There were definite signs during the 2006 Junior Football Championship campaign that Kilbride might be getting nearer to a stage where they will make a serious challenge for honours in the grade as they won five of their seven group matches to qualify for a preliminary quarter-final where they bowed out of the title race against Drumbaragh. The Kilbride club possesses a rich history and enjoyed a glorious run in the 1960s and early '70s when they emerged to become a truly powerful force in Meath football. The first signs of what was to come arrived in 1960 when they won the Junior Championship and just two years later they took the big step up to senior football by claiming the intermediate title. But few could have predicted at that stage the fantastic impression Kilbride were to make in the top grade as a team powered by the Quinn brothers made the big breakthrough in 1964 by winning the club's first Senior Championship title. Skryne and Colmcille Gaels got their hands on the Keegan Cup in '65 and '66, but Kilbride bounced back to regain the most coveted piece of silverware in '67. However, their greatest run of success was yet to come and after Colmcille Gaels again claimed the senior title in '68, Kilbride commenced a spell of dominance by winning three titles in succession between '69 and '71. What glorious memories those wonderful years bring back for those who can remember the great players and the great games that marked the finest era in Kilbride's history. These days, Kilbride play their football in the junior ranks and 35 years after the last of their five Senior Championship triumphs they enjoyed a very decent run in the Junior Championship, despite making a less than encouraging start to the divisional campaign. Eamonn Clarke, a former player with Parnells in Dublin who also lined out with Kilbride for a spell, managed the team and the selectors were Patsy Farrell and Jason Sheehy. Kilbride were drawn in Group C, a section that also included Meath Hill, Ballinabrackey, Moylagh, Drumree, Bective and the second string sides from Simonstown Gaels and Skryne and, on close inspection, it had the appearances of a division from which they had the ability to emerge for the knockout stages. But when Kilbride lost their first two matches their chances of achieving the first ambition of reaching the business end of the title race didn't look at all good. Moylagh, who were to enjoy a very productive group campaign, were first up at Martry and it was all to play for at the interval when the side from the north-west of the county led by 0-6 to 0-5. However, Kilbride added only two points to their tally in the second period and were adrift by 0-7 to 0-13 at the end. Seneschalstown was the venue for a second round assignment against Meath Hill, a side that ended up topping the section at the end of the marathon group process, and the result was a narrow defeat for Kilbride on a 1-6 to 0-10 score line. That wasn't the start to the competition Kilbride had hoped for and already they were involved in a struggle to negotiate the divisional stages. But it got a great deal better after those two losses and the first win came against Ballinabrackey when they scored by 0-12 to 1-6 to get their campaign back on the rails. Skryne provided the fourth round opposition at Ratoath and Kilbride made it back to back victories with a 1-12 to 1-6 success. Finbarr Clarke's early goal set the right tone and they went on to lead by 1-5 to 0-5 at half-time. With John Smith, David Barron, Cormac Holland, Dermot White and John Bruton impressing they pushed further ahead in the second period to be six points clear at the final whistle. Drumree, who were demoted from the intermediate ranks the previous autumn when they lost the relegation play-off to Slane, were next up at Skryne and Kilbride appeared to be well on their way to a very comfortable win when ahead by 0-8 to 0-1 at the break. However, chances were wasted in the second period when they managed to add only two points to their tally and they were four to the good at the end (0-10 to 0-6). Kilbride certainly brought their scoring boots to Dunshaughlin for a sixth round meeting with Simonstown Gaels which they won by 4-11 to 2-8 to significantly enhance their prospects of emerging from the group. However, the Navan side were well in contention at the interval when they trailed by only two points (2-4 to 2-6), but despite having Craig Sheridan sent off 10 minutes from the end, Kilbride were nine to the good at the finish. That was a particularly rewarding occasion for Brian White who finished with a very impressive personal tally of 2-6. Another very comfortable victory followed in the seventh and final round of group games when Kilbride beat Bective by 1-15 to 0-2 at Dunshaughlin to secure the last qualification berth. They led by 0-6 to 0-2 at the interval and pulled away completely subsequently, with Brian White's goal putting the icing on the cake. John Bruton controlled the key midfield area for Kilbride and Andy Rennicks, Dermot and Brian White were others to impress out the field as goalkeeper Emmet Farrell also played a very big role in the important success. When Bective started to fall behind they decided to go for goals, but they found the outstanding Farrell in unbeatable form. When the mathematical calculations were carried out, Kilbride were still in the running. With Ballinabrackey failing to beat Moylagh (a match that finished level), Kilbride's five victories had secured a place in the preliminary quarter-final. Meath Hill topped the section on 12 points, from Moylagh on 11 and Kilbride on 10. Unfortunate 'Brackey just missed out on nine and finished fourth. After a very poor start to the championship with those losses to Moylagh and Meath Hill, Kilbride had recovered very well. Their reward was a meeting with Drumbaragh for the right to play St. Ultan's in the quarter-final proper, but that's where the dream of glory ended as the Kells parish team won by 1-11 to 1-4 at Kilmessan on a day when Kilbride were considerably under-strength. It was a comprehensive win for Drumbaragh, but it might have been even more clearcut as they tallied a massive 19 wides. However, Kilbride were still very must in the hunt at half-time when they trailed by the minimum (1-2 to 1-3) after their hopes had been boosted significantly by a goal from Andy Rennicks. But the second half proved to be a big disappointment as they managed to add only two points to their tally and with wasteful Drumbaragh still managing to do much better with eight they enjoyed a comfortable passage through to the last eight where champions to be St. Ultan's beat them with considerable ease (2-19 to 2-6). It was a disappointing end to the Junior Championship for Kilbride, yet the five victories on the bounce they achieved in the group stages suggested that they might not be that far off the pace. "We were a bit disappointed to lose to Drumbaragh," commented Kilbride selector Jason Sheehy as he reflected on the JFC campaign. "We were without John Bruton, John Smith and Paddy O'Neill for that game and when you are operating with a tight panel you just can't afford to be missing that many. "But Drumbaragh were the better team on the day and they deserved to win. But on another day it might have been different." Kilbride didn't exactly make a promising start to their group campaign, losing their first two matches, but they soon got into the winning habit. "We got off to a bad start in the group and lost our first game against Moylagh," he added. "We left the second round game against Meath Hill behind us, but we got on a bit of a run after that and won our other five group matches. We could have qualified for the quarter-finals proper, but Moylagh's draw with Ballinabrackey in the last round meant they finished second. "We went up from Div. 4 of the league last year when Rathkenny beat us by a point in the final. There is never more than a kick of the ball between ourselves and Rathkenny. They will be in Div. 2 of the league next year and are in the IFC final. "If we had everybody available to us we would be there or thereabouts. We are not that far off the mark. But with a small panel you need everybody and one or two additional players would give us a stronger base. But that doesn't always happen with small clubs." The Kilbride team that bowed out of the championship against Drumbaragh was - E. Farrell; R. McKiernan, C. Rennicks, J. Gallagher; F. Clarke, D. Barron, R. Bruton; O. Nolan, C. Holland; J. Barron, A. Rennicks (1-0), C. Sheridan; D. Harford, D. White, B. White (0-3). Subs - R. Rooney (0-1) for Harford, P. McDonagh for Sheridan. Tweet

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