Rossglass County FC

It was a very special day last Saturday for the boys and girls of Rossglass County Under 10 and Under 8 youth teams. Both travelled to Solitude in Belfast at the bequest of Cliftonville FC to play their junior sides at half time in the Irish League game against Glenavon. It was a wonderful experience for the kids to come up against quality opposition, to play in a proper football stadium and get to watch a wonderful game of football in which Cliftonville won 4-2.

Unfortunately both teams suffered defeats but they can truly be proud of their performances. The Under 10’s found it difficult against the slick passing and movement of their opposition and suffered a 2-0 defeat, while the 2012’s went down 4-2 in a fantastic game of football.

In the 2012 game, Cliftonville raced in to a 2-0 lead and things looked ominous for the young County side. A superb goal by the Cliftonville left winger had the crowd on their feet cheering but not to be outdone Rossglass fought back to level things up at 2-2 and to quieten the home crowd. Some tough tacking in midfield from Fionn McCargo broke down a Cliftonville attack and a neat pass that split their defence allowed Fintan McLaughlin to race through one on one with the keeper and coolly slot home. Rossglass now had their tails up and once again it was Fintan McLaughlin who found the back of the net. From a clearance young McLaughlin let the ball bounce, and then struck a beautiful shot which flew over the hand of the outstretched keeper and into the top corner. At this stage it was all County with Conor Bradley and Sé Tumelty running the midfield and Eoin Stranney solid at the back. But the class of Cliftonville started to show as the young legs began to tire. Ethan Murphy in nets made a wonderful save diving to his right and tipping the ball round the post from a thunderous shot but there was nothing he could do for Cliftonville’s final two goals.

The boys were disappointed to come away with a defeat some remarking that had there been a second half County would surely have won, which says a lot for the team’s confidence. It was a wonderful day for the kids and one they will all remember for a long time to come. The kids were a credit to their families on and off the pitch.

The club would like to extend our thanks to Cliftonville F.C. for looking after our kids so well and their Head of Academy, Marc Smyth for the invitation and making the dreams of our kids come true. Watch the video of their exploits here.

2018 Christmas Draw

The Club will be distributing raffle tickets for the Rossglass County Christmas Draw. Tickets are £1 each and we have some fabulous prizes on offer including a top prize of a Luxury gourmet Christmas Eve Hamper.

We would be grateful if you could sell or buy as many as you possibly can.

Prizes Include:

Luxury Christmas Hamper

Festive Wine Hamper

£50 Gift Voucher for Sports Direct

Gun Powder Irish Gin Gift Set

Jameson Whiskey & Butlers Chocolate Whiskey Truffles

The draw will take place on Saturday 22nd December just in time for Christmas.

Good Luck.

The seconds travelled to Bear Park in Newcastle to take on Tollymore in this McCall Division 2 clash. Having had a comfortable home win earlier in the season, Rossglass went into this full of confidence. However, with a strong wind behind them, Tollymore took the lead in the first 15 minutes with a shot from 25 yards. County keeper Stuart Traynor thought the ball was sailing way over the bar but at the last minute, a wicked dip saw it fly into the top corner leaving the County keeper red-faced.

But 10 minutes later, Traynor’s blushes were spared when his opposite number let in the most comical goal seen yet in the league. A cross into the box fell to the centre-half who tapped it back to his keeper.  It looked like it was a simple clearance but whether he took his eye off the ball or there was a bobble on the pitch, as the keeper attempted to clear the ball it simply rolled over his foot and into the back of the net.

Tollymore’s keeper however made up for this unfortunate mistake minutes later, when from a Ben Lennon free-kick just outside the box he dived the length of the net to tip the ball round the post. Rossglass kept pushing and finally took the lead from a beautiful worked moved on the left-hand side. 17-year-old Aaron McCarthy ran almost from the halfway line beating two defenders, cutting inside into the penalty box and unleashing a thunderous shot that hit the top right-hand corner of the net.  It was no more than County deserved with young McCarthy continuing to torture the Tollymore right back with his pace.  This forced the Tollymore manager Hall to bring their pacey right-sided midfielder back to mark him which meant there was more and more space for County’s left back Caolfind Rogan to run the ball out of defence and set up more attacks.

