BRIDE ROVERS GAA NOTES.

 

BIG HURLING WEEKEND.

The 2025 Hurling Season in Cork starts in earnest this weekend across all levels. We have three games -meeting Blarney in the Senior Hurling League, Sars in Division 4 of the East Cork JHL and Carrigtwohill in Division 1. The Blarney game is away on Sunday at 11.am -not time change.. The Division 4 game is at home on Saturday at 3 o clock and the Carrig game in Division 1 is also at home at 3 o clock on the Sunday afternoon. Mention must be made of the superb condition of the new Pitch at Pynes. It has come in for favourable comment from all sides. Well done Denis, John and Co and our CE workers Martin and Paddy. In recent weeks the planting of the hedging on the boundary was completed.

WEBSITE UPDATE. The IT/PR committee are still working on updating and modernising our website and our communications within the Club. The new App is proving to very popular with several hundred signed up in the first few days.

RED FM SENIOR HURLING FIXTURES. Our 2025 REDFM SHL fixtures are as follows; March 9th away to Blarney, March 23rd at home to Castlelyons, April 4th away to Russell Rovers, April 20th at home to Newcestown, May 4th away to Mallow, May 18th away to Lisgoold, May 31st  at home to Blackrock, June 15th away to Courceys and June 29th at home to Ballinhassig.

 EAST CORK CENTENARY BOOK.

Copies of the Imokilly 2010-2024 History Book  are now available at €40 per copy and can be ordered from Club Officers or phone 087 9538077.

MUNSTER HURLING.  Hard to imagine that the Munster SHC commences next month! The fixtures are as follows; Sunday, April 20: Clare v Cork, Cusack Park, 2pm; Tipperary v Limerick, FBD Semple Stadium, 4pm. Sunday, April 27: Waterford v Clare, Walsh Park, 2pm; Cork v Tipperary, SuperValu Páirc Uí Chaoimh, 4pm. Saturday, May 3: Waterford v Limerick, Walsh Park, 6pm. Saturday, May 10: Clare v Tipperary, Cusack Park, 6pm.Sunday, May 18: Tipperary v Waterford, FBD Semple Stadium, 2pm; Limerick v Cork, TUS Gaelic Grounds, 4pm. Sunday, May 25: Cork v Waterford, SuperValu Páirc Uí Chaoimh, 4pm; Limerick v Clare, TUS Gaelic Grounds, 4pm. Saturday, June 7: Final, in FBD Semple Stadium OR SuperValu Páirc Uí Chaoimh OR TUS Gaelic Grounds, 6pm. It promises to be a cracker. With five teams competing and just three to progress it’s a wide open competition.

JOIN BRIDE ROVERS CLUB 100.

A few years back as we began planning for our Club’s centenary in 2028 the Club 100 concept was put in place.  With projected spending of close to One Million Euro in the coming years the need for several ‘finance streams’ is vital. The Club 100 is a method whereby supporters and benefactors of the Club can commit to financially helping the Bride Rovers GAA Club. All finance raised has gone into major Club developments in recent years. Now with the  massive 3-pitch Development project in Ballybrowney well under way we will need huge funds over the next decade. There are three levels of Club 100 membership; Gold, Siver and Bronze. The Gold membership costs €480 annually and for this on gets 2 Annual Club Lotto tickets plus,2 Rebel Bounty Draw Tickets and family Membership of the Club.

The Silver costs €360 and give 2 Lotto and 1 Rebel Bounty and Membership for 1 adult and 1 child or 2 children)

The Bronze option comes in at €240 and brings 1Annual Club Lotto ticket plus, 1 Rebel Bounty and individual Membership. Many people make a ‘New Year’s Resolution’ at this time of year- why not consider joining our Club 100.? Full details from any Club Officer.  At the end of each year the Bride Rovers Club holds a special draw confined the Club 100 members with substantial prizes including 2  Annual Premium Tickets for all games in Pairc Ui Chaoimh. 

