Boyle Badminton Club

Connaught Closed A - Report

2012-01-26T21:39:00.008Z

On Saturday 21st January 2012 Boyle Badminton Club played host to the Connaught Closed Grade A Junior Badminton Championships. We had a large entry of 40 players from Galway, Sligo, Mayo and Roscommon with a very high standard for each event.

The day started at 10am with the Mens and Ladies Singles which were both knockout events . There were 13 players competing in the Mens Singles event and following some excellent contests two Sligo players faced off in the final where Jonathan Dolan met Daniel Keown with Jonathan coming out on top. The Ladies Singles had a smaller entry of just 5 players but again produced some very exciting bouts. The final was played between Helen Sheehan of Galway and Paula McDonagh of Sligo and on this occasion Paula emerged with victory.

With the days play running to schedule the Doubles events started on court by 12. The Mens competition featured 12 pairings while the Ladies competition had just 8 teams. Both of these events were run on a Round Robin basis and after some very entertaining matches the top two pairs from each of the four draws in Mens Doubles went forward to play quarter finals while the top two from both Ladies draws met to play Semi Finals. There were some very hard fought games and eventually there was to be an all Sligo Mens Doubles Final but unfortunately one of the players was unable to continue so the title went by forfeit to Graeme Watt & Fintan Keown.

The Ladies Final was played between Susan Gilmore & Helen Sheehan of Galway facing Paula McDonagh & Victoria Stevens of Sligo and while both pairings were evenly matched the Sligo girls won the match in two convincing sets.

The Mixed Doubles event featured 16 pairs in four groups and was played as a Round Robin competition. The top pair from each group went forward to play semi-finals and so Jonathan Dolan & Francie Mahon from Sligo, having enjoyed a relatively trouble free competition to this point, faced John Kiernan & Ruth O Hart from Boyle. The second semi-final was an all-Sligo affair featuring Graeme Watt & Paula McDonagh facing Joseph Keown & Rebecca McGillen. Both Semi-Finals were very close matches but eventually the Final pairings were decided. Jonathan & Francie faced Joseph & Rebecca and on this occasion Jonathan & Francie emerged with the honours.
Boyle Badminton Club wish to thank all of those who helped to make the event such a success. Firstly the team that came in to the Sports Complex on Friday night which included Padraic O Dowd, Paul Dolan, Derek Nolan, Sean Diffley, Jimmy McDermott, Anthony McKeon, Padraig Sheridan, Tony Weir, Robert Weir, Gabriel Regan, Gerry Casey, Neil Cox and Niall Roche . We received many comments from players complimenting how well the venue looked and for this a massive thank you must go to Tony & Robert who supplied the Yonex mats and came down from Dublin to help us put them together.

On the day we had a lot of help in the office and in the shop so thank you very much to Anthony for organisng the shop and for the volunteers who came in to look after it particularly Martina Clohessy and her two girls and Niall Brennan who stayed for much of the afternoon. Thanks to Sean Diffley who stayed all day and in particular made sure the courts had new shuttles for each and every match and also thank you to Sean for lending his computer and printer for the day. Una McDermott came in and stayed for the whole day monitoring “Next Available Courts” and helping to keep every court occupied, the competition could not have run to schedule without this invaluable help. Thank you also to Seamus Ryan and Sean O’Dowd who were on hand with their cameras to document the day’s events.

A special note of thanks to Paul Dolan from Sligo as he was with us on Friday night and stayed late again on Saturday after the competition to help take up the mats and generally tidy up after the event.

A competition like this takes a lot of hard work, effort and preparation and it couldn’t be done without so many available to lend a hand. We are very lucky in Boyle that we have so many people we can call on to help put these events together. THANK YOU to each and every one who helped us in any way.

Photographs taken by Sean O'Dowd, www.realboyle.com

Juvenile Singles Blitz - Boyle Sunday 5th February

2012-01-25T20:30:00.002Z

The next Roscommon Juvenile Blitz is scheduled for Sunday 5th of February in Boyle BC at 2pm. This will be a Singles Blitz and the first to be held in Boyle BC, so all support will be greatly appreciated.

All players to be entered under their appropriate grade. Winners of previous competitions will be moved up a grade. Entry fee = €2

Closing Date for Entries: All players to be entered to Paul Lynch on paul@rsireland.com before 6pm on Friday 2nd of February.

Should you require any further information please contact Tom Cox at 086 6027120 or Bernie Lavin at 086 3754797.

Connaught Closed B Championships

2012-01-24T09:51:00.003Z

The 2012 Connaught Closed Grade B event is being held in Galway Lawn Tennis Club on Saturday 4th of February 2012. This event is open to all players from Grades 6 - Grade 9.

Entry forms will be available on club nights or contact me at boylebadminton@gmail.com and I can send them on. Should you require any further information please contact Sarah Caulfield, Galway Badminton Secretary on gcba@irishbadminton.com

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The 2012 Connaught Closed Grade A which was held in Boyle on Saturday last, 21st January, was a fantastic event and was extremely well attended. A full report with photographs will follow very shortly. In the meantime a huge THANK YOU to all of those who came in to help on the day, it was because of all the help we received that it ran without a hitch.

Thanks again

Liz

Connaught Closed A Championships

2012-01-10T13:09:00.003Z

The 2012 Connaught Closed A Championships are being held in Boyle on Saturday 21st January 2012. While this event includes participants from Grades 1 to 6 it is open to all players from all grades who are affiliated with Badminton Ireland.

The Singles event for both Men and Women will commence at 10am, the Doubles will then start at 12.30 and finally the Mixed Doubles at 4pm. All finals will be played at approximately 7pm. It is hoped this event will attract players from all over the province.

Entry can be made by emailing boylebadminton@gmail.com or by contacting me, Liz, on 086 3737468 on or before Wednesday 18th January 2012.

Happy New Year 2012

2011-12-31T18:47:00.004Z

Happy New Year to one and all, I hope 2012 is a good one for you all!

Badminton Club Nights will resume on Thursday 5th January 2012 at 9pm.

End of Year...

2011-12-15T22:31:00.002Z

The last club night of 2011 is Monday 19th December so to finish on a festive note we will be having a mince pie and a cuppa. It would be lovely to see as many members as possible coming in for a final bash and a catch-up before Christmas.

Membership for the season needs to be paid by next Monday, this covers each players insurance through Badminton Ireland as well as affiliation to play in all league competition during the season.

Connaught Closed Grade C - Div 5, 6, 7

2011-11-29T12:39:00.002Z

The Connaught Closed for Grade C is taking place on Saturday 10th December 2011 in Castlebar. Competition is open to all players graded in Division 5, 6 or 7 (new Grade 8, 9 and 10). Singles will commence at 10am, Doubles at 12.30 and Mixed Doubles at 4pm. Entry fee is €8 per player per event or €20 to play in all three events.

Closing date for receipt of entries is Wednesday 7th December, entry forms are available at www.connacht.irishbadminton.com and must be returned to Therese O Brien, 12 Watersville, Pontoon Road, Castlebar, Co Mayo. Contact number is 087 2427987 or by email to thereseobrien@eircom.net

Badminton Exhibition - Castlebar Fri Dec 2nd

2011-11-26T10:50:00.005Z

The poster is difficult to read but the information is as follows:

A Badminton Exhibition Match featuring some of Ireland’s top players will take place on

· Friday 2nd December in De La Salle hall Castlebar,7:30-9pm.

The players on court on the night will include:

Mayo’s No 1 and Ireland’s No 4 ranked Doubles player
David Walsh.

Former World ranked No 6 Singles player Richard Vaughan

Irish team player Leinster’s Will O Neill

Ireland No 1 doubles player Daniel Magee

This is a rare chance to see top class Badminton in County Mayo so come along and support.

Admission for exhibition matches is just 5 Euro, play will start at 7:30 and finish at nine.

There will be singles and doubles matches on the night.

Congratulations Anthony & Claire

2011-11-10T13:51:00.003Z

We are delighted to send our warmest CONGRATULATIONS to Anthony, our treasurer, and his partner Claire on the arrival this morning of their little girl.

Welcome Baby Aimee!

Roscommon Closed Competition - November 27th

2011-11-08T09:30:00.002Z

This years Roscommon Closed Competition will take place in our own sports complex in Boyle on Sunday 27th November. It is open to all players registered with Roscommon clubs in all divisions.

