ACFL Div 1
Athlone 2-15 Garrycastle 0-13

Athlone continued their bright start to the 2014 ACFL with a hard fought, but thoroughly deserved, victory over near neighbours Garrycastle on Easter Sunday last in Pairc Chiarain on a final score line of 2-15 to 0-13. While a league game in April is no great indicator of what is to come in the Championship, it was nonetheless very encouraging for supporters in the blue half of Athlone to see the team go toe to toe with a very experienced Garrycastle side and come out the other side.

Playing with the aid of a decent breeze in the first half the Athlone lads seemd to settle quicker and found scores easier to come by. At the break, Athlone led 1-08 to 0-07 with the goal coming from the evergreen Mickey Greene mid way through the half. Athlone continued their impressive form into the second half and a fantastic goal from the tireless John Stapleton saw the game swing irretrievably the way of the Athlone team. Trailing by 2-15 to 0-09 with five minutes to go the Garrycastle lads showed their battling qualities to tack on four unanswered points to leave the score line of 2-15 to 0-13 at the final whistle. Three wins on the bounce should create some momentum but the lads will know that the Championship is a different animal entirely. Well done to the lads and keep up the good work.

Team: Jason Merrigan, Eoin Maher, Conal Sheeran, Fergal Murray, Damo Kelly, Stephen Ward, Noel Mulligan, John Stapleton, Paul Bannon, Ray Connellan, Jordan Marshment, John Egan, Seamus Byrne, Aidan St. John, Mickey Greene.
Subs: Brian Fogarty, Brendan Bannon, Charlie McMickan, Andrew Lynam, Joe Fallon.

Scorers: Mickey Greene (1-4), John Stapleton (1-1), John Egan (0-4), Seamus Byrne (0-2), Paul Bannon (0-1), Ray Connellan (0-1), Jordan Marshment (0-1), Charlie McMickan (0-1)

U10 Boys Blitz
Cusack Park, Mullingar
Last Wednesday marked the first match of the year for our U10 team and what a start it was. Headquarters in Cusack Park, Mullingar was the venue of the now annual blitz organised by Westmeath coaching. Two 11 a side matches against Shandonagh were followed by two more 11 a side matches against The Downs on an unseasonably warm sunny evening. The occasion certainly brought out the best in the 22 young up and coming Athlone stars as the lads surprised even their mentors with their fantastic display of everything that is good in GAA. High fielding, great passing and some excellent scoring were the order of the day and to see the lads tackling back when not in possession and working hard for their team was a delight to behold. Well done to the boys who did themselves and their club proud.

For the record, the Athlone squad was: Conor Devins, Rian Dully, Ryan Fallon, Luke Farrell, Cian Geary, Cillian Geary, Cathal Hardiman, Eoin Hardiman, Clinton Imade, Dano McMonagle, Eoin McNamara, Kian Mitchell, Luke O'Connell, Daniel Omukoro, Mark Rockett, Alan Sweeney, Adam Temple, Matthieu Tiercelin, Jason Ukatu, Luke Whelan & Brandon White.

U14 Girls League:
Athlone U14 Girls travelled to Loughnavalley on Tuesday last to play the first round of the league and won on a scoreline of 6-9 to 3-6.

Girls Feile:
Athlone GAA will host the South Westmeath Feile on April 26th.Come out and support the Athlone girls on the day.

Underage Training - Sunday 27th April
Underage training continues for all Under 6 to Under 12 boys and girls on Sunday 27th April at 11.30am in Pairc Chiarain. New players, all abilities and all ages welcome. Come along on Sunday morning at 11.30 or contact 087 6799472.

Club Gear
Order forms and price lists for Athlone GAA Club Gear are available on www.athlone.gaa.ie

Membership 2014
Life and Honorary Members can collect their membership cards in the Clubhouse or by contacting the Registrar at 087 6799472.

Athlone GAA Bingo
Bingo take place every Thursday at 8.30pm in the Clubhouse. Loads of cash prizes. Everyone Welcome.

Lotto Results:
There was no winner of this weeks €8,100 jackpot.
The numbers drawn were 1-22-23-25.
There was 2 match 3 winners.
Anne Hoey c/o T. Small
B. Feeney c/o A. O'Sullivan
This weeks jackpot will be €8,250.

Commiserations to Athlone player Jay Boland who was defeated in the semi final of The Voice of Ireland.

Vote of Sympathy:
The Doolan Family, Golden Island
The Devaney Family, Retreat Avenue.
Ar dheis Dé go raibh a n-anam.

Don't forget to Follow us on Facebook at Athlone GAA Official or Tweet us at @AthloneGAA Tweet

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