On September 24th, 2022, the Cologne Celtics GAA Club held the 2022 edition of the Chris Hennessy and Sebastian Rießbeck Cups in the Bezirkssportanlage in Chorweiler. We were ready to defend our trophies after winning the 2021 editions in March 2022.
After a quiet summer, we started to ramp up training sessions and planning from mid-August onwards. As hosts, we were able to call on more players than we usually would, and we aimed to make this tournament the most significant event we had ever held. Due to an influx of new and enthusiastic members in the weeks leading up to the tournament, we were confident we could win it.
However, preparations were not only for the on-the-pitch action. We had a television crew from Ireland film a part of a documentary about Gaelic sports in Europe there. We also had the Irish Embassy’s head of the Irish Abroad Unit as our guest of honour. Cian & Jack Desmond and David McDonnell helped add to the party atmosphere, as did the many supporters who came out to watch us play.
The German Cup competition in Chorweiler was the perfect opportunity to showcase our club and sports to an audience. Although (spoiler) we didn’t win the trophies this time, it was an excellent opportunity to bring people together and celebrate what we have achieved up to now.
This report will outline how the day went. Our head coach: Cathal Kerins, and our chairperson Oisín O’Mahony have contributed to this piece documenting the day.
The Planning
- Oisín O’Mahony
Our plan to host the German Cup goes back to much earlier in 2022, maybe even as far back as 2021. Since 2019, our club has been developing at an impressive rate, and we wanted to confirm that rise by hosting the tournament. We had a trial run at our Cologne Tournament 2021, which was a big success and from that experience, we knew we could host a bigger tournament.
Although we had the date for a long time, planning couldn’t really start until we had confirmed the pitch. Our ladies officer, Lea, worked hard in the background throughout the year and eventually, we received the affirmative answer from the Bezirkssportanlage Chorweiler that we could host it there on the date we needed. Once this confirmation came, our Organisation sub-committee went into overdrive.
We organised guests such as our guest of honour, David McDonnell – head of the Irish Abroad Unit from the Irish Embassy, and it was also the perfect opportunity to introduce more people from the wider Cologne area to our wonderful sports and club. We hope that those in the audience may be interested in joining our club, either on the field as „full members“ or off the field as „social members“.
Unfortunately, our friends from the Cork-Köln Twinning Association had a prior engagement, as it would have been brilliant to meet up with them before our Cork Trip.
What really made the day was the interest of a TV crew from Ireland, the Desmond Brothers, who were over filming a documentary for the Irish-language TV station TG4. They filmed at our last training session before the tournament on Wednesday, chatted with Düsseldorf GFC on Thursday, interviewed Oisín and Laura on Friday and then spent the day filming the German Cup. Their presence, interviewing players, filming matches and so forth, gave the day a „feel-good“ vibe.
Of course, a huge amount of planning went into the day, and there were times when many of us wanted to throw our phones into the River Rhine as we tried to think of everything. There are areas we can improve on for the next time we host a big tournament, but overall the planning was worth it, as it was a successful day overall. The success would not have been possible without the hard work of our organising committee.
German Cup Day Arrives
- Cathal Kerins
Frank, Cathal, and Heiner presumed they were the first to arrive as they turned into the car park in Chorweiler’s Bezirkssportanlage at exactly 8h30 on that brisk September morning. However, Lucie took the honours of being first and stood waiting with the caretaker Oku.
Dave and Niall arrived shortly after, as did others. Oku welcomed us with a pot of hot coffee and a sugary, homemade, allegedly „vitamin-rich“ concoction that none of us ventured to try. Drinking our coffees, courtesy of Oku, he explained how he’d just worked a shift as a security guard on a Sion Kölsch Partyschiff until 6 that morning.
“Gibt immer Probleme beim Partyschiff”, the burly caretaker told us.
We hoped there’d be no “problems” during the tournament.
As it turned out, the morning set-up ran without a hitch. People arrived in dribs and drabs, giving a hand to carry things here and there. Even Frank’s (what felt like) 100kg box of bananas was hauled pitch-side.
