Report by Cillian O’Gara, Cologne Celtics Football Officer.
On the 17th of June, 2023, Nijmegen GFC hosted part of the fourth and final round of the Benelux Men’s Gaelic Football Championship. While Luxembourg hosted the tournament for the competitors of the Cup, it would be in Nijmegen, where participants battled it out to win the Shield and Plates, respectively. In addition, a Ladies‘ Gaelic Football tournament was also played out, with three teams competing for the trophy.
This was Cologne’s first time sending a sizable complement of players to a Gaelic football tournament this year, with seven male and two female players taking part in their respective competitions. As is often the case, Cologne and Dusseldorf teamed up in the men’s competition to field an impressive panel of 13.
The Cologne players who represented our club were: Cillian, Padraic, Cal, Damo, Fred, Santi, Tobias and Fred.
Men’s Gaelic Football Report
Given the tournament structure, Cologne/Dusseldorf would play three games in the conference stage before playing a final game to determine our final place in the pecking order. These matches would see us face off against The Hague’s B team, Eindhoven and Nijmegen themselves.
Following a close and tense encounter between the top contenders of Eindhoven and The Hague’s A side (in which Eindhoven won by a single point), we faced off against The Hague B. While this was initially a cagey affair, the game gradually opened up, and the Cologne/Dusseldorf team kicked things up a gear. We won several kickouts, put in some brilliant blocks and tackles and made several vital scores.
A highlight among the Cologne lads was Cal Rohan’s superb second-half goal, which helped keep the game in control and see off a tough and experienced Hague B team. The final score was 3-6 to 1-4.
Unfortunately, during this first game, one of the Cologne men, Padraic Evoy, sustained a knee injury during play and had to be taken off the pitch. Padraic faces a long recovery, and we wish our club man a speedy recovery. He has been one of our club’s best trainers and has been a really huge addition to our club this year… Everyone involved with the Cologne Celtics hopes that he will make a complete return to full fitness.
After a well-earned break, we warmed up again to prepare for the match against a strong Eindhoven team. Still tired from our previous game and with the heat bearing down on us, we were no match for Eindhoven’s superior training and experience. The Shamrocks dominated the game from start to finish, putting several goals away against us.
With the game practically over by half-time, the Cologne and Dusseldorf lads got together and played with a greater degree of freedom and bravery, making the second-half a far more competitive affair. While Eindhoven were never in any danger of losing the game, we still put away some decent scores, including a consolation goal in the second-half.
After spending some time recovering and licking our wounds, we prepared to go up against Nijmegen, who themselves had won their first match and lost their second. The Dusseldorf lads, in particular, were eager to get revenge over Nijmegen as they had come from behind to win in their previous encounter in Eindhoven earlier this year.
The game was a tense affair, and while we were undoubtedly the better team in the first-half, we were still only one point up with everything to play for. A passionate half-time speech by Dusseldorf’s Liam Kelleher lit a fire in each of us, and we set out to dominate the rest of the game. The second-half would see us winning most of the kickouts, relentless in our attacks and defence, and never taking the foot off the throttle, even as we gained firm control of the game. After a strong second-half showing, including a goal from Cologne’s Cal Rohan, we won the match 4-8 to 1-5.
After all the preliminary matches played out, we discovered we’d be up against Nijmegen again to compete for the 3rd place spot. While many of us were tired and ready to call it a day, Nijmegen were eager to get back on the pitch for a second opportunity to come away with a win against us.
Similar to our first meeting, the first-half was a tense affair with very little separating the sides. Both teams missed some opportunities to score, and tiredness would undoubtedly have had an impact on the quality of the game from a spectator’s point of view. The tension reached a tipping point in the second-half when a foul was committed, and a short melee ensued. Thankfully the incident was over as quickly as it started, and the players involved shook hands before continuing the match.
