20/10/2008* The Senior footballers played Castlewellan on Saturday needing a draw to force relegation playoffs but fell short on a 1-8 to 1-9 score line. Team and scorers Brendan McVeigh; Michael Trainor, Joe Mc Veigh, Conor McVeigh; Deaglan O’Reilly, Liam McVeigh, Liam Fitzpatrick; James Colgan 1-1, Paul Murney; James Cunningham 0-1, Fergal Doyle, Chris Killen 0-3; Paddy Cole 0-2, John Clarke 0-1, Damian Sherry. Subs Kieran McVeigh, Conor Doyle.

13/10/2008 * The Senior footballers played Longstone on Saturday and spurning five decent goal chances was their undoing. They now need a point on Saturday to make the playoffs. Best wishes for a full recovery to Noel McArdle injured at the end of the Burren match and likely out for the remainder of the season.

06/10/2008* The Senior footballers played Burren at Dunavil on Saturday and after that lifeless showing v Rostrevor they really rose to the challenge for a deserved win. Burren were limited to three scores from placed balls in the first half while An Riocht twin strikers John Clarke (4) and Pearse Cunningham (2) shared their points. Though Burren scored first on the restart An Riocht had built a three point lead going into the last five minutes when they conceded a soft equalizing goal. However An Riochts dominance around the middle of the field ensured that two late points secured the victory. What a difference in a week, whereas v Rostrevor no one came away with any credit this time out a battling, committed team performance saw off a strong Burren challenge and everyone was a hero. It will take similar effort over the remaining games to secure first division status.

06/10/2008 Div One An Riocht 0-11 Burren 1-6
An Riochts greater need (survival) outweighed Burrens (consolation prize of Top Four playoffs) on a wet and miserable October Saturday evening at Dunavil. Both teams were missing some key men, most notably An Riochts Aidan Cunningham which necessitated John Clarke start on the forty and Burrens Eoin McCartan and Anthony Cunningham which left their attack without a viable target man.

Burren struggled for scores throughout and after James McGovern (free) and Kevin McKernan (45) had opened the scoring for them they had to wait until just before the break for McGoverns second placed ball to complete their first half scoring. In between times An Riocht fired over six points for a double scores interval lead. John Clarke 0-4 (1f) and Pearse Cunningham 0-2 were the home marksmen.

On the restart Conal McGoverns early point failed to spark a Burren rally and Paddy Cole and Clarke (f) replied and the Mourne side had strong claims for a penalty waved away by an unsighted referee. Former County captain Declan Rooney and James Cunningham swapped scores before James McGovern from play left it 0-6 to 0-9 seven minutes from time.
Throughout the second half Burren were playing on the break as An Riocht carried the ball to them but failed to turn possession into scores. Then three minutes from time a McGovern free dropped short and Eamon Toner forced the slippery ball over the line via the post to level the match. However from the kick out Paul Murney gathered and released James Colgan and the discarded County man shot a long distance pressure point to put his side back in front. Burren failed to get the kick out past halfway and Chris Killen returned the ball over the bar for the insurance score.

For the winners Michael Trainor and Jim Clarke were best in defence, Colgan and Murney dominated at midfield and up front Killen was the orchestrator with best support from Clarke and Cole.For Burren Gerard McCartan, Kevin McKernan and Eamon Toner performed to their best. The referee, Michael Curran (Ardglass), is deserving of praise for his sensible officiating in the slippery conditions.

An Riocht 29/09/2008
* The Senior footballers played Rostrevor at Dunavil on Saturday and what an abject performance it was, offering little hope for the remaining three games. Having gone four nil behind An Riocht did well to get back on level terms before actually going one point up but with Reds backs allowed waltz out of defence unchallenged by our forwards and our defenders failing to land a tackle in our half, we were soon in trouble again and trailed 2-7 to 1-6 at the break. Despite scoring first on the restart the lack of urgency in our play actually worsened in the second half and with possession cheaply given away Rostrevor ran through for a series of simple scores finishing 4-13 to 1-11 winners in a game which resembled a cross between a training session and a sevens competition. Scorers D O’Reilly 1-0, J Colgan 0-4, J Clarke 0-2, J Cunningham 0-2, K McVeigh 0-1, P Cole 0-1, C Killen 0-1.

21/09/2008* The Senior footballers were in Kilmacud at the weekend. They beat Glenswilly 2-9 to 3-5 and Dromard 2-6 to 0-6, drew with Kilmacud 1-8 to 2-5 before losing to St. Pats 1-6 to 1-7.