With the wind at their backs in the second half it was expected that Rossglass would dominate the rest of the game. However, a few strange decisions at half time from County manager McGarrity let Tollymore back into it. McCarthy who had a been a thorn in Tollmore’s side was put into goals which was surely a relief for their defence and a tactical switch to a 3 man defence saw County fall deeper and deeper which allowed Tollymore onto them. Tollmore took advantage from this and if it hadn’t been for some poor finishing they would surely have equalised hitting the bar on two occasions. However, against the run of play Rossglass extended their lead.  A foul on the edge of the box allowed Lennon who had a sighter free-kick in the first half to coolly pass the ball round the wall and into the corner of the net. County were 3-1 up and surely it was just a matter of seeing out the game.

As Tollymore continued to push, the game got a lot feistier with Tollymore’s red-haired centre half picking up a yellow card for a challenge on Rossglass midfielder Ryan Kearney. A second challenge on the same player only seconds later which went unpunished by the referee caused an uproar on the side-line with McGarrity having to be restrained from entering the pitch. Rossglass were rattled and Tollymore benefited from it when a loose ball in the County box caused panic among the defence. The usually composed Paul McGarry swung at the ball to clear only to slice it into his own net. Unfortunately for Tollymore there was no time left to get the equaliser. Rossglass made it tough for themselves but eventually ran out 3-2 winners.  There were notable performances from Kearney, Rogan and young McCarthy who will no doubt get a call-up to the first team very shortly if he continues to play the way he did in the first half.

The firsts were back in action last weekend with a home game against Ballynagross at Dunleath playing fields. In a very close fought affair at Dunleath, Ballynagross ran out 3-1 winners.  However, the scoreline didn’t reflect just how close this game was and the battling County side can feel slightly aggrieved to lose this very entertaining game.

In the opening minutes, County’s keeper “Cookie” McKinney was called into action when Ballnagross’s centre-forward sent in a curling effort that forced Cookie to tip the ball around the top of the right-hand post. Straight from the resulting corner Rossglass broke and almost got their noses in front when midfielder Chris Hamilton hit a thunderous shot that sailed narrowly over the bar. This set the tempo for the game and in the first twenty minutes, Ballynagross hit the post while County’s Ryan Tumelty seen his effort from a free kick on the right-hand side bounce back of the bar.

The game was fierce and competitive in midfield, with Oran Tumelty taking the brunt of some harsh tackles, but on 20 minutes it was Marc Burke who found himself in the referee’s notebook when he clattered his opposing number. This seemed to spark Burke into life. Shortly afterwards he found himself straight through on goal but as he was about to pull the trigger, the ball was nipped away from him. Both teams pushed for the opener but only for some great defending by both teams the scoreline could have been greater. Makeshift right-back Paul McGarry for County had an outstanding game in defence winning his tackles and distributing the ball with precision.

Eventually, the opener came just 5 minutes before halftime. Ballynagross forced a corner and in a scrappy melee in the box, it was tapped past the County keeper.

The second half was just as lively as the first and County came out the stronger. In what was probably the best move of the game, Barry Mageean picked up the ball in the left back position, passed the ball through the legs of the oncoming forward to Thomas Redmond at the halfway line who sent an equally exquisite pass through to Marc Burke running down the left-hand side.  Redmond’s pass split the Ballynagross defence and Burke fired the ball across the five-yard box where Ben Lennon at the back post was on hand to slot the ball past the helpless keeper. It was well deserved and you felt County could go and get three valuable points. Not to be outdone Ballynagross rallied and put pressure on County’s backline which eventually paid off. There was more than a hint offside about their second goal and despite the vociferous complaints, the referee was never going to change his mind. County pushed for the equaliser once again but against the run of play, Ballynagross hit the killer punch. Poor defending allowed one of the Ballynagross midfielders to run through unchallenged and get a clear shot on goal, curling a lovely shot into the top right-hand corner beyond the outstretched hand of McKinney.

A 3-1 defeat but if Rossglass County play the rest of the season like this they should start to climb the table. Next week the team travel to Carryduff where they will be hoping to pick up three points.

Rossglass County have applied for a funding grant from the Aviva Community Fund to host a tournament for 5 and 6 year olds while raising money for one special little boy! And we need your help. We need votes from the public to get us through to the final judging round.

Please vote for our project. Your support is much appreciated. https://community-fund.aviva.co.uk/voting/project/view/4-1046

The idea for the tournament came from one of our committee members and club treasurer, Amy Farrand, whose husband Joe has played for Rossglass since he was a small boy. Amy and Joe have a nephew, Matthew who was born 10 weeks prematurely and as a result suffers from cerebral palsy. Cerebral palsy is a terrible neurological condition that affects a child’s movement, motor skills and movement. Currently there is no cure but there are various treatment options that can help children like Matthew enjoy a better quality of life.

