It was a very busy weekend for one of Round Tower GAA Club’s newest teams. Round Tower Under 8 boys participated in the Gormanston Indoor Hurling Tournament, playing games against O’Dwyers from Balbriggan and Round Tower from Lusk. It was their second weekend competing in the tournament and was another milestone for the team that was only formed last October.
“This is our first calendar year playing games so the experience of the Gormanston tournament is standing the lads in great stead,” team mentor Niall Reilly explained. “We’ve a great bunch of boys together that number 48. This means we can play five teams in the Go Games leagues, with games being seven-a-side. Going into the season we will have five teams competing in two leagues.”
The team was established from Round Tower’s increasingly successful Nursery, with the boys aged seven coming to the end of their ‘term’ when it was decided to bring them together to form a team. The team played a series of friendlies before Christmas to unite them and prepare them for playing Go Games leagues in 2016. Games were played against Castleknock, Lucan Sarsfields, Thomas Davis, Na Gael Óga, St Pat’s of Palmerstown and Clanna Gael/Fontenoy.
Their biggest success to date was on Saturday 23rd January when five Go Games matches involving the boys were played consecutively at Monastery Road, with five Round Tower Under 8 teams playing five Kilmacud Crokes teams. “It was a big success and fantastic to see almost 50 Towers lads all of the same age playing at once,” Niall states.
At present the mix is between football and hurling friendlies and in two weeks – 13th February – this group of boy’s league campaigns will begin, when they will be playing football one week and hurling the other. Matches will be played on Saturday mornings.
“Bringing the boys together has been a great success and they are getting great enjoyment from playing Gaelic Games,” Niall adds. “There is a great coaching structure supporting the lads without whom we would not be able to exist and we want to build upon the enthusiasm amongst this age-group to play GAA. We want to bring another team together and we’re encouraging new boys to join us. We’ve great facilities to offer in the club and the boys will get great enjoyment from learning Gaelic Games in a fun environment”
Eligible boys will be born 2008 and training takes place Monday’s 6pm – 7pm (presently at Collinstown Community College) and Thursday 5.45pm – 6.45pm at Monastery Road All Weather pitch. If you’ve a boy that could be interested in participating, contact Niall at 086 8658621.
