Blackhall Gaels' premier adult football team has certainly had an up and down existence since the club was formed in 1995 and the happenings of last season added another exciting chapter to the short lifespan. After Batterstown and Kilcloon joined forces, the amalgamation took off well with a number of promising results at under age level before the 1998 IFC title was captured with a final victory over St Patrick's. In 1999 Blackhall Gaels gained outright honours in the MFC for the first time with up and coming players like John O'Brien, Andrew Dalton, John Callanan, George Beirne and Tadhg Brosnan among the stars of the success. All of those figured in the thrilling 2000 SFC relegation play-off clashes with Navan O'Mahonys, who survived after 150 minutes of frenzied autumn action at Dunsany. However, Blackhall were determined not to make their second stay in the intermediate ranks too long and they bounced back up to the senior grade with another IFC triumph, this time with a victory over Ballivor in the Mattie McDonnell Cup decider of 2000. They hardly envisaged such an incident packed return to the top ranks and the fact that they managed to hold their own with the best club football teams in the county should give them a lot of encouragement for the future. For their third SFC campaign, Leo Turley's charges were drawn in a group with Ballinlough, Dunderry and Simonstown Gaels. They were boosted by the recruitment of county midfielder Anthony Moyles and his brother Barry, both of whom joined from St Paul's. A championship preview in one of the local papers suggested that the promoted side "have a better looking side than most of the SFC contenders." Meanwhile club chairman Michael Lillis suggested: "Blackhall Gaels have a more mature bunch of players than when in senior ranks previously and also have some very talented players on the way up. Getting to the knock out stages is well within our capabilities. The main aim is to assert ourselves in the senior grade." Blackhall get off the Mark' was the headline over the report of the opening game against Ballinlough at Simonstown which just went the way of the Gaels on a 0-11 to 1-7 scoreline. Two points from the experienced Mark Crampton at the start of the last quarter proved crucial for the promoted side. Centre forward Crampton finished up as the tie's top scorer with four points while Tadhg Brosnan sent over three and Anthony Moyles made his presence felt with one in each half. All of the three players mentioned in the above paragraph got on target in the opening quarter at the end of which the board read 0-3 to 0-1 and it was 0-6 to 0-2 at the break after Paul Nestor struck a spectacular point from the right wing. As a five points advantage was reduced to the smallest possible margin, 'keeper John O'Brien made three crucial saves in the second half and late points from Brosnan and Martin Whelan also helped Blackhall to have their noses in front at the winning post. Although not over impressive, the side returning to senior ranks was delighted to have two points on the Group A table and they headed the division after a 0-11 to 1-8 draw with Dunderry at Dunsany in an encounter which provided quite entertaining fare and some well taken scores despite the unpleasant conditions. As in the opening round, Blackhall Gaels made a bright start and led by 0-4 to 0-1, Mark Crampton, Tadhg Brosnan (two) and Barry McKeon getting the early score for the side in blue and yellow. After Anthony Moyles increased the lead, it was 0-5 to 0-3 at the break. Blackhall conceded the lead in the second half (0-5 to 1-6) before points from Nigel Nestor, Moyles, Stephen Nally and Crampton brought the sides lead. Then they edged back in front with scores from Brosnan and George Beirne before county hurler Kevin Dowd grabbed a share of the spoils for Dunderry with a late leveller. Although Blackhall lost their last group game to Simonstown on a 0-7 to 1-9 scoreline at Dunshaughlin, they finished up as joint second in the section, with Ballinlough. The losers were guilty of eight wides in the second half and Mark Crampton fired a shot against the bar at the end of the third quarter. Meanwhile Ballinlough scored a surprise victory over Dunderry to earn another tilt with Blackhall and spectators leaving the Simonstown venue on the night of Tuesday, August 28th after seeing the south county side defeat their rivals in red by 1-10 to 0-6 could hardly have envisaged how an occurrence at the end of the play-off tie would lead to one of the most controversial sagas in the long history of the championship. It was not a very eventful contest for most of the way with Tadhg Brosnan sending over seven points and Paul Nestor netting a penalty to give his side a 1-3 to 0-2 lead at the end of a low scoring first period. Blackhall increased the advantage but then had Anthony Moyles sent off with a straight red card near the end. There was talk of the county player being harshly treated but it became a major topic of debate when the midfielder lined out in the following Sunday's quarter-final against Dunshaughlin at Dunboyne. He played despite being given a directive that he was ineligible to line out despite referee Dudley Farrell admitting that he sent the player off in the wrong. Blackhall Gaels won by 2-10 to 2-8 with Moyles a major contributor to the surprise success. They trailed by 0-1 to 2-3 after 20 minutes but got well into the game with a goal from Martin Whelan leaving only a kick