Their bid to retain the SFC in 2006 was derailed when Mattock Rangers surprisingly fell to St Josephs at the quarter-final stage in late July. Fancied by many observers to win the Joe Ward Cup for a third time in five years, Collon never quite got going in the '06 knockout as the exertions of a glorious 2005 season seemed to catch up with them. Mattock Rangers' exit from the competition was arguably the greatest shock of the 2006 Louth SFC. The Collon men were ruled out of the equation when they lost to surprise packets St Josephs by 0-12 to 0-11 in a very close quarter-final clash at Castlebellingham on Sunday July 30. Having breezed through the group stage, the defending champions were red-hot favourites to advance but it was the Darver/Dromiskin men who took the decision at The Grove in mid-summer and subsequently went on to succeed Mattock as county champions. From the outset, Mattock were fancied to go close to retaining the Joe Ward Cup in 2006. The kingpins of 2002 and 2005 went into the senior knockout as second favourites (behind Newtown Blues) and most so-called experts fancied the Red & Blacks to qualify for the Last Four at the very least. But the Joes - showing no regard for reputation - had other ideas and their wins over the champions of the last six years would be the real story of the '06 Louth SFC. All the previews said Mattock (even though they were without attacking ace Mark Brennan) would defeat St Josephs with something to spare; all the previews were wrong. Ultimately, it was an injury-time free kick from stalwart full forward Ollie McDonnell that sent the Collon boys packing. Christy Grimes had a late opportunity to salvage a draw for the stunned holders but when the county man's difficult kick drifted across goal and narrowly wide, with it went Rangers' championship hopes for another year. As Mattock know better than most, on such fine margins are championships won and lost. Joes showed no sign during the group stages that they were capable of taking Mattock's scalp and they rightfully went into the match as outsiders. Mattock led for most of the game but were unable to shake off their dogged opponents… In truth, Paddy Clarke's team still looked fatigued from their exertions in 2005 - when three major trophies were culled during the course of the most successful year in Mattock's history. Their county players in particular had been on the go non-stop for 18 months, while a lot was being asked of the younger lads breaking into the team. However, young lads like Ryan Lenaghan, Keith Brennan and Robbie Brennan acquitted themselves well and can establish themselves as top club footballers in the near future. The Joes harried Mattock throughout and never allowed them to settle into their usual rhythm. The defending champions were without Louth centre forward Mark Brennan and Richard Sherlock - and those two would undoubtedly have made a huge difference on the day. Mattock fell behind inside 45 seconds of the quarter-final but Christy Grimes had them level by the third minute. Niall Callan found the equaliser after the Joes again went in front and the favourites led by double scores thanks to points from David Reid and Adrian Reid. As Mattock got on top, they had points from Adrian Reid and Robbie Brennan to lead by 0-6 to 0-3 and Grimes registered their final score of the first half. A 0-7 to 0-5 interval cushion was slender, though, and the holders had no idea at this stage how much they would rue the Ivor Sherlock effort that came back off a post. On the other hand, they would have trailed at the break but for an excellent Vincent Galvin save from Brendan O'Donoghue. Quickfire points from Grimes and David Reid doubled Mattock's advantage immediately upon the resumption and it looked at this stage as if there could only be one winner. Surely the Group D winners would now go on to maintain their 100% record with a convincing victory over the unimpressive Group B runners-up? To the contrary, Joes quickly levelled matters with four points on the trop between the 34th and 41st minutes. Grimes and O'Donoghue exchanged points and it was 0-10 apiece with ten minutes to go. Adrian Reid put Mattock back ahead in the 55th minute but that was to be his side's last score of the 2006 Louth SFC. Crucially, the Joes got the last two points of a hard-fought match to progress to their first semi-final in nine years. Mattock had struggled in the early stages of the competition and their first two Group D victories over Kilkerley Emmets (1-10 to 1-6) and St Brides (1-5 to 0-5) were hardly inspiring, but the team was greatly depleted for those assignments and hopes were high that they would hit form when it counted. A Round Three demolition of Glyde Rangers (4-9 to 1-5) suggested that the Rangers were back. With Paddy Clarke restored at the helm, it was all about to fall into place. That's how the script read anyway but, unfortunately, we never quite saw the side that won all in front of it twelve months earlier. However, after a quiet year by their own high standards and bearing in mind their outstanding league form towards the end of '06, Mattock Rangers are still more than capable of roaring back with a vengeance in 2007. The Mattock Rangers side on 2006 SFC quarter-final duty against their would-be successors as county champions: Vincent