Entry forms will be available on club nights or contact me by email and I will be happy to send a form on.

While the Roscommon Badminton Association will look after running the competition we will need volunteers to help run the refreshments and shop for the day so if any members think they can help out for even an hour or two on the day please contact me by email or phone mobile
086 3737468.

Thank you

Liz

boylebadminton@gmail.com

Request from Coola

2011-10-19T13:08:00.001+01:00

I received an email from Robert in Coola looking for a couple of extra male players to join them on their club nights, Wednesdays or Fridays.

If there is anyone in the club who might not be too far from the Riverstown area and who would be interested in an extra night of badminton please contact me and I will put you in touch with Robert.

Thanks

Liz

boylebadminton@gmail.com

Update...

2011-10-19T13:03:00.003+01:00

We're back well over a month now and the club is going really well again this year so far. It is very encouraging to see so many new faces in and enjoying badminton. Padraic has continued some light training with anyone who wants to avail of it and it seems to be going down very well.

We started off the competition season just last night with a Division 6 game against Skreen in Sligo and although we were a couple of team members down we still managed a 3-3 draw. It was a very enjoyable and sociable match and got us off to a good start.

Club nights continue on Mondays from 9.30 til 11.30 and Thursdays from 9 til 11pm. We are always delighted to welcome new players so if there is anyone who has been thinking about taking up a sport for the Winter come in and give badminton a try in Boyle.

Back for 2011/2012

2011-09-16T09:27:00.002+01:00

First week back and we've had two great nights. There was a lovely atmosphere on both Monday and Thursday evening with everyone keen to have a chat, catch up and what else?? ..... oh yeah play a game or two of badminton!

We were delighted to welcome some new faces and Padraic gave anyone who was interested some coaching time for a little while each night.

It gave everyone a great start and I think we're all looking forward to the season ahead.

Good to be back!

Roscommon Badminton Association AGM

2011-09-11T20:20:00.002+01:00

The Roscommon Badminton Association held their AGM on Wednesday night last in the Abbey Hotel, Roscommon. It was very well attended by all clubs in the association. There were no alterations to the core committee who are: Donal Mee, Chairperson; Paul Lynch, Secretary & PRO; Liam Kelly, Treasurer; Tom Cox, League Secretary. The Connaught Delegates are Sean Staunton, Paul Lynch and Corrinna Delaney.

The meeting was attended by Tommy Hehir who is our Badminton Ireland representative as there is a change to the grading structure from this season forward. All players will be graded from Grade 1 to Grade 10. Grade 1 is the level of Ireland's No.1 Scott Evans and Grade 10 would be a beginners grade with everyone else falling in between. The new grading will be submitted and finalised by Badminton Ireland prior to the start of this years league competitions so hopefully by mid October.

Another issue which caused some debate at the meeting was the issue of shuttles, feather vs plastic. The outcome of this discussion was that should a team wish to play with feather shuttles in a match against a team who normally use plastic shuttles, as long as they provide the feather shuttles then the feather will take preference.

All clubs are anxious to get back and get started and the teams participating in the various league competitions are keen to see them getting underway earlier than they have in the past so it was agreed to try to implement a tighter schedule this year.

New Season to start...

2011-08-19T22:02:00.002+01:00

Club play will recommence on Monday 12th September 2011 at 9.30pm. Club nights are Mondays from 9.30-11.30pm and Thursdays from 9-11pm.

As always we would be delighted to see some new faces giving badminton a go so we are setting aside the first hour of each night in September to help, encourage and give advice to anyone who is new to the club. It would be great if as many of our experienced members as possible were on hand to help. Coaching and training is always available to anyone who wishes to avail of it.

We look forward to seeing everyone back in the complex on Monday 12th and hope to welcome some new members too.

Div 1 Mens Doubles Invitational - Report

2011-07-13T11:23:00.007+01:00

"..best tournament ever.. really well organised.."

"Wonderful hospitality"

"thoroughly enjoyable evening of badminton"

These were just some of the comments we received following our very sucessful competition in Boyle on Saturday 9th July.

Along with our own Boyle players, we had players who had travelled from Killeshandra, Galway, Cortoon, Sligo and Meath.

There were eight teams split in to two groups who played a round robin format in each, the top two pairings from each group then played in the Semi-Final and on to the Final.

In the first semi-final Padraic O Dowd and John Kiernan from our own club in Boyle met Liam Hyland and Ovidius from Oranmore in Galway and through a very tight match the visitors qualified for the final. In the second semi Sligo's Brian McGowan and Cortoon's Jonathan Clarke who had paired up for the competition came up against Paul Ennis and Matthew Duffy from Meath and this was another very close encounter however the lads from Meath just edged away to qualify for the Final.

So it was a Galway vs Meath Final and it proved to be a very exciting match as both sides fought hard to take the title however the Meath pair always seemed to be in control and proved worthy of their ultimate victory.

To put a competition such as this together takes a lot of hard work and committment and we are fortunate in Boyle to have a committee who is prepared to put in the effort required and we can again prove we are more than capable of hosting a top quality competition in Boyle. A note of thanks to all of the committee and also to Seamus for turning up once again with his camera.

Thank you to our sponsor Alan Simon of Ultimate Insulation.

Following the success of this tournament we hope to host more of this type of competition in Boyle in the near future so watch this space!

Good Luck Adrian..

2011-06-25T15:55:00.004+01:00

We wish Adrian Cornwall the very best of luck competing on the Irish team in badminton in the Special Olympics World Summer Games in Athens.

Adrian plays in Sligo Tennis Club as part of the Shuttle Stars Club and is competing in Singles and Doubles competition.

Best wishes from all in Boyle Badminton Club.

Boyle to Host Division 1 Mens Doubles Invitational

2011-06-10T20:14:00.006+01:00

Boyle Badminton Club will host an evening of top class Mens Doubles Badminton on Saturday 9th July 2011 from 6.30pm. Division 1 players from Sligo, Galway and Donegal have been invited to take part and will join local players to compete in what promises to be a showcase of the best doubles badminton in the province.

This will be a rare opportunity to see some of the top players in Connaught in action so we hope the event will attract quite a few spectators.

Report from AGM

2011-06-03T20:37:00.004+01:00

The Club's AGM was held last night with 12 members in attendance and considering the good evening this was even better than expected.

The main focus of the meeting was how we can encourage as many new players and beginners as possible to give badminton a try. There were some very good suggestions proposed and we are hoping to put a plan together for the start of the season with this in mind.

A Draft Club Constitution and Club Rules were presented to the meeting for adoption. A copy of the constitution and rules will be made available to all members at the beginning of the new season.

A vote for Chairman was held and Sean Carroll, having served two years, was replaced by Derek Nolan. Secretary/PRO remains as Liz O Dowd, Anthony McKeon continues on as Treasurer and Padraic O Dowd will stay on as Club Captain.

We look forward to the new season and wish Derek the very best of luck in his new role as Chairman.

Club AGM 2011

2011-05-26T12:38:00.003+01:00

Notice to All Club Members:

The Annual General Meeting of Boyle Badminton Club will take place next Thursday 2nd June 2011 at 9pm in Boyle Sports Complex. It would be great to see as many members as possible in attendance.

Thank you

Liz O Dowd
Secretary & PRO

End of Season

2011-05-04T09:15:00.002+01:00

Unfortunately there were no Roscommon qualifiers from the Connaught Finals but congratulations to Boyle in Division 2, Ballinaheglish in Division 5 and Four Roads in Division 6 on their respective County titles and on their performances in Connaught, it was a great achievement to get that far.

Thursday 5th May 2011 will be the last night of play for this season. Come in if you can for a last game or two before the Summer break!

Connaught League Finals 2011

2011-04-13T15:09:00.004+01:00

Best of luck to the Boyle Division 1 team as they compete against the Sligo Tennis Club in Galway on Sunday 17th April 2011 for the Connaught title.

******

There will also be Roscommon clubs competing in Division 3 where Strokestown will meet Oranmore from Galway and in Division 6 Four Roads will face a round robin draw against Furbo from Galway and Ballinamore from Leitrim. There will also be a Division 5 Roscommon team competing however the County Final for this division only takes place on Thursday night between Ballinaheglish and Ballaghadereen/Loughglynn so that result won't be known until Friday. In Division 5 there will also be a round robin draw and so the Roscommon team will play the Sligo Tennis Club team and a team from the Galway Lawn Tennis Club. Best of luck to all the Roscommon players competing on Sunday.

