Connolly’s Cup 2009
The 2009 Connolly’s Cup turned out to be a massive success all around and we would like to thank everyone for showing up and competing on the hottest day of the year: a mere 96 degrees, 100% humidity. Teams participating this year included Charlotte James Connolly’s (3), Atlanta (3), DC (2), and NY – St. Barnabus (1). The round robin tournament featured 3 different cups:
1. Men’s Division 1 – A Team
2. Men’s Division 2 – B Team
3. Ladies Division
Charlotte’s A squad took on NY- St. Barnabus to kick off the first match of the day. Despite the temperature in the early morning, Charlotte went on to win the match by a result of 4-7 to 0-3. Determined to bounce back, NY – St. Barnabus rebounded against DC in a back & forth match. Ultimately, NY – St. Barnabus held on to defeat DC by a result of 3-11 to 0-14 with some early second half goals being the difference. The final match of the division paired Charlotte v. DC. Charlotte took control from the first ball and never looked back handing DC another loss and thus retaining the Connolly’s Cup for another season.
In the second division, Atlanta manhandled Charlotte in Game 1 by a result of 4-8 to 1-3. Frustrated by the lack of ball movement in Game 1, Charlotte bounced back only to come up short in the second game by a result of 2-6 to 2-9. While the result was not what Team B had hoped for, a lot of their young players got their first real match experience that will hopefully prepare them for the matches ahead leading up to Boston. Atlanta was able to lock down the first ever B division and is already looking forward to defending the cup in 2010.
In the ladies matches, Charlotte won their first match against Atlanta Clan Na Gael by a result of 5-8 to 1-4, while DC bested Atlanta Na Fianna 5-12 to 3-2. The final match came down to Charlotte V. DC in what seemed to be like a runaway for Charlotte. However, some late second half goals by DC pulled the match within 3 points, yet the ladies of Charlotte were determined to hang on sliding by DC by a final of 4-6 to 3-6. This was a big win for the ladies of Charlotte bringing home their first ever Connolly’s Cup to the Queen City.