As we all gathered in the early mornig frost and fog at the team hotel,little did we know what drama the day held in store for us.
The flights had arrived and landed, we came by planes,trains and automobiles to embark on our first ever trip abroad ( even though we were going home ) and play in the European shield competition.An early night was had by most people who arrived on the Friday and even though some of us went to the dogs ( literally )we were all in pensive mood .
With the jerseys handed out and the team decided upon with strategies planned out,we made our wayto the University of Limerick complex and the fun began immediately.No-one knew who was playing where but eventually we found our pitch and gathered in a huddle to begin our conquest for the European shield.
Team ..Micil " Packie Bonner " Lennon , Paul " Roundie " Delahunty,Billy"Kid " Finn , Ian " Mike Tyson " McLoughlin , Shane " Ole Gunnar" Edgeworth , Adrian " the Engine " Kelly,Adrian " the Powerhouse " Keogh , Moses " Escobar " Rodriguez , Owen " Joe O Reilly " Finn , Eoin " the Vegan volcano " O Bhriain , Declan " the Stretcher " Redmond.,Niall " Maradonna " O Connor ...
Game 1 .... Gothenburg vs Belgium B
With the draw made from the night before, we knew our first opponents would be Belgium B.A good side on reputation,it turned out that they had most of their A team playing with the B team,a fact we found out after the fact.Anyhow,this was our first outing against this side who,as it turned out,won the overall shield tournament.Anyhow,we started as we meant to go on with the match starting in freezing foggy conditions at the ungodly hour of 09:30am.With our stall set out,we took an early lead through a point from Adrian Kelly,but Belgium replied in kind with a point of their own.This was always going to be a tight nervy affair but had Gothenburg made the most of their oppurtunities ,the story may have been different.With roving runs from Shane and Ian from the half-back line,ably supported by the two Adrians,Niall and Owen Finn and Eoin , we put the Belgium backs under pressure and we suitably went in at the break all square at 0-1 a piece.
The 2nd half resumed with both teams struggling to get a foothold but a series of wides for Gothenburg proved costly in the end as Belgium stormed upfield and took the lead.Billy " what was i doing up there " replied with a point and with a minute to go,it looked like the spoils were set to be shared.However, a speculative ball into the Gothenburg backline turned into a simple tap-over point for the Belgians and this proved a pivotal winning score for the Belgians despite valiant attempts to level matters by Adrian Keogh and Niall.
So our first match had ended in a loss but despite this being our first time all playing together,we showed that we can mix it with the best and with a little bit more composure,we could have recorded our first win of the day... but it was 'nt meant to be..
Final Score :Gothenburg 0-2 Belgium B - 0-3
Game 2.... Gothenburg vs Copenhagen
With Moises 's media commitments done with TG4 ( they only picked him because he had tanned legs ) , we regrouped and limbered up for our next match - another installment of our friendly rivalry with our Nordic neighbours,Copenhagen.Copenhagen had beaten us in every game this year in the Scandinavian championship and we were not going to have that case again.With the legs loosened, the mind and body prepared for a 20 minute tussle,we started the game with a great attitude and work rate.The two Adrians knocked over a few scores to settle the nerves and with the young buckos Shane and Ian commanding the half-back line,Copenhagen 's much vaunted full-forward line were nt getting a sniff.Roundy was holding his own, Moses was doing his soccer thing and Owen kept getting harsh treatment from the Copenhagen backs.Some lovely inter-play with the Gothenburg forwards resulted in a point for Adrian Keogh and Gothenburg went into the break 0-3 to 0-1 ahead.
As always,everybody gets to say their piece at half-time and the general consensus was we were not going to give this one away this time.With the fire in the bellies burning brightly,we pushed on again and took some early points to settle the team.Our short hand-passing game was suited to the playing surface and we opened up a four point lead with points from Adrian Keogh and Ian McLoughlin ( the two powerhouses of the team ).Copenhagen replied in kind with two points of their own but the matter was settled when a speculative ( he said he meant it ) lob by Niall O Connor found its way to the back of the Copenhagen net to give us an unassailable five point lead.Copenhagen effectively threw the kitchen sink at us and got two points but the Gothenburg defense held firm and Gothenburg registered their first win of the 2011 Shield championship.