******

The All -Ireland Finals will take place in Baldoyle in Dublin on 8th May.

Congratulations to League Winners

2011-04-08T09:33:00.004+01:00

Congratulations to Division 6 Winners Four Roads on their recent League Final win over Ballinaheglish in Glinsk. The Final was a close 4-3 affair. The Division 7 Final was held last Tuesday in Four Roads where Ballinaheglish faced Ballygar. The winners were Ballygar with a comprehensive 7-0 victory. Best of luck to Four Roads when they represent Roscommon in the Division 6 Connaught Final in Galway on Sunday 17th April.

Roscommon Beat Kerry in All-Ireland Final

2011-03-28T10:03:00.016+01:00

Let's be honest, how often are we going to get to read a headline like this!!

*****************************************************

The Final of the Inter County Class 4 competition was held in the Galway Lawn Tennis Club yesterday.

Back Row: Sean Carroll, John Kiernan, Padraic O Dowd, Marcin Paluch

Front Row: Bernie Lavin, Corrina Delaney, Mandy Toolan, Dianne Grappe, Audrey Delaney, Ruth O Hart

Roscommon started the day with a semi final against Waterford.

On Court 3 Ruth O Hart stepped out to play Ladies Singles and following a very close 3-set match the Roscommon lady came out on top. Marcin Paluch played the Mens Singles and enjoyed a relatively smooth victory over his Waterford counterpart.

The Roscommon Mens Doubles pairing of John Kiernan and Padraic O Dowd also endured a close 3-set match but in their third set they never looked like letting it slip and so Roscommon went to 3-0 overall. The second Mens Doubles pairing of Sean Carroll and Marcin Paluch played very well and took their victory in two sets.

Roscommon’s First Ladies Doubles, Audrey and Corinna Delaney of Strokestown, also showed great form and they took their match in two sets.

So Roscommon qualified with a 5-0 victory.

In the other semi final Galway had been overcome by Kerry and so Roscommon steadied themselves to meet the Kingdom team in the Final.

This time Audrey Delaney started with the Ladies Singles but despite putting in a worthy performance she was unable to get the better of the Kerry lady.

On an adjacent court Marcin Paluch in Mens Singles was barely troubled by his young opponent and so Roscommon were 1 game all as the Doubles started.

Both Mens Doubles pairings performed particularly well, John Kiernan and Padraic O’Dowd won their game in two sets as did Sean Caroll and Marcin Paluch.

However the Kerry ladies proved a formidable challenge for the Roscommon girls and although both Doubles Finals were close, Audrey and Corrina Delaney lost their game in two sets as did Ruth O Hart and Dianne Grappe.

Roscommon needed two of their mixed games to secure the victory. The pressure was on as all three mixed games took to the court at the same time. The Roscommon players showed tremendous fight and spirit and took the desired spoils in both the first and second mixed.

The entire Roscommon team put in a heroic performance and, especially given their narrow defeat at this same stage in 2010, truly deserved their 2011 All-Ireland title.

The winning Roscommon Team with Badminton Ireland President Ms Breda Caroll

Success at Sligo Doubles 2011

2011-03-21T10:57:00.004Z

Congratulations to John and Padraic on their fantastic Grade A Mens Doubles win in Sligo on Wednesday last in the Sligo Doubles 2011 competition. After some very tough qualifying games the Boyle pair provided a thrilling performance to overcome Graeme and John from Sligo. Ruth and Mandy were also finalists in the Grade A Ladies Doubles final however they were narrowly defeated by Paula and Victoria from Sligo.

It was great to see Boyle represented in both finals and at such a very high standard of badminton, well done to all.

Another new arrival....Congrats Cormac!

2011-03-11T13:42:00.002Z

Congratulations to Cormac Mullen and family on the latest arrival to their clann, little Rory.

Delighted to hear the news and that everyone is well....if a little tired!!

Junior Inter-Provincial Team Trials

2011-03-03T09:44:00.001Z

Paul Dolan from Sligo informs of the following:

Trials for the inter provincial Junior team will take place in Sligo Tennis club on Sunday the 13th/3/11 at 5pm.

All interested players should be informed by their respective counties.
€5 per player payable on the day towards expenses.

Congratulations Geraldine!

2011-02-28T10:23:00.006Z

Very best wishes to Geraldine Guckian, Kevin and family on the arrival of their beautiful baby girl, Rachel.

We've missed Geraldine very much this year but are thrilled with her wonderful news.

Roscommon Inter County 2011

2011-02-18T14:49:00.001Z

Congratulations to the Roscommon County Team who were successful last Sunday in University of Limerick in coming out top of their group in Section 2 Class 4 beating Cork and Tipperary to advance to the Inter County Finals in Galway on March 27th where they will face Waterford.

Connaught Closed D and Connaught Closed C

2011-02-01T09:53:00.004Z

The first Connaught Closed D competition is being held this Saturday, 5th February, in Galway Lawn Tennis Club and is open to Division 7 players only. There will be Singles, Doubles and Mixed competition. The closing date for entry is Wednesday 2nd February and cost of entry is €5 for 1 event, €8 for 2 events or €12 for all three.

The Connaught Closed C championship is being held on Saturday 12th February in Castlebar and is open to players from Division 5, 6 and 7. Again there will be Singles Doubles and Mixed competition on the day. The closing date for entry is Wednesday 9th February and cost of entry is €8 per event or €20 for all three.

Entry forms for both of these are available on club nights or can be sent in by email if you contact me on boylebadminton@gmail.com.

The Connaught Closed Competitions are a fantastic way for players to meet opponents from other clubs throughout the province in their own division and are always a great days badminton so it would be great to see a few entries from Boyle in both.

Connaught Closed A - Sligo Jan 29 2011

2011-01-31T17:47:00.003Z

The Connaught Closed A for Divisions 1 and 2 took place in Sligo Lawn Tennis Club on Saturday 29th January 2011. There were some entries from Boyle in Mens Singles, Mens Doubles, Ladies Doubles and Mixed Doubles.

The doubles combinations of Marcin Paluch and John Kiernan and Ruth O Hart and Dianne Grappe both qualified to the semi final in their respective competitions but unfortunately did not get any further. There were also Boyle pairings in the semi finals of the mixed doubles competitions and having come up against some very strong competition they were unlucky not to have advanced to the final stage.

Well done to everyone who took part!

We need your old phones please...

2011-01-28T10:51:00.002Z

Badminton Ireland have joined forces with the Jack and Jill Childrens Foundation to try to raise funds for sick children and their new scheme is "Phones for Kits".

If we, as a club, collect 160 old mobile phones we will receive an equipment pack which would include some rackets, shuttles, net, racket bag, fitness equipment and club polo shirts.

If anyone has an old mobile phone at home or if you know someone who gets their phone upgraded regularly and may have a collection of old phones please bring them in to the badminton club. Its for a very good cause and it will benefit the club also.

If everyone could get two or three phones we wouldn't be long collecting 160!

Roscommon Closed Ballygar Sun 23 Jan 2011

2011-01-25T10:42:00.002Z

There were thirteen players from the Boyle club taking part in Doubles & Mixed competition in the Roscommon Closed in Ballygar on Sunday.

Trevor McDermott & Gabriel Regan played very well in Grade D Mens Doubles getting through to the semi-final. In Grade C Mixed, Tom Cox and Bernie Lavin also qualified for a semi-final.

Everyone enjoyed a nice day of badminton and it was a good chance to meet other players from Roscommon clubs. The Ballygar club who are only new to the league this year have a lovely sports hall and welcomed everyone with warm hospitality.

Hopefully the Roscommon Closed will be an annual event in the County badminton calendar.

Report - Connaught Closed B Sat 15th Jan 2011

2011-01-17T13:42:00.007Z

We enjoyed another fantastic day of badminton this year for the Connaught Closed Junior B competition in Boyle on Saturday 15th January.

