Drinagh Rangers won both the Under16 and Under18 league titles this year. Skibbereen claimed the Under12 crown and Bunratty United finished top of the league at Under14 level. In April, no less than three Schoolboy cup finals were decided on the same day. The three matches were staged in Skibbereen and cup final day proved to be one of the highlights of the season. Congratulations to the Under12 winners, Bunratty United, Under14 winners, Riverside Athletic and Under16 winners, Bay Rovers. In March, Skibbereen claimed the Under18 cup when they defeated Clonakilty AFC in the final by two goals to one.

The West Cork Shield trophies were contested by clubs who failed to qualify for the league play-offs in each of the various underage grades. Bantry Gunners won the Under12 Shield competition. Clonakilty AFC (B) triumphed in the Under14 version. Bay Rovers added to their Under16 cup success by also winning the Under16 Shield.

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U12 Season Review:
The West Cork Schoolboys Under12 league turned out to be the most exciting underage competition of the 2005 / 2006 season. On the very last day of the season Skibbereen defeated Bunratty United by two goals to one to secure the Under12 league title. The victory capped off a fantastic year for Skibbereen. Despite finishing fourth at the end of the regular season, Skibb remained unbeaten throughout the play-offs and deservedly claimed the title.

The West Cork clubs that competed in the Under12 regular season were: Bunratty, Clonakilty AFC (A), Clonakilty AFC (B), Clonakilty AFC (C), Drinagh, Lyre Rovers, Bay Rovers, Bantry Gunners, Togher Celtic, Skibbereen and Riverside Athletic. The top four ranked teams at the end of the regular Under12 season were (1) Clonakilty AFC (B) coached by Anthony McDermott, (2) Bunratty coached by Len Lipitch, (3) Togher Celtic coached by Sean Crowley and (4) Skibbereen coached by Martin Henwood. These four teams went forward to compete in the final play off (mini-league) to decide the Under12 league Championship.

Under12 League Play Offs
Skibbereen were top of the table after the first round of play off matches following a terrific 2-1 victory away to Clonakilty AFC (B). Jason Minihane and Kevin Davis scored the winning goals for Skibbereen. Togher Celtic let a two goal advantage slip at home to Bunratty and as a result the game finished in a 2-2 draw. In the second round of play off matches Clonakilty AFC (B) put in their best performance of the season away to Bunratty. The Clon lads ran out convincing 4-1 winners and put the previous weekend’s cup final defeat to Bunratty behind them. Gearoid Barry (2), Scott Sheehan and Daniel Laker were on the mark for Clonakilty. Togher grabbed an injury time equaliser to deny Skibbereen victory in a classic encounter which ended in a 3-3 draw. Daniel Twomey, Brian O'Donovan and Mark Quinn scored for Togher Celtic. Skibbereen’s goals were scored by Kevin Davis, Rudi Henwood and Jason Minihane.

The results from the second round of play off matches meant that each one of the four remaining teams in the play offs were still in with a chance of lifting the Under12 league title. Skibbereen knew that a final day victory over Bunratty would secure the league title, irrespective of what happened in the Clonakilty AFC (B) and Togher match. Anything less than a victory for Skibbereen and the other three playoff teams would all be in with a chance of winning the title themselves.

Skibbereen defeated Bunratty by two goals to one to claim the Under12 championship on the final dramatic Saturday of the Under12 play offs. Rudi Henwood and Leon Burke scored the winning goals for Skibbereen. The other remaining fixture saw Clonakilty AFC (B) run out convincing winners over Togher at the Showgrounds. Gearoid Barry (4), Ian Falvey (2) and Kevin Cormican were each amongst the goals for Clonakilty AFC B's.

Under12 Cup
In April, Bunratty defeated Clonakilty AFC (B) by four goals to one to win the West Cork schoolboys Under12 Cup. A hat trick from striker, Sean Evans and a man of the match performance from captain, Eddie Goggin, helped Bunratty claim the coveted Under14 trophy. Coach, Anthony McDermott’s Clonakilty AFC (B) side fought valiantly throughout but Bunratty took their chances in front of goal and this proved to be the vital difference between the two sides in the end.