Galvin; Ernie Roche, David Brennan, Sean Gilsenan; Thomas Murphy, Daire Englishby, Ivor Sherlock; Christy Grimes, Daniel Bannon; Adrian Reid, Niall Callan, Robbie Brennan; Alan Finnegan, David Reid, Shane Grimes. Subs: Keith Brennan, Ryan Lenaghan, Darren Brennan Title slips away When the men from Collon reflect on the year past they'll look on it as one where another Joe Ward success slipped from their grasp. By Gerry Kelly. Having emerged undefeated from their senior championship group they faced an unfancied St. Josephs in the quarterfinals. Fielding without one of the most talented players in the county, Mark Brennan, who was out of the country at the time, Paddy Clarke's charges were still hot favourites to make the last four. However, the Joes turned in a rousing performance to cause the shock of the season dumping the defending champions by a point at the end of a pulsating encounter. If there was any consolation in defeat for Mattock it was that their conquerors went on to knock out the Newtown Blues in the semi-final and get the better of St. Patrick's in the final itself to be crowned champions. A serious championship defence appeared remote as the club appeared to be in disarray early on following Paddy Clarke's eleventh hour decision not to continue on as coach of the senior side. Meath man Martin Barry was hurriedly engaged as trainer, however, with commitments already lined up elsewhere he was unable to give Mattock undivided attention and quit the Louth outfit after a very brief time at the helm. With the club in crisis Clarke agreed to return and reassume control, however, there wasn't to be a fairytale ending this time round. In the league Mattock finished third in Division 1A, narrowly missing out on a Cardinal O'Donnell Cup final berth. This season a little bit of history was made at senior level when a fifth Brennan brother took to the field along with his other four siblings. Keith joined Mark, David, Robert and Darren to complete the Brennan clan's contingent wearing the red and black shirt on a memorable day for a family synonymous with football in the smallest village in the county. Also on the football front the Junior 4A side are still in with a shout for league honours. Under the watchful eye of Gerard Corrigan, son of the legendary Peter, a panel combining experience with youth has ensured the race for the title goes right down to the wire. Corrigan has been able to call upon seasoned campaigners Garren Duff, Derek Hickey and the daddy of them all, the vastly experienced former senior net minder Michael "Cub" Englishby. In addition to tremendous achievements on the football front in recent years with the club landing two senior titles and acquitting themselves admirably in the Leinster club championship, hurling in Collon has also made terrific strides forward. Although still a fledgling entity Mattock Rangers hurlers have been crowned Louth Junior champions for a second successive year. What's more they accounted for the county's premier club, Knockbridge, on both occasions. There's one man more than anyone else responsible for the development and success of the clash of the ash and that's Tony Corcoran. He's ably assisted by wife Audrey nee Birch, daughter of club Honorary President, Frank, a Kilkenny native and former Ballyhale Shamrocks star. Besides the hurlers making their mark at club level a number of players have gone on to represent Louth. Declan Madden took his place on the senior county panel and Darren Reid has been recognised at under twenty-one level. There's a crop of talented young players emerging from Corcoran's academy including the likes of Gary Rellis and Jason Condon who are destined for greatness in the future. The Community Centre on the clubs grounds has served to further integrate Rangers into the fabric of daily life in the village. The centre is a constant hive of activity throughout the year catering for all manner of individuals, groups and organisations. Indoor sports are flourishing and especially in demand when the clocks go back for winter time. This winter the club ran a most successful indoor football tournament donating all proceeds to the Gary Kelly Centre in nearby Drogheda. Today no club can operate successfully without fundraising and sponsorship and on both fronts Mattock are certainly to the forefront in the county. The weekly lotto is consistently well supported and provides regular income fifty-two weeks of the year. In a special drive for funds club volunteers from near and far flogged tickets for a major draw offering fantastic prizes in the four corners of the globe. Yet another successful drive for funds was accomplished allowing Rangers maintain club activities at the customary high level and service the debt incurred in developing their state of the art facilities. Benefactors are also so important and in John McCabe, whose generosity has been simply outstanding and club sponsor Seamus Maguire, Mattock enjoy superb financial backing. Chairman, Peter Murphy's serving his seventh term in the hot seat and has presided over an era of unprecedented success both on and off the field. He reflects with pride on what's been achieved but makes it clear that he'd like to carry on because there's still some unfinished business on his watch. Murphy made it clear that: "There