CLERIHAN SCHOOLBOYS FC

 

U13A LEAGUE   CLERIHAN   0  CLONMEL TOWN  2

 

The Clerihan lads produced a fine performance on the last day of 2011 but still went down to an unlucky defeat at the hands of Clonmel Town. A slow start was to cost Clerihan dearly as poor defending allowed a Town attacker a clear run at goal on 10 minutes and , although goalkeeper Eoin Power got a hand to the shot , he could not keep it out of his net. Alan O’Donnell then got a firm grip of the midfield and proceeded to give a master class in how the game should be played. He was ably assisted by both Aidan Phelan and Shane Hickey and Clerihan began to pose more of a threat going forward. However , despite the best efforts of Liam McGrath , the home side could find no way through and the Town goalkeeper was largely untroubled. The second half saw Clerihan on top for long periods. Rian Quigley and Daniel Fitzpatrick snuffed out the attacking threat from Town but Clerihan still failed to create that elusive goalscoring opportunity. A second goal from the visitors on the stroke of full time following a goalmouth scramble really flattered them and was rough justice for a young Clerihan outfit that had impressed greatly.

 

U13B  LEAGUE   CLERIHAN  0  CLONMEL CELTIC  1

 

A last-minute goal saw Clonmel Celtic take all three points after a disappointing game at the community field on the final day of 2011. Clerihan started brightly and had plenty of possession in the Celtic half. However , there is a real lack of firepower in this squad and the only shot of note came from Seamus McMahon who was unlucky to see his well-struck effort come back off the post. Celtic looked far more threatening when they attacked, breaking through the centre of the Clerihan defence at will , only to be let down by some poor finishing and good goalkeeping from Michael Cleary. Considering that they had conceded eight goals to the same opposition a few months ago , Clerihan would have been happy enough to reach half-time on level terms. This seemed to inspire a greater effort from some in the second half with Daragh Bolger particularly outstanding and looking the one most likely to break the deadlock. However , some decent approach play was ruined by speculative shooting from distance which never troubled the Celtic goalkeeper. With the final whistle looming , Celtic capitalised on more weak defending to score the decisive goal and leave the Clerihan lads with nothing to show for their efforts.

 

U14 NSL     CLERIHAN  1  BIRDHILL  4

 

Clerihan suffered their first defeat of the season on the first Monday of  2012  and there was no argument  about it as Birdhill were by far the better team. Quicker to the ball and more physical in the challenge , the visitors caused no end of problems for the Clerihan lads. Despite this , Clerihan had probably the best chance of the first half when Luke Hahessy just dragged his effort wide of the far post after escaping the clutches of his marker. Birdhill stepped up the pressure after the break and Eoin Power made a fine save from point-blank range with Conor Horan clearing the rebound off the line. The opening goal arrived minutes later , a Birdhill attacker just getting a touch before Tom Sheehan to steer the ball to the net. Clerihan responded well and Sean Maher hit a wonderful shot which looked destined for the top corner only for the goalkeeper to bring off an outstanding save. When a Luke Hahessy shot was blocked down , John Alan Lowes sent a beautiful effort over the goalkeeper and into the net to bring the teams level. However , Birdhill finished much the stronger and ran through an over-worked Clerihan defence for three more goals , although one was scored by an attacker in a blatantly offside position. It is to be hoped that the lads will put this setback behind them quickly  and regroup for next Saturday’s game with Templemore

CLERIHAN SCHOOLBOYS FC

 

U11A LEAGUE   CLERIHAN   1   PEAKE VILLA   1

 

An exciting game between two closely-matched sides ended with honours even at the Clerihan all-weather pitch on Saturday morning. The opening exchanges were fairly frantic with neither side creating any goalscoring opportunities. It was the Thurles lads who took the lead after 15 minutes, a sweet strike to the bottom corner giving goalkeeper Aidan Lonergan no chance. Clerihan responded well and Anthony Phelan was unlucky on a couple of occasions with well-struck shots that just missed the target. The second half saw Clerihan take control with Brian O’Sullivan and Cormac Freier putting more pressure on the Villa defence. The equaliser duly arrived, Cormac Freier playing a lovely ball through to Denis Mulcahy who volleyed superbly to the net. Clerihan had a great chance to win it but man-of-the-match Anthony Phelan just put his shot wide from close range. Peake Villa also had a chance but Aidan Lonergan made a wonderful save from point-blank range. A draw was probably the right result on the day and the Clerihan lads can look forward with confidence to the resumption of action in the new year.

