returned to deliver a fourth goal as McCormick enjoyed the offload from Dobbin.
Roísín McCormick was a real handful for the Emmet’s back line on Sunday, raising two green flags.
The Emmets replied with a point from Bridin McAllister to keep vocals alive on the sideline but that was quickly neutralised when Katie McKillop successfully flighted a free just ahead of McDonald’s half time whistle, scores on the board displaying Slaughtneil 0-04 Loughgiel 4-05. Could Slaughtneil come back in the second half, would they close the gap significantly to reemerge as a threat, the sideline was buzzing with speculation.
And they didn’t have long to wait, although Slaughtneil swept a sliotar past the Loughgiel uprights in less than 30 seconds of the restart with a wide from a free, Loughgiel’s Marie Laverty scooped up a loose ball offering it to Clare McKillop on the advance. That sliotar was also passed on to an industrious Amy Boyle finding McCormick on the end of her pass and on the fourth minute a fifth green flag took to the air. The Shamrocks had a taste for green. McCormick would tag on another point from a free just minutes before Slaughtneil scored their last point from Tina Bradley with only six minutes elapsed in the second half.
Amidst the scoring it has to be said, physical rucks favoured few but Loughgiel’s Clare McKillop and Boyle had their fair share of the spoils. And at the Shamrock wall of defence, McGarry, Lynn and Campbell continued to recycle advances back out to frustrate the Emmets all the more. Slaughtneil managed to slip around that wall but at short range, arguably point blank range, Loughgiel’s keeper, Emma McAllister was put to the test as Slaughtneil’s Bridin McAllister lashed the sliotar goal ward, but the Shamrocks’ instincts foiled the goal attempt and that would be the last real opportunity for the Emmets to return to the game.
Loughgiel’s keeper, Emma McAllister instinctively reacts to spoil an Emmet attack.
Loughgiel pursued their game plan and points continued to flow from McCormick from a 45 created from a Dobbin attempt to strike into the heart of the goals but forced wide from a kneeling position. Annie Lynn returned to complete on another scoring attempt from Dobbin to soar a fine point on the recycle and Dobbin would eventually be rewarded for her tenacity, with her own point from a pin point accurate pass from Kirsty McKendry.
Half way through the second half Ciara Laverty offered a ball to Marie, running into the scoring zone but being walled up by a sea of maroon, had to recycle around to complete her intent of raising yet another green flag, this one was a simple shove into an open goal as Laverty found herself beyond keeper McMullan who had come out to deal with the first attempt.
Marie Laverty makes no mistake in guiding the sliotar over the line for the Shamrock’s sixth goal.
By now the All Ireland medal winning management made a call to turnover the bench and three on for three off had Mary McKillen point within minutes of entering the field. Another point lifted the Shamrocks to 6-11, and the Shamrocks seventh and final goal from Annie Lynn derived from Clare McKillop dragging the sliotar out from under a ruck witnessed the game run to a halt in little over 32 minutes.
Annie Lynn made the going tough along the Emmet back line raising two green flags of her own.
This Ulster final will go down in history as one of the most surprising emphatic wins in an Ulster encounter that drew all of the Shamrock players into the mix for an exemplary team performance, but the Shamrocks won’t linger on that thought. The final game against Clonduff in the Box-IT Athletic stadium, Armagh will be their next focus and Clonduff will be well aware now of the bar Loughgiel can set having had eyes on the game on Sunday. Nothing will be taken for granted in two weeks time.
You can view more photos from Sunday’s game by following this link to our album…
Ulster Intermediate Football Championship – Preliminary round
Glenullin 2-17 Moneyglss 0-06
Moneyglass came up well short in Saturday evening’s Ulster Intermediate Football Championship preliminary round against Derry champions Glenullin at Owenbeg. The Derry men, who were playing in the competition for the third time in four years, had just too much craft for the St Ergnat’s side and took total control in the second half to win by seventeen points.
Glenullin got a fortunate break to get them off the mark when a shot from full forward Donal O’Kane saw two Moneyglass defenders get confused under the dropping ball and it ended in the net to set them on their way.
With the breeze in their favour the Derry champions pushed on and were 1-03 to the good before Moneyglass opened their account with a Colum Duffin point, but Glenullin came back with two 2pointers inside a minute from midfielder Niall McNicholl to take total control, but the Antrim champions grabbed two late points before half time through Tyler Cassidy and Sean Boyd to cut their arrears to seven at the interval.
