A combined Clan na nGael/Carrollton Hurling Club co-ed squad travelled to Charleston, SC to play in the inaugural Holy City Cup on Saturday May, 4th 2013. The squad combined raw novices with some experienced hurlers but the constant throughout was unwavering dedication and commitment to the team led by player/coach Kevin Quinn.
Other teams taking part included our hosts Charleston Hurling Club, Augusta Hurling Club, Charlotte James Connollys, Greenville Gaels, Hampton Roads Hurling Club and Raleigh Cu Chulainn. It was uplifting for all to see 80 hurlers from all over the Southeast take part in this tournament to showcase the commitment and skill that the game of hurling is all about.
After the draw was made each team had to play two games with the teams with the best records progressing to the final to compete for the Holy City Cup.
Clan na nGael/Carrollton 6-9 Hampton Roads/Augusta 1-8
The opening game of the tournament saw a compelling encounter where the scoreline did not reflect the evenness of the play. Our squad gained the upper hand in the early stages as Kevin Quinn dominated the exchanges at center back. The mobility of our midfield pairing of Brian Boland and Andrew Kender played a key role in our squad dominating possession for long stretches in the first half. Brian Boland, making his long awaited return since starring for Tullamore under-13s, provided speed and skill to contribute 0-5 in this game. If we had a dollar for every time Brian was heard to say, “the auld lad would be proud I am playing again”, we would have had a profitable weekend in Charleston!
Our ability to score goals at crucial stages, particularly from Josh Crabtree and Kevin Quinn, marked the difference between the teams and allowed us to pull away from Hampton Roads/Augusta. Rick Wilson, in his first hurling game, contributed to smart play from our defensive unit in the second half which limited our opponents scores to points to close out the victory.
Team: Patrick Lynch 1-0, Joy Quinn, David O’Donoghue, Rick Wilson, Kevin Quinn 2-1, Brian Boland 0-5, Andrew Kender, Jolene Glenn 1-0, Jen Beato, Ashley Harmon 0-1, Josh Crabtree 2-2. Sub: Zoe Beato
Clan na nGael/Carrollton 2-1 Charleston Hurling Club 0-0
Charleston Hurling Club, winners of the Tartan Day South tournament held in Columbia, SC in early April, were to prove worthy adversaries in this encounter. The odds were stacked against us in this game as we faced a large Charleston squad with injury leading to Kevin Quinn playing in goal in this game. Charleston, having earlier defeated Greenville Gaels, were confident as the form team entering the tournament.
Both teams displayed tremendous commitment as defences dominated the opening exchanges with space at a premium. This was most evident by the incredible play by the women of Atlanta who more than held their own against their male opponents. Despite an abundance of possession our finishing let us down in the first half primarily due to pressure from the Charleston defence. The key score of the half was a goal from a long range free from Brian Boland which to be fair had the benefit of a fortunate hop.
Some liberal swinging of hurleys from both teams led to some ferocious exchanges throughout. Moreover the wisdom of selecting a Kerryman and a hockey player from Buffalo to anchor the defence was called into question when the first half was called to a halt early due a schmozzle (to the American audience, this refers to a disagreement amongst gentlemen on a GAA field in Ireland!). Such was the intensity to pull on the sliotar, Joy Quinn had to wipe the blood of her own player off her hurl at half time (don’t mess with Mrs Q Kevin!). If we were to lose this game it would not be for lack of effort that was for sure.
As the second half continued, our defence kept repelling Charleston’s attacks despite their impressive use of the bench to freshen up their team. A second goal from Josh Crabtree at an opportune time increased the pressure on Charleston to chase the game. In spite of this, superb defence resulted in our squad keeping a clean sheet to finish worthy winners of this great contest. Both teams came out of this game with huge respect for each other and we hope to foster a relationship with Charleston Hurling club in the years ahead.
Team: Kevin Quinn, Joy Quinn, David O’Donoghue, Patrick Lynch, Jen Beato, Brian Boland 1-1, Andrew Kender, Jolene Glenn, Rick Wilson, Ashley Harmon, Josh Crabtree 1-0. Sub: Zoe Beato
Clan na nGael/Carrollton 2-8 Charlotte James Connollys/Raleigh Cu Chulainn 6-17
Against the odds, our squad made it through to play tournament favorites Charlotte James Connollys/Raleigh Cu Chulainn in the final. Our opponents included a large contingent of native Irish hurlers whose skill levels we found difficult to match. In spite of this, we never laid down and managed to score 2-8 in this game. Rick Wilson, using his canon baseball arm, proved he could score from 50 yards out once the opportunity arose and finished with 1-2 from play. In addition, the game featured some telling touches from Zoe Beato who at 15 years old will certainly be an incredible player in the years to come. This game may have been a step too far for this squad but lessons were learnt playing superior opponents which we will take forward to future tournaments.
Congratulations to our opponents for winning a great tournament.
Team: Kevin Quinn, Joy Quinn, David O’Donoghue, Patrick Lynch, Zoe Beato, Brian Boland 1-5, Andrew Kender, Jolene Glenn, Rick Wilson 1-2, Ashley Harmon, Josh Crabtree 0-1. Sub: Jen Beato
Post match festivities were held in Molly Darcy’s pub where our gracious hosts provided food, banter and live music. The highlight of the night however was the presentation of Holy City Cup Hurling Skills prize to the women of Atlanta recognizing their amazing play against their male counterparts throughout the tournament.
We would like to thank our hosts Charleston Hurling Club and tournament sponsors Molly Darcy’s Irish pub and Irish Realtor for hosting a great weekend. Special thanks also to our number one supporter/chief photographer Bregeen Campbell.
More pictures of the weekend can be viewed here.
See you all next year!