Matthew is 5 years old and currently in a wheelchair.  He has just started primary 1. He is a lovely, happy child with a great smile (check out pictures with his mum and best friend) and extremely popular with not just his classmates but the other pupils in his school. He doesn’t let his disability get in the way of enjoying life but for Matthew’s parents their wish is that he can eventually leave his wheelchair behind him and walk unaided.

Recently Matthew and his parents travelled to Alder Hay Children’s Hospital in Liverpool so he could undergo Selective Dorsal Rhizotomy (SDR) surgery to improve his function and mobility.

However Matthew needs more treatment and physiotherapy and as a community club we would like to support him and his family by providing financial aid to help continue his treatment and visits to Alder Hay.

Matthew is a big fan of football and Rossglass County and has watched his uncle play many times. We thought the best way we could help Matthew is to bring together children of his age to participate and celebrate in our Community Football Tournament. To run a tournament of this size with 24 teams, just to cover costs we would have to charge a huge entrance fee for each team. A grant from the Aviva Community fund would ensure we could put on the best event possible and allow each team invited to participate.

The format of the tournament would ensure each team would get to a semi-final, we would have 6 trophies up for grabs and every child would go home with a medal, memento and great memories from the day. More importantly it will bring our rural community together to share in a young boy’s love of football and perhaps help him to walk unaided one day, which would be the best gift we could give him and his family.

Please vote for this project. Your support is much appreciated. Vote here https://community-fund.aviva.co.uk/voting/project/view/4-1046

Over 40 players, coaches, parents and friends of Rossglass took part in our hugely popular Last Man Standing competition. It only took 4 weeks to get down to the last two!

Manchester United’s recent run of bad form over those 4 weeks reduced the field dramatically and yesterday we were left with two finalists Simon McGarry and Cormac “Bouffant” McLaughlin. As we were going into the International break it was suggested that the two guys might want to share the prize money or risk losing it all. Very sportingly both men agreed and will share the winning pot. The club will throw in a couple of our sports bags too.

This gesture will allow the club to set up a new competition after the International break. We hope you enjoyed it and will join again for a bit of fun.

Darren Teggart has stepped down as coach of the seconds. The club would like to thank him for his dedication and hard work. He has worked tirelessly over the past two years to improve the second squad. However, Darren won’t be going too far from the team as he still intends to pull on his boots and play. He will also be continuing in his role as under 17 coach.

The new coach of the seconds is Daniel McGarrity, currently with the under 10s and the whole club wishes him the best of luck in his new role. Danny took the reigns on Saturday at home to Valley Rangers in the Newcastle & District Division 11. Great things are expected of McGarrity as he has some pedigree at this level having worked with Philip Campbell a few years back going unbeaten for an entire season.

However, McGarrity must have left the field this week scratching what few hairs he has left on his head as Rossglass who were 3-1 up at halftime somehow conspired to lose the game 4-3!

Rossglass fell behind early in this game to a soft goal. A long ball split the County defence and the Ranger’s centre-forward raced through to coolly slot home past Cookie McKinney in nets. Undeterred County fought back with new signing Eoin McEvoy impressing and bossing the midfield. The county team grew in confidence and their dominance finally paid off.  County’s centre-forward was in scintillating form. The gangly Marc Burke made goal scoring look easy – three times he was put through, one on one with the goalkeeper and three times he put the ball in the net. A hat-trick for young Burke, County were cruising and you just couldn’t see them losing this game.

However, it was a different story in the second half. Whether county thought the game was in the bag and complacency set in, but within minutes of the re-start, Valley Rangers were back in the game. A long ball to the back post went over the head of the County keeper finding an unmarked player who had the simple job of tapping the ball home. Confidence seemed to drain from the County players and in an effort to rejuvenate the midfield McGarrity made a number of substitutions. Chris Hamilton was replaced with Ryan Kearney who had a half valley fly narrowly over the bar, McEvoy had a few long-range efforts that unfortunately didn’t trouble the keeper and Burke had a penalty shout denied when he was barged over in the box. But apart from this, it was all Rangers in the second half and their pressure paid off, not only equalising but taking the lead with all the goals coming down the right-hand side. McGarrity will be praying that Paul McGarry missing due to an unfortunate incident in a local church last Friday will be back next week at left back for County.