Played on the immaculately prepared pitch in Skibbereen, the Under12 cup final turned out to be an exciting match with end to end action. Highlights from the game included the superb individual hat-trick from Bunratty striker, Sean Evans and the performance of Captain, Eddie Goggin. Sean Evans used all his skill to curl a shot into the far corner of the net, from outside the penalty area, to complete his hat trick. It was a goal worthy of winning any cup final. Great credit must go to Bunratty coach, Len Lipitch for the manner in which his team performed in the final against a very talented Clonakilty AFC (B) team.

Under12 Shield
In May, Bantry Gunners defeated Leeside 3-0 in the final of the Under12 Shield Competition. The Shield trophy was contested by each of the clubs who failed to qualify for the play-offs in the Under12 league. Played in Drinagh, goals from David O'Mahony and a brace from Kevin Casey were enough to secure Bantry Gunners the last remaining West Cork League Schoolboys trophy of the season.

Bantry Gunners had the better of the opening half in the Under12 Shield final. An early Kevin Casey effort gave the Gunners a deserved lead. Casey added a second goal after twenty minutes and it was all Bantry until half time. Great credit must go to Leeside who came out in the second half and had the Gunner’s defence on the back foot. Alex Karclass had a brilliant match in the Bantry Gunners goal. The young keeper repeatedly denied the Leeside attack with a string of top class saves. Just before the final whistle went, David O’Mahony rounded off the scoring to confirm Bantry Gunner’s victory.

Despite representing the youngest age group of all the West Cork Schoolboys leagues, the Under 12 division served up some of the best football this season. The continuing emergence of young talent from each of the competing West Cork clubs bodes well for the future of the Schoolboys League. Kevin Davis and Jason Minihane (Skibbereen), Gearoid Barry and Daniel Laker (Clonakilty AFC B’s), Sean Evans and Eddie Goggin (Bunratty) and Mark Quinn and Brian O'Donovan (Togher Celtic) are just a handful of the talented young players to have graced the Under12 league in West Cork this season.

2005 / 2006 West Cork Schoolboys Under12 Play off League Table (Final)

2005 / 2006 West Cork Schoolboys Under12 Roll Of Honour

U14 Season Review:

Bunratty were crowned West Cork Schoolboys Under14 League champions for the 2005 / 2006 season. The Bunratty side clinched the title on Easter Saturday in the Town Park in Schull. A 1-1 draw at home to Drinagh Rangers in their final play-off game of the season was enough to guarantee Bunratty the league title. In the Under14 Cup final, Pat Lacey’s Riverside Athletic overcame the challenge of Skibbereen to claim the trophy. Graham Courtney was the hero for Riverside as he grabbed a match winning goal in extra time to win the Under14 Cup for the Balineen based club. The Under 14 Shield competition was won by Clonakilty AFC (B).

This season’s West Cork Schoolboys Under14 league was made up of ten different teams: Drinagh Rangers, Bay Rovers, Clonakilty AFC (A), Clonakilty AFC (B), Lyre Rovers, Togher Celtic, Skibbereen, Bunratty, Leeside and Riverside Athletic. Each side played each other once over the course of the season. The top four ranked sides then moved on to compete in a final round-robin league. The top four finishing positions from the Under14 regular season were as follows: (1) Drinagh Rangers, (2) Bunratty, (3) Togher Celtic and (4) Skibbereen.

Under14 PlayOffs
Bunratty claimed the West Cork Schoolboys Under14 league title by picking up seven points from their three matches in play offs. In their opening match, Bunratty defeated Skibbereen by three goals to two. The team from Schull then emerged with a hard fought 1-0 victory over Togher Celtic. In Bunratty’s final day encounter with Drinagh Rangers, a last minute goal from Captain, Alan O'Driscoll, sent the home side into raptures. The precious point gained from the final match allowed Bunratty to finish one point clear in the final standings. Bunratty’s last minute goal cancelled out Daniel Hayes's earlier effort for Drinagh Rangers.

The other main fixture from the Under14 play-offs saw Skibbereen entertain Togher in each club's final league game of the season. The result from this game proved academic with Bunratty having already secured a draw with Drinagh Rangers. Skibbereen secured their final-day victory by four goals to two. Martin Murphy (2), Tristan Dent and Donal Hodnett were Skibbereen's goal scorers. The final Under14 play-off league table finished with Togher in 4th place and Drinagh Rangers in third. Skibbereen finished runners-up with six points behind league champions, Bunratty. Immense credit goes to Bunratty’s coach, Dan Gray, for guiding his team to the league title victory. Daniel Hickey, Alan O'Driscoll and Sonny Evans were some of Bunratty’s best players throughout the 2006 season.