There were 47 competitors from all over Connaught taking part on Saturday in Singles, Doubles and Mixed Doubles and every player enjoyed plenty of games as apart from Mens Singles all the competitions were played on a Round Robin basis. Play started shortly after 10 in the morning and the last final finished at 8.30pm. We were delighted to receive such favourable comments from those participating and the general feeling was that they enjoyed a wonderful day's badminton, excellent hospitality and a very warm welcome in Boyle.

The winners on the day were:-

Mens Singles: Conor Caheny, Sligo LTC

Womens Singles: Janie Fahey, Loughglynn BC

Mens Doubles: Sean Carroll & Ciaran Oates, Boyle BC
Womens Doubles: Francie Mahon & Siobhan Parker, Sligo LTC

Mixed Doubles: Coadie & Janie Fahey, Loughglynn BC

A day like this can't happen without the dedication and committment of the club and committee. There were many of our members who helped out both on the evening before preparing the complex and on the day itself.

Thank you to the Friday night team, Padraic, Mandy, Sean, Cormac, Derek, Anthony, Deirdre and Trevor.

Thanks to our medical experts Derek Nolan and Paul Bradley for being on hand all day.

The shop was managed very well all day by Claire and Emily, there was great praise for the delicious sandwiches which were available right to the end of the day. Thank you girls! Also we must say thank you to Emer in Cooneys for the shop supplies, John for the fruit and Carmel Carroll for the soup.

Thanks to Donie O Connor for allowing us the use of his PA, it made calling players for courts much more manageable.

We had Cormac, Sean and Anthony on hand for most of the day to make sure there were new shuttles on the court before each game and for general jobs that needed looking after around the complex. Thank you also Sean for lending your laptop and projector. Seamus came in with his camera and stayed on until the end to take the prize giving photographs. Thank you lads.

Finally in the office there was Siobhan Ryan, Una and myself on registration, draw and score management but there was one lady who kept the whole show running for the day, if she hadn't been there I can't imagine how it would have run off so well and on schedule - you're a star, Mandy!

I hope I haven't left anyone out but in case I have I just want to say a HUGE thank you to absolutely everyone who helped in any way to make Saturday the success it was. We've shown once again that Boyle can be considered as a venue equal to the other large badminton centres in the west for hosting these events.

Well done everyone!

Roscommon Closed Competition

2011-01-13T11:39:00.002Z

The Roscommon Closed Competition will be held in Ballygar Sports Complex on Sunday January 23rd, 2011. Competition is open to all registered players in Roscommon.

Further details are available on the website http://www.roscommoncountybadminton.com/ where the entry form is also available for down load.

Connaught Closed Junior B Competition - Jan 15th 2011

2011-01-05T14:13:00.003Z

The Connaught Closed B Competition will be held in Boyle again this year on Saturday 15th January and is open to all players from Division 3, 4, 5 and 6. There will be Singles, Doubles and Mixed Competition with Singles starting at 10am, Mens and Ladies Doubles to start at 12.30pm and Mixed to start at 4pm approximately.

While the lead in time is short (this is mainly due to adverse weather we had in December which meant the club hardly met at all!) we hope that as many of our own players as possible will participate and we hope that all of those who thoroughly enjoyed last years competition will be able to come back again this year.

To make the competition a similar success to last year we will need all hands on deck so if you're available on Saturday 15th January even for an hour to give a hand in the shop or at the desk it will be greatly appreciated. There are plenty of jobs for everyone!

Entries for the competition should be returned to Mandy on the official entry form which will be available on club nights or can be emailed if preferred (boylebadminton@gmail.com).

2011!

2011-01-05T14:11:00.002Z

2010-12-20T13:56:00.002Z

Club Finishes for Christmas...

2010-12-20T11:34:00.002Z

There will be no club night tonight Monday due to the hazardous driving conditions around the town so badminton has officially finished now until after Christmas.

We will recommence, weather permitting, on Thursday 6th January 2011 at 9pm.

We wish all of our members a very Happy Christmas and a healthy and safe New Year.

Deepest Sympathy - Tom O'Hart RIP

2010-12-16T09:54:00.003Z

The club extends deepest sympathy to Ruth and Enda O'Hart and to Aisling Creighton following the death of their father Tom.

The arrangements are as follows:
Reposing at Rockmount from 3pm to 6pm this Thursday evening with removal to St. Michael's Church, Croghan, arriving at 7.30pm. Requiem Mass tomorrow, Friday, at 12 noon. Burial immediately afterwards in Eastersnow Cemetery.

As a mark of respect there will be no badminton on Thursday 16th December and the Christmas Get-Together planned for Friday 17th December is also cancelled.

Christmas Get-Together

2010-12-14T09:36:00.004Z

Our clubs Christmas night out will be this Friday (weather permitting) in The Craoibhín, Boyle from 9pm (ish).

All members are very welcome, we hope to see as many as possible for a drink and some craic.

As a club we have a lot to raise a toast to so come along and enjoy the fun.

November Update ...

2010-11-29T20:17:00.002Z

LEAGUE UPDATE
The Division 7 and Division 6 league both got off the ground this month. In Division 7 the Boyle team travelled to Ballygar and also to Four Roads where they enjoyed fantastic games & hospitality in both venues. With a 4-3 defeat in Ballygar and a 5-2 win in Four Roads they finish the month happy with their performance in the league so far.

Division 6 welcomed the Ballinaheglish team to our home venue and while there were some close encounters in all of the games the Ballinaheglish crew held the upper hand and left Boyle with a comprehensive victory.

OTHER NEWS
Some of our Division 1 team competed in the Leinster Junior Open in Terenure last week where they came up against some of the best players in the country. They thoroughly enjoyed the experience and took a lot away from it and they were by no means out of their depth in such a high standard of competition.

The Sligo Doubles competition was held last Friday night in Sligo Tennis Club and there were nine players from Boyle taking part. It was a great night of badminton with back to back matches for everyone. In Grade B Ciaran Oates and Niall Daly emerged winners and in Grade A Boyle's Padraic O Dowd and Sligo's Jonathan Dolan were victorious.

Sligo Doubles Open Friday 26th November

2010-11-16T14:09:00.002Z

Sligo Badminton Club are holding their annual mens and ladies doubles competition for all grades and divisions on Friday 26th November starting at 7.30pm.

Entries costs €10 payable on the night and must be submitted by email to Paul Dolan on paul.dolan5@yahoo.ie or if you'd prefer let me know if you're interested and I will send in details. Closing date for entries is Wednesday 24th November.

For any more information phone Paul on 087 6100108 or John Dolan on 087 6904563.

Thank you

Liz
Secretary & PRO
e: boylebadminton@gmail.com

Christmas is coming....

2010-11-16T09:42:00.003Z

As Christmas is coming up fast and furious we are hoping to have a night out for the badminton club.

There is a sign up sheet in the complex for anyone who is interested and if possible when signing also indicate which of the three proposed dates might suit best, December 17th, 18th or 19th.

We've put a lot of effort in to keeping our club so active and vibrant and we deserve a night out on the back of it and this is the perfect time to do it!

Div 7 League Up and Running..

2010-11-16T09:39:00.004Z

Division 7 travelled to Ballygar last week for their first match of the season. Ballygar are the newest club to join the Roscommon League and have taken to competition very well. They gave our Boyle team a fantastic night of badminton, some very close matches and ultimately took a 5-2 victory on their home courts.

The Division 5 and 6 leagues are both due to commence before Christmas so stay tuned for updates as they happen.

Club Update for October...

2010-11-02T09:56:00.004Z

National Badminton Week happened from 16th - 24th October and we held two free open nights as part of the nationwide activities. Everyone who came in enjoyed some good badminton and light refreshments on both evenings.

*************************************************

On Thursday 28th October we had our first visit to the club by Will O Neill, Irish #10 Mens Singles player, for some coaching. Will put us through our paces and gave us some great tips on badminton basics such as footwork, positioning and offensive/defensive play.

Will is to join us again this Thursday 4th November and his training is available to any member of the club who wishes to join it. It is not only valuable to those participating in league competition but to any member who might like to learn a little more about the game we all love.

***************************************************

The Loughglynn Open was held on Sunday 31st October for Senior players and was a huge success for them with attendance from clubs in Roscommon, Mayo, Leitrim and Sligo. There were seven players attending from Boyle and we enjoyed a great evening of Doubles and Mixed competition. Well done to Jim, Paul and the gang in Loughglynn/Ballagadereen clubs for putting massive effort in to running the competition.

