Rollercoaster ride for Kestrels in All-Ireland Club Championships

IT was a rollercoaster ride for Kestrels’ Under 16 Boys team in last weekend’s AIG All-Ireland Club Championships in Gormanston Park, the Portarlington side winning two and losing two in Group Six before being eventually despatched from the Division B quarter-finals by Dundalk Ravens.

Kestrels opened up their campaign with a thriller against Fr. Mathew’s, narrowly losing out to their Cork rivals 44-38 on Saturday morning.

Only two points separated the sides at the half-time break, but Fr. Mathew’s extended that lead to nine by the close of the third.

Kestrels battled hard in the fourth, but could recoup only three points, two players finishing in double figures for the Laois outfit as Darragh and Eoghan O’Loughlin combined for 30 points.

But even that was not enough to reel in their opponents, whose cause was fuelled largely by the game-high 21 points that Pablo O’Regan served up.

Kestrels, nevertheless, got off the mark in their next outing, producing a big fourth-quarter surge that saw them turn a two-point deficit into a 48-41 victory over South Tipp Titans.

Darragh O’Loughlin again emerged their top scorer on 19 points, while Edward Skorzepa and Eoghan O’Loughlin each weighed in with 13 to help counter the 29 points that Patrick O’Keeffe and Liam Kelly totalled for Titans.

They were, however, unable to build on that in their next game against St. Mary’s Castleisland, losing out 74-32 to their Kerry rivals, who were led on offence by Cian Cahill (17 points), Padraigh O’Sullivan (12) and Jamie Nolan (12).

Brian Chinda and Tristan Gallagher did serve up 25 points between them, but it was not enough to really trouble St. Mary’s, who effectively won this game with big first and third-quarter runs.

Still, Kestrels managed to end their Group Six campaign with a comprehensive 67-6 triumph over Boru Blazers on Saturday night.

Darragh O’Loughlin was unstoppable in that game, amassing 29 points, while Eoghan O’Loughlin weighed in with a further 15 to help propel their side well out sight and set up a Division B quarter-final clash with Dundalk Ravens on Sunday morning.

That, however, was as far as they would make it in the competition, a 49-32 defeat to Dundalk bringing the curtain down on their campaign.

John Ogobamidele proved a real thorn in the side of the Kestrels defence, as he carded a game-high 17 points, while Llija Stevanic chipped in with an additional 11 to see the Louth side make it past their Laois rivals, for whom Darragh O’Loughlin still chalked up 13 points.

KESTRELS: Jamie Moore, Brian Chinda, Daniel Chinda, Darragh O’Loughlin, Eoghan O’Loughlin, Jakub Paruch, Tristan Gallagher, Edward Skorzepa.