Under14 Cup
Skibbereen qualified for the Under14 cup final by virtue of their four nil defeat of Bay Rovers in the first semi final. Riverside Athletic had home advantage in the second cup semi final when they entertained Leeside. The home side recorded a hard fought 2-1 semi final victory over Leeside. The match played in Balineen, turned out to be a fantastic advertisement for Schoolboys soccer in West Cork. Riverside’s speedy winger, Brian McCarthy, opened the scoring for Riverside. Leeside’s Ben Shorten equalised with a brilliant individual effort. It was then left to star striker, Graham Courtney, to grab the winner for Riverside Athletic with a superb header in the dying moments of the game.

The West Cork Schoolboy’s Under14 Cup final turned out to be one of the best matches of the season at the Under14 level. Riverside Athletic and Skibbereen contested the final with Riverside emerging victorious after extra time after an evenly-matched contest. There was very little between Riverside Athletic and the home side, Skibbereen. Even though this was a tight encounter, some excellent football was played by both sides. The final had few clear-cut efforts on goal. Man of the match, Rory Baggott had an outstanding game in midfield for Riverside Athletic as did Tristan Dent for Skibbereen.

Riverside Athletic opened the scoring with a Cormac Lordan header early in the second half. Right on full time, Skibbereen substitute Ger Minihane broke the offside trap and slotted the ball under the goalkeeper for a last gasp equaliser. Skibbereen then lost the influential Dent to injury and had to play extra time with ten men. Late on, Graham Courtney got the ball on the edge of the area and fired a shot into the net from the narrowest of angles to win the game and the Under 14 Cup for Riverside Athletic.

Under14 Shield
The remaining six teams in the Under14 division that failed to qualify for the playoffs were entered in a knockout Shield competition. In the quarter finals, Clonakilty AFC (B) defeated Riverside Athletic. There was a local derby in the semi final where the Clonakilty AFC (B)’s defeated Clonakilty AFC (A)’s by three goals to two to reach the final. Lyre Rovers defeated Bay Rovers in the quarter finals and then accounted for Leeside by five goals to one to book their place in the final. Lyre had Joe Robinson (2), Darragh Coakley (2) and an absolute cracker from John Kingston to thank for their semi final win. In the final, Clonakilty AFC (B) defeated Lyre Rovers 4-0 to claim the West Cork Schoolboys Under14 Shield trophy. The final was contested in Lyre, where Rovers fine pitch and excellent facilities were on show. Clonakilty AFC (B)’s winning goals were scored by Barry O'Hea, Thomas Clancy and a two from Diarmuid Nagle. Coaches, Lorne Edmeade and Michael Ryan were delighted with their young side’s efforts in winning the trophy. In an entertaining final, Lyre Rovers were thankful to their goalkeeper, John O'Mahony, who pulled off a series of wonderful saves. Willie Griffin was proud of his Lyre Rovers side as they were more than a match for Clonakilty for long periods of the game.

2005 / 2006 West Cork Schoolboys Under14 Play off League Table (Final)

2005 / 2006 West Cork Schoolboys Under14 Roll Of Honour

U16 Season Review:

Drinagh Rangers won the West Cork Schoolboys Under16 title for the 2005 / 2006 season. Bay Rovers, under the management of Danny Peters, managed to secure the two remaining trophies at Under16 level. Bay Rovers defeated Clonakilty AFC (B)’s by three goals to two to win the Under16 Shield. In the Under16 Cup final, Rovers defeated a gallant Riverside Athletic, after extra time, by five goals to three. For sheer excitement and end to end drama the Under16 cup final was one of the best games of football played at under age level this season.

Ten teams entered the West Cork Under16 league back in September 2005. Togher Celtic, Clonakilty AFC (A), Clonakilty AFC (B), Drinagh Rangers, Lyre Rovers, Skibbereen, Bay Rovers, Riverside Athletic and Bunratty. Once the West Cork Under16 league regular season had been completed, the top four ranked teams in the division moved on to the play offs. At the end of the regular season, the top four sides finished in the following order: (1st) Skibbereen, (2nd) Bunratty, (3rd) Drinagh Rangers and (4th) Riverside Athletic. Each of these teams faced each other once in a round-robin mini league to decide the Under16 champions for 2006.

