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Hi there,

Does anyone know of a bar close to Las Americas (south of Tenerife) where I could catch the matches this weekend and next?

Thanks,
Lorcan

Hi there,

Does anyone know of a bar close to Las Americas (south of Tenerife) where I could catch the matches this weekend and next?

Thanks,
Lorcan

2010 IBERIAN CHAMPIONSHIP FINALS

Barcelona Gaels played host to the fifth and final round of the 2010 Iberian Gaelic Football Championships on Saturday 19th June, following the earlier rounds in Valencia, Marbella, Madrid & Pamplona.

Madrid Harps Ladies had already wrapped up the title a fortnight previously in Pamplona, but all was to play for in the men's event, with Barcelona just 1 point ahead of both Valencia and Madrid at the start of the day – it really was winner-takes-all!

MEN

A perfect pitch, 25º heat and some light cloud meant that everything was set for a great day's football. In addition to the three Iberian teams, and in the absence of Pamplona, 23 hardy souls made the trip down from Toulouse and Lyon, although the results against the French teams were not to be taken into account for the business-end of the day.

Madrid Harps struck the first blow, defeating Valencia Sant Vicent in a game they managed to control quite convincingly. The madrileños had travelled with a full squad, whilst the men from the Levante had only 2 substitutes to get them through the day – given the heat, this was probably no small factor. Madrid, despite seeing a penalty saved, eventually ran out winners by 4 points (2-07 to 0-09)

Barcelona-Valencia was next on the cards, with Valencia needing a win to have any chance of reaching the final on aggregate score difference. Barcelona's forwards ran riot however, and the game was practically over as a contest in the first half, although the men from Valencia kept plugging away to the end, to no avail. Final score 3-07 to 1-02.

Given these results the group game between title-holders Barcelona & Madrid was a bit of a damp squib, both teams choosing to make sure all squad-members got a run-out, testing tactics and looking for a chink in their opponent's armour, with a draw the final result (0-04 each)

The final was to be a different matter, with both teams almost at full strength, although Madrid had lost their main free-taker to a hamstring injury during an earlier clash. Barcelona got off to a flying start, racking up a 3 point lead in the first minutes, as some erratic goal-kicks, loose defending and inconsistent refereeing had Madrid nerves on edge.

At this point a lightning break down the pitch led to an excellently taken goal from the Madrid lads, and morale was quickly restored. Towards the end of the half an excellent save from the Madrid goalkeeper, combined with several missed chance for the Gaels, meant that at half-time the teams were still level (1-00 to 0-03). The 2010 Championship would go right down to the wire - everything was to be decided on 15 minutes of football...

The second half saw Madrid snatch the lead, notching another goal and several points, whilst Barcelona's forwards were well marshalled by the Harps' defence. Barcelona did have their chances however, erring with several efforts for points, and almost breaking the crossbar with a thunderous 20m free. A goalmouth scramble could also have yielded a green flag for the Gaels, but the Harps' last line of defence just about held out. Another few points were added, for a 6-point win for Madrid Harps on a final scoreline of 2-04 to 0-04.

Toulouse and Lyon, with a heavy contingent of non-Irish players, contested games throughout the day against all of the Iberian teams, and also played a match between themselves - although the rumoured Spain-France international failed to materialise! Both teams demonstrated that there is plenty of talent north of the Pyrenees, and if recently-formed Toulouse can recruit all those Irish Airbus workers, they will be a force to be reckoned with in the future.

With this result, Madrid Harps proclaimed themselves worthy winners of the 2010 Men's Championship, with 2 tournament wins, 2 runner-up spots – and 3rd place in their home tournament! One of the most curious aspects of this year's competition is that no team has managed to win their home event - perhaps the pressures of organising these increasingly complicated competitions distracts teams from the job in hand on the day on the pitch?

Congratulations, on an individual level, to Donal Keaney (St. Peter's Warrenpoint) , named tournament MVP, and to Sergio Canive, who signed off from his Harps career with a massive performance throughout the day.

The competitive nature of the Regional Championship is clearly shown by the fact that no team has ever managed to retain the title - Madrid now move to the top of the honours list with 3 titles (2010, 2008, 2005), to Barcelona's 2 (2009, 2007) and Marbella's 1 (2006).

Curiously, had Barcelona finished 2nd in Pamplona, rather than 3rd, a tie would have occurred, with both Madrid & Barcelona teams on 106 points... no-one is quite sure what the criteria are for resolving this situation, so it's an issue to be looked at in time for the 2011 edition of the European Rules!