of the ball between the sides at the break when the holders led by 2-4 to 1-4. However, with Mark Crampton shooting the second goal, Blackhall took control and led by 2-9 to 2-4 with around 10 minutes to go. They showed great fine mettle in hitting back after being so much in arrears and then holding out. Tony Regan was solid at full back and John O'Brien made a defiant save just before the final whistle. However, it was obvious that the final whistle had not been blown on Dunshaughlin's title hopes. There were twists and turns in the saga to follow. After Dunshaughlin lodged a successful objection to gain the decision from the controversial tie, an objection to Leinster Council by Blackhall was lost although the 24 weeks suspension, which was slapped on Anthony Moyles, was lifted. There were suggestions that the two decisions made by the provincial body did not tally and with the Blackhall Gaels club threatening to take their case to a higher court, the Meath County Board did a u-turn by putting a proposal to the two sides that the game be 'replayed.' All concerned deserve to be applauded for coming to the sensible decision of allowing a second clash to take place and what a cracker it turned out to be. While losing by just a lash of the leather, Blackhall Gaels bowed out with brave and highly skilful display and came tantalisingly close to earning another day out at the expense of their neighbours. Without the services of county player Nigel Nestor, Blackhall again made a strong comeback in the Pairc Tailteann refixture, this time facing arrears of nine points (0-3 to 2-6) early in the second half. But then Blackhall sent over six points in a row to get right back into contention. Mark Crampton and Tadhg Brosnan were most prominent in the revival with the former kicking two points from play and the latter converting three frees. Midfielder Mark Ferris also made his mark by raising two white flags. Although conceding a third David Crimmins goal, the Gaels refused to throw in the towel and Anthony Moyles hit the net with five minutes to go. That left just a kick of the ball in it and Crampton came tantalisingly close to grabbing a dramatic levelling score when his fisted effort was taken off the line following a delivery from Paul Nestor. That near miss brought the curtain down on Blackhall Gaels' third SFC bid. In 2002 they showed that they have the ability to compete with the best of sides in the county. Back in 1995 when this ambitious club was in its infancy, they captured their first championship title, the Under 14 FC with a 0-11 to 0-5 final victory over Simonstown Gaels. That evening George Beirne, John Callanan and Tadhg Brosnan, who shot six points, were the main contributors to the momentous success. In the last seven years those boys have grown into men and Blackhall Gaels have also grown in stature with under 16, minor, junior B and intermediate (two) titles being annexed. With older players like Nigel and Paul Nestor, Anthony Moyles and Mark Crampton, who have worn the county colours, on board, the Blackhall ship could well pick up more steam over the coming campaigns and sail to a first ever SFC title. Breakthrough for Blackhall Meath club Blackhall Gaels recorded a major breakthrough recently when they claimed their first adult hurling title. Team manager Val Ledwith was understandably delighted with the success. History was made at Pairc Tailteann, Navan on November 3 last when Blackhall Gaels defeated Dunboyne in the Meath junior hurling championship final to capture their first ever adult title. The victory represented a major breakthrough for one of Meath's youngest clubs which was formed less than a decade ago following the amalgamation of the old Batterstown and Kilcloon clubs. Forty-four years had elapsed since Batterstown brought the last junior hurling title to the area. "This was a very important win for us," notes Blackhall Gaels manager Val Ledwith. "When Batterstown and Kilcloon decided to join forces in the 1990s, it was essentially for football purposes. But Batterstown has always been considered a hurling village and we want to keep it that way. Even though we're quite close to Dublin, we have a small pick and we appreciate whatever bit of success comes our way," he adds. Beaten narrowly by Killyon in last year's final, Blackhall Gaels' success was claimed on the back of eight straight wins in the championship. In qualifying for the final, they accounted for Kilmessan, Dunboyne, Kildalkey, Athboy, Ratoath, Navan O'Mahony's and Rathmolyon. Despite having overcome Dunboyne in the group stages, the blue and golds entered the decider as underdogs. Dunboyne succeeded in coaxing former Meath football star Enda McManus out of retirement for the game but, from an early stage, it became apparent that Blackhall were the better team. Shane O'Loughlin fired the Gaels in front within 10 seconds of the start and two points from inter-county referee Fergus Smith and another from David O'Loughlin quickly followed as the Gaels set out to go one better than last year. Dunboyne, who were managed by former Meath stalwart Johnny Gorry, replied with points from Stephen Moran (two) and Damien Sweeney before Blackhall hit a purple patch in the closing 10 minutes of the half which yielded an unanswered 2-3. After David Ledwith's initial shot had been parried by Dunboyne goalkeeper Niall Hackett, David O'Loughlin was on hand to crash home the opening goal. From the puck-out, Paul Nestor