LOCAL INTEREST IN CHELTENHAM’ Next week the annual Cheltenham NH Racing Festival takes place and many locals will make the trip -their ‘annual pilgrimage’ to the Cotswolds. The very first race on Tuesday next the Supreme Novices Hurdle has been poignantly renamed to commemorate the late Micael O Sullivan -the young Irish jockey from Lombardstown who died after a fall in Thurles.  There is strong local interest in this race as Fermoy businessman Charles ‘Cha’ McCarthy is the owner of Kopek des Bordes, a French bred horse and favourite for the race. Cha and his father Charlie before him have always been great supporters of Bride Rovers in so many fundraising drives down the years.  Cha was in hospital recently so we wish him all the best in terms of his heath and every good luck in Cheltenham.

TWO OUTTA THREE AINT BAD…

I suppose winning two of the three league games in Pairc Ui Chaoimh last Saturday was not a bad days work but the manner of the defeat -trouncing , of the Footballers was  very disappointing. With Cavan(away) and Louth (home) still to play hopes of Promotion are gone and we need wins in order not to be in a relegation scrap.   The Cork girls with our trio involved proved too strong for Roscommon. The hurlers defeated the Cats and now got to the narrow pitch in Ennis next Sunday for a repeat of last year’s All Ireland Final -make sure to put Zimmer Biomet (the new name for Cusack Park) into your satnav!  Cork’s final Group game in the NHL is on February 22nd -at home to Galway.

 

TWO YEARS ON -THE OSKARS; WILL WE EVER FORGET?

  In our Club Notes this week in early March of 2023 we ‘went public’ for the first time on a new Fundraising Idea A Night At The Oskars; “Bride Rovers GAA Club are organising a Oskars fundraising event on the 26th of May 2023.. All funds raised will be going towards the development of our new playing fields in the Pynes Development. The event will see Club members and neighbours get the opportunity to become a star of the big screen. The event will see 7 short adaptions of some of Hollywood's most famous movies ever filmed. 

The movie casts and club members will be invited to attend the Red-Carpet event on May 26th where the 7 movies will premiere on the night. After the movie premieres our panel of Celebrity Judges will be awarding the Oskars to the winning performers & movies. 

Your first step to becoming a Movie Star is attendance at an information evening on Wednesday the 8th of March where the process will be explained. All levels of acting and performing skills are encouraged to attend with suitable roles available for everyone.  

All our Movie stars must be at least 18 years of age at the time of filming so must be born before 22nd of April 2005” .  The project took off in an unimaginable manner and quickly the whole community was involved.   From a financial point of view it was an absolutely brilliant success but also from a parish involvement and social aspect it was just beyond our wildest dreams. Ruly it was the Fundraiser the ‘keeps giving’ -last year the Scrap Collection which was an Oskars income stream still continued and brought in sizeable funds. Members often as ‘Can we do it again?’ -hard to know but maybe we’ll come up with something new and novel.  In twenty years time I know people will ask ‘The Oskars -do you remember?’ ‘Remember?, will I ever forget’!

 

GREATS GONE.

Two greats of the GAA in Munster died recently. Roscrea native Bishop Willie Walsh will forever be linked with the Golden Era of College hurling in St Flannan’s of Ennis. He was also involved with Clare underage teams at Inter county level before becoming a Senior selector when Donie Nealon trained Clare. Johnny Culloty played both hurling and football with Kerry. Between 1955 and 1970 he won 5 Senior All Ireland Football tiles with the Kingdom – in 1955 as a forward and the other four as a class goalie. In 1961 he won a junior Hurling all Ireland with Kerry. In later years he trained Kerry in the 1970’s and between 2004 and 2006 helped Jack O Connor in his backroom team when Kerry won Sam twice more. May Bishop Willie and Johnny rest in peace.

 

REBELS BOUNTY IN FULL SWING.

The Cork GAA members Monthly Draw for 2025 was launched recently. Since it’s revamping the Draw has seen an increased membership. With a total €500,000 in prizes across 12 monthly draws everyone in the Draw has 360 chances to win.  As well as supporting  your local club membership also helps promote Gaelic Games right across Cork. The Cost of joining for the year is €100 and the Bride Rovers Club have tickets on sale at present. The January, February and March Draws will take place on Monday March the 31st. Contact any Club Officer and get your ticket now.

SYMPATHY The Bride Rovers Club extends sympathy to the family of William (Billy) Hornibrook of Beech Park, Rathcormac, who died recently.

BRIDE ROVERS CLUB SPONSORS are; Rathcormac Tyres Fermoy Print & Design Gerard Gubbins Construction and Veolia.