Mud Bath - But Great Match

On Saturday 15th March 2008, the "B" Squad was at home to Clonee United on what must have been the wettest, windiest and coldest days yet at Shanganagh Cliffs. Many members before the match speculated that the referee would call off the match, but thanks to the drainage system on the pitch, it was playable. Standing on the sideline was difficult enough and the playing conditions could only be described as muddy, slippery and soaking wet. But both teams were certainly up for the game as Acting Manager, Ian Kane, rallied the lads before the match with some words of encouragement and warning. The latter was a thinly veiled reference to yellow and red card instances in the recent past - any dissent, he said, and your off!! Ian fielded a relatively young squad the majority of which were smaller, lighter and much younger than any of the visitors. This difference between the squads was very evident as the visitors took an early control of the game with two fine goals before the break. At the break, Ian clearly was determined to claw back the game so he insisted that we push everything and everyone up to pressure their goalmouth. His tactic worked exceedingly well with a beautiful goal from young Nathan Jennings, (pictured above) followed by near miss after near miss, across the goalmouth, hitting the woodwork and going just over. The visitors were visibly rattled though, with their greater strength and experience they managed to hold on until the final whistle. After the match the visitors admitted that it was a very tough game and praised our lads for their vigorous come-back in the second half, unfortunately, with only one goal to show for all the effort. All in all, despite the appalling weather conditions, the lads themselves, muddied, blooded and soaking wet, all agreed that it was probably the best match of the season so far irrespective of the result. It was evidently as enjoyable to watch as to play. Certainly, a great game lads, well done. Final score: DLTFC 1 : Clonee United 2

Loughlinstown Leisure Centre

The Wednesday night block booking of the indoor training facility at Loughlinstown Leisure Centre has been cancelled following the acquisition by the Board of equipment that will permit training sessions to be undertaken at Shanganagh Cliffs. It is envisaged that these training sessions will commence next week. For further information please contact Ian Kane on 085 764 7900 or ian_m_kane@hotmail.com

Park Celtic win on St. David's Day

Saturday March 1st 2008 - St. David's Day for our Celtic cousins across the Irish Sea and without doubt the saintly Welshman certainly favoured the visitors, Park Celtic, at Shanganagh Cliffs this afternoon. The Division 3 match kicked-off at 14.30hrs in bright sunshine with hardly a breeze coming in from the sea. This suited the lads of the "A" Squad who opened the score barely minutes into the first half with a fine goal by young Nathan Jennings of Shankill. The visitors regained their composure and within ten minutes had equalised. But it wasn't long before the lads of "The Town" were back in fighting form attacking the Park Celtic goal with a passion unfortunately too rarely witnessed and it paid off with an excellent goal from yet another very talented young Shankill player, Dean Kelly. But, as luck will have it, the visitors with their more disciplined tactics and, it must be said, superb passing, quickly equalised leaving it 2 all at the break. The second half was certainly a different game altogether as the visitors vigorously and relentlessly pressured the home goal. They were certainly greatly aided by a strong to, at times, gale force wind coming in from the Irish Sea hampering and utterly frustrating our defenders. With the strong wind advantage, no doubt thanks to the saintly Welsh fan, the visitors all too easily put three further goals on the scoreboard. Final score: DLTFC 2 : Park Celtic 5 Note: the Division 3A match against Clonee for the "B" Squad was postponed as the home pitch was double-booked. (pictured above, Nathan Jennings is congratulated by his team-mates on the fine opening goal of the match)

Dressing Rooms Refurbished

The Dressing Rooms at Shanganagh Cliffs consist of a 12.20m converted box container which was "kitted-out" on a very temporary basis at the start of the season by Ross Rogerson and Joey O'Reilly in order that the Club could meet the requirements for entering the Leinster Senior League. This temporary job proved sufficient for most of the season, however, it was always the intention of the Board to have a more permanent refurbishment carried out at the end of the season. Following the obtaining of quotations from local carpenters in the Dún Laoghaire area, the Board decided to offer the job to Kevin Murdock, Carpentry & Building Services (Tel: 086 887 3716). With both squads rested over the weekend of the Galway Trip it was decided to avail of this opportunity to totally refurbish the container to provide new seating with under-seat storage areas in both dressing rooms, new storage rooms at either end of the container, new shelving and new strengthened glass for the windows in both the home and away dressing rooms. The completed works were inspected by members of the Board, including Mrs. Lori Kelly, (pictured above) on Saturday March 1st 2008 and all expressed considerable satisfaction with a job very well done indeed. The next phase of the refurbishment will involve a complete paint job - exterior and interior. Just before the arrival of the "A" Squad for the Division 3 game against Park Celtic, the Chairman posted the amended "Code of Conduct" (see bottom of web-blog) and a copy of the Club's Child Protection Policy on the notice board in the home dressing room. Copies of these documents will be made available in booklet form to all members, playing and non-playing, in the near future.