With the breeze at their backs in the second half there was still hope for St Ergnat’s but Glenullin slammed the door firmly shut when Donal O’Kane pointed from an early free and when right half forward Cathal Hasson added two more the only thing in question was the size of the winning margin.
It was just one of the those nights when nothing would go right for Moneyglass and though they battled away, very little was falling their way and Glenullin grabbed their second goal to push the lead out to 2-12 to 0-03.
Moneyglass broke their second half duck with a point from Conleth McCann and he added another soon afterwards, but the Derry men were just too good on the night as they went through to the quarter finals.
Glenullin: N O’Kane; E Boylan, Daniel O’Kane, E O’Kane; C Rafferty, J O’Kane, D McNicholl; T Bradley, N McNicholl (0-6, 2tp); Cathal Hasson (0-2), C Dempsey, C Bradley; C Mullan (0-1f), Dónal O’Kane (1-4, 1-3f), R McNicholl (1-1)
Subs: E Bradley (0-2, 1f) for C Mullan (40), E McIlvar for C Hasson (46), R Close for T Bradley (50), E Hasson for E O’Kane (52), D Close for D McNicholl (56)
Moneyglass: J McLaughlin; M Mullan, Z McCaughan, J McCormick; T McCormack, P Duffin, C McCann (0-2); K McCann, S Duffin; S Boyd (0-1), A McErlain, F Duffin; C O’Kane, C Duffin (0-1f), Tyler Cassidy (0-1)Subs: C Boyd for O’Kane (43), M McLaughlin for F Duffin (50), R Boyd for Cassidy (50), E Kelly for J McCormick (56), R Campbell (0-1) for S Boyd (56)
Black card: Z McCaughan (37)Yellow cards: A McErlain (10), E Kelly (63)
Referee: S Murphy (Armagh)
TO SEE MORE PHOTOS FROM THIS GAME CLICK ON THE LINK BELOW
St. Mary’s Rasharkin and Patrick Sarsfield’s served up an excellent contest as the U21B Football Championship got under way on Sunday afternoon.
The visitors looked to have sewn matters up at the halfway stage when they led 3-7 to 0-4 after a wind assisted opening half but Rasharkin served up a strong second half performance to cause a bit of anxiety for the men from the Bear Pit.
In the end though it was Sarfield’s who deservedly advanced to the semi-final and on this performance they could be contenders for the title.
The excellent Oisin Casey pointed Rasharkin into the lead after a cagey opening 9 minutes where the home side managed possession into the breeze and it took a further 5 minutes before Brian Healy would kick the equaliser.
Oisin McCamphill was strong in the Rasharkin defence
Indeed the Sarsfield’s forward might well have had a goal but it was Casey who would restore his side’s advantage as he pointed a free in the 15th minute and at this stage the St. Mary’s possession game was working well.
Things changed dramatically as Jack McLaughlin raced clear for a Sarsfield’s goal and further goals from Darren Delander and Brian Healy had the visitors in total control at the break when they led 3-7 to 0-4.
Brian Healey contributed four first half points to add to his goal while their centre half forward kicked two impressive 2 pointers.
Caolan McGarrell was Rasharkin’s other marksman with the other 3 coming from the excellent Oisin Casey who was the St. Mary’s driving force throughout.
Rasharkin were a different animal after the break as they set about eating into the Sarsfield’s lead with Daniel Doherty and 2 from Casey giving them a bright start to the second half.
The visitors were able to keep their noses in front however with Declan Barr fisting over and Healey 0-2 and Fionn Jemfry moving them 13 ahead by the 13th minute.
St. Mary’s were still fighting hard and a great 2 pointer from Oisin Casey and another from closer to goal and another from a Daniel Doherty free had it down to 9 with 12 minutes remaining.
Brian Healy who was outstanding for Sarsfield’s
Se Ferris punished a bad clearance to extend that lead to 10 but the home side were growing in confidence and a fisted goal from their star performer Casey gave them renewed hope.
It came too late to influence the outcome however with Brian Healey replying from a pointed free and Caolan McGarrell and Neil Darragh concluding the scoring with late points for a Rasharkin side, quite a number who are underage next year.
Brian Healey, Fionn Jemfry and Jay Maguire were best for a very good all round Sarsfield’s side while Oisin Casey, Oisin Doherty, Oisin McCamphill and Ciaran O’Neill were strong performers for Rasharkin.
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