15/09/2008 The Senior footballers match v Ballyholland was on Saturday. This relegation contest was surprisingly open with four goals shared between the teams. Harps goaled within seconds of the start when a high ball in was turned into the path of Ronan Murtagh and he buried the ball in the top corner of the net. An Riocht battled back to keep within touch and though they never got on terms they were gifted a goal in injury time when the Harps net minder dropped a shot from John Clarke to go in only the minimum in arrears 1-7 to 1-6. A feature of the first half were three long range frees from Joe Murphy while the visitors keeper Kieran Murphy converted a forty five. For An Riocht John Clarke and Paddy Cole shared four first half points.On the restart a huge fisted point from James Colgan leveled the match but Harps soon regained the ascendancy with a Ronan Murtagh free going all the way for a fortunate enough goal. An Riocht then showed some of the fighting spirit they will require to survive relegation scoring 1-5 to hit the front. Two great frees from James Colgan, and a Kieran McVeigh point which just whizzed over the bar preceded the goal which came from a John Clarke flick into the path of Paddy Cole who ran through and beat the keeper low to his right hand post. Harps rallied and the keeper pointed again before frees from Murtagh and Mulholland suggested a draw would be the outcome but John Clarke with two late strikes secured the result for the home side.
Scorers
An Riocht J Clarke 1-5 P Cole 1-3 J Colgan 0-3 J Cunningham 0-1 C Killen 0-1 K McVeigh 0-1 Harps R Murtagh 2-3 J Murphy 0-3 K Murphy 0-2 A McAteer 0-1 S Mulholland 0-1 M Shields 0-1.

07/09/2008* The Senior footballers match v Ballyholland was rained off.

25/08/2008* The Senior footballers played Kilcoo in the Championship on Tuesday, enough said, they saved their worse performance of the season for the biggest occasion losing 3-15 to 0-3. Best wishes to Paul Murney for a full recovery from injuries sustained.

25/08/2008* The Senior footballers kept their league hopes alive with a win in Saval, 1-18 to 1-8. The home side scored early on but squandered two goal chances which could have given them an unassailable lead. Once An Riocht settled they played some good football and a Paddy Cole goal filled them with confidence. At the break An Riocht led 1-9 to 0-4. Saval goaled on the restart but showing some rare resolve three quick points cancelled that score out and An Riocht went on to win with plenty to spare. Team and scorers B McVeigh M Trainor F Doyle P Sherry 0-1 D O’Reilly L McVeigh J McVeigh J Colgan J Cunningham 0-2 A Cunningham 0-1 K McVeigh 0-1 P Cole 1-5 D White J Clarke 0-5 N McArdle 0-2. Sub D Sherry 0-1

20/08/2008 Kilcoo defeat An Riocht 3-15 to 0-03 in SFC

19/08/2008 The Senior footballers play Kilcoo in the Championship on Tuesday, Sundays fixture was rained off.

12/08/2008 The Senior Football match v Loughinisland at Dunavil finished in a draw. An Riocht got off to a good start leading three nil early on and responded to a Loughinisland rally with the first goal. An all too rare early ball in was flicked to the net by John Clarke and An Riocht led 1-4 to 0-3. However by the break there were only two points between the teams. An Riocht stretched that to four points by the three quarter mark but four visitors points leveled and were followed by a Gareth Johnstone goal as An Riocht faded in midfield and struggled to cope with substitute Johnstones height and strength up front. A goal behind Aidan Cunningham pulled a point back and then Paddy Cole punched to the net leaving Island to grab a late equalizer. Scorers P Cole 1-3, J Clarke 1-2, A Cunningham 0-2, J Cunningham 0-2, J Colgan 0-1. Best wishes to Paul for a speedy recovery from a nasty facial injury.

Senior Football An Riocht v Liatroim 03/08/2008
The senior footballers failed to make use of an extra man for three quarters of this game losing 0-12 to 1-11. Liatroim goaled early on as An Riocht indulged in some Down style defending and but for two sharp saves from Gavin Finnegan the game could have been over by the fifteenth minute. However from four nil behind An Riocht hit the front six five and took an eight seven lead into the half time break. There was some good play from An Riocht in that first half. However on the restart they were unable to pull clear and from 0-12 to 1-8 in front they allowed Liatroim in for the last three scores to claim the win.