Ger’s camper rolled up to the gate of the Astro and made use of the limited shelter the outhouse gave from the now lightly falling rain. A gazebo and benches were erected, and the stall was decked with many appetising contributions. Delectables included scones with Irish butter and jam, fairy cakes (just the way my granny used to make them), a sumptuous chocolate and red wine Baumkuchen, Anto’s explicitly non-vegan banana bread, and many other inviting offerings. At the counter is also where the much-whispered-about Pieman would be found. His wares included such fancy pies as Steak and Guinness, Steak and Kölsch (alaaf Junge!), venison and cranberry (oh I say!), simply apple, and many other varieties.
During the morning, the names of the teams had been pinned to their assigned dressing rooms: Cologne A/B, Hamburg A/B, Darmstadt, Ladies/Camógs; and, as the players arrived, the teams filed in, and the anticipation grew. Heiner, Cathal, and Frank put the men’s uprights upright. And Malte, Frank, Heiner, and Pa helped roll the ladies‘ goals out and fixed the uprights so that they were up right.
Cologne Red
- Cathal Kerins
In no time at all, it was 10h15. Fifteen minutes before the kick-off of the first match. Cologne Red was to play Hamburg B. We squeezed into our somewhat flattering scarlet and snow-coloured jerseys. As we jogged out in a sharp, cohesive line for the warm-up, the air of determination and focus in the squad was palpable. Frank corralled us, as is his nature, and the Galwegian réiteor peeped his whistle to jolt us to our positions. As we lined up against the Hamburgers, there was, by many, the sporting clasp of the hand “best of luck”, followed by the less sporting poke of the shoulder to let the opposition know they were up against it.
The sliotar was flung in, and away we went. Jack rose the ball in the ensuing pell-mell, and we gained possession. Cologne dominated possession from that moment and for the rest of the game. They were slow on the draw, and we blocked down many attempts at a puck or clearance. We fielded well and kept organised at the back. We snuffed them out at almost every opportunity and scored three goals in quick succession. In fact, they wouldn’t score a single point all game.
This was a testament to the organisation of the defence, especially sweeping and contesting action from Jan, Fred and Eoin. The keeper, a Limerick man by the name of Francis “Fritz” O’Connor, whose moustache has become somewhat iconic on the European Hurling scene, played clever and quick puck-outs that kept Cologne in possession and able to counter quickly after the ball went out of bounds. Jan has proven to be a powerful presence in the Cologne team, and his all-action style would be on-view throughout the day.
Jack and Finbar built on the powerful midfield combination that they have had since the Munich Tournament. Finbar caught every ball that came to him, and laying it off to Jack was one way to keep the scoreboard ticking over. Another way was to feed our ravenous forwards; Malte, Fabian, Pa, Ger, Tommy and Anto all contributed healthily to our score throughout the tournament.
Cologne had come out of the blocks like a bull, and Hamburg B was the china shop. And in no uncertain terms, Cologne Red put Hamburg B to the sword. The faint cheering of Hamburg’s supporters turned to unease as their team got drubbed. The match turned into a rout. Cologne’s superior stickwork and organised defence won out clearly. However, many long-range shooting efforts dropped short, and Cologne ratcheted up a lot of wides. . Communication from the midfield to the forwards was not optimum, and it was clear that things could be improved. But the goals were banged in, possession was maintained, and Hamburg B didn’t get a look-in.
Liam, the club legend and former trainer of the Cologne Celtics, togged out for the Hamburgers. His clever runs and ability to find space and make space for himself never left him, and he was a constant thorn in the side of Cologne and was responsible for counterattacks which had to be rebuffed by the Cologne defence. Many of our players, such as Arun, Heiner and Justus, would end up playing on different teams throughout the day, and it showed their willingness to hurl regardless of what came before them that they did it without complaint!
The Cologne Red team was in rampaging mode throughout the tournament and brushed aside all challengers to make it to the final.
Cologne Green
- Cathal Kerins
Cologne Green took to the field in the next game to represent the club. They gave the Hamburg team a run for its money. Big Dave in the midfield, Niall chinking in and around the half-forwards, and Colin stampeding through at times with his trademark strong running. Vangelis always stuck to his practised technique, which paid off as he stood up against the physicality of Hamburg’s top team. As they all did to a man.
