Sympathy

On behalf of everyone at the club I would like to offer our deepest condolences to club President Canon Gerry Ferguson, his family, relatives and close friends on the passing of his brother Raphael Ferguson. May his gentle soul rest in peace.

Platinum Tanks Reserve Football League Div 2

Our reserve players kick-started their Platinum Tanks reserve football league last Saturday 8^th March when they travelled to Smithboro to take on Eire Og. The game was played in chilly and windy conditions and underfoot conditions were heavy which made the challenge all the more difficult but as the cliché goes “it was the same for both sides”.  Eire Og played with the aid of the slight wind blowing down the field during the first moiety and took control of the proceedings when they raised three green flags during a four minute blitzkrieg which ultimately eased them to an impressive 17 point winning margin as we suffered a heavy defeat on a score-line Eire Og 5-14 Rockorry 1-9. On reflection, this was our first competitive outing for many of the players in the campaign and while they showed admirable character and spirit there were times we showed a lack of match sharpness, particularly during the early stages, and were left exposed in too many areas of the pitch. There was no doubting the effort from the players and they kept plugging away and deserve credit for their labours and in fairness we did create chances but unlike the Eire Og side we were unable to convert them onto the scoreboard and this is something that will definitely need to improve on for future outings which incidentally will be a home encounter against Corduff on Sunday 16^th March at 2.30pm.

Monaghan Electrical Intermediate League

The senior team will commence their Intermediate football league campaign with an away game against Cremartin on Sunday 23^rd March and throw-in time is 4.00pm.

Registration Night

Our juvenile registration night was held last Thursday 6^th March in St. Mary’s Hall and on the night a lot of parents attended and handed back the signed declaration forms and the juvenile membership forms. If, however, you were not able to attend can you please familiarise yourself with our Code of Best Practice and when you have read and fully understood this document please sign the declaration form and return it along with the juvenile membership form accompanied with the €5 fee per child to our youth officer Pascal Smith.

Juvenile Sub-Committee

A juvenile meeting involving existing coaches, mentors, parents and club officials took place last Monday night in the clubrooms and it was great to see a large turnout of people on a cold and evening. Our youth officer Pascal Smith highlighted the importance of a number of items that included the club’s Code of Best Practice, Coaching Qualifications, Coaching Courses / Workshops, First Aid, School Liaison Officer, Fund Raising & Coaching Templates. Our childrens officer Colm McCormick emphasised the importance of Child Protection and making sure all everyone associated with juvenile teams were properly Garda Vetted and finally Brian Carroll talked about the promotion of our  ASAP Policy and urged all officials, coaches and mentors to set a good example. Mentors were appointed for the various underage teams and it was made quite clear that we still need more people to help out including a number of ladies to help look after the girl players. He appealed to parents and any other interested bodies to volunteer their services and help out with our juvenile teams. He remarked if people could spare one hour a week on a Saturday morning or one evening per week to help the various coaches this would be a big help and it would be very much appreciated by the club. If you feel you could dedicate some time to help out then please do not hesitate to get in touch. Even if it’s only an hour a week it’s all we need, all those hours add up!  Following a very informative meeting that was chaired by Pascal Smyth, we are delighted to welcome on board Tracey Rooney who was appointed the new juvenile secretary and John Elliott was elected treasurer and all people present were deemed elected onto the  juvenile committee. Our juvenile section is one of the most important sections of the club and it is vital that as officials, coaches, mentors and parents that we continue to develop proper structures and coaching strategies. Spending time and getting the underage structures and strategies right is critical to the success of our club. The underage coaching structures, welfare policies and the development of our young players, future stars, is very important and therefore I wish all our coaches, mentors, officials and the sub-committee the very best for the 2014 season.

Under 12 Spring League

The under 12 team will commence their season this Saturday 15^th March when they travel to play Killeevan in the Spring League (Zone G) which is sponsored by Gerry’s Prepared Veg, Ballybay. The game has a throw-in time of 12 noon.