Senior Football v Kilcoo 13/07/2008
The Mayobridge match was postponed so the Senior footballers chance to build on the Kilcoo success won’t be until Sunday 27th July when they visit Clonduff. Good luck to Brendan, James and John with Down this weekend.

Senior Football v Kilcoo 06/07/2008
An Riocht senior footballers pulled off something of a shock when they defeated Kilcoo by three points, 0-12 to 0-9, at Dunavil on Thursday past to record only their second win of the season. Kilcoo had twenty four points to spare when this pair last met on the opening day of the campaign back in April but from the early stages of this contest it was obvious there was going to be no repeat of that debacle. There was an intensity to the exchanges that kept just within the rules as both teams got tore into the match. Kilcoo opened the scoring with a Conor Laverty free but it was the home side which dominated the first quarter with points from Paddy Cole (2), Chris Killen and John Clarke putting them four one ahead. There were a lot of frees in the second quarter and Killen added two for the home side while Conor Laverty and Paul Devlin (2) shared three for the visitors though they missed a lot both from play and from placed balls. At half time An Riocht led six points to four.

James Colgan and John Clarke both pointed for An Riocht within minutes of the restart but three further frees brought Kilcoo to within a point of them after forty five minutes, Paul Devlin on target. Colgan and Cole with points apiece opened the gap while Kilcoos series of wides was halted with points each from Anthony Devlin and Dominic McAvoy to again leave the minimum separating the teams. It was An Riocht however who finished the stronger with James Cunningham and Paddy Cole scoring the final two points to secure an important victory for their team and set up an intriguing championship meeting next month.

Senior Football 28/06/2008
On Friday at Dunavil Castlewellan beat An riocht seniors by double scores, 2-12 to 1-6.

Senior Football v Burren 23/06/2008
Friday night in Burren saw An Riocht throw away two more precious league points. Despite going 1-1 to nil up some calamitous defending allowed Burren in for two soft goals while we went on to shoot wide on two occasions with only the keeper to beat and all within the first five or six minutes! Conor McVeigh was doing well at the back before being forced off with an injury while Michael Trainor had a good second half, Paul Murney again made several spectacular high fetches at centre field and Paddy Cole worked tirelessly in attack with Pearse Cunningham adding most support. However only centre back Liam McVeigh scored from play after the break, Chris Killen’s two frees adding to a 1-4 interval tally. Not really match winning figures.

Senior Football Rostrevor v An Riocht 16/06/2008
On Friday in Rostrevor the An Riocht senior footballers lost 1-15 to 1-9. A horrendous opening half had An Riocht trailing nine points to three at the interval and Rostrevor had squandered two good goal chances. A superb opening to the second half narrowed the deficit to a point with substitute Darren White blasting home a great goal but An Riocht could not get on level terms despite opportunities to do so and in the fortieth minute Reds struck for a well taken but slack goal. An Riocht failed to respond and dwelling on the ball only added to their difficulties with the result certain long before the final whistle. A missed penalty in the closing moments would have been of mere cosmetic value to our struggling side. Paul Murney gave an exhibition of high fielding at centre field while Chris Killen finished with six points (4f). Conor McVeigh and Jim Clarke were the pick in defence, Clarkes surging runs opening up the home defence while McVeigh got in several telling tackles. Pearse Cunningham was a lone success in attack. For Rostrevor Conor Daly 0-6 (1f) ensured their endeavours out the field usually ended with a score and Sean Parr at half back had a storming match.

Senior Football An Riocht v Longstone 10/06/2008
The senior footballers poor run of form continued at Dunavil on Friday when visiting Longstone took the league points on a 1-11 to 0-11 score line. A first minute goal set the visitors up for victory and though An Riocht had ample opportunities to get back into the game they lacked the incisiveness required and could not get closer than two points in arrears. Longstones forwards found space and showed unerring accuracy from play and placed balls scoring eight points in all from frees. Longstones defenders put An Riochts attackers under fierce pressure making the home side battle for every score. Chris Killen (5) and James Cunningham (3) were An Riochts main threat while Aidan Flanagan in the unusual position of full forward caused the visitors many problems but received no support under the high ball.