National Badminton Week - 16 - 24 October 2010

2010-10-09T21:33:00.001+01:00

National Badminton Week is an incentive by Badminton Ireland to promote badminton in all areas of Ireland and to encourage as many people as possible to give badminton a try.

As part of National Badminton Week, Boyle Badminton Club will hold two free open nights at Boyle Sports Complex on Monday October 18th from 9.30pm to 11.30pm and Thursday October 21st from 9pm to 11pm.

For anyone who hasn't played before or for anyone who played years ago and would like to come in to give it a try we'd like to welcome you to the club to chat to our members and enjoy some light refreshments afterwards.

Loughglynn Open 2010

2010-10-04T19:31:00.003+01:00

The new Roscommon County Badminton website has the flyer and entry form for this years Loughglynn Open available for download. The competition will run over Saturday 30th October for Juveniles and Sunday 31st October for Seniors.

In 2009 there were quite a few entries in Loughglynn from Boyle so hopefully this years competition will draw just as much interest.

New Website for Roscommon Badminton

2010-10-04T19:24:00.002+01:00

Roscommon County Badminton Association have a new website up and running which looks great, it will be a fantastic resource for all the clubs in the county and it promises regular updates and news of events and competitions running throughout the year.

Congratulations to the new County Committee on getting this site off the ground.

Check out www.roscommoncountybadminton.com

National Badminton Week : 16 - 24 October 2010

2010-09-22T21:30:00.002+01:00

National Badminton Week is happening a little earlier this year from October 16 to October 24 which doesn't give us a huge amount of time to organise something.

We had a really good Open Night last year to play our part in the activities that were happening nationwide and we would be hoping to match if not better that success this year.

So can everyone get their thinking caps on and come up with some ideas to pitch to the committee so we can start to get preparations underway.

All suggestions gratefully received to boylebadminton@gmail.com or in person at the club on Monday or Thursday night!

Thanks,
Liz

Condolences

2010-09-13T16:38:00.004+01:00

The club extends deepest sympathy to Audrey and Corrina Delaney of Strokestown Badminton Club on the death of their father Liam last Saturday 11th September.

Audrey and Corrina both played alongside members of Boyle Badminton Club on the County Roscommon team last year.

Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam.

First Night of the Season

2010-09-07T10:19:00.002+01:00

We started back last night in Boyle Sports Complex and had a fantastic turnout for the first session of the season. I think there were 22 players signed in and quite a few were new to the club. It was a very encouraging start to this new year.

For anyone who didn't get back last night, we will continue to play on Monday nights from 9.30-11.30pm and on Thursdays from 9pm-11pm, coaching is offered for anyone who'd like to avail of it.

It was lovely to hear some of those who hadn't been there before say how much they loved meeting everyone and that they had thoroughly enjoyed the coaching and the badminton.

For those of us more seasoned players we realise how important it is to encourage our new members and spend some time getting to know them each night, we wouldn't have the successful club Boyle has become without them.

Almost there...

2010-09-02T12:40:00.003+01:00

Only four more days and then we're back to business in Boyle....

Club resumes at 9.30pm on Monday night, 6th September. Our nights will be the same as before, Mondays from 9.30 - 11.30pm and Thursdays from 9 - 11pm.

Having closed out last season with our biggest membership for many years, three County titles, a Connaught title and a silver in All-Ireland Div 2, we have a great base to build from and so much to look forward to as a club....

...so bring on 2010/11 - lets see what we can do with it!!

Deepest Sympathy

2010-08-25T09:30:00.002+01:00

The club extends deepest sympathy to Ruth Hogg and family on the death in England of her brother Sean.

R.I.P.

We're back....

2010-08-14T21:51:00.004+01:00

Badminton will resume in Boyle Sports Complex on Monday 6th September at 9.30pm.

Our club nights will remain as they have always been, Mondays from 9.30 to 11.30pm and Thursdays from 9pm to 11pm.

We hope to see all our members return for another season and hopefully a few new faces too.

Return to Play..

2010-08-10T20:34:00.002+01:00

It looks like our new season may start up again on Monday 6th September in Boyle Sports Complex at 9.30pm. Once this date has been confirmed I will post notice here, it will also appear in local notes in the paper.

Having spoken with a few members already I know many, like myself, are looking forward to getting back to the courts again!

New Arrival...

2010-08-10T20:32:00.003+01:00

Congratulations to Cian Duffy, his wife Lisa and little girl Ciara on the addition to their family of a beautiful baby boy, named Jim, last week.

C'mon The Rossies!!

2010-07-20T21:17:00.003+01:00

Huge CONGRATULATIONS to our fellow Boyle Sportsman, Fergal O Donnell and his Roscommon Senior Football team which includes Boyle players David Casey & Sean Purcell, on bringing the Connaught Senior Championship back to Roscommon.

We are all massively proud of you all.

End of Season Get-together Cancelled

2010-06-29T09:21:00.004+01:00

Unfortunately we have to cancel Friday night's end of season dinner and drinks which was to be held in Moving Stairs. We'll wait until we start our new season in September now to see if we can rearrange it.

Enjoy the Summer!

Update - End of Season Night Out

2010-06-17T22:05:00.002+01:00

It looks like we may need to push our end of season get-together out to Friday 2nd July. It is to be held in Moving Stairs, meeting at 8.30pm for a meal and drinks. A text will be sent out and I will confirm these arrangements here once we have heard back from members that this date will suit.

Congratulations to Ken Moran, St Marys BC, Carrick

2010-06-11T09:28:00.003+01:00

Ken Moran from our neighbouring club in Carrick on Shannon was awarded the Overall Club Volunteer of the year award at the recent Badminton Ireland Club and Volunteer awards ceremony 2010.

We want to send huge congratulations to Ken, he has done trojan work for the Carrick club down through the years and it is wonderful that this has been acknowledged at national level. Well done Ken.

AGM

2010-06-11T09:14:00.002+01:00

The club's AGM took place last night and as Sean, our Chairman pointed out, we had a great turnout despite the fact that it was a beautiful sunny evening, there were fourteen members in attendance.

It was a very positive meeting reflecting on a brilliant year for the club and hopefully we can build on it and bring the club to another level next year, increase membership, bring in more coaching opportunities and maybe hold in-house competitions for everyone to take part in.

There were few changes last night but Elaine has opted to step down from the Secretary's role so I, Liz, will be taking over there for next year along with the PRO function. A huge thank you to Elaine for the work she has done in the past year, I hope I can fulfill the role as well as she did.

Finally, the end of season night out has been agreed for Friday June 25th probably at 9pm and I will confirm the venue here as soon as it has been completely finalised. It would be great to see as many members as possible out for the night, as a club we have a lot to celebrate.

AGM Notice

2010-05-29T22:09:00.001+01:00

The club will hold it's AGM on Thursday 10th June at 8.30pm in Boyle Sports Complex. All members are asked to make a special effort to attend this meeting.

All-Ireland Silver for Division 2

2010-05-17T11:08:00.006+01:00

What started out as a great day in Dublin ended up in bitter disappointment for our Division 2 team yesterday. They were well on the way to bringing home an All-Ireland Division 2 cup to Boyle when a cruel twist of fate snatched the victory from their grasp.

They had faced Johnswell of Kilkenny and had taken a comprehensive 6-1 win in that match and were quietly confident of another good result approaching their second match against Lady Lane from Waterford. However as Boyle took the court for Mens Singles and went 8-1 up in the first game Marcin suffered a very painful leg injury which meant both his Singles and the Mixed game he was to play with Bernie were in jeopardy. The Badminton Ireland tournament rules stated that no substitute could be used once the match was underway so the Boyle team were forced to continue as they were.

Even against the odds the team went all out to try to secure the desired outcome, there were great performances throughout but mention must be made of the mens doubles battle which was an epic encounter. John and Padraic narrowly lost the first set at 26-24 to the Waterford duo, they then won the second set 21-17 and in the final set neither pair wanted to let go, the Waterford players had five set points before our Boyle lads played the rally of the tournament to take back the set point at 26-25 and with a perfectly precise net shot by Padraic to follow John's serve the game went to Boyle. The end result however was 4-3 to Waterford as lady luck shone on Lady Lane who became All-Ireland Champions.

