Crossakiel retain McGee Perpetual Cup.

Crossakiel & Collooney teams 

Back row: Steven Quinn, Michael McGee, Vinny Farrell, Mark Farrell & Roddy Wearen

Front row: Martin Brannigan, Stanley Harte Jnr, Michael McMorrow, Gerry Coleman, Seamus Duffy & Stanley Harte Snr.

Crossakiel team: Michael McGee, Roddy Wearen, Vinny Farrell, Stephen Quinn, Mark Farrell and mascot

Collooney team: Stanley Harte Snr, Michael McMorrow, Gerry Coleman, Seamus Duffy, Stanley Harte Jnr & Martin Brannigan.

Crossakiel retain McGee Perpetual Cup.

Vinny Farrell’s performance ensures the McGee Cup stays in Crossakiel for another year at least, writes Michael McGee

The annual Michael & Bernadette McGee perpetual Cup 60 x 30 tournament took place in Crossakiel on a sunny Saturday 5th August last. Collooney made the long journey to the Royal County to take on the reigning champions hoping to inflict a first defeat on the Meath men. The Crossakiel team of Steven Quinn, Michael McGee, Vinny Farrell, Mark Farrell and Roddy Wearen went in as slight favourites against a Collooney team consisting of Stanley Harte Jnr, Gerry Coleman, Martin Brannigan, Seamus Duffy, Michael McMorrow and Stanley Harte Snr. In the first singles Steven Quinn took on young Stanley Harte Jnr. The Collooney man made a game of it but Quinn this year’s Leinster Junior singles finalist had a little more overall court craft to put Crossakiel firmly out in front.

Farrell outstanding

The first doubles seen Michael McGee making a welcome return following a troublesome shoulder injury and making his first competitive outing of the year while Vinny Farrell also devoid of competitive matches made a welcome return to action. In the corresponding match of two years ago the fixture will be best remembered by the now infamous exquisite 50 ft roll out by Farrell in Collooney. Facing the Meath pair were Gerry Coleman who only hours earlier contested the Connacht Silver Masters B singles final in St. Coman’s Roscommon. Partnering Coleman was Martin Brannigan the Clubs Junior C player who is showing plenty of potential in the new club colours. Indeed at the start the Sligo pairing took the fight straight away to the Meath men racing into an 9-0 lead. McGee and Farrell eventually worked themselves into the contest and having drawn level at 9-9 the contest ebbed and flowed throughout with little separating both teams. Vinny Farrell was a Colossus on the right in the Crossakiel shirt as everything Brannigan & Coleman threw at him in the right corner he returned with equal interest. Farrell played like a man possessed and gave a man of the tournament performance right to the very end. His outstanding performance finally broke the Collooney men’s resolve. The Collooney men were in front for most of the contest but the Crossakiel men finished that little bit stronger and won narrowly by 31-27. 

Farrell & Wearen doubles delight

The second doubles seen the Crossakiel duo of Mark Farrell & Roddy Wearen taking on the Masters Michael Mc Morrow and Seamus Duffy. Farrell & Wearen reached the quarter final of this year’s Leinster Junior C 60 x 30 doubles and they took off from there. Farrell & Wearen were the stronger pairing on the day while it