Senior Football Ballyholland v An Riocht 02/06/2008
An Riocht led nine points to eight at the break as both sides made light of the games ‘starred’ status with some flowing football. Paul Murney was making some great catches at midfield and Christopher Killen was in brilliant form kicking over half his sides scores. However three goal chances were spurned. Ballyholland were not so reticent about taking their goals and had the ball in the net three minutes into the restart, following up six minutes later with a second goal to go five clear. An Riocht never produced the incisive football of the first half and after the break laboured over scores the game finishing in a 2-11 to 0-12 defeat.

Senior Football An Riocht v Saval 26/05/2008
An Riocht failed to build on their win in Liatroim last week with Saval securing an easy win at Dunavil on Thursday, 3-10 to 1-7.

Senior Football An Riocht v Liatroim 18/05/2008
In Liatroim on Friday evening An Riocht won their first game of the season. Liatroim began in great style with Liam Doyle pointing before any An Riocht player had touched the ball. Aidan Brown darted through for a second and when PP McCartan converted a free in the fifth minute it looked ominous for the visitors. Another free came back off an upright and was cleared by Aidan Flanagan under his posts and that interupted the Fontenoys rhythm.
An Riocht got a toe hole in proceedings with a Noel McArdle free and a point from Chris Killen from play but these scores were soon equalled by efforts from McCartan and Declan Burns at the other end. Liatroim failed to press on however and An Riocht got some momentum going with points from Paddy Cole and John Clarke. Then in the twentieth minute An Riocht grabbed the only goal of the game. Killen played a delightful through ball to Clarke who took in on the turn and smashed to the net from fourteen yards giving Brian Morgan no chance. A second McArdle free put three between the teams but again the game swung in favour of the home side as they pointed four successive scores to go back in front with a point from play from Dan Morgan and frees from McCartan (2) and Martin O’Connell. In added time John Clake pointed a free to square the match.
An Riocht dominated on the restart with James Colgan dominating centre field. Clarke placed Cole for the lead score and added a free after a foul on himself. A sweeping move involving Colgan, Clarke and substitute Kieran McVeigh ended with Aidan Cunningham extending the lead in the thirty eighth minute. Dan Morgan seized on a break ball to squeeze over a reply but two points from play from John Clarke put four between the teams. Liatroim were struggling to make any impact against a resolute An Riocht defence though McCartan (f) and Declan Burns narrowed the deficit to two points. Michael Rodgers made a great block on Brown and Aidan Flanagan a one handed catch over O’Connell as Liatroim threw everything at the visitors. In a break away attack Clarke took a long Cunningham pass to point but the insurance score would not come and after an exciting finale of toing and froing Clarke eventually put two scores between the teams with the last kick of the match. An Riocht B McVeigh; J McVeigh, A Flanagan, C Doyle; J Cunningham, L McVeigh, D O’Reilly; J Colgan, P Murney; P Cole 0-2, C Killen 0-1, A Cunningham 0-1; D White, J Clarke 1-7, N McArdle 0-2. Subs K McVeigh, M Rodgers.

Senior Football An Riocht v Clonduff 12/05/2008

At Dunavil on Thursday there was more disappointment for An Riocht as a fourth straight loss was suffered in a poor error riden game kept exciting only by the closeness of the scores. Clonduff led two nil early on before An Riocht found their range and scored four in a row but the visitors finished the half on a high with a Plunkett McConvile goal after John Fegans shot had been touched onto the bar. Half time An Riocht 0-5 Clonduff 1-5. The second half was end to end and the introduction of countyman John Clarke boosted the home side who cut a seven point deficit to the minimum but were unable to get on terms allowing a late John Fegan insurance point nudge Clonduff over the winning line. The An Riocht goal from Paddy Cole was well worked with attacking half backs carving open the Clonduff defence.

From an An Riocht perspective the absence of John Clarke was the difference between losing and winning. The team lacked presence without him and also the other big players who were there in the earlier part of the season. Too many players failed to take the ball at the first attempt, this led to scoring chances going abegging and to possession turn overs including that which led to Clonduffs goal. The intensity of the Mayobridge game was not matched and it reflected in a poor performance and a defeat. It took too long to realise the forwards were not up to winning ball and only when the ball was carried was the goal created. On the plus side James Colgan was good at centre field and Aidan Cunningham on the half forward line, Noel McArdle was impeccable from frees and it was good to see Joe McVeigh start his first game of the season. Defensively only two frees were scored against which is the lowest tally to date.