In the second-half, Cologne/Dusseldorf gradually showed their class and pulled away from the hosts. Despite a tough opposition in Nijmegen, who refused to give up to the very end, we did enough to win relatively comfortably with a scoreline of 3-6 to 2-4.
Throughout the tournament, Tobias performed outstandingly in goal for Cologne/Düsseldorf and deserves special recognition for his performance.
Our club member, Ciarán, refereed during the tournament, and his contribution to a successful tournament should also be recognised.
Ladies Gaelic Football Report
We were also proud to send two ladies to represent Cologne in the tournament, with Sarah Butler and Anne Marie Brenner teaming up with the Dusseldorf and Hamburg ladies. Together, they faced off against the hosts Nijmegen and another amalgamation team containing players from The Hague and Maastricht, playing each team twice.
There is always a significant challenge involved when players come together to form an amalgamation team. The ladies from Hamburg/Düsseldorf and Cologne faced this challenge in their opening match.
The ladies’ first match would see them line up against hosts Nijmegen. Nijmegen were by far the stronger in the first-half of the match and opened up a significant gap in scores by half-time. However, the Cologne/Dusseldorf/Hamburg team mounted a strong comeback in the second-half, with Cologne’s Sarah Butler getting on the score sheet. Unfortunately, this was not enough to close the gap, and Nijmegen won by 2 points despite an impressive comeback by the amalgamation team.
The tough times would continue for the ladies in their second match, which saw them pitted against an amalgamated team made up of ladies from The Hague and Maastricht. The final score was 4-7 to 2-3 for The Hague and Maastricht.
After a tough start, the Cologne/Dusseldorf/Hamburg ladies rallied together to perform strongly in their next two games. An impressive win against Nijmegen saw the ladies concede only two points while scoring three goals and six points. Unfortunately, during this match, Ellie from Düsseldorf went off with a head injury. Ellie had been playing a stormer for us up to that point and was a significant loss for our team. However, we wish her a speedy recovery from her injury.
In their second match-up against The Hague and Maastricht, Sarah and Ammi came agonisingly close to winning the contest, with Sarah again making some fine scores. Ultimately though, the game ended in a draw. With the results of all the matches taken into account, the Cologne/Dusseldorf/Hamburg team came second out of the bunch and came away with a trophy for their troubles. The Hague and Maastricht won the series on this occasion.
Tournament Conclusion
The concluding men’s games saw Maastricht and Hamburg’s amalgamation team face off against the Hague’s B team to win the Plate. Despite being defeated on a few occasions, (including being on the receiving end of a hammering from Nijmegen), Hamburg/Nijmegen put in an impressive display to see off The Hague B, scoring a total of six goals and six points to The Hague B’s two goals and four points. This win earned Hamburg the Plate for the Benelux Men’s Gaelic Football Championship, taking into account turnout and performances in previous rounds.
The final game of the day, in which the victor would go home with the Shield, saw Eindhoven and the Hague’s A side face off against each other in a repeat of the very first game of the day. Much like the first game, it was a tense affair, with both teams showing impressive skill, training and experience. However, Eindhoven would again get the better of The Hague and deservedly won the Shield after winning the match with a scoreline of 0-8 to 1-4.
After the ceremony concluded and the awards were handed out, everyone involved was happy to have a couple of drinks before making our way home. All in all, it was a great day for the Cologne men and ladies Gaelic footballers, who put in some serious performances and came away with some fantastic wins. We eagerly await the arrival of future Gaelic football tournaments in the region and will no doubt continue training to be at our very best for them.
Kölle abú!
If you are based in Cologne and want to try out Gaelic football, why not contact us directly to find out about training. Our players play in tournaments all over Germany, the Benelux area and other parts of Europe. In fact, this summer, nine members of the Cologne Celtics will be representing Germany at the GAA World Games in Derry, Ireland.
Previous experience playing Irish sports is not required. Just feel free to come to training and meet the team. Find out about our training and tournament schedule by accessing our calendar on the website.
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