Boyle have again brought home an All-Ireland Silver, this year in Division 2, which is a massive achievement for our club. It's hard to believe that some of the Division 2 players were playing Division 4 league as little as two years ago! The whole team have put in sterling performances all year and deserve only the warmest congratulations. As a club we have a lot to be proud of in 2010, three County titles, one Connaught title and an All-Ireland Silver.

Division 2 - BI All Ireland Final

2010-05-11T21:58:00.003+01:00

Our Division 2 team, having successfully come through the County competition, in both Roscommon and Galway, and with the Connaught title already in the bag, now face their final 2010 league hurdle on Sunday next May 16th in Baldoyle, Dublin when they compete in the Division 2 BI All Ireland Final.

In a Round Robin competition they will face Johnswell of Kilkenny representing Leinster and Lady Lane of Waterford representing Munster.

The whole club wishes the team the very best of luck and win or lose on Sunday extends Congratulations to Division 2 on their massive success through the year so far.

Good luck John, Mandy, Sean, Ruth, Marcin, Bernie and Padraic.

Who's that Guy???

2010-05-07T13:10:00.004+01:00

Clue: He doesn't play volleyball anymore.... He has less hair now than he did in 1988.....He's a great guy to have around in an emergency!!!

Division 7 County Champions!

2010-05-06T23:44:00.004+01:00

It took a while but I finally got a picture of our triumphant Division 7 team.......
(thanks Seamus for the photos!)

Back Row: Gabriel Regan, Louise Kennedy, Trevor McDermott, Sean McDermott

Front Row: Siobhan Ryan, Cormac Mullen, Emily Sachs Eldridge

Connaught Champions - Division 2

2010-04-27T09:30:00.004+01:00

The Connaught League Finals took place in the Galway Lawn Tennis Club on Sunday 25th April, Boyle had two teams representing Roscommon in Division 2 and in Division 6.

The Division 6 team had first to meet Loughrea however play just didn't go in Boyle's favour on the day and they were eliminated at the semi-final stage. Congratulations to the whole team on getting through to represent in Connaught, putting in huge effort all year and emerging with a second County Title under their belt - not a bad season's work!

The Division 2 team played against Cortoon from Galway in what was a rerun of the Galway League Final. Coming in to the mixed doubles Boyle had taken two games, men's singles and men's doubles and with first mixed not going in Boyle's favour they had it all to do when taking to the court for the last two games. They were outstanding, a lesson in how to play mixed. Boyle took both games in two sets. As always Cortoon were worthy competitors but in the end Boyle took a fantastic 4-3 win to emerge Connaught Champions. They go forward to represent Connaught in the BI All Ireland League Finals, Division 2, in Baldoyle, Dublin on 16th May.

Congratulations to Padraic, Sean, John, Marcin, Ruth, Bernie & Mandy.

Division 2

Back: Padraic, John, Sean (missing Marcin) Front: Bernie, Mandy, Ruth

Another County Title.....Division 7

2010-04-23T09:33:00.002+01:00

Not to be outdone by our Division 2 and Division 6 County success, our Division 7 team travelled to Glinsk last night to meet Ballinaheglish in the first ever County League Final in that division and they brought home another County title with a 4-2 win.

Congratulations to the whole team, not only on last nights fantastic victory but on all of the league matches played.

It was mentioned to me on Tuesday night before the Division 6 Final began that our Division 7 team were a great bunch of players, were very sporting and made every encounter very enjoyable. Great ambassadors for the Boyle Badminton Club.

Three County titles for the club in 2010 - what can I say!

Division 6 County Champions 2010

2010-04-21T12:05:00.007+01:00

It was heart-stopping stuff last night in Four Roads but thankfully the result went Boyle's way at the finish.

From the outset there were upsets and surprises and it all came down to the final mixed game which itself could have gone either way. Glinsk were a formidable team to come up against and were never going to let the Boyle team have it all their own way but in the end the teams determination to not let all of their hard work throughout the year go to waste saw them emerge Division 6 Champions 2010.

A huge Thank You to Padraic who has trained and coached us all year, there is little doubt that without his input and expertise we could never have performed as well as we did throughout the league and again last night. Thanks Coach!

Division 6 go forward now to represent Roscommon in Galway , joining our Division 2 team who have already secured their place in the Connaught League Finals this Sunday 25th April.

Congratulations to the whole team, it was an amazing result after such a hard-fought battle.

Division 7 County Final

2010-04-17T16:44:00.002+01:00

I only found out last night that the Division 7 County Final is to be held on Thursday 22nd April featuring our own Boyle team against Ballinaheglish and while I'm not absolutely certain I believe the venue will be Glinsk.

Congratulations to our newest league team on reaching their first County Final and the very best of luck, we'll be there to cheer ye on!

Division 2 County Win

2010-04-16T09:29:00.003+01:00

Just a quick update on last nights Final between Boyle and Strokestown... Boyle came through with a comprehensive 6-1 win so they are now through to play in the Connaught Finals on Sunday 25th April.

Congratulations to Padraic, Ruth, Sean, Mandy, Bernie and John - we knew ye could do it!

Don't forget Division 6 will play their Final in Four Roads on Tuesday night at 8pm, lets hope we end up with two teams in Galway on 25th!

Thank you....

2010-04-14T21:17:00.003+01:00

A word of thanks is long overdue to a couple of people who have donated their support to the club...

Firstly to our own Seamus Ryan who is always on hand with his camera and has provided us with a nice collection of photos and also DVD footage from both the Connaught Closed B competition held in January and last weekend from the Galway League Finals.

Thank you to Barry McLoughlin of McLoughlins RS in Dublin for a cheque we received recently which was very valuable in helping to replenish our stock of shuttles. Cormac Mullen, Area Manager for McLoughlins RS, plays on our Division 7 team.

Finally for all the support we've received from Nolan Health & Safety Services, thank you very much Derek.

Division 2 County Final

2010-04-14T21:04:00.002+01:00

Boyle's Division 2 team play their County Final tomorrow, Thursday 15th April, against Strokestown in Boyle Sports Complex at 9pm. Should they come through with a win in this final they go forward to represent Roscommon in the Connaught League Finals Division 2 in the Galway Lawn Tennis Club on Sunday 25th April.

Best of luck lads, we'll all be shouting for ye tomorrow night!

Boyle Division 1 - Galway League Champions

2010-04-12T15:53:00.005+01:00

The Boyle Division 1 team played in the Galway League Final on Saturday evening in the Lawn Tennis Club Galway. The match against Cortoon of Galway proved to be a nailbiter coming down to the third set of third mixed with Sean Carroll & Bernie Lavin just taking the edge over their Cortoon counterparts.

Congratulations to the whole team on a brilliant result!

Team (l to r): Mandy, Padraic, Audrey, Ruth, Bernie, Sean & Marcin

Division 6 County Final

2010-04-09T11:40:00.003+01:00

The County Final for Division 6 has been confirmed for Tuesday 20th April at 8pm in Four Roads - Boyle will play Glinsk to determine who goes forward to represent Roscommon in the Connaught Final to take place in Galway Lawn Tennis Club on Sunday 25th April.

Division 6 would greatly appreciate as much support as possible for the Final.

Roscommon County Team Photo

2010-04-09T11:35:00.003+01:00

Back Row (l to r): John Kiernan (Boyle), Sean Carroll (Boyle), Marcin Paluch (Ballaghadereen), Padraic O Dowd (Boyle)

Front Row (l to r): Ruth O Hart (Boyle), Corrina Delaney (Strokestown), Mandy Toolan (Boyle), Bernie Lavin (Boyle), Audrey Delaney (Strokestown)

County Team's All Ireland Report

2010-03-31T10:26:00.003+01:00

The Roscommon team which included Boyle's own, Padraic O Dowd, Bernie Lavin, Sean Carroll, John Kiernan, Ruth O Hart and Mandy Toolan, played in the Kingfisher Sports Centre of NUIG last Sunday in the Inter-County All-Ireland Finals. I'm attaching an extract of the report written by Cormac O Connor in Galway here...

Morning semi final vs Roscommon was a very tight affair with many games going to a Third set.