A disappointing start to McGarrity’s reign, he’ll be hoping he can put things right at home to Ballynagross next week.

Rossglass Under 10’s (2008s) attended the Klubfunder Uhlsport Community Cup at Moyola Football stadium last night (Friday 31st August). Rossglass were in a difficult group with Academy teams from Ballymena United and tournament hosts Moyola FC as well as new outfit, Train to be Smart Jnrs, founded by ex-Man Utd player Pat McGibbon. The young County team got off to a slow start in the competition, legs still weary after a 2-hour bus journey, but gradually pulled themselves back into the tournament with some gifted play from Ryan Toner and Annie Montgomery in midfield along with some excellent goalkeeping.

The entire team put in tremendous performances, giving their all, beating Train to be Smart Jns 1-0 in their final league game to set up a semi-final appearance with Draperstown Celtic in the Shield competition.  Rossglass County were on the front foot for most of the game but without finding the breakthrough and it would take something special to break the deadlock. Fortunately, County got the win with a wonder goal from Cody Hutchenson who went on a long mazy run, beating fours players before coolly slotting home past the helpless goalkeeper. There was no time for Draperstown to reply and County’s Under 10’s were in their third final in as many weeks against Ballymena Allstars.

In a tense and very tight affair, Rossglass went 1-0 down when Ballymena’s centre-forward found space from a corner at the back post and tapped the ball home. County showed their fighting spirit and fought back to equalise in the last few minutes with Hutchenson once again finding the net and taking the game to penalties. Though County scored the first penalty and Ballymena missed theirs, two further misses from Rossglass meant heartbreak for the newly formed under 10s. However, It wasn’t all bad news as Cody Hutchinson won player of the tournament and bagged himself a brand new Uhlsport kit. The boys and girls of Rossglass didn’t go home empty handed as each received an Uhlsport mini skills ball along with other Uhlsport goodies.

It was a great team effort from all the kids and the improvement with each game they play is clear to see. More importantly, the kids had a fantastic time once again and did the club proud. As always thanks to the parents for their support, travelling all the way to Magherafelt to support the kids.

Rossglass County would also like to extend our thanks to Moyola Park AFC for hosting the tournament and inviting us to the Klubfunder Uhlsport Community Cup and  Klubfunder for extending the invitation to Rossglass County. Rossglass will be wearing Uhlsport kit this coming season. Check it out in our shop.

The Rossglass County squad which attended the Klubfunder Uhlsport Community Cup :

Adam Sharvin, Finn Tierney, Annie Montgomery, Keeley McCullough, Ciaran Brannigan, Lorcan Reid, Thomas Reid, Ryan Toner,  Harry Fitzsimmons, Cody Hutchenson.

Rossglass Juniors winners at Celtic Bhoys Tournament. Two of our four junior teams picked up trophies at the Celtic Bhoys annual tournament held at Dunleath last week. The Under 17 team made it to the final of the Plate but lost the final 4-2 to Rathrifland. Better news for the newly formed under 10 team playing in their fourth tournament of the pre-season.

After a slow start, the squad showed their fighting spirit and rallied under manager Danny McGarrity to earn the first trophy in their short existence. In previous events, the youngsters recorded two semi-final appearances against tough opposition but this time they went one better lifting the plate. Special praise to all the players for a monumental achievement. This win should give the team great confidence going in to their next tournament the Uhlsport Community Cup at Moyola Park FC in Magherafelt, 31st August. Former Manchester Utd player Pat McKibbon is guest of honour and will be presenting the trophies and medals on the night. We wish our young County team all the best in what is sure to be a tough test against Academy opposition.

After losing a close fought final in our own tournament, 1-0 to East Belfast, our 2012s first team were in top form at Dunleath. Our boys and girls made it all the way to the final of the cup without conceding a goal. They met a very good team in Celtic Bhoys in the final but eventually ran out 1-0 winners. Another great result for this young team who are playing some excellent football. Our 2012’s second team Rossglass Colts almost brought home the plate but finished runners-up in the end.

It was a fabulous weekend of football. Well done to all our boys and girls it was a fantastic experience for them. If you know anyone who would like to be part of this great team then please get in touch at www.rossglasscounty.com.Rossglass County would like to thank Celtic Bhoys FC for the invite and congratulate them on organising an excellent competition run in an efficient and friendly spirit.