The club's 10th year in existence has been a good one. Write ups on some of the games are below, award winners from the dinner dance presentations are also shown below.

League

We have won six of our eight league games, and if we can win our remaining two games we stand a good chance of winnin the league and gaining promotion to the Intermediate division. The two remaining games are against O'Rahilly's from Corby in Corby, and MacDermotts from Birmingham in Rugby. See the fixtures page for details.

Another victory in the league against O'Rahilly's in Corby ensured our fate is in our own hands with the last game against McDermotts a must win.

On Saturday 25th Oct, The Gaels defeated McDermotts at Broughton Rd in Rugby to clinch the Junior league title and secure promotion to the intermediate league for next season. In a hard fought battle, The Gaels made the early running, with points from Mick Tracey and a free from Kevin Wynne. Leigh Colledge had to go off after 10 mins due to a cut above his eye, and Wayne Cavanagh replaced him in the half forward line. McDermotts got a couple of points on the board when Wayne popped up with a goal to give The Gaels a bit of breathing space, but McDermotts kept coming at us keeping the pressure on. Points from McGreevy and Ray Wynne kept McDermotts at arms length. At half time we were 1:05 to 0:04 up, and knew the second half would be a battle. We were proved right as McDermotts dominated for a 10 min period, and with just the goal seperating the two teams the defence put everything on the line, preventing several possible goal opportunties. But as McDermotts pushed to draw level, The Gaels countered to take advantage of the gaps in the McDermotts defence. The defence breaking out created chances resulting in goals for Kevin Wynne and a second for Wayne Cavanagh. The second goal seemed to knock the stuffing out of the McDermotts players, but they refused to give in and fought tooth and nail to the end. When referee Paul McGrath blew the final whistle The Gaels were victors 3:08 to 0:08.

Erin go Bragh (_:__) V Rugby Gaels (_:__)   W                                                                                     

Rugby Gaels (_:__) V Sons Of Erin (_:__)   W

St Chads (_:__) V Rugby Gaels (_:__)   W

Mac Dermotts (_:__) V Rugby Gaels (_:__)   L 

Rugby Gaels (_:__) V O'Rahilly's (_:__)   W

Sos Of Erin (_:__) V Rugby Gaels (_:__)   W

Rugby Gaels (_:__) V Erin go Bragh (_:__)   W 

Rugby Gaels (_:__) V St Chads (_:__)   L

O'Rahilly's (1:04) V Rugby Gaels (1:15)   W

Rugby Gaels (3:08) V Mac Dermotts (0:08)   W - League Champions!! 

Championship

Unfortunately we had a bad day out against Sons of Erin in Northampton in the first round of the Junior Championship, we lost the game by two points. We could have won had we taken our chances but it wasn't to be.

JFK Cup

In the JFK cup we won the first round match against Erin go Bragh in a hard fought battle against the very young team from Erdington who pushed us hard, and showed that the Birmingham club has a good future. Gaels will now play Sons of Erin from Northampton in the Semi-Final of the cup at Pairc Na hEireann. A chance to avenge the championship defeat and keep the hope for silverware alive.

Unfortunately The Gaels were unlucky against Sons of Erin in the Semi final of the JFK Cup on Sunday 28/09/08. The match was closely fought, with Sons of Erin making all the running at the start, going ahead by a couple of points. Gaels soon got into their stride and pegged back a point, and Leigh Colledge popped up in the right place at the right time again with a goal. Kevin Wynne scored a couple of frees, and Steve Peugh and Paul Armstrong had their hands full in the middle of the field winning their fair share, while the defence did their best to contain the useful forwards from Sons of Erin, with Mark Nailor doing a great job at Full Back. The second half was much the same as the first, closely fought battles all over the field. Sons of Erin pulled a few points in front, mostly through frees due to sloppy tackling, and Gaels did their best to repel the attack, with Mark Trainor soldiering on even though he couldn't kick the ball as his ankle had gone after 10 mins. Gaels fought back and created a few chances, but as has been the case this season, a few went begging and we lived to regret them as we lost out by one point in the end.

Erin go Bragh (0:07) V Rugby Gaels (0:08)   W

SF: Rugby Gaels (1:08) V Sons of Erin (0:12)   L 

The Club Dinner Dance

The club dinner held on the 25th Oct at the Grovesner hotel was a great success. Below are the award winners from the presentations.