Scorers An Riocht N McArdle 0-5 (5f), P Cole 1-0, J Clarke 0-2 (1f), D O’Reilly 0-1, A Cunningham 0-1, D White 0-1, C Killen 0-1 (f). Clonduff P McConville 1-3 (1f), S Ward 0-2, F McConville 0-2, J Fegan 0-2 (1f), G McDonald 0-2, S O’ Hagan 0-1, C O’ Hagan 0-1.

 

 

Senior Football Loughinisland v An Riocht 06/05/2008
An Riocht lost again but this was another decent performance, Loughinisland goaled in added time to nick the result, 1-11 to 0-11. The home side led seven points to five at the break and there was never more than a kick of the ball between the teams. An Riocht looked to have done enough to come away with something but were denied at the finish. Team B McVeigh; M Trainor, A Flanagan, P Sherry; D O’Reilly, L McVeigh, L Fitzpatrick; J Colgan, P Murney; P Cole 0-4, A Cunningham, P Cunningham; N McArdle 0-2, J Clarke 0-4, L Harper. Sub C Killen 0-1, D White

Senior Football Kilcoo v An Riocht 28/04/2008

A nightmarish start to the season for the An Riocht senior footballers at Kilcoo, losing by a huge 3-18 to 0-3. In a performance bereft of urgency or pattern An Riocht were second best in most positions - Deaglan O’Reilly, Pearse Cunningham and John Clarke honourable exceptions while Brendan McVeigh was left exposed and helpless for the goals. Kilcoo had the wind in the first half and led 2-7 to nil at the break. Anthony Devlin, given too much freedom, played as an extra man around centre field and orchestrated much of what was good about Kilcoo as they ran through the An Riocht defence with ease and could have scored more than the two goals they did.

That’s not to say An Riocht did not have their chances, sixteen wides to Kilcoos five and the woodwork struck twice would suggest otherwise. But all over the field An Riocht were reactive rather than proactive, and slow to react at that, illustrated best by the failure to capitalize on either ‘woodwork’ incident. Any hope that the second half would bring better fare was swiftly subdued as Kilcoo actually scored more after the break. Pearse Cunningham did have one effort cleared off the line and John Clarke pointed three times but long before the finish An Riocht were waiting for the final whistle.

Senior Football An Riocht v Mayobridge 28/04/2008

The Senior footballers lost again on Sunday but this time out they performed in a manner more befitting league champions. Every ball was contested and no quarter was given or asked. We still struggled at midfield and need more scorers from play but it was a huge improvement and one that needs to be continued in Loughinisland on Friday.

An Riocht got off to a great start when John Clarke crashed a shot off the bar and Noel McArdle following in rounded the keeper and goaled. John and Noel Sexton then traded points before in the twentieth minute the visitors leveled with a Benny Coulter goal. A good move up the left wing ended with a floated cross which Coulter punched goal wards. Brendan McVeigh dived full length to tip Coulters effort away but the clearance was not completed and Coulter gathered the ball to fire to the net over the prostrate keeper. The Bridge went on to shoot four points in a row through the impressive Michael Walsh (3) and Miceal Lively but An Riocht rallied towards the half’s end with Noel McArdle, Paul Murney and John Clarke on target to leave the minimum in it at the break.

Chris Killen equalized on the restart and they were level three times in the second half. Michael Walsh (f) and Aidan Cuningham with a huge effort which curled inside the near post, then Noel Sexton and John Clarke after a brilliant Aidan Cunningham steal and cross field pass swapped points to make it 1-8 apiece. Two further Michael Walsh frees and Noel Sexton from play opened a telling gap and though John Clarke pulled one back time ran out on the home side.

Once again Deaglan O’Reilly kept the opposition danger man relatively quiet and the defence as a unit performed admirably though half Mayobridges points came from frees. Paul Murney was probably the more prominent of the four midfielders while up front Aidan Cunningham, Chris Killen and John Clarke contributed most.

Senior Football Warrenpoint v An Riocht 13/04/2008
The Seniors were far from convincing in recording a 1-11 to 0-13 minimum win at Moygannon. A Paddy Cole penalty goal helped An Riocht to a narrow interval lead and though the home team put it up to them on the restart, substitute Pearse Cunningham turned the game back in An Riochts favour in the final quarter. Team and scorers: B McVeigh; C Doyle, Jim Clarke, P Small; D O’Reilly, L McVeigh 0-1, L Fitzpatrick; P Murney, A Flanagan 0-1; P Cole 1-1, K McVeigh, M Trainor 0-1; A Cunningham, John Clarke 0-5, L Harper. Subs P Cunningham 0-1, N McArdle 0-1, M Rodgers, G Cunningham, D Sherry, S Clarke.