Final score... Gothenburg 1-6 Copenhagen 0-6
Game 3 ..... Gothenburg vs Niort Gaels
And so,we entered our final group phase game with a good win under our belts and full of optimism for progression from our group.We had heard that Niort had been the whipping boys of the group thus far and we started off the game brightly with a couple of quick points from Adrian Keogh,Adrian Kelly and Ian McLoughlin.Our baby-faced assassin Shane got in on the act as well with a fine point from the half-back line.Five minutes in though,an incident happened that left an impact on the team for the rest of the day as well as a lasting impact on one of our team.Declan Redmond went down to pick up a ball around the square but as he did so,their French Canadian goalkeeper ( whose reputation we found out later was being a hard-man) tacked Declan with his two knees right into Declan 's side.Although not aware of the seriousness of the injurt until much later ,Declan could not carry on and was substituted.The game continued and with the win assured ,Gothenburg cut loose with Moses scoring a fine goal after a gift pass from Owen; Shane and Ian contributed with more mesmeric scores from defense.
After the match,with Declan in serious discomfort now,the medics were called and with them not being satisfied with his condition ,he was transferred to Limerick regional hospital where the full extent of his injuries became apparent throughout the evening.He was left with a fractured rib,partially collapsed lung and internal bleeding in the lung area.Those who visited him over the Saturday and Sunday got a serious shock as to his condition.Thankfully Declan is finally back in Sweden and is recovering slowly but surely.
Final score - Gothenburg 2-9 Niort 0-1
Game 4.... Quarter final Gothenburg vs Zurich St Gallen
With the group stages over ,our thoughts and efforts now switched to our quarter-final berth against the Swiss,Zurich St.Gallen.The team felt good and everyone had contributed in getting the team to this stage.As we met in the huddle,we promised to leave everything on the pitch and give it everything.Which is what each and every one of us did.From the off,we knew we were in a battle.Zurich were starting with the niggly stuff and after some uncompromising tackles on Ian,Adrian and Kelly, it was time to man up to these bolloxes.Afer their full-forward line drew some kicks on Paul and Billy, it was gloves off time and let 's get it on.All the time, the tight niggly affair was all square with 2 points apiece.However, late in the first half with Zurich bearing down on the Gothenburg goal , Ian did what was termed as a professional foul; a beautiful " Peter Stringer " hand trip.Well,it all kicked off with Ian doing his best ultimate fighter impression by throwing and punching anyone player in green in his vicinity.After the melee had calmed down,Ian received a very harsh straight red ( the second Limerick man to be sent off in a European shield tournament ).
Now it was all hands on deck as we went a point down at the break.With fire in our bellies and a belligerent crowd on the sidelines, we fought back to level matters with a great point from Eoin o Bhriain.However, the extra man they posessed turned out to be crucial as they always had the overlap and they scored the crucial goal with about four minutes to go.With the game almost gone,Gothenburg tried desperately to find a goal in reply with valiant attempts from Adrian and Niall and Owen.We could nt break them down and Zurich eventually wrapped up the game with two more points.
Final score .... Gothenburg 0-4 Zurich St.Gallen 1-4
All in all, it was a great tournament apart from Declan 's injury.The night out in Limerick turned into a right party with Eoin O Bhriain sampling the local Limerick delights at every oppurtunity with most people being seriously but deservedly inebriated after a long and tough day.A huge thanks to everybody for making the effort to be there... its a big sacrifice.!!
Lastly a big shout out to Gothenburg ladies Catherine ,Mia and Delia who played with the combination team Gothenburg/Niort/Copenhagen on the day.The girls said they had a great time throughout the day and now the hunger for more European games and tournaments is there..
Here 's looking forward to the start of next year's championship with Oslo in mid-may being our first port of call..( dates and venues to be decided in January )
Well done again and Gothenburg GAA abu !!!!!!
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