Under16 Play Offs

The Under16 Play Off fixtures began when Riverside Athletic entertained Drinagh Rangers in Balineen back in April. Drinagh Rangers ran out convincing 3-0 winners. The second round of matches in the West Cork Schoolboys Under16 play-offs took place over the Easter weekend. Bunratty had home advantage over Drinagh Rangers but it was the away side who grabbed a 2-1 victory. Bunratty took the lead after only ten minutes. The goal seemed to ignite the Drinagh Rangers side into action and they equalised in the 25th minute. A free kick from Barry O'Driscoll looped over the Bunratty goalkeeper and Keith Jagoe was on hand to head the ball into the empty net. With twenty minutes to go the ball broke to the edge of the area to Andy McCarthy who hit an unstoppable shot into the Bunratty net to give Drinagh the victory. As a result of the first two rounds of matches in the play offs Drinagh Rangers knew they only needed a draw going into their final match It was winner take all when Drinagh Rangers faced Skibb in the final Under16 league match of the season. A 0-0 draw in the final game with Skibbereen was enough to claim the Under16 title for Coach Don Hurley and his Drinagh Rangers team.

Under16 Cup

In the Under16's Cup, the competition’s semi finals saw Bay Rovers defeat Bunratty by four goals to two. A hat trick from Paul Drummey and a single goal from John Horgan helped Bay Rovers advance to the final. In the other semi final, Riverside Athletic defeated Togher Celtic. Bay Rovers were crowned Under16 Cup champions after a pulsating extra time victory over Riverside Athletic. It took extra time to seperate the sides in what turned out to be a classic cup final. Midway through the half, Riverside took the lead, somewhat against the run of play. Rovers failed to clear a free kick from Rory Baggott and Daniel Twomey lashed the loose ball into the net. Bay Rovers equalised just before half time when a Paul Drummey shot was parried into the path of Anthony Smith who made no mistake from five yards. At the beginning of the second half heavy rainfall made conditions difficult for both sides. Riverside's Kevin O'Donovan was brought down in the area by Gavin Andrews and the referee pointed to the spot. James Desmond made no mistake and Riverside had a 2-1 lead. Bay Rovers equalised for a second time when a cross from John Connolly was superbly finished by Sean O'Sullivan. It was no more that Bay Rovers deserved and the game finished 2-2 at the end of normal time. After a scoreless first period the second half of extra time burst into life with three goals in as many minutes. A free kick from the influential John Connolly of Bay Rovers was allowed to bounce all the way into the net. Then Riverside equalised with their very next attack only for Bay Rovers to go back down the pitch and go 4-3 in front when James Horgan finished off a great move. With the final whistle about to be blown, Bay Rovers added a fifth goal to clinch the Under16 Cup and bring an end to an extraordinary game.

Under16 Shield
The teams in the West Cork Schoolboys Under16 league that failed to reach the play off stage competed in a knockout Under16 Shield competition. The draw for the Under16 Shield semi finals saw Clonakilty AFC (B) face Clonakilty AFC (A) and Togher Celtic entertain Bay Rovers. In April, Bay Rovers captured their second Under16 trophy of the season. Danny Peter's side defeated Clonakilty AFC B's by three goals to two to claim the West Cork Under16 Shield trophy. In the twentieth minute, Rovers took the lead. James Horgan put a ball over the top for Paul Drummey to run on to and he lobbed the Clonakilty AFC (B) goalkeeper to put Bay Rovers 1-0 up. In the 32nd minute a John Connolly corner was headed into the goal by Paul Drummey to make it 2-0 to Bay Rovers. Clonakilty AFC never gave up and managed to pull a goal back in the 60th minute. Five minutes later Clon were level following another set piece move from a corner. In the seventieth minute, Shaun O’Sullivan finished off a great move to put Rovers three two ahead. The Under16 Shield trophy was presented to the Rovers captain John Connolly by the West Cork Schoolboys League chairperson Paddy McCarthy.

2005 / 2006 West Cork Schoolboys Under16 Play off League Table (Final)

2005 / 2006 West Cork Schoolboys Under16 Roll Of Honour