DÚN LAOGHAIRE to DÚN AONGHUSA

On Saturday 23rd February 2008, as part of the Club's TSP Programme, members of the "B" Squad visited the ancient fort of Dún Aonghusa on Inis Mór in the Aran Islands. This was certainly the highlight of the weekend trip which took in the sights of Galway City and the Aran Islands as an introduction to Irish culture, heritage and history. Accompanied by the Co-Founders of the Club, Abrahim Abdul-Wahid and Ian M. Kane, the party travelled by private coach from Dún Laoghaire on Friday 22nd February for Galway picking up three more of the "B" Squad in Dublin City on the way. Arriving in Galway City at 17.30hrs, after a brief stop in Moate for a late lunch, the lads soon settled into their accommodation at the Galway City Hostel before exploring the City itself. Traditional music venues were high on their agendas and most got a taste of the real "ceol agus craic" in and around Shop Street and Quay Street which included a bit of "sean nós" dancing. Next day it was off to the Aran Islands firstly by bus transfer to Ros a Mhíl and then by ferry to Cill Rónáin on Inis Mór. The 40 minute ferry ride over was described as "choppy" but most, though, naturally not all, were exhilarated by the experience of the high seas. On arrival we made our way for some light refreshments as the tour of the island was arranged. Our driver/guide, Noel MacMahon, then brought the group through the various sights of interest including, the Seven Churches, Seal Sanctuary, homes of famous islanders etc en route to Dún Aonghusa. As we arrived at the small hamlet at the base of the national monument heavy drizzle descended soaking us all as we climbed the meandering limestone pathway to the monument. Then, as if the old Celtic gods were pleased at our arrival, the sun broke through the clouds to reveal the true purpose for which our ancestors laboured to construct this monument. Standing in the centre of the "dún" and looking over the stone playform as the rays of the sun reached down to the surface of the Atlantic below, nobody was in any doubt of its ancient religious significance and all were in awe at the shear beauty of this magical place. Each of the lads seemed to seek out and capture their own private moment amidst the traquility and yet, the wild remoteness of this place. Hundreds of digital photographs taken we commenced our descent to the base only to pause outside the walls, alone and sometimes in small groups, attempting to capture and retain the moment. At the base more refreshments before heading back to Cill Rónáin for a few pints (and soft drinks) in a local to catch up on match results and to relax. Each of the group leaders practised their command of An Ghaeilge (Irish language) whilst ordering the much needed stimulant to face the expected bumpy ferry ride to the mainland. At 17.00hrs we departed Inis Mór and to our great surprise the journey back was quite smooth and very enjoyable. Landing once again in Ros a' Mhíl we boarded our coach to Galway City centre for another night of "ceol agus craic" and this time at An Púcán on Forster Street. On Sunday morning after breakfast we all tried to take in the last of the City sights before boarding the private coach at 15.00hrs for Dublin. With a brief stop at Athlone for a late lunch at Rayner's we arrived back in Dublin City at 19.36hrs - just as predicted by our coach driver Ian. Most of the party left the coach at O'Connell Bridge with the remainder dropped off in Dún Laoghaire around 20.05hrs. (pictured above, part of the group pose with the Dún Laoghaire flag overlooking the Atlantic in Dún Aonghusa on Inis Mór whilst the rest explored the monument)

"B" Squad in Cup Match : "A" Squad in Planet Love

Saturday 16th February 2008 was to see both squads in action, the "A" Squad in Division 3 away to Mount Tallant in Stannaway Park and the "B" Squad at home to Division leaders Malahide United in the Tom Watt Cup. However, on Saturday morning it transpired that about six players of the "A" Squad had contacted the manager to say that they had obtained tickets for "Planet Love" at Leopardstown, thankfully the League organisers and Mount Tallant were very understanding and permitted the Division 3 match to be postponed. The "B" Squad, under the management of Ian Kane and missing Jack Bwalya through the one match ban and without the star players Bruno de Carvalho and Tiziano Makanzu, fielded a team drawn from both squads to play Malahide. The match was a tense affair with both sides battling it hard and the halftime score of one all perfectly reflected the strengths of both teams. Our goal, the first in the game, came from the "B" Squad's striker, Johnson Goodwin. The pace quickened in the second half with some very hard tackles from both sides, but thankfully all in good sporting manner. A great loss to the lads was the injury to goalie Derek McAsey who had to hobble off to be replaced midway in the second half. The lads of "The Town" went briefly ahead with a fine goal from young Karl Smith. But not long after the visitors equalised as their greater strength and experience started to show in the last twenty minutes of the game and very soon the winning goal put Malahide through to the next round of the Tom Watt Cup. Final score: DLTFC 2 : Malahide 3

Second Win in the Wally Winn Cup

Match report to follow.