Senior Football Glasdrumman v An Riocht 13/04/2008
It was another below par performance on Friday evening in Glasdrumman ending with another fortunate enough victory. Trailing 0-5 to 1-4 at the break a Paddy Cole goal on the restart injected some much needed impetus into the An Riocht display and they went on to record a 1-12 to 1-10 success. Team and scorers: G Finnegan; C Doyle, A Flanagan 0-2, P Sherry; D O’Reilly, L McVeigh 0-1, L Fitzpatrick; K Colgan, P Murney; P Cole 1-2, A Cunningham 0-1, D White; N McArdle 0-3, P Cunningham 0-1, L Harper. Subs M Trainor, D Sherry, M Rodgers, Jim Clarke, D Sherry 0-1.

Senior Football Challenge An Riocht v Bryansford 30/03/2008
Bryansford won 2-12 to 0-12. An Riocht were utterly dominant for twenty minutes and led 0-8 to 0-2 and were unlucky not to goal from a Paddy Cole effort which came back off a post. Chris Killen 0-2 and Paddy Cole 0-5 were tormentors in chief though the visitors did force two good saves from Gavin Finnegan. However An Riochts scoreless final ten minutes to the first half allowed Ford to narrow the gap with four unanswered points. Half-time score An Riocht 0-8 Longstone 0-6. The scoring touch deserted An Riocht on the restart with a series of narrow wides while Kalum King and Adrian Carvill got on top at midfield for Bryansford and their first goal in the thirty eighth minute came off a rampaging King run. Five minutes later Luke Howard was upended in the square and Shane King expertly dispatched the penalty. An Riocht were limited to four Killen frees in the second half as they lost all shape with both sides emptying their benches. Thanks to referee Denis Cotter who stayed on after the PRFL to take charge of this game. Team: G Finnegan; C Doyle, J Clarke, P Sherry; D O’Reilly, L McVeigh, L Fitzpatrick; P Murney, A Flanagan; A Cunningham, C Killen, M Trainor; P Cole, P Cunningham, G Cunningham.

Senior Football 24/03/2008
An Riocht 2-8 Dromintee 1-10
The Seniors pulled off something of an unexpected win over visiting Armagh side Dromintee at Dunavil on Saturday though poor tackling presented the visitors with too many scorable frees.
Paddy Cole almost got in for an opening goal when sent through by Deaglan O’Reilly before Dromintee started the scoring with the first of seven converted first half frees.
Pearse Cunningham forced a good save from the keeper at the expense of a point to equalize and Jim Clarke advanced from defence to shoot us ahead.
Thereafter it was all Dromintee and backed by a stiffening breeze they brought their tally to nine points while An Riocht had a solitary Chris Killen free in response.
Dromintee missed a goal chance on the restart but once An Riocht settled they more than matched their opponents. Pointed frees from Killen and Cole were added to by a spectacular effort from Pearse Cunningham from top of the left.
A Dromintee free put two scores between them again. Paul Sherry from distance narrowed it to a goal and in the fiftieth minute Pearse flicked home a Paul Murney cross to tie the match.
Dromintee replied almost immediately with a goal of their own and An Riocht had seven minutes to claw their way back into the match. This they did.
Brian Sloan almost goaled when reacting to a Fergal Doyle effort which came back off the bar before in the next attack finishing a Killen pass to the net. Killen converted a free to give An Riocht the lead while in the closing moments Dromintee were narrowly off target from a like effort.
Team: G Finnegan; Jim Clarke, F Doyle, P Sherry; D O’Reilly, L McVeigh, J McVeigh; P Murney, K Colgan; P Cole, K McVeigh, C Killen; M Trainor, P Cunnigham, L Harper. Subs D Sherry, B Sloan, C McVeigh.

