Having reached the penultimate hurdle the previous year, only to lose out to Kilmessan after a replay, Killyon might have been expected to make a serious assault on the Senior Hurling Championship in 2003. But, unfortunately for Sean Ryan's side it didn't work out that way and the loss of their opening two matches in Group B to the 2002 runners-up Dunboyne and then Longwood left them playing a game of catch-up that ultimately proved beyond them. They eventually bowed out of the race for the coveted Jubilee Cup when they lost to Navan O'Mahonys by 1-10 to 2-12 in their last group match at Boardsmill in late July. O'Mahonys were already safely through to the semi-finals, but a victory for Killyon would have forced a three-way play-off with Dunboyne and Longwood to decide who would fill the second qualifying position. Long-serving secretary Noel Leacy described the team's elimination as "disappointing", but pointed to the fact that they were without five of their most influential players for the meeting with O'Mahonys, which certainly didn't help their cause in any way. Indeed, Killyon had a lot of players missing from the word go in the championship and it was always going to represent a major test of their resources if they were to reached the knock-out stages again. They opened their campaign in late May with a match against Dunboyne at Trim and, after going under by 1-13 to 4-7, it was of little consolation to Killyon that they had given the previous year's beaten finalists a firm test. It looked good for Killyon for much of the game and they led by 0-9 to 1-4 at the interval, before a goal from Brendan Pollock 30 seconds into the second-half and points by Mark Gannon and Calvin Ryan left them seven points clear and seemingly in a position to go on and win the match. However, they proceeded to go all of 20 minutes without registering a further score and fell away. When all was said and done, the concession of four goals was too big a burden to handle. When this reversal was followed by a seven-point second round defeat at Kildalkey against Longwood (1-8 to 3-9), Killyon were under severe pressure in their bid to qualify for the last four, but they responded very positively to the challenge when bouncing back with a clear-cut 4-9 to 1-8 victory over Dunderry at Kilmessan. It represented a much-improved performance as three goals in a blistering five-minute spell midway through the second-half from Ryan, Gannon and Jimmy Mitchell did the trick. The improvement continued with another four-goal performance in the fourth round against Kildalkey at Longwood. Kildalkey led by 1-6 to 1-2 at half-time, but goals in the second period from Gannon, Leighton Massey and Paul Feeney gave Killyon control of the match and revived their hopes of making it to the semi-finals. The crunch match followed against O'Mahonys and it was the Navan side who maintained their unbeaten run in the competition and Killyon who were eliminated as they were left to rue 13 wides which did so much damage to their prospects. In the end, O'Mahonys had five points to spare on a 2-12 to 1-10 score line and the loss left Killyon in fourth position in the group after two victories and three defeats. "I remember we had to play against O'Mahonys without five of our top players," recalled Noel Leacy. "Ambrose Connolly, Mark Gannon, Shane Mitchell, Darren Ryan and Cormac Feeney were all missing and that's simply far too many. We needed to win that game to force a play-off with Dunboyne and Longwood, but the loss of those players was a very big blow to us." Leacy, a Leixlip native who was introduced as a substitute in the final when Killyon won their first Senior Championship title in all of 60 years back in 1979, laments the fact that the club had to do without the services of so many players for much of the campaign. "We had a lot of players missing," he added. "They went off to the United States and Australia, which meant we were regularly without three or four players who we certainly could have done with. The reality is that in a rural club like Killyon, you simply can't afford to be without anyone. "We don't have the stuff to replace the kind of players we were missing. Too many of them are just too young for the demands of senior hurling and don't have the necessary experience. "There are very few houses being built. Planning permission is a problem. If you were fortunate enough to get even one player out of every 200 houses, like in Navan and Trim, it