Big Win for Intermediates: 

Our Intermediate team, got off the mark in the Championship with a great win against Ballincollig last Sunday. The game played in Blarney with a limited number of spectators present was an enthralling battle. Fortunately we were able to live stream this game through our Club Facebook page so those not able to secure a ticket could tune in. The game ebbed and flowed throughout although at times the officials were overly fussy and led to unnecessary break in play that took from the flow of the game a little. The Hill didn’t get off to best of starts and Ballincollig showing real intent inside the opening 10 minutes, but our lads did start to settle into the game and by the time the first water break came they only trailed by two points, 6 points to Ballincollig's 8. The scoreboard for the second quarter belonged to the Hill and they managed to lead by one point going in at halftime, 11 points to 10. The second half started with the Hill laying down a marker and Sean Desmond (who was having a great game) getting the game’s first goal inside the first 90 seconds. The teams traded points for the next five minutes and then Ballincollig struck for a goal of their own in the seventh minute to lead the game again by a point 1-13 to 1-12. Not long after the Hill were reduced to fourteen men and would need a big effort for the last 20 odd minutes to see them through. The last quarter was a hum dinger, some great scores, great saves, real intensity shown by both teams. The Hill though, did put in that much needed heroic effort and a great all round team performance from Darragh in goals to Sean Desmond top of the square saw them out score Ballincollig to take the spoils on a scoreline of 1-22 to 1-18. Congratulations to Willie, Seanie, Diarmuid and the extended backroom team and of course the panel of players on a great Championship win. Next up is Ballinhassig next Saturday August 8^th @4pm in Inniscarra. A big Thank You to John O Regan and John Kennedy for facilitating the live stream and Jim Landy on match commentary for this one.

Match report here from Eamonn Murphy of the Irish Examiner. Cork PIHC Group A: Watergrasshill 1-22, Ballincollig 1-18. 

Trailing by two points just after the second-half water break and a man down after losing Pa Cronin to a second yellow card, Watergrasshill looked in big trouble in this PIHC opening round tie at Blarney.

Yet the Hill distributed the ball superbly across the fourth quarter, belying the fact they had only 14 players on the pitch, while their work-rate was incredible. They lanced over four successive points, including one from a Shane Óg O'Regan turnover on a puck-out and put themselves back in front. While Paul Cooney forced Darragh O'Callaghan into a flying save, which resulted in a Seán Walsh point to make it 1-19 to 1-18, Watergrasshill drove on again. Aaron Ricken, Gary O'Kelly Lynch and Brian Fenton held firm at the back and Anthony Cronin was everywhere.Kevin O'Neill and Daire O'Leary had been crucial to their side coming down from an initial 0-4 to no score deficit when Fenton Denny nailed three from play on the bounce. Along with Padraig O'Leary, the East Cork outfit got 0-8 from play from their half-forward unit.Seán Desmond was a real handful up top, and finished with 1-3 from play, which was vital when Liam Jennings was hounding Cork U20 O'Regan relentlessly. Ballincollig lost Jennings to an injury, which obviously didn't help their cause, but they simply couldn't make the extra hurler count for the last 20 minutes.When the other Shane O'Regan curled over a gem to make it 1-22 to 1-18 deep into injury even a goal wouldn't do them.Cian Dorgan was the Collig's top-scorer and took his goal brilliantly after great work by Denny and Dave Bowen, while Robbie Bourke had two points from play and four assists. Mark Prendergast and Conor O'Leary showed well at times and Ross O'Donovan made a couple of goal-saving interventions. Still, they just didn't replicate the Hill's intensity or slick distribution and now face Valley Rovers, who were beaten on Sunday by Ballinhassig.

Scorers for Watergrasshill: S O'Regan (0-7, 6f), S Desmond (1-3), D O'Leary (0-4), P O'Leary, K O'Neill, S Óg O'Regan (0-2 each), P Cronin, A Cronin (0-1 each).

Scorers for Ballincollig: C Dorgan (1-8, 4f), S Walsh, F Denny (0-3 each), R Bourke, C O'Leary (0-2 each).

WATERGRASSHILL: D O'Callaghan; P Cronin, A Ricken, C Cronin; S Field, G O'Kelly Lynch, B Fenton; A Cronin, P O'Regan; P O'Leary, K O'Neill, D O'Leary; S O'Regan, S Óg O'Regan, S Desmond.

Sub: D Dennehy for C Cronin (44).

BALLINCOLLIG: J Linehan; R O'Donovan, L Jennings, S Murphy; G O'Donoghue, B Coleman, M Prendergast; JP Murphy, R Bourke; D Moore, D Bowen, C O'Leary; S Walsh, C Dorgan, F Denny.

Subs: R O'Doherty for Moore (37), C O'Sullivan for Jennings (41 inj), P Cooney for O'Donoghue (47).

Referee: Cathal Egan (Glen Rovers).

Juniors come up short in East Cork Championship: 

Following on from the Intermediate game in Blarney Sunday afternoon, our Juniors were in action in Ballynoe against Fr O’ Neills in the East Cork A grade Championship. Missing some players through injury, the lads went into this still confident they could put in a good showing and get the result needed. It wasn’t to be our day however and we trailed our opponents throughout. At halftime we trailed by two points 8 to 6 so still felt we were in this game. Second half was a tough affair for the Hill and we couldn’t get into our rhythm that would see us draw in the deficit. Notable mention to our goalkeeper Colm Fenton who played very well and certainly kept hopes alive, but in the end it wasn’t our day. Final score Watergrasshill 12pts, Fr O’ Neills 17pts. Next up is Carraig na bhFear, date, time and venue TBC.