 

 

U12A LEAGUE    ST KEVINS  3  CLERIHAN  9

 

The U12s went on a scoring spree at Two-Mile-Borris on Saturday afternoon when they resumed league activity after their prolonged run in the National cup. Ace striker Sean Cotter scored a first-half hat-trick while goals from Callum Meagher and Seamus McMahon made it 5-0 to Clerihan at the break. Sean Cotter got his fourth goal in the second half while Rian Quigley, Liam McGrath and Jack O’Rourke completed the scoring for Clerihan. St.Kevins finished much better than they started and got through for three late goals but there was never any doubt about the outcome with all the Clerihan lads superb on the day. This was a great way to wrap things up for 2011 and the squad can face some tough fixtures in the new year with plenty of confidence.

 

POSTPONED

The U16s game in Bansha was called off early on Saturday morning with the Bansha pitch unplayable while dangerous road conditions meant that Birdhill were unable to travel to Clerihan for their U14 game.

CLERIHAN SCHOOLBOYS FC 3rd Dec

 

U12 SFAI CUP    PILTOWN 1  CLERIHAN  0

 

Clerihan lost out on a place in the last 32 of the SFAI cup when they were defeated by a solitary goal after a thrilling game of football in Piltown. The home side got a dream start , scoring in the first minute , after some hesitant defending by the Clerihan lads. However , Clerihan quickly put that setback behind them and dominated the rest of the first half. Rian Quigley was at the centre of all Clerihan’s attacks and he combined well with Sean Cotter to stretch a solid Piltown defence. Unfortunately , neither could find the opening to really test the goalkeeper with many of the efforts hit from too far out. Cathal Ryan really made his mark in midfield , winning a lot of ball with solid tackling and breaking up some threatening situations. The second half continued in the same vein with Sean Cotter unlucky to see his volley from a Rian Quigley cross strike a defender while Rian himself burst into the penalty area but his shot was too close to the keeper who made a good save. As the efforts of the Clerihan lads began to take their toll, Piltown  began to attack with grater frequency but the centre-back partnership of Conor McGrath and Daniel Fitzpatrick was outstanding and thwarted all that Piltown had to offer. With Clerihan committed to all-out attack , Daniel in particular made some crucial last-ditch tackles to prevent a second goal while goalkeeper Michael Cleary also made some smart saves to deny  the home team. Clerihan just could’nt find the goal they needed and Piltown progress to the next round. Well done to the entire squad on a fine campaign which saw them conquer teams from Carlow , Wexford and Waterford. and to coaches Mark and Gerry who had the team well-trained and organised.

 

U16 LEAGUE    CLERIHAN  1   CAHIR PARK  0

 

The U16s achieved their best result of the season to date when they defeated Cahir Park by a single goal at a very muddy community field on Saturday. The visitors were reduced to ten men early in the game after a bad tackle with Adam Taylor-Fahy picking up a costly yellow card for his protests. Clerihan took the lead when Sean Hahessy headed home a Rory Maher corner midway through the first half and had further chances to put the game out of sight but failed to take them. A second yellow card for Adam Taylor-Fahy early in the second half saw both teams down to ten men and Cahir began to dominate. Not for the first time this season , goalkeeper Liam Powell was outstanding and kept a well-deserved clean sheet. Rhys McMorrow was the best player on the pitch , making light of the dreadful conditions to get up and down the pitch all game long. This was a welcome good result for the squad who have kept at it despite some shattering defeats and just shows that the talent is there .

 

U10A LEAGUE    CLONMEL TOWN A  4  CLERIHAN  3

 

This was a real thriller at the Clonmel Town complex on Sunday morning with the standard of football very high for this age group. Town took an early lead from a corner and Daragh Hurley was really unlucky not to get an equaliser when his shot hit the post. Two quick goals before half-time looked to have Town in an unassailable position at 3-0 but Daragh Hurley pulled one back just before the break. A brilliant strike from Ryan Walsh made it 3-2 and Clerihan looked the more likel;y to score again at this stage. However , a costly defensive lapse restored Town’s two goal lead before Daragh Hurley smashed home another great goal  to set up a thrilling finish. This was a fine game with  the tremendous work-rate of the Clerihan lads again evident and almost salvaging what looked like a lost cause. Jack Fitzpatrick was outstanding in defence and has to get the man-of-the-match for the number of times he denied Town’s attackers.