Damien Hehir got the team off to the ideal start in a high quality men's singles tie vs Roscommon's Polish native Marcin Paluch winning a thrilling 3 setter.

However Helen Sheehan was pipped in another tense affair in ladies singles going down narrowly 21-19 in the 3rd set.

Galways first men's pairing of Colm Franks and Ross Creaven never got going and suffered their first inter county loss of the season so Galway trailed 2-1 at this point in the best of 9 match.

Galway also lost 2nd men's doubles when Stephen Keane and Damien Hehir lost in a match that like almost every other in this semi final went all the way to a third set.

However the Galway 2nd ladies of Orla Bishop and Susan Gilmore manged to win their game in another 3 setter to leave the score at 3-2.

First ladies of Helen Sheehan and Joanne Gilmore were involved in a titantic struggle with the Roscommon sister pairing of Audrey and Corina Delaney. This was a game Galway could not afford to lose as they would have been 4-2 down with Roscommon only needing 1 of the remaining 3 mixed to knock Galway out. The Galway pair somehow fought back and edged a thriller 21-18 in 3rd set to level the tie overall at 3-3.

Momentum was now fully with the Galway team after that epic ladies doubles win and 3rd mixed pairing of Bryan Lalor and Susan Gilmore continued their unbeaten intercounty record this season won in the straight sets to suddenly have Galway ahead at 4-3 for the first time having trailed Roscommon all morning long.

Suddenly it was Galway who needed only 1 of the 2 remaining mixed to reach the final. The second mixed pairing of Ross Creaven and Claire Kenny won the first set and things were looking good. The first mixed pairing of Cormac O'Connor and Joanne Gilmore after a poor opening set loss stormed back to win the second set 21-10. However before they had a chance to start the 3rd set, Ross and Claire were on the verge of winning the second set and the match clinching point to reach the all Ireland. Despite some nervy moments Claire and Ross played brilliantly to squeeze the 2nd set 22-20 and Galway were through without having to play the 3rd set of 1st mixed.

Galway went on to beat Meath who had come through the second semi-final 5-1 and they took the All-Ireland title.

Congratulations to all of the Roscommon team on reaching the All-Ireland semi final which in such a close affair could have gone either way if luck had been with Rosommon on the day.

League Update 31/03/2010

2010-03-31T10:21:00.002+01:00

Division 7 have now played all of their matches with a clean sheet throughout. Their last encounter was away in Four Roads on Thursday 25th March and they achieved an outstanding 7-0 victory there. They should now be going on to play the County Final, date and opponents to be confirmed.

Division 6 have also completed their league matches, the remaining game against Ballinaheglish will not now go ahead. They again have kept a clean sheet throughout the league and emerge with a huge 49 points at the finish. Their last game was also on Thursday 25th March in Dysart where they came away with a 4-3 win. Division 6 will also play in the County Final again date and opposition to be confirmed.

Division 5 have played Ballinaheglish at home and away in the last week but were unable to secure a victory in either match against a very strong team. They have one home game against Ballaghadereen/Loughglynn to play in their league fixtures, this will probably be set for next week.

Inter-County Finals - Sunday 28th March 2010

2010-03-24T09:37:00.007Z

The County Roscommon Team made it through the qualifiers in Limerick on Sunday February 14th in Group 2 of the Inter-County League and are now playing in the finals this Sunday in Galway in the Kingfisher Sports Centre in NUI Galway.

The semi-final against Galway will start at 11am and should they come through successfully the final will be played at 2pm against winners of the other semi between Waterford & Meath.

It would be great to see as much support as possible for the team in Galway especially given the substantial contribution from our own club in the form of our players Padraic, Sean, John, Mandy, Ruth and Bernie.

Happy Saint Patricks Day

2010-03-17T19:41:00.002Z

All-England Badminton Championships 2010

2010-03-17T19:17:00.006Z

Myself, Padraic, Anthony and Derek were lucky enough to travel to the National Indoor Arena in Birmingham last weekend to the 100th All-England Badminton Championships. We were there for Friday's quarter finals, Saturday's semi's and Sunday's exciting finals.

There are few words to describe the unbelieveable experience it was to witness such outstanding badminton in Singles, Doubles and Mixed...we were simply blown away!

The icing on the cake for us was meeting Lee Chong Wei, the World's No. 1 Mens Singles Champion, at the airport on the way home and having an opportunity to speak to him and get a little insight into what it takes to make a World Champion Badminton player. He was a very nice down-to-earth guy and his coach was happy to share some tips with Padraic.

It will go down as one of the best badminton weekends ever and we all took a lot away from watching the pros in action at the Championships, we look forward to making this trip again someday!

This weeks League Update...

2010-03-17T18:01:00.007Z

Division 7 have now played three of their four matches in the league and have beaten all of their opposition so far. They took 5 of 7 games against Four Roads on our home courts last week. It's a fantastic performance for a team of players, most of whom are, just starting out in competition..well done lads, keep it going!

Division 6 likewise are nearing the end of their 2010 league and remain unbeaten through all their matches to date. In the past week they took all 7 games in a match against Ballinaheglish at home and just last night 6 of the 7 games against Four Roads away. Their unbeaten campaign and comprehensive scores mean they are very likely to be heading to a County Final in April.

Division 5 had a game cancelled on them last week so still have only played one of their four matches but they are due out again in an away encounter against Ballinaheglish tomorrow night so best of luck to them with that.

A further update will follow in about a weeks time.....so stay tuned!

This weeks League update...

2010-03-05T09:49:00.002Z

Division 7 had their second outing last night when they played away in Ballinaheglish and they again overcame their opponents with a 4-3 victory. Well done to everyone on the team, it's always a great result to get the win but an "away" win is even more impressive still!

Division 6 have now played 6 of their 10 matches and continue their winning streak. They had another comprehensive win at home last night against a very good Glinsk team. There will be two more matches to play next week so another update will follow then. Well done Division 6!

Division 7 starts...

2010-02-26T12:30:00.003Z

Division 7 in Roscommon is a newly formed league and Boyle had their first match last night.

The Boyle team played at home against Ballinaheglish and on their first league outing secured a home win. There were some very good, closely fought encounters during the match and Boyle did very well to overcome the Ballinaheglish challenge.

Congratulations to all who played last night.

Congrats to Wendy & Mel

2010-02-24T21:24:00.006Z

A huge CONGRATULATIONS to Mel and Wendy on their recent participation in Today FMs Shave or Dye event with Ray D'arcy in Dublin in aid of the Irish Cancer Society.

I have a "before" shot of the girls here.....

and located an "after" shot of Wendy but not Mel....yet!!

I know some club members already sponsored the girls however for such a worthy cause there may be some more who would like to donate and I have no doubt they'll be happy to accept support at any time.

Well done ladies, we're very proud of ye!

Roscommon Success in Inter County

2010-02-23T09:55:00.003Z

On Sunday 14th February, the Roscommon County team competed in Group 2 of the Inter-County Class 4 competition in the University of Limerick, the team included a number of our Boyle players.

They had a great outing and emerged second in their group, which comprised Cork, Waterford, Wexford and Sligo, to qualify for the Inter-County Finals in Galway Lawn Tennis Club at the end of March. The Roscommon team won all of their matches but were just pipped to first place by Waterford who had taken more sets from their opponents than Roscommon had.

Well done and congratulations to the whole team and particularly to our own club members, Padraic, John, Mandy, Ruth, Bernie and Sean.

League Update

2010-02-16T10:54:00.004Z

Division 5 kicked off their league campaign in Ballaghadereen last week with a 4-3 victory over the home team. There were some very close games in the encounter so emerging with an away win was a great result.

Division 6 have played three matches at this stage and are holding their own in all, since the first successful game against Dysart they have overcome the Strokestown challenge in both the home and away legs.

Division 6 Roscommon League

2010-02-02T16:23:00.002Z

The Division 6 finally opened their 2010 campaign with a home match against Dysart last night. After some very closely fought games they won this first match overall. Well done to Aisling and to Paul on their first outings in Singles, they both put in fantastic performances. The next match is Thursday 4th in Strokestown.

Connaught Junior Closed Grade A

2010-02-02T16:19:00.002Z

The Connaught Junior Closed Grade A took place in Galway last Saturday 30th January. There were Boyle members competing in Mens Doubles, Ladies Doubles and in Mixed Doubles, namely Sean Carroll, John Kiernan, Padraic O Dowd, Berni Lavin and Ruth O Hart. While there were no medals for Boyle on this occasion, all players were happy with their performances and the competition as a whole.