Starting team: Colm Fenton, Michael Murphy, Diarmuid McCarthy, Michael Kennedy, Raymond Norberg, james McCarthy, Owen Desmond, Kieran O Keeffe, William Connolly, Denis O Farrell, Chris Healy, Tom Dinan, Cillian Roche, TJ Forde, Billy Kennedy. Subs & Panel: Jason Foley, Gary Doyle, James Gowen, Pat O Leary, Aidan Foley, Willie O Leary, Johnny Noonan, Eoin Barry, Don O Riordan, Tim Healy, Mark Lee.

Juvenile Club Update: 

Our under 12’s had a home fixture last Saturday against a very good Inniscarra side. It was an evenly contested game with some great skill and passages of play resulting in great scores in the first half. Our lads shaded the first half scoreboard and lead at halftime by two points. The second half saw both teams registering big scores but two goals would prove to be the difference in the end and the game belonged to our visitors. Our lads showed great fighting spirit and a much improved team performance from our opening game in Killeagh. Well done lads, hard luck in this one but plenty of positives to be taken from the game.

Our U-16s continued their recent good form with a victory over Lisgoold Monday evening in a fiercely contested Rebel Óg East U-16 Hurling League D1A clash. The first half was evenly balanced with the sides trading points early on. Lisgoold rattled the net midway through the first half - but this side has some great heart and came back to level the scores by half time where it stood WGH 0-11 Lisgoold 1-8.An astute move at half-time saw Colm O’ Regan pushed into corner forward where he racked up 1-2 within 10 mins of the restart. Our lads powered on from there to run out winners on a score line of WGH 1-21 Lisgoold 1-14. There’s great credit due to this team and indeed their coaches and their next fixture away to Passage on August 17th will be another stern test. Well done lads.

Upcoming Juvenile Fixtures: 

Under 12’s: Tuesday 11^th August, versus Ballincollig, away @ 7pm

Best of luck, have fun lads!

Lotto

There was no winner of the Lotto Jackpot this week. Numbers drawn were 7, 25, 28 & 31. €20 lucky dip winners are Pat Walsh, Fiona O Keeffe, Liz Buttimer & Peggy Barry. Congrats to you all. Next week's jackpot is €3,950 and draw will take place Monday 10^th August. Tickets (€2) available for purchase on our Club website (www.watergrasshillgaa.ie) or locally at The Fir Tree, Johnny's Shop and Restaurant and Ross’s Centra. If you’re not in you can’t win. The Club would like to take this opportunity to thank all our members and supporters of the Watergrasshill GAA Club Lotto. The Club Lotto is a vital source of income for the running of all our teams within the Club and for future devolopment of our facilities, so we ask you to please support it if you are in a position to do so.

Pitch Signage & Advertising Opportunity 

As we enter a new decade, we do so with great optimism and excitement here at Watergrasshill GAA Club. Later this decade we will celebrate our centenary year, which will be a special milestone. While its important to celebrate the past and the history of the club, its also important we look forward to the future.With this in mind, the club will shortly be undertaking a development project, to prepare the club for the future and further position ourselves at the centre of our community. Part of this project, will be the development of our existing club grounds. To that end we will endevour to raise a revenue stream from advertising, while giving businesses the opportunity to advertise their services and reach a wider audience within our community. With the playing numbers on the increase our facility will be a busy spot over the coming years and we would love to have your name and business positioned in the hearts and minds of all those who visit on a weekly basis. We are offering advertising space via pitch signage, 3000mm wide x 750mm high. These are a 5 year gloss laminate, flash mounted to 0.2mm skin diabond sign. If you would be interested in this opportunity to advertise and support our club, please contact Claire O Leary on 087-6239297 or any member of the club who can provide assistance.

Club Shop

If your noticing a dramatic growth spurt in your kids (or indeed yourself!) over the past few months, maybe its time to update the wardrobe. Well fear not as our summer collection of Watergrasshill GAA club clobber has just been launched and we are here to help you. Our club shop is opened, here you can get yourself the latest club fashion must have's for summer 2020. Club crested clothing is available to buy, from shorts to jerseys to training tops and tracksuit bottoms, for adults and juveniles in various sizes. Hurling helmets also available to buy through the club. If you need anything or would like to speak to someone about what is available and sizes, contact Adrienne on 087-7589139. Also keep an eye on our club Facebook page where new club gear can be seen.

Ryan’s SuperValu Glanmire Club Loyalty Scheme 

Can you help us win a share of €30,000? Ryan’s SuperValu Glanmire continuing in their efforts to Champion Green and support local, have launched the Ryan’s Local Loyalty initiative. This is aimed at local GAA clubs and offers us a great opportunity to get much needed financial support to run the club. Over the coming week we will distribute the loyalty card and we hope you will consider using it and support Watergrasshill GAA by joining us in this great campaign from Ryan’s SuperValu. Thank you for your support if you can.

Members & Trips Abroad: 

We would ask playing and non playing members returning from trips abroad over the coming weeks, of all ages, not to attend the pitch, training or matches for a period of 14 days after your return as per Public Health Guidelines. We would encourage all members to download the HSE covid tracker app and maintain the guidelines around social distancing, hand washing etc Thank you"