- OUR PARTNERS
Well done to all our players and staff involved in cup ties over the weekend. Having six teams in the last eight of National cup competitions is a tremendous achievement that the Club can be proud of - but we have won nothing yet.
Following Saturday's three wins in SFAI cup ties three more SKB teams were hoping to reach the last 8 of their respective SFAI Sketchers Cups.
Our Under 13 NDSL Premier side meet Cork club - Watergrasshill United in Troy Cup and this game was the closest of all the games played in Shanowen over the weekend. Both teams were evenly matched but a goal early in the first half through Tom Redmond and late in the second by Alex Clarke was enough to get through to a last 8 tie away to Phoenix FC.
Ger Lostys Under 14 NDSL Premier team were forced to move their SFAI Sketchers Goodson Cup game to Stella Maris FC grounds at Richmond Road from Shanowen Road due to their opponents North End from Wexford being unable to make a 1pm kick-off but that did'nt stop them recording a fully deserved 2-0 win with goals from Eadbhard O'Callaghan and Ethan Delaney to secure a quarter-final spot against St Josephs Boys or Leixlip United.
Douglas Hall were the third Cork club in action at Shanowen Road over the weekend when they met our Under 16 DDSL Elite side in the SFAI Sketchers Barry Cup. The home side struggled for long periods especially in the first half and were under pressure for most of that half with Douglas Hall dominating the possession and terratorial stakes but unable to secure a breakthrough. The all important first goal came nine minutes into the second half when Ger Noonan was on hand to force the ball home following a corner. The game change after that and three more goals followed from substitutes Dylan Byrne (2) and Jordan Pitshou. St Francis or College Corinthians await in the last 8.
In Baldonnell on Sunday morning our 18's lost out in extra time to St Francis in the fourth round of the Leinster Youth Cup after an extremely tight and exciting game.
Our Under 12 DDSL Premier side faced Aisling Annacotty in Newtown on Saturday afternoon seeking to progress to the last 8 of the SFAI Sketchers Danone Cup of which we are the holders. Callum Warren got them off to an ideal start after two minutes in an extremely tight contest which could have gone either way until two minutes from time when Tadgh Walsh scored a second which killed off the home sides resistance.
The Under 13 DDSL Premier squad were in action at home in Shanowen Road against Riverstown FC side in the Sketchers Troy Cup, they dominated this game from the off and were not flattered by their 4-0 winning margin - indeed the score could have been double that as a combination of the posts crossbar and missed chances kept the score down, two goals each here for Dylan Quinn and Kordea Odumosu.
The big clash of the weekend was the meeting of our two top Under 15 teams in the last 16 of the SFAI Sketchers Evans Cup with our Under 15 DDSL Elite hosting our Under 15 NDSL Premier team at Shanowen Road today. The nucleus of these sides met one another in an historic SFAI Menton Seery Cup final four years ago with the DDSL side just shading it on that occasion and that was the way it seemed it would be again as the NDSL side dominated the first twenty minutes but never turned their superiority into goals and when Ross Tierney bravely chased a through ball into the box in the 22nd minute he was challanged by goalkeeper Jack Patterson and the ball spun loose for Ryan Cassidy to apply the finish, Cassidy went on to complete a first half hat-trick and Dan Madaghjian added another before Mervin Mambo pulled one back to leave it 4-1 at the break. In the second half it was Madaghjian's turn to complete his hat-trick before Jack Kelly added a seventh just at the end. A 7-1 scoreline does not do justice to the NDSL side who had a fair amount of possession but lacked the killer instinct of the hat-trick heros.