The tempered aggression was clear from Cologne, and that Hispanic blood coursing through the veins of the young Uruguayan Santiago Modernell aroused a testy atmosphere on the pitch. There was no love lost that day between Cologne and Hamburg. Santiago was rewarded with his valiant efforts to channel his aggression and scored a goal, much to the dismay of the riled Hamburgundians.
Back by popular demand and aching to get the shoulder in, Boris complemented the fighting spirit with some fine challenges and made it very tough for his man. Florian, the Cologne Celtic’s very own man’s man, wore his heart on his sleeve and showed relentless pride. Arun clearly had the hand of an Indian tiger as every ball seemed to drop effortlessly into his paw. And Johannes found himself in some nice spaces, reacted well in defensive positions, and hindered his man at every opportunity. Jack even went in goals for the Cologne Greens and became a prominent voice of direction after Niall’s injury.
It ended in a win for the Hamburger As. But it was clear they were shook from the depth in the Cologne squads, which everyone can be proud of in the club.
The strength in depth of Cologne was evidenced by the fact that Cologne Green beat Darmstadt and Hamburg B to finish in the third position. Even with injuries and personnel changes throughout the day, our Greens played with pride and passion throughout to demonstrate that if you come to training and work hard, you will get plenty of matches with the Cologne Celtics. The experience that this „developing“ team collected will greatly benefit our club going forward, as next year, we will have even more tournaments and matches to think about.
*Special Note – OOM*
The leader of our Cologne Green team, Niall Kavanagh, was unfortunately brought down in the midst of battle. Throughout the day, Niall was an inspiration on- and off- the field for Cologne Green and scored one of the points of the tournament against Cologne Red. While battling for possession against our Red team, he came into an unfortunate collision with some of our other players and came out of it worse for wear. Thankfully, we had the Sanitätsdienst on hand, who responded quickly and organised an ambulance for our Niall.
Niall was taken to the hospital, where he remained for 48 hours. Thankfully, he has recovered from the incident and is back on his feet again. We want to pay special tribute to the Sanitätsdienst, the ambulance crew and everyone on the pitch who responded so calmly and professionally to look after our Niall.
The Final
- OOM
The final of the German Cup brought the two best teams from the tournament together. As was the case in the Darmstadt Tournament and the German Cup 2021, Hamburg was to face off against Cologne. As can be seen on the scoreboard below, Cologne Red and Hamburg A dominated the tournament and the final was set to be a classic.
It turned out to be the case, as both teams went at each other full-throttle. Points and goals rained down as although Hamburg were arguably the better team in the first half, Cologne went in with the lead after two goals towards half-time.
This was tough hurling with Jack in midfield scoring points from distance, Tommy and Anto causing damage in the full-forward line and our defence well-marshalled by Frank in goal. However, Hamburg A was a different challenge to the other teams in the tournament, and they were ready to battle.
Hamburg responded in the second half and took the game to us. They went hunting for goals, and they scored some. Cologne never let the heads drop and battled back.
At one stage, Cologne were up by one point, then pushed it out to a second point, and we thought we were on the way. Hamburg responded with a goal to knock the winds from our sails. They tagged on another couple of points and a goal to eventually win the match by two clear goals.
Although Hamburg were the slightly better team, the two-goal margin made the match look more comfortable for them than it really was.
| Teams | Goals | Points | Final Score |
| Cologne Red Hamburg B | 8 0 | 10 0 | 34 0 |
| Cologne Green Hamburg A | 0 2 | 6 10 | 6 16 |
| Darmstadt Cologne Red | 0 5 | 5 11 | 5 26 |
| Cologne Green Hamburg B | 3 0 | 5 4 | 14 4 |
| Hamburg A Darmstadt | 6 0 | 7 1 | 25 1 |
| Cologne Red Cologne Green | 2 0 | 8 1 | 14 1 |
| Hamburg B Darmstadt | 3 3 | 2 3 | 11 12 |
| Hamburg A Hamburg B | 5 1 | 9 3 | 24 6 |
| Cologne Green Darmstadt | 0 2 | 14 2 | 14 8 |
| Final: Cologne Red Hamburg A | 4 6 | 7 7 | 19 25 |
Camogie
- Cathal Kerins
Next, the Camógs were up. In total, they had three matches. Anna, Katharina, Kea, Laura, Lucie, Niamh, Sarah B., and Sarah P represented Cologne with pride.