Connaught Junior Closed B Championship

2010-01-17T08:51:00.019Z

They came from far (Newport, Oranmore, Galway, Newtowngore, Claregalway), and near (Sligo, Ballaghadereen, Strokestown and Boyle) to compete in the Connaught Junior Closed B Championship in Boyle on Saturday 16th January. Overall there were just over 50 players taking part so it was destined to be a great day of competitive Connaught badminton.

Each competitor received a "welcome pack" on registration which included some fruit and a t-shirt, thank you to Sean and Derek for their sponsorship of the t-shirts. We also had medical assistance on standby all day which Derek had organised and which we are very grateful for.

The play started in the morning at 10am with both Mens and Ladies Singles. With a greater entry in the Mens competition it was played as a Round Robin whereas the smaller Ladies competition was played as a straight through knock-out. The turnaround on the courts was very efficient and swift which meant the Doubles competition could proceed ahead of the scheduled 1pm start. Both the Mens and Ladies Doubles were played as Round Robin, there were four groups in the Mens competition due to the large entry and two groups in the Ladies competition.

Again, thanks to the careful management of the committee and particularly Mandy and Padraic, the court turnaround was handled speedily & efficiently and the games were played through on schedule. The Mixed Doubles then started a little ahead of schedule at about 3.30pm however as there was such a huge entry in Mixed it wasn't at the Semi-Final stage until 7.30pm.

The Finals of each competition were played at 9pm, in Mens Singles Boyle's own Sean Carroll had a very tight match against Brian Caliendo of Sligo and after three exciting sets Brian emerged the winner. Jana Seredyczoya of Claregalway and Aine Lenehan of Newport played another very close and exciting Ladies Singles Final in three sets and here Aine took the plaudits.

The Mens Doubles Final was between Brian Caliendo and Paul Dolan of Sligo Tennis Club and Gearoid & Fergal Hughes of Newport, and proved to be another closely fought encounter through three tight sets with the Sligo duo eventual winners.

The Ladies Doubles Final was played between Jana Seredyczoya and Aine Lenehan (who had joined up in Doubles for the day!) and Marie McTiernan and Francie Mahon from Sligo, Jana & Aine made a formidable pairing and played a great game against the Sligo ladies to emerge victorious after three very close sets.

The Mixed Doubles Final featured Boyle duo Mandy Toolan and Sean Carroll who came up against John Dolan and Francie Mahon of Sligo. Sean and Mandy who had played terrific badminton all day never let it get away from them and won the match in two sets.

A huge thank you must go to all of our members who came in to help out yesterday, Saturday and on Friday night, Ruth, Aisling, Louise, Emily, Joanne, Catriona, Elaine, Sean Diffley, Trevor and Cormac, if I've left anyone out I apologise but without your help the day couldn't have gone as smoothly as it did. A huge thank you to Carmel Carroll who provided us with the wonderful homemade soup and sandwiches which were greatly appreciated by all. To be honest, there were more players raving about the soup than the badminton! Kennedy's Londis also sponsored some of the food yesterday so thank you very much to them.

I think everyone will agree that the Complex was looking at its very best yesterday and this was due to the huge effort put in by our Committee members, Anthony, Derek, Padraic, Elaine, Sean, Mandy & Ruth, ably assisted by Cormac and Trevor, who were there very late on Friday night/Saturday morning looking after all of the preparations.

Several competitors yesterday commented on the smooth running of the competition and the efficiency with which it was managed and this must be credited to two people in particular, Mandy Toolan who kept a tight rein on the draw, the schedule and the scoring and to Padraic O Dowd who stayed on the floor all day and kept the courts moving.

All in all I think Boyle Badminton Club rose to the challenge of hosting this major provincial competition and with such positive feedback received from players who travelled to Boyle from all over Connaught we hope we will now be considered as a venue on equal footing to Galway and Sligo for such events in the future.

Well Done Everyone!

Thank you to Sean O Dowd of Realboyle.com for coming up to see us on Saturday and allowing us use of the photographs he took.

Volunteers for Saturday 16th January

2010-01-13T10:00:00.003Z

Ahead of the Connaught Closed Junior B Championships on Saturday we are asking any members who may be able to offer some of their time to help out on the day.

There are lots of small but important tasks to be taken care of from helping in the tuck shop to assisting Mandy in keeping games moving on the courts. So if you think you can give even an hour on Saturday please let me know at boylebadminton@gmail.com or give your name to Mandy or any of the committee.

A Connaught competition hasn't been held in Boyle for many years so we want to do our very best as host club so they may consider bringing it back again next year!

Thank you!

Liz

Sympathy Extended

2010-01-11T20:37:00.001Z

Boyle Badminton Club wishes to extend its deepest sympathy to Sean and Mary Staunton of Ballinaheglish Badminton Club and to the Staunton family on the recent sudden passing of their brother Michael, RIP.

Connaught Junior Closed B Championship

2010-01-06T20:44:00.008Z

The Connaught Junior Closed B Championship is taking place in Boyle on Saturday 16th January 2010. This competition is for players from Division 3 & 4 and is also open to players from Division 5 & 6.

Events are mens singles, ladies singles, mens doubles, ladies doubles and mixed doubles.

Entry fees are: €8 per player per event; €20 for all three events.

The singles competition will start on court at 10am, players should be at the sports complex at 9.30am to warm up. The doubles competition will start on court at 1pm, players should be there at 12.30pm and the mixed competition will be on court at 4pm, players should be there at 3.30pm.

Closing date for entries is Thursday 14th January 2010, email boylebadminton@gmail.com for a copy of the entry form.

We're back!

2010-01-05T14:00:00.002Z

We started back last night in the complex and between a combination of 'cabin fever' and needing an antidote to Christmas excesses, quite a few members came back to the courts for the first club night of the new year.

Badminton continues in 2010 on Monday nights from 9.30 til 11.30 and Thursday nights from 9pm til 11pm. Junior badminton will restart next Sunday 10th January from 6 to 7pm.

* * * 2010 * * *

2009-12-29T22:55:00.009Z

Highlights of 2009

2009-12-29T22:15:00.014Z

As the end of the year is upon us it seems like a good time to remember some of the highlights of 2009 and there were a few.....

- April 2009: The Division 5 & 6 teams both competed in their

respective County Finals with Division 6 emerging victorious and

representing the County in the Connaught Finals in Galway.

- May 2009: The Division 3 team having won the Connaught title in

Galway went forward to represent in the All-Ireland Finals in Dublin in

May where they were narrowly defeated.

- Sept 2009: Having finished the season on such a high we came back in September to a club which was invigorated and revitalised with a major increase in new membership.

- Oct 2009: For National Badminton Week we held two Open Sessions, one for Seniors and one for Junior players. Both were hugely successful, better than we could have hoped for and as a result Boyle Junior Badminton Club commenced.

- Nov 2009: The club held a table quiz in the Moving Stairs which

was a great night and was really well supported.

Members of the club participated in Open Competitions in Trim, Co Meath and in Loughglynn and Boyle was very successful in both tournaments.

- Dec 2009: The Connaught Close for Division 5 & 6 was held in Castlebar and again Boyle players featured in the prize listings.

So fondly remembering 2009 we welcome 2010 and hope that an even longer list of highlights will feature this time next year!!

* * * * *

2009-12-21T19:45:00.003Z

Christmas Party!

2009-12-19T11:15:00.008Z

Last night there were new hairstyles, new frocks and even new socks!!!!

We had another great night in the Moving Stairs in Boyle for our Christmas night out where there were over 20 members attending. A lovely meal was followed with plenty of drink, chat and craic until the wee hours.

Great to see so many out supporting the club and enjoying another night away from the courts.

Christmas Night Out!

2009-12-15T09:57:00.008Z

Just in case there's any member who may have missed club nights recently, we are having our Christmas club night out on this Friday 18th December at 8.30pm in The Moving Stairs in Boyle.

If you think you can make it and haven't already put your name on the list, please contact me, Liz, at boylebadminton@gmail.com.

It should be a lively and festive end to our 2009 badminton season!