would be great, but that's not the way it is. Indeed, people are moving out. That's just the reality of the situation." However, Leacy, who is of the opinion that the overall standard of hurling in the Royal County is "not what it used to be," insists that it's "not all doom and gloom" as far as Killyon are concerned. "Next year, if we have all our players available to us, who knows what might happen," he added. The Killyon second string fulfilled all their fixtures in the Junior Hurling Championship without making any sort of serious impression, but the under-14s offered hope for the future when they reached the county 'A' final where they were beaten by Trim by six points. Kiltale went through the group stages of this competition unbeaten, including a comfortable 10-point victory over Killyon, but that result was reversed at the semi-final stage when Killyon created a shock by coming out on top. The Killyon team and substitutes that went under to Trim in the Under 14 final were - Denise Fitzsimons; Martin Keegan, Ray Massey, Darren Conlon; Patrick Massey, Andrew Feeney, Johnny Fitzsimons; David Raleigh, Derek Doran; Brendan Quinn, David Kennedy, Keith Keogan; Tommy Raleigh, Gerard Hannon, Tommy Quinn. Subs - Johnny Smith, Colm Greene, Francis Doran, Dean Ward, Ciaran Massey, Sean Kelly. Killyon, bidding for their first title in the premier grade in seven years, made it all the way to the 2003 Senior Camogie Championship final, but found a highly talented Kilmessan side too hot to handle in a very entertaining encounter at Dunsany. Coached by JJ Carney, Killyon turned in some fine performances on the way to the decider, but Kilmessan deservedly came out on top, clinching their third successive senior crown with eight points to spare on a 3-7 to 1-5 score line. However, it was only in the closing five minutes of the contest that the reigning champions really took a firm grip on proceedings as Ann Marie Dennehy made a telling contribution. Stephanie Heavey, who was bidding to claim her eighth senior championship medal, having won the first as a teenager back in 1989, was highly impressive for Killyon and scored the best point of the match in the 14th minute when she fired over a long-range effort. That gave Killyon a two-point advantage, as Christine Raleigh had opened the scoring with a well-taken point a minute earlier. Killyon deserved their lead as they were defending very well and goalkeeper Laura Carney produced a couple of fine saves to prevent Kilmessan opening their account. However, Killyon managed only one further score before half-time, a 29th minute point from play by Michelle Connolly, as slow-starting Kilmessan gradually found their form and retired with a 2-3 to 0-3 interval advantage. The half-time team talk obviously proved worthwhile for Killyon and they resumed very smartly. They also looked sharper in attack after the introduction of Fionnuala Clarke, who had achieved success at intermediate level in Monaghan. Christine Raleigh fired over a point from play four minutes into the second-half and when Clarke found the Kilmessan net soon after, following a great sideline cut from Sharon Raleigh, Killyon had reduced the deficit to just two points at 1-4 to 2-3. However, that was about as good as it got for Killyon in the second-half and they managed only one further point as Kilmessan took command in the closing stages in the hot conditions to claim their third successive title at this level. One of the substitutes introduced by Killyon was Denise Fitzsimons who was only 12 years of age and is one of the club's main hopes for the future. Losing a final is always disappointing, but the club is working hard at under-age level and fielded teams in the under-12 and 14 competitions in 2003 which is a very encouraging sign for the future. The Killyon team and substitutes in the senior final were - Laura Carney; Sylvia Rattigan, Mary Burke, Yvonne Holzner; Margaret Burke, Caitriona Cunningham, Jackie Maher; Katie Connolly, Sharon Raleigh; Marcella McKeon, Stephanie Heavey (0-1), Carol Massey; Christine Raleigh (0-3), Josephine Raleigh, Michelle Connolly (0-1). Subs used - Fionnuala Clarke (1-0) for Holzner, Tara Massey for Michelle Connolly, Denise Fitzsimons for Margaret Burke. Other substitutes - Samantha McMahon, Sandra Massey, Aoife Maguire, Adelle Curran, Geraldine Losty, Siobhan McNevin, Fiona Coughlin, Jennifer Corrigan, Amanda Massey. Tweet

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