Fri 28th May 2004

U-13s take League Title

Willows FC  1    Castleknock Celtic  4

Celtic put on smashing performance to ensure that theirs is the championship.  They have fought long and hard, each and every player giving it their all throughout the season, always as a unit.  They all stood up to be counted when it mattered at crucial stages.  They are a credit to their families and themselves, and the club are rightly proud of them.

This Friday night, it was Ricky Flanagan who yet again took the plaudits and earned himself the man of the match award.  He took his chances as any good striker would, but this was the night when it was most needed.  Willows are a plucky outfit, and if you give them the opportunity, they will punish you, and that is the reason they are challenging at the top.  They could still get runners up to Castleknock Celtic.

Ger Farrelly yet again played in his flambuoyant style, never satisfied marshalling his side of the defence, but making regular forays into the opposition half.  It was on one of these that he struck his shot from the edge of the box to the bottom corner, giving the Willows' keeper no chance.  He reminded some of us with a bit of mileage on the clock of the great Liverpool full back Chris Lawler, who scored regularly for the Anfield Reds.  Those were the days when the Merseysiders were seldom without the league championship on the silverware cabinet.  Unfortunately, nowadays you have to tune into the history channel to see Liverpool win such trophies.

But as I said, this is a squad of players who are closely knit together. Their determination was exemplified by Chris Hoey who had spent the week trying to get back to health, so that he could tog out tonight.  While I have mentioned only a few players in this report, any of the other players could have been featured, as it was a team performance.