added a point and top scorer Smith converted a brace of frees shortly after, the first of which was a mammoth effort from 80 metres. The Batterstown-Kilcloon outfit were further boosted when Emmet Dalton flicked a sideline ball from Smith to net to give his side a commanding 2-7 to 0-3 lead at the break. Dunboyne were favoured by a stiff breeze in the second half but never looked like making up the deficit. Blackhall only managed three further points courtesy of frees from Smith but they still emerged as 2-10 to 0-9 winners. Afterwards, Blackhall captain Aidan Heavin received the Tommy Kane Cup from Meath hurling board chairman Kevin Mullin. While Smith's scoring contribution was a vital factor in Blackhall's success, they had several other heroes, including wing backs Nigel O'Hora and Kevin Maye and goalscorers Dalton and O'Loughlin. It was also a day to remember for the Ledwith family with Val's two sons, Ciaran and David, forming a formidable partnership at midfield. "We set ourselves up nicely in the first half," recalls Val, whose backroom team comprised Brian Heavin, Tom O'Loughlin and Sonny Carr. "That was when the hard work was done and we left ourselves in a very strong position at half-time. I thought the hallmarks of our win was the determination and belief we showed. The loss to Killyon in last year's final was a huge motivating factor." This was Ledwith's second year at the helm and he is now hopeful that Blackhall can make their presence felt in the intermediate grade next season. "I'll like to think that we can continue to improve next year and give the intermediate championship a good go. We have only three dual players - Paul Nestor, Kevin Maye and Ciaran (son) - and that is something which should definitely stand to us," he explains. Ledwith is a highly-respected figure in Meath hurling circles and is probably best known for his role as trainer of the county senior team during John Davis' reign as manager. A native of Kildalkey, with whom he garnered junior and intermediate championship medals in 1969 and '71, he has been living in Batterstown for the past 30 years. Incidentally, his father Joe also won two junior championship medals in the 1933 and '36, meaning that three generations of the Ledwith family are now holders of the same medal. Val also had a spell as manager of Kildalkey and guided them to senior championship semi-final appearances in 1998 and '99. After a back injury put paid to his playing career, he took up athletics and won National titles in the 1,500 and 5,000 metres events. He also won numerous other honours in middle-distance running. Ledwith is well qualified to give his views on Meath hurling and feels that there is great potential in the county. However, he believes that a major shake-up is required before the Royals can be considered serious challengers for a Leinster title. "There's no doubt that there are some very promising hurlers in Meath at the moment but they need to add stamina and endurance to the natural ability which they have. "Also, I feel that there would need to be a total change of attitude at county board level for Meath hurling to improve. The hurlers have to be made feel as important as the footballers. I think you'd find that Meath wouldn't too far off a Leinster title if the right structures and facilities were put in place," he opines. When he's not giving his time to hurling, Val is managing director of JV Ledwith Ltd. Based in Batterstown, JV Ledwith is a general contracting firm which specialises mainly in the construction and restoration of schools, churches etc. The company employs 35 and recently carried out restoration work on Trim Castle and also completed work on the impressive new GAA clubhouse in Kilcock, Co. Kildare. The Blackhall Gaels team which captured the Meath junior hurling championship was: J Meyler; V Dowley, C Burke, D McGowan; N O'Hora, A Heavin, K Maye; D Ledwith, C Ledwith; E Dalton (1-0), P Nestor (0-1), F Smith (0-7); D O'Loughlin (1-1), S O'Loughlin (0-1), M Lynam. Subs used: A Doyle and T Coyle. Ladies Football - Junior Football League - Winners - Division 3 In addition to reaching the final of the Ladies Intermediate Football Championship in 2002 the ladies of Blackhall Gaels won Division 3 of the League defeating Moynalty with a final score of 4-9 to 3-0 in Simonstown on Sunday the 20th of October. With a spirited team performance Blackhall led 3-5 to 1-0 at the interval and went on to win the title and gain promotion. Great commitment from all the players along with mentors Joe Breen and John Maye crowned yet another remarkable year for the ladies of Blackhall Gaels. Blackhall Scores: Frances Nolan 2-3, Catriona Tobin 1-1, Emma Fahy 1-0, Jane Burke 0-3, Yvonne Burke 0-2. Blackhall Gaels Camogie Division Earlier this year Blackhall Gaels saw the arrival of the new camogie section of the club. Christy Mangan, who is Camogie Chairman, with the assistance of a newly formed committee and many helpers have made great strides in their first year, the results of which are already clearly visible. In their first year the club succeeded in winning the Meath Junior Camogie Championship defeating Kilmessan with a final score of 2-1 to 0-4 at Dunsany on Saturday the 21st of September. Mentors with the victorious team were Christy Mangan, Breda Fahy and Josephine Ennis. Blackhall Gaels also fielded teams during the year in Under 14 and Under 16 competitions. Tweet

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