CLERIHAN SCHOOLBOYS FC 26th Nov

 

U13A LEAGUE   ST. KEVINS  0  CLERIHAN  2

 

The U13s travelled to Two-Mile-Borris on Saturday morning and came away with the three points after a much improved performance. A resolute Clerihan defence restricted the home side to only a few half-chances while , on the one occasion a Kevins attacker looked likely to score , goalkeeper Eoin Power advanced well and forced him to shoot wide. Alan O’Donnell was the man-of-the-match and also scored the opening goal to settle the team. Glenn Cullinane scored Clerihan’s other goal to secure the win while Clerihan also had two efforts rebound off the crossbar and  away to safety. Hopefully , the team can bring this improved form into the next match.

 

U13B LEAGUE   CLERIHAN  1  CASHEL TOWN  3

 

Clerihan’s first half performance was very satisfying as the team played their best football of the season. There was a major improvement in ball retention and passing while the players also held their positions on the field much better than in recent games. Daragh Bolger gave Clerihan a deserved lead with a great strike from the edge of the penalty area but a goal from a free-kick got the visitors back on level terms before half-time. Sadly , the second half saw a drop in standard from the Clerihan lads as Cashel pushed on for a winner. Goalkeeper Michael Cleary made a great save in a one-on-one situation and was really unlucky to see the ball rebound off the attacker and trickle over the line. The third goal had more than a hint of offside about it and closed out the game but the focus for the Clerihan lads must be to maintain the first half form for the full game.

 

U11A LEAGUE  CAHIR PARK  1   CLERIHAN  4

 

The stand-out display of the weekend came from the U11s who made it two away wins from two with a really good effort in Cahir.  Clerihan adapted well to the difficult pitch and it came as no surprise when Cormac Freier turned a brilliant Aidan Hayes cross into the net after ten minutes. The same players combined again before half-time , Cormac attacking a great delivery from Aidan to volley to the net and double Clerihan’s lead. Cahir pulled a goal back early in the second half  but , when Anthony Phelan’s shot hit the post , Denis Mulcahy was on hand to restore the two-goal advantage. Anthony himself scored the fourth to cap a man-of-the-match display although he was pushed close for that by both Brian O’Sullivan and Riain Bolton.

 

U9 BLITZ

 

The U9s took part in a blitz on Sunday morning at the Clonmel Town complex. The Clerihan panel was : Hugh Fitzgerald, Oisin Dempsey, Donncha Keeley , Kieran O’Donnell, Danny Dunne , Riain Casey and Killian O’Keeffe. They played three matches of 20 minutes duration each and will have learned a lot from the experience. Some highlights were the tremendous goalkeeping of Hugh Fitzgerald and the non-stop running of Danny Dunne while Oisin Dempsey will remember the fine goal he scored with a sweet strike to the roof of the net.

 

U8 BLITZ

 

The U8s took to the pitch at 1 o’clock for their blitz , many playing their first ever competitive soccer match. This is a very youg Clerihan panel with half the boys eligible again for U8 next year. The panel on the day was : Jake Coen, Caoimhin Lonergan, Ben Power, Evan Kiely, Charlie Hackett , Dara O’Meara , Keelan Hanrahan, Robert Cleary and Sam Power. Everybody played really well and , hopefully , we will have a similar outing in a few weeks time.

Sat 26th

under 11a league

Cahir Park v Clerihan 11.00

under 13a league

St Kevins v Clerihan a 11.00

under 13b league

Clerihan B v Cashel Town

Sun 27th

under 8 Blitz Clonmel town complex 1.15 ko

Clerihan v Mullinahone

Clerihan v Town B

Town A v Clerihan

Sun 27th

under 9 blitz Clonmel Town complex 11.15 ko

Clerihan v Town A pitch 2

Town B v Clerihan pitch 1

Clerihan v Celtic pitch 1

Burncourt v Clerihan pitch 1