Under 14 Fixtures

The under 14 footballers will kick-start their league campaign on Saturday 22^nd March with a home game against St. Tiarnach Sarsfields and the game has a throw-in time of 12 noon.

Under 16 Fixtures

The under 16 league starts on Thursday 10^th April and our first outing is against Scotstown at Pairc Mhuire at 6.30pm.

Coaching Courses / Workshops

A coaching workshop targeted at under 10 / 12 coaches will take place tonight, Thursday 13^th March, at Sean McDermott’s, Threemilehouse between 7-9pm. Topics covered will include long term player pathway (focus on ages 9-12), games & tactical development, warm-up activities and finally technical skill development. Monaghan Coaching & Games are currently working on finding a date to run an under 14 Coaches Workshop which will be scheduled in the near future, so keep an eye out for this. In addition, during the month of June (exam period) they hope to run a number of workshops which will target under 16 coaches. Details of this will follow.

Cadbury’s Under 21 Ulster Championship

Good luck to the Monaghan under 21 team who play Down in the Cadbury’s Ulster Championship on Wednesday 19^th March at Inniskeen. The game has a throw-in time of 8pm and I would like to wish our representatives Mark McGuirk, Fergal McGeough & Lorcan Smyth all the best in their endeavours to nailing down a place on the panel.

Parish Concert

The Parish Variety Concert will take place this Sunday 16^th March in St. Mary’s Hall. The Parish is blessed  with some outstanding talent ranging from individual solo singers, ballad groups, dancers, musicians, actors, comedians and so on and they have all come together to put on an amazing fun show packed full of entertainment.  Tickets are currently on sale costing a reasonable €10 for adults and the Parish would deeply appreciate your support of this event.   

CPR Training – Save a Life.

Rockcorry Community CPR is a new group within the parish set up with the aim of training members of our locality the lifesaving skill of C.P.R. Lives are saved everyday through initiatives like these and it’s wonderful to see a group of people showing an interest and raising an awareness of this life saving skill. Being able to recognize an emergency and being able to apply the lifesaving skill can save a life. If any individual is interested in learning this skill or if any individual that would like to do a refreshers course then they would be delighted to hear from you. Please contact any of the following members for further information: Sharon Fox 086-6022919, Linda Moore 086-8252344 or Myrtle Kennedy 086-3234500. In addition, they are currently running an Easter fund-raiser and quiz sheets are circulating now or can be purchased in Coyle’s Service Station

Top 4 Lotto Results

The numbers drawn on Monday 10^th March were 2, 7, 13 and 22. There was no jackpot winner of €7,200.00. The following won €15 each :- Tom Fox, Rockcorry, Niamh & Ellie Fitzpatrick, Rockcorry, Seamus McGuirk, Swans Cross, Ellie Mae Fitzpatrick, Rockcorry, George Mills, Rockcorry, Christina O’Brien, Rockcorry, Michael Carroll, Rockcorry. Next week the jackpot will be an amazing €7,300.00 and the draw will take place in Aghabog GAA Complex. Thank you for supporting our Top 4 Lotto draw.

Annual Top 4 Lotto Ticket

Don’t forget, you can support the club’s Top 4 lotto by entering for 12 months, 6 month or a 3 month period. To play simply select your four numbers between 1 and 28 complete the form and you need never miss a draw again! Tickets cost €90 for the 12 month option. Your continued support is always much appreciated and we wish you good luck in future draws.

Happy St. Patrick’s Day

It’s our National holiday this Monday so on behalf of the club I would like to convey our best wishes to all our club members, supporters and friends around the world. We hope you all have a very enjoyable St. Patrick’s Day and remember stay safe, never drink and drive.

News

If anyone would like to have some news, events or anything at all included in the club notes or advertised on our website then just get in touch on 086-1041165 or email pro.rockcorry.monaghan@gaa.ie