Coláiste Iognáid 5 - Salerno 0

Colaiste Iognaid qualified for the Connacht Senior Schools Palmer Cup semi-final with a superb display against their arch rivals Salerno in Dangan on Wednesday.

Weather wise, it was a game of two halves, the first played in glorious winter sunshine and the second in torrential showers. However, on the pitch it was one way traffic with the Jes putting in a fine controlled performance, dominating in all sectors of the pitch.

Were it not for an outstanding performance from Salerno goalie Vickie Hynes, gallant defending by Clare Watson & Niamh O'Flaherty& some narrow misses by the Jes forwards the score could have been higher.

The Jes back four, Hannah Gormally,Clodagh Kennedy Ailbhe Finnerty & Rachel Bradley and second half replacement Grace O’Donnell, never put a foot wrong and ensured that goalie Natasha Cooke had a quiet afternoon. Sisters Elaine and Michelle Carey and Alison Ryan controlled midfield and provided a continuous supply of good ball to the inter-changing forwards, Ciara Power, Maeve Russell, Kyla Gillen, Aisling Dunne, Aoife Codyre & hat-trick hero Ingrid Murphy.

Jes took the lead on 15 minutes when Hannah Gormally opened the scoring from a short corner.Three minutes later Ingrid Murphy added a second. She picked up a through ball from Clodagh Kennedy & scored with a good shot from an acute angle on the right. Just before half time Murphy added her second. She took possession from a good pass from Michelle Carey and buried the ball in the Salerno goal, this time from the left.

Salerno started the second half well. Emma Johnson made some good runs from midfield and Rebecca Dillon put through some good ball to the forwards. However, Jes added their fourth on ten minutes. Alison Ryan fed a cross pitch pass to Elaine Carey who dribbled into the circle and scored with a shot to the right hand corner which gave Vickie Hynes no chance. They continued to pile on the pressure & soon added their fifth. Ailbhe Finnerty carried the ball up the right hand touch line & crossed to Ingrid Murphy in the centre of the circle. She made no mistake with a superb shot.

Jes now go on to meet their other great rivals Taylors Hill in the semi-final.

The U-14's have won all their group games this season and are into the knockout stage for the second year running.

Best of luck to the Senior team on Friday in their championship semi final.


Eoghan Finn was declared Champion and Daragh McCarthy, Franc O’Neill, Ross Gorey, Jack Counihan, Eoghan Hillson, and David Young  were the collective recipients of the  ‘Adjudicators’ Discretionary Award’at the Coláiste na hInse Junior Mace.

The Coláiste Iognáid Debate Society await details of those members invited to the ‘National Junior Mace’ next month. The invitation is extended to the top forty speakers in the four nationally accredited Mace debates. We expect to field four or five speakers in this prestigious Grand Final.

Andrew Forde and Robert Fitzgerald-Bellone travel up to the Blackrock College Senior Mace next weekend.

Following a one-year absence last year the Senior Boys’ Basketball Team is once againback in the All-Ireland Playoffs this year. After a gruelling campaign in the West Region, the Jes finished runner-up to Coláiste Éinde to qualify for the All-Ireland playoffs.

The team will travel to St. Macartan’s College in Co. Monaghan the weekend of the 4^th and 5^th of February, in what is most definitely the toughest group of the playoffs. With the senior team completely made up of Fifth Years and Transition Years. This is the fourth time in five years this team has made the All-Ireland Playoffs and captain Darragh Connolly reckons the past experience gained by
this team will be of huge benefit in their endeavours to qualify for the All-Ireland Semi-Final.

Under-19 Boys’ Team

Darragh Connolly (Captain)
Shane Garvey (Vice-Captain)
Jack O’Reilly
Evan Wynne
John Daly/
Timmy Molloy
Christian Dunne
Jamie Kelly
Stephen O’Donnell
Ruairi McHugh
Daniel O’Gorman