Trip to the Brazil Match

On Wednesday 6th February 2008 the Club, as part of its TSP integration programme, attended the International Friendly Match between the Republic of Ireland and Brazil. Twenty members braved the cold and later the driving rain to see this match from the heights of the Cusack Stand. Though, the match was a lacklustre affair with an underperforming Brazilian team barely battling it out with an Irish team that only displayed a few moments of flair, enthusiasm and determination. This match was only a little better than the last friendly encounter between these countries which produced a nil all draw. The final score was hardly a surprise with a one goal win for the visitors. The Club's intention in including visits to international matches as part of our TSP integration programme is clearly to expose the programme's participants to the Irish sporting culture, its expression of national solidarity and, of course, the inclusivity of the "New Ireland" especially in the arena of sport. The participants, from many countries (mainly in Africa), had a unique opportunity to join their Irish team-mates at this international match - all supporting "the lads in green" and to personally experience the wonderful stadium at Croke Park - the home of our national games. The group met at Connolly Station and walked the short distance to the cathedral of Gaelic games, Croke Park, experiencing all the buzz and the colour of the occasion right in amongst the fans from both countries en route to the game. Sitting high up in the Cusack Stand and right on the halfway line provided the group with an excellent view of the match and indeed, with the full panoramic view of the stadium. Though, the weather was cold and damp, this did not hamper in anyway whatsoever the participants' fullest enjoyment of this important and wonderful exposure to Irish sporting culture. The organisers are sincerely grateful to the TSP programme for providing the funding to enable this aspect of the Club's integration programme to be so very successful. The participants are now looking forward to the Galway Trip between February 22nd to 24th and indeed, to the next international game against Serbia.

Dún Laoghaire Town 1 : Blackforge FC 5

We've all heard of the well worn and often threadbare cliché that the scoreline didn't reflect the game, well in this case on Saturday 2nd February, a truer observation couldn't be made on this hard fought and immensely enjoyable game. Dún Laoghaire Town's "B" Squad was at home to Blackforge FC in the LSL Div. 3A. An early and arguably foolishly easy goal for the visitors threatened to totally disrupt the carefully constructed game-plan of acting Manager, Ian M. Kane, as the lads of the "B" Squad struggled to get back into the game. It seemed that Blackforge FC were taking the game to the lads of "The Town" and punishing them for each lack of concentration or sloppy passing. But as chances arrived for "The Town" luck seemed to desert the lads until Johnson Goodwin finally found the back of the net with an exceptionally executed goal. The first half ended with the score 3 : 1 to the visitors. The half-time instructions by the acting Manager seemed to have hit home as the lads came out in the second half certainly in better shape and with a determination that was sadly lacking in the earlier stages of the game. But just as the lads of "The Town" were putting their own stamp on the game injuries plagued the squad and tiredness due to the pace of this game began to take its toll. The introduction of substitutes Dean Kelly and Nathan Jennings midway in the second half unfortunately didn't produce the badly needed goals for "The Town" and the sending off of Jack Bwalya for retaliation didn't help at all. Certainly Blackforge FC found the second half a tougher match, however, they still were able to add to their tally. Despite the scoreline, it was generally agreed that Goalkeeper Derek McAsey had an outstanding and yet, very difficult and challenging game. Final score: DLTFC 1 : Blackforge FC 5. (Ref: Noel Kelly)

Seven Goals Without Reply

On Saturday 26th January 2006 "The Town" was at home to Mount Tallant in a match that went that was marked by chaotic defending, a midfield in disarray and a failure to capitalise on any chance. The game produced the worst ever result recorded by the "A" Squad in the Leinster Senior League to-date. With three goals conceded by half time, disagreement dogged the squad during the break with blame and counter blame filling the air. The second half opened with the loss of the very talented Thomas Downey dropped by the manager for misconduct. This air of despondency carried through for the first twenty minutes or so of the half before the lads of "The Town" finally found form - but alas, too little and way too late. Chances came one after another in the closing fifteen minutes of the game but luck clearly abandoned the lads as none could find the back of the Mount Tallant net. The visitors managed four further goals in the second half to inflict on "The Town" its greatest defeat ever. Final score: DLTFC 0 : Mount Tallant 7

