Gaelic Football Tournament in Marbella March 2010
I have been meaning to add this to the site ofr ages now. A great write up about the days events by Dermot Corrigan in Seville.
Better late than never I guess!
Marbella GAA tournament report – Dermot Corrigan of Eire Og Seville
Gaelic Football is a form of football played mainly in Ireland where, although a strictly amateur pursuit, it is the most popular sport in terms of both playing numbers and attendance levels.
Played correctly, it is a fast, hard game requiring a combination of skills incorporating kicking, catching, running, tackling and hand-passing. Teams of 11 or 15 players attack H-shaped goal posts, with one point awarded for kicking or punching the ball between the posts and over the crossbar and a goal worth three points awarded for getting the ball under the bar and into the net.
Last Saturday saw local team Marbella Costa Gaels hosting the second round of the 2010 Iberian Gaelic Football Championships.
An exciting day’s action featured 14 games played in the picture-postcard setting of Ojen village, culminating in Sant Vincent Valencia securing the men’s title and Madrid Harps emerging victorious in the ladies’ final.
Six teams took part in the men’s competition, including Barcelona Gaels, Naomh Fermin Pamplona and – making their first ever championship appearance – Eire Og Seville. The action began with a plucky Pamplona team featuring a majority of Spanish players edging a tight encounter with Marbella 0-5 to 0-4, before Valencia outclassed an under-strength Seville team by 4-4 to 0-2. Barcelona then beat Pamplona by 0-6 to 1-0, before Seville showed more of their mettle in a tight game against Madrid that finished 1-5 apiece.
Barcelona secured their place in the semi-finals by ending Marbella’s interest in a close fought encounter which finished 1-10 to 3-0 to the Catalans. Valencia then turned on the style to beat Madrid 3-8 to 1-3, a result which nevertheless allowed the Madrilenos to progress to the semis on points difference.
Meanwhile in the ladies, three very evenly-matched teams were battling it out to reach the final. After Barcelona had beaten Madrid by 2-5 to 2-3, Valencia edged out Barcelona by 0-1 to 0-5 and finally Madrid dispatched Valencia by 3-8 to 3-3. After some deliberation the superior points difference of Madrid and Valencia saw them advance. The ladies final featured some excellent scores from both teams, before a late goal saw Madrid take the title on a scoreline of 1-10 to 3-3.
The first men’s semi-final saw a fired up Madrid team overcome a shellshocked Barcelona by 2-10 to 0-2. In the other semi Valencia withheld a spirited Pamplona effort to win by a single point, 0-7 to 0-6. Madrid continued their strong momentum by taking an early lead in the final, before Valencia powered into the game with two goals before half time. The second half saw the Valencianos make their superior teamwork and fitness pay in a comprehensive 5-6 to 0-5 victory.
At the awards ceremony later that evening in the Claddagh Irish Bar in Marbella, referee Tony Bass awarded the Most Valuable Players awards to the richly deserving Adam Whyte of Valencia and outstanding Y of Madrid. A strong feature of the tournament was the excellent contribution from players of all nationalities, with the Spanish contingent playing key roles in both winning teams.
Any Costa del Sol based players (male or female, Irish, Spanish or any other nationality) interested in getting involved are welcome to email info@costagaels.com or contact Gordon on 664 246 054. The Costa Gaels have weekly training sessions with all newcomers welcome. For anyone based in Seville, Eire Og Seville are always looking to recruit new players and can be contacted by emailing secretary.seville.europe@gaa.ie
Photo’s by Owen Farrell – www.doubleexposurephotography.ie