By Tommy Butler Longford RFC PRO tommylbutler@gmail.com 

Senior Men

Longford Senior Men had no games on the weekend past.  After winning their first two league matches they now turn their sights on a block of two away games in Dublin against the two sides that were relegated from Division 1A last year; Monkstown and DLSP.  Monkstown like Longford have won their first two matches of the league and will prove tough opponents in Sydney Parade.  However, Longford will be travelling full of confidence after their unbeaten start to the league and a clean injury bill.  Your support in Dublin would be greatly appreciated.

Upcoming Fixtures:

Sunday October 14^th Leinster League Monkstown (Away).

Sunday October 21^st Leinster League DLSP (Away).

Early Side KO 1.30 PM Late Side KO 3PM.

Sunday November 4^th Leinster League Tullow (Home).

Sunday November 11^th Leinster League Suttonian’s (Away).

Early Side KO 1 PM Late Side KO 2.30 PM.

Longford Woman

The Warriors train every Tuesday and Friday night at 7.30 PM. New players of all fitness levels are welcome, even if you have not played before. Contact Nuala on 082482005.

Sunday October 14^th Leinster League Greystones (Home)

Sunday October 21^st Leinster League Naas (Away)

Sunday November 4^th Leinster League CYM (Home)

Longford Mini/Youths

It was a very busy weekend for Longford Mini/Youths.  Both the U14s & U17s played League games with match reports below.  The U7 & U8s played away in Mullingar with the U11 & U12s away in Tullamore. 

Match Reports

Longford U14 47 Suttonians 27, Leinster League. 

This was the first game of the year and a great team effort. Windy conditions meant kicking game/throw-in's were an issue in the first half. However, Longford went to the half time break with a 36 to 10 lead. Ryan D'Arcy and Shane O'Hara scored two tries each with Leo Temple, Adam Reen and Ronan Corcoran adding to the tally. Standout players were Shane O'Hara, Sam Mills, Adam Reen and Ryan D'Arcy (this was Ryan's first competitive game of rugby) & James Gilheany (goal kicker).  James appreciated the guys scoring close to goalposts when possible!   Improvements for next match will target the scrum and tackling techniques. Next match is scheduled for the 21st Oct against Ratoath again in the Leinster League. Thanks to the parents for support and suppling after match food/drinks.

Longford U17 41 Wexford 19

Longford player Wexford in the Leinster League and came away with a great with.  The win was built on superb set piece play from our forwards and good recycling. The try scorers were; three tries to Kieran Reen and one each Seamus McKeon, Ciaran McCormack, Fergal Keane and Daire McManus. The stand out players were; Kieran Reen at out half with three tries and Conor Cox at No. 7 for work rate, rucking, tackling; a classic display by an openside. Poor tackling at times from some of the players was the one disappointing feature of the performance. Next up is away to Tullamore next Saturday in the League.

Fixtures

Saturday October 13th
U12 away blitz in Wilson’s Hospital Multyfarnham.

U17 v Tullamore (Away)

U16 v Portlaoise (Away)

U15 v Gorey (Away)

Sunday October 14th
U6, U7 & U8 and also Girls groups Training @ 10.30am

U9/10 play home match v Midlands Warriors Sunday KO @ 10.00am (NOTE earlier time. Please be at club for 9.45am warmup).

Training

Longford RFC field teams at Youth level from U6 to U18. Training and coaching information can be found below.

Gerry Carthy is Minis/Youths Chair. We are always looking for more coaches, managers, referees, administrators or helpers. If you can help out for even a few hours or make sandwiches for a game or have an ideas/concerns please contact Gerry on; 086-8046857.

Youths

Longford Youths are back training at all levels. New players are welcome at all age levels throughout the season (it is never too late to join in!). There is no better time to start with the Rugby World Cup looming large on the horizon next November.

Training times and Fixtures can be found on www.longfordrugby.com or at https://goo.gl/qAVBPv

New players are welcome at all age levels – just come to the club on the relevant training night or contact the coach above for details. Don’t worry about not having played before – we have the coaching staff to teach the basics to any player. Jimmy Murphy is the Youth’s Co-ordinator and can be contacted at 086 2555621.

Minis (U6-U12)

Our future Leinster and Ireland stars train every Sunday at 10.30 am. New players are very welcome, we have a comprehensive team of trained coaches. Just remember to bring a gum shield and a bottle of water along with your training gear. Two new innovations for the coming season are that we have a new state of the art 4G training area, which are suitable for contact sports along with Girls Training from U8-U12.

Padraig Murphy is the Mini’s Co-ordinator and can be contacted at 086 2526741 or prgm@me.com

Please make sure to have membership paid in order to take part in games and make sure that your details are on the text list.

Club News

Trip to the Aviva Stadium to watch Leinster

Over 200 of our Mini/Youth players travelled to the Aviva stadium on Saturday to see Leinster beat Munster 27-10 in a great match.  The buses pulled out of Longford RFC and did not get back until after 10 PM.  There were a lot of tired players who had played matches earlier in the day before traveling to watch the Boys in Blue.  The general reaction was that it was a brilliant day out and great to see our club travelling in such numbers.  No doubt many of our players were dreaming of some day pulling on the famous blue jersey.  Well done to Mini Coordinator Padraig Murphy on organising such a great trip.

There will be more similar trips over the season for our players.  It is still not too late to join in all the fun from U6-U18. 

Social Dancing at Longford RFC

Did you know that social dancing takes place every Wednesday evening from 10 PM – 12 PM?  We have one of the newest and best clubhouses in the country, along with great music and a great crowd.  Admission is €10 including refreshments with all funds raised going directly to the club.

Upcoming lineup;

10/10/18 Brendan Lee & his band.

17/10/18 Colm Burke

24/10/18 Carmel McLoughlin

Christmas Gifts from Longford RFC
It is getting towards that time of year where you might be considering what to get your friends and family for Christmas. Did you know we have 24/7 online shop through our partners Uniformity.ie where you can purchase Longford RFC Jerseys, Hoodies, Jackets and more, all by Canterbury. Why not consider Longford RFC Canterbury Gear as a gift this Christmas? The general turn around is up 14 days from order, so make sure to order early!  You can log out to our shop via the shop link on our website www.longfordrugby.com or the this direct link https://goo.gl/5MH8eE

The Mini/Youths Boot Room

The innovative boot room allows Mini/Youths players to swap boots as they grow. There are a number of high quality boots already donated. If you are looking for boots or have boots to donate contact Gerry Carthy or Padraig Murphy.

Great Food/Events at Longford RFC

The Sin Bin at Longford RFC serves great quality and value food on Wednesday, Thursday, Friday from 12-3 and 12-7 on Saturday and Sunday. Booking for events such as birthdays, christening, confirmations, communions, weddings and funerals are available.

Kris is now taking booking for the Sin Bins ever popular Christmas parties.

The Sin Bin also shows all Irish rugby/Leinster/Munster matches live.

For bookings and information phone Kris on 0872872357.

4G All Weather Pitch Rental

Our state of the art floodlight Mel Diffley 4G pitch is available for rental.  It contains shock absorption so that players can play contact sports/fall over without hurting themselves.  It is also perfect for 5 a side soccer.  If you would like to book it phone Damian on 0862757103.

Membership

Membership is not due at all levels of the club from Minis to Senior. It is a vital source of revenue to help pay for our great facilities. Matt Hanley is collecting Senior Membership while Padraig Murphy is collecting Youths Membership.

Due to new GDPR regulations, all members including life members need to fill in consent forms.

They can be downloaded from the website.

Longford U7/U8 Squad who played in Mullingar