"B" Squad Kick Off the New Year

On Saturday 19th January 2008 the "B" Squad kicked off the New Year with a home match against league leaders Malahide United. Weather conditions were simply appalling with constant rain making the going very tough on the pitch, but thankfully the excellent drainage system at Shanganagh Cliffs kept our pitch playable. The match started rather predictably with Malahide determined to press home their undoubted advantage of position, experience and, in someways, skill. Two early goals for the visitors seemed to invigorate the lads the "B" Squad under the direction of acting Manager, Ian M. Kane. They quickly found form and made the going very difficult for Malahide with a number of excellent chances on their goal. The second half opened with the lads of "The Town" refusing to allow the visitors an easy ride and despite another goal for the visitors, the lads kept up the pressure which finally paid off with a wonderfully executed goal from the "Most Improved Player of the Year" Johnson Goodwin (pictured right). Final score: DLTFC 1 : Malahide United 3 (Referee Robbie Kearns)

Christmas Party & Awards Ceremony

On Saturday 15th December the Club held a very special ceremony in McKenna's of Wellington Street to mark the official launch of the TSP Sponsored Project and to mark the Club's 5th Anniversary of its foundation in 2002 by Ian M. Kane and Abrahim Abdul-Wahid. The occasion also allowed for special awards to be presented to members of both squads for their achievements during the year and last season. The most important aspect of the day was the occasion was the official launch of the TSP Sponsored Project and though, it had already commenced back in August, this was the first opportunity to celebrate the launch of the project. The project will involve the Club travelling to a number of venues at home and overseas to play matches and to build on Club's fine record of integration and social inclusion. The awards were presented by our first ever sponsor and former Club Chairperson, Robbie Rogerson, who by his kind generosity back in the summer of 2002 enabled the Club to get off the ground and given that the occasion marked our 5th anniversary, the Club was delighted that Robbie was available to do the honours. Photographs of the event are posted below.

Was it down to the Hangovers Lads?

On Saturday 15th December 2007 the last game of the year was a deep disappointment for the lads of "The Town" as they went down to a miserable two nil defeat to Ballbriggan. A depleted "A" Squad travelled to north Dublin all too aware of the difficulties facing them as many players shied-off due to the work Christmas parties and more so, due to Mark Farrell's 21st the night before in Weir's of Dún Laoghaire. Manager Japo Kelly has vowed to tighten up the pre-match discipline of the squad to ensure that games are not thrown away due to "player hangovers" in the New Year. Final score: Ballybriggan 2 : DLTFC 0. Meanwhile, the "B" Squad match was cancelled due to a mix-up by the League.

Paschal Kennedy Motors Sponsor Club

The Board is delighted to announce that Paschal Kennedy Motors of Cross Avenue, Dún Laoghaire has sponsored the new kit for the Club. Acquiring this kit in the Club's original colours of Yellow and Blue is a fitting tribute to all the endeavours of many as the Club marks its fifth year in operation. Pictured at the photo shoot outside Paschal Kennedy Motors on Saturday 8th December are from left to right: Back - Kevin Plunkett (Player Director), Mr. Paschal Kennedy (Sponsor), Ian M. Kane (Director & Co-Founder), Jonathon Corcoran, Fergus McCarthy, Mrs. May Kennedy. Front - Daniel Cruise, Gary Leonard, Kevin Corcoran and Mrs. Lori Kelly (Director). Due to the time constraints on the day, the rest of the Squad had to make its way to Cornelscourt for the kick off at 14.00hrs.

"B" Squad Win in Cornelscourt

The "B" Squad was away to Brighton Celtic FC on Saturday 8th December 2007 in Division 3A with Ian M. Kane taking over as the Manager for this game as Yahaya Shehu was leaving for Christmas and New Year at home in Nigeria the same day. Again due to illness some of the stalwarts of the "B" Squad were unavailable for this game, but unlike the previous game, all was in order as Ian fielded a reasonably strong squad on the day. On a very windy, rainy and bitterly cold day and on a very slippery and muddy pitch the two teams found the going extremely difficult. At times it seemed that the ball would be simply blown away and at others, it appeared to just hang in the air due to the strong wind. The home team had the advantage of the strong wind in the first half and aided by a low winter sun making visibility across the pitch very difficult, a corner delivered their first goal as our keeper and defenders were almost blinded. Indeed, it seemed that nobody was too sure who actually scored. Dún Laoghaire's goalkeeper, Derek McAsey, certainly had a very good day making some exceptional saves from a very determined and skillful Brighton Celtic striker. The final score of Brighton Celtic 3 : DLTFC 4 ideally reflects the competitiveness of a very difficult game for both teams. But, without doubt, Dún Laoghaire's "Man of the Match" had to go to Johnson Godwin (pictured above) who scored two of our four goals.