* The Senior footballers entertained Ballymacnab on Sunday. Starting just seven of the team which played the league final, An Riocht look to have strength in depth. However stiffer opposition than the Armagh Intermediate champions await.
An Riocht got off to a great start when Chris Killen played a one two with Kieran McVeigh and goaled. He added a point and Paddy Cole another before the visitors opened their account from a free. An Riocht responded with further points from Liam Harper, Killen and McVeigh before a misplaced pass in defence allowed the Round Towers in for a goal and they added a point as the deficit was cut to three. Cole laboured a fisted response and Killen converted a free before Cole finished the half with a spectacular effort to leave An Riocht 1-8 to 1-2 ahead at the break.
Six successive scores by An Riocht on the restart ended the game as a contest. Killen (free), Cole (3) including a fifty, and midfielders Kevin Colgan and Joe McVeigh with points apiece the marksmen.
Ballymacnab rallied and shot four points but Colgan (2), Aidan Flanagan and Darren White rounded off a convincing home victory.
Team G Finnegan; C Doyle, A Flanagan, P Sherry; D O’Reilly, L McVeigh, L Fitzpatrick; J McVeigh, K Colgan; P Cole, K McVeigh, C Killen; D Sherry, Jim Clarke, L Harper. Subs D White, G Cunningham, B Sloan, F Doyle, E Quinn.

* The Senior footballers played Newry Shamrocks 9th March 2008
at Dunavil on Saturday running out winners 3-7 to 0-6. Both teams were under strength. We got off to the best possible start with a first minute goal from Kieran McVeigh after strong play by John Clarke. Liam Fitzpatrick hit the post with an effort before pointing in our next attack and John Clarke lofted over from way out on the left. Shamrocks converted a free but after twenty minutes we led 1-3 to 0-1 and proceeded to bang in two further goals before the break. John Clarke and Kieran McVeigh combined to put Paddy Cole through and he bravely finished to the net before colliding with the advancing keeper. Paddy pointed in the next attack and then got on the end of a long ball to round the exposed keeper and net.
Shamrocks had a good start to the second half pulling back three points before at the other end Chris Killen benefited from a great Paul Murney catch to point. Paddy Cole’s exquisite pass freed Liam Harper but the keeper proved equal to his shot. Frees followed from Killen, Cole and McVeigh as we stretched to 3-7 to 0-6. Gary Cunningham came close to a fourth goal with a punched effort just before the finish.
Starting team B McVeigh; Jim Clarke A Flanagan M Trainor; J Mc Veigh L McVeigh D O’Reilly; P Murney L Fitzpatrick; P Cunningham K McVeigh C Killen; P Cole John Clarke L Harper.
Finishing team G Finnegan; S McArdle A Flanagan M Rodgers; G Cunningham J McVEigh C Doyle; P Murney L Fitzpatrick; P Cole K McVeigh D Sherry; E Quinn B Sloan D White.

* Senior footballers had their first outing on Sunday 4th March 2008
A 1-13 to 1-9 loss in Inniskeen County Monaghan. Team M Harper; M Trainor, D O’Reilly, M Rodgers; J McVeigh, L McVeigh, L Fitzpatrick; P Murney, K Colgan; J Cunningham (0-4), K McVeigh (0-3), P Sherry (1-1); L Harper, B Sloan, P Cole. Subs C Doyle, D White, C McVeigh, E Quinn. Nine of the team which started the league final victory in October were missing as well as several others who had been expected to make a bid for inclusion this season. The seniors are looking a game on Saturday coming, 8th March. There are two games v Ballymacnab on Sunday 16th March at Dunavil.

* An Riochts success in bringing the SFL Title to Mourne for the first time and community work were recognized at a function in the club on Wednesday by NMDC. 24th February 2008

* Congratulations to Paddy Cole on his nomination for the Powerade All Stars team. 24th February 2008

* An Riochts success in bringing the SFL Title to Mourne for the first time ever was recognized at a function in the Arts Centre on Tuesday past at the NMDC Sports Awards. Representatives of the team and management accompanied the Club chairman to accept the award. 16/02/2008

An Riocht senior footballers and management visited the local primary schools last week displaying the Division One and Club of the Year cups. The club also handed out details of underage football practices which are U8 on Mondays 7.30pm; U10 on Mondays 8.15pm; U12 on Thursdays 7pm; U14 Thursdays 8pm; U16 on Wednesdays 7pm; & U18 on Sundays 11am and Thursdays 9pm.
Practice begins the week beginning Monday 18th February.
Thanks to the schools for their co-operation.

Seniors visit Grange PS

Seniors visit Grange PS

Seniors visit St Colmans PS, Kilkeel

* 14/01/2008 The senior footballers have released details of their preparations for the defence of the Division One league title. Runs to Cloc Mor on Sundays, circuits on Wednesdays and in the town on Fridays.