A special mention must be given to the other participating teams this year – Pamplona, newly-formed Seville, and the reborn Marbella Costa Gaels – for the effort invested in organising tournaments and travelling consistently.


LADIES

A fantastic day's football was also had in the Ladies Tournament, where Barcelona, Valencia and Madrid were chasing the silverware on offer to the tournament's winners, with Madrid's "Harpettes" having already assured the overall Championship title with victory in the previous round Pamplona. Madrid, despite losing key players to injuries & holidays, managed to field 5 players and (with some reinforcements from Valencia) made in through to the final, where Barcelona's greater hunger eventually saw them triumph by 4 points (2-08 to 0-10).


Roll on Europe, and the 2011 Championship 


FULL RESULTS

Men
Barcelona   1-06   1-03   Toulouse
Madrid   2-07   0-09   Valencia
Barcelona   3-07   1-02   Valencia
Madrid   0-05   3-05   Toulouse
Valencia   2-03   3-03   Toulouse
Barcelona   0-04   0-04   Madrid

Men's Final
Barcelona   0-04   2-04   Madrid


Ladies
Barcelona   1-06   1-04   Madrid
Madrid   2-08   0-04   Valencia
Barcelona   1-13   1-05   Valencia

Ladies Final
Barcelona   2-08   0-10   Madrid


For further information contact:

************************
Madrid Harps GAC
www.madridgaa.com
MadridHarps@gmail.com

Contact:

Itziar     +34-687-735-074
Evan     +34-645-164-913
************************

I'm currently trying to navigate the muddy waters of the GAA's disciplinary system for the first time, and was wondering if anyone can clarify the following:

• Is there a time limit on the receipt of the referee's report after a game, i.e. should a County Board receive the report no more than X days after the event?
• Should participating clubs recieve a copy of said report after a game (especially if yellow / red cards were shown), and within what timeframe?
• Is there a time limit on the communication of a proposed disciplinary sanction to a club/player, i.e. should a sanction be communicated no more than X days after the event?

I have skimmed through the Offical Guide and can't make head nor tail of it, so unless anyone can help, we'll just have to call in the lawyers! 

Seriously though, this involves a game at European level, and we're not sure what the situation is, have yet to recieve any word from the County Board (17 days after the events "alleged" to have taken place), and want to know our options

Thanks in advance,
Lorcs

Folks, will be in NYC between 16/04/08 and 20/04/08

What sports events (baseball, gridiron, basketball, ice kockey, etc.) can I get to see at that time of the year, if any?

Are setanta showing no live games this weekend? on their website all I can is the following...

SAT 28th

1830 – All-Ireland Hurling Quarter-final: Wexford vs. Tipperary
2000 – All-Ireland Hurling Quarter-final: Kilkenny vs. Galway

SUN 29th

2030 – All-Ireland Hurling Quarter-final: Cork vs. Waterford

... whilst they seem to have "Live action from the British Touring Car Championship" and soccer friendlies ("Live action from the Murrayfield Stadium as Hearts take on the superstars of Barcelona") when I was expecting live hurling!

¿WTF?


http://www.setanta.com/content/setanta/uk/cms.nsf/systemcontent/tvschedule?open&action=channel2&

Folks, what TV channel do the pubs in Europe tune into to get the matches vía Setanta?

I think it used to be Setanta GB Sports Channel 2, but on their schedules I can't find any mention of GAA action for this weekend (http://gb.setanta.com/portal/systemcontent/tvschedule?open&regiontv=gb&channel=setantasports1gb&dateadjust=2).

I've checked Sports Ireland / Sports 1 / Sports 2 for all 3 regions (IRL / NIRL / GB) and can't find anything...

Somebody around here works for Setanta, but I can't remeber who... any ideas?

GAA.ie has AIH on 02/09 and AIF on 16/09...

I had thought the finals were going back to the 2nd and 4th Sundays this year, once the Ryder Cup was out of the way. Can anyone clarify this?

Thanks

A chara,

Madrid Harps GAC is planning ahead for the 2007 European season, and seeks challenge matches from any visiting clubs, particularly in the period between February and April.

With that in mind, I would like to extend an open invitation to GAA Board members from clubs that might be interested in a few days of fun and football in one of the most exciting and beautiful cities in Europe to contact us via the details below.

Please note that we have mens and ladies football teams, but no hurling or camogie!!

Gracias
Lorcan Kennedy

**********************
Madrid Harps GAC
www.madridgaa.com
Harps@MadridGAA.com

Contact:

Lorcan   +34-699-492-334
Evan   +34-645-164-913
**********************