As the Cologne Camógs lined out, one among their number had never even played in a camogie match before. But through the instruction of her teammates, she learned quick. It was a difficult first match. There was a large crowd in attendance for the first game, and the Hamburger fans made their presence felt. It seemed to lift their team, who took an early lead and managed to hold onto it for the rest of the match.
However, as the second and third matches were played, a team spirit could be seen forming before our very eyes as the second match was a draw, and the third match Cologne managed to win.
It was clear how this comeback and tantalising almost-win could have come about. The two Sarah were Trojans. Sarah P, in my view, was the player of the tournament. Her strength and ability to snuff out every attack that passed near her were infallible. She also scored from distance when given the opportunity. Sarah B, a nippy, agile, and technically brilliant player, buzzed around the field like a woman possessed, getting into great spaces and linking up well with the other Sarah often.
The puck-outs from Kea were clinical. They greatly assisted in getting the ball fed into the forwards. Laura was fearless and defended impressively. One time directly in front of a strong strike from Hamburg’s strong midfield player, Laura intercepted and blocked the sliotar dead directly in front of her, and the goal opportunity was snuffed out and cleared away in an act of sheer defiance and brilliant defending in the second game that seemed to mark a turning point and where Cologne took off the gloves and put the pressure back on Hamburg.
Katha batted down many balls and struck superbly on the ground to clear and create chances. Niamh’s experience and brilliant stickwork stood out as she banged in a few scores for the Celtics.
Lucie wasn’t just early to the venue on the day; she also read and anticipated the play so that she always arrived early to the ball to gain possession.
Joseph was a strong presence on the sideline, shouting encouragement and analysis, which contributed to a more and more ordered sense of the team on the pitch and eventually turned the Hamburgers over.
Joseph‘s tactical shouting and lively encouragement seemed to fire the Cologne ladies, and they performed significantly better in the second and third matches. They were unlucky that, in the end, the first match was the decisive game. To lose the trophy on „Points difference“ was harsh on our ladies, but they never let the heads drop, and coming out with one win and a draw is a credit to them.
However, there is a lot to build on, and now with Joseph on board as a coach alongside Finbar, we are going from strength to strength in this area. We should have an influx of new players in the coming weeks to add to our foundation, and hopefully, they’ll be available for tournaments and matches next year.
| Teams | Goals | Points | Final Score |
| Cologne Hamburg | 2 5 | 4 3 | 10 18 |
| Cologne Hamburg | 1 2 | 5 2 | 8 8 |
| Cologne Hamburg | 2 1 | 1 1 | 7 4 |
The Afters
- OOM
Although we were disappointed to lose out on retaining our trophies, we can be proud of how far we have come as a club. This day was a huge achievement for the club, with so many working pieces coming together, and we hope now to build on our community.
Having close to 30 hurlers available and a full camogie team out also showed that we have a solid foundation. Of course, we are always looking for new players, regardless of experience, to join us. On days like the German Cup, having every available body is of enormous benefit, and as our players can attest, you will play.
After the speeches and trophy presentations, our players and committee cleaned up in Chorweiler and made their way for our night out to Jameson’s Distillery Pub. Here we could get together as a team and as a club, and that is something we want to work on more as the lockdowns of previous years (hopefully) fade into memory.
Despite not retaining our trophies, our players were in a great mood following a day of hardy hurling. We stayed in Jameson’s until closing time and really made the most of it.
It won’t be too long before serious hurling and camogie matches return to Cologne again!
Kölle abú!
Sincere thank yous to all our volunteers on the day, from those lining and setting up pitches to those involved in the shop, those on the organising subcommittee, and our committee members. A lot of work went into the day, but the final product is what makes it all worth it.
If it was your first hurling or camogie experience, we would love to hear what you thought of our sports. Also, if you have any photos from the day that you would like to share with the club, we would love to see them 🙂
If you were at the German Cup 2022 in Chorweiler and would like to contact the club, please do so here on the website or using our social media channels. We are always looking for new playing and social members to help us increase our presence in Cologne and the wider area. So please consider joining your local GAA club.
Cologne Celtics 