are loans to be cleared incurred during my time at the helm and I'm not a man who wants to pass the buck onto someone else. "When our finances are in order and we've completed some other key projects I'll be happy to hand on the baton to someone else". They're hopeful out Collon way that Paddy Clarke will stay with them for next season because there's a real belief that another senior county title is there for the taking. But there's also a feeling that this must happen sooner rather than later as a number of key players are pushing on age wise. In a small parish with a limited pool of players a championship winning combination only comes along once in a generation. Who knows but perhaps 2007 will see Joe Ward make a third appearance this decade in Paddy Watters on a Monday in September. HURLING AND CAMOGIE Gormanston College Indoor Hurling The year started early in January with around eighty players taking part every Sunday, for six weeks, in the annual North Dublin Indoor Hurling League being held in Gormanston College. We had eight teams entered, six hurling and two camogie, and most teams came home with a set of medals. Louth Indoor Hurling Finals The Junior boys team reached the Group Finals by beating St. Paul's, Mell and Termonfeckin. In the Group Finals, the Junior team won two games and faced Bay Estate in the Final, which they won 4 - 2. Scorers: Jason Monaghan, Aaron O'Brien, Adam Thomson and Ciaran Conway - 1 goal each. DJ Carey School of Hurling Ciaran Maguire, Edward Condon, Brian Corcoran, Karl Martin, James Carpenter, Ross Kearns had the honour of being picked to spend a week in Kilkenny in July at the DJ Carey School of Hurling. This was a week packed with training, matches, entertainment and meeting plenty of All-Ireland hurling stars, not just from Kilkenny, but from Offaly, Wexford and Waterford. The players were supplied with O'Neills kit bags, rain-coats, polo-shirts and a DJ Carey jersey. The players also took part in a Leinster U14 Hurling Blitz held in Croke Park in June. U14 Championship To reach our second U14 Final in a row, we had to beat Louth Village and Naomh Moninne. Again, we faced Knockbridge in the Final and after being beaten by Knockbridge earlier in the year in the Feile Final, we were very much the underdogs going into this Final. Playing with the wind, we took the lead from the start and never relinquished it. With superb play all over the field, from backs and forwards alike, we held out for a 3-4 to 1-5 win. Scorers for Collon were : Brian Corcoran - 2-04, Ross Kearns - 1-0. This was our second U14 Championship title win in a row. U16 Championship We reached the U16 Final by defeating Termonfeckin, Louth Village and Naomh Moninne. We faced Knockbridge in the Final, who had beaten us in the earlier rounds. The Final was a very close affair, with superb hurling from both sides throughout. Captain and Man of the Match, Pauric Bannon, finally settled the result with a superb score, minutes from the end, for Collon to record their first ever U16 Championship title on a scoreline of 2-04 to 0-9. Scorers for Collon were : Pauric Bannon ~ 1-03 and Brian Corcoran ~ 1-01. Captain, Pauric Bannon, was also presented with a Hurley and Sliothar when he was selected as "Man of the Match" by Coiste Iomana officers. This was a great achievement as it was the first time that Mattock Rangers had appeared in an U16 Final. Well done to all players on the team. Junior Championship For the second year in a row, we reached the Junior Championship Final against Knockbridge and succeeded in winning the two in a row. To reach the Final, we played a quarter-final against Naomh Moninne, winning on a scoreline of 2-13 to 2-5. Scorers : Tony Corcoran 1-7, Keith Condon 1-0, Jason Condon 0-3, Gary Rellis, Allan O'Brien and Joe Martin 0-1 each. In the Semi-Final, we were up against Pearse Og and won on a scoreline of 6-05 to 3-07. Scorers : Tony Corcoran 2-4, Joe Martin 2-1, Allan O'Brien and Pauric Bannon 1-0 each. The Final was a much closer contest which ended in a scoreline of Mattock Rangers 4-06 and Knockbridge 2-10, Scorers: Joe Martin 2-0, Jason Condon 1-1, Tony Corcoran 0-3, Keith Condon 1-0, Pauric Bannon and Ken Tobin 0-1 each. Camogie The Louth Minor Camogie Final was recently played in Stabannon. The Final was between Collon and St. Anne's. Final score was : Collon ~ 3-0 and St. Annes ~ 0-6. Scorers for Collon were : Niamh Reid 2-0 and Emma Rafferty 1-0. This year, for the first time, we entered a Senior team into the Camogie League and Championship. The girls competed very well in both Competitions and narrowly missed out on reaching the final stages of the Championship. JJB Indoor Blitz To finish off the playing year, at the moment our U8s, 10s and 12s are taking part in an indoor hurling blitz held over four weeks, every Saturday, in the JJB Complex, with teams from Louth, Dublin and Monaghan, which everyone is enjoying immensely. Thanks to all the players for their great loyalty and support throughout the year and to the parents who helped out in transporting players to matches and supporting us in all games. The Club is looking forward to the continued support of everyone involved, for the coming year, in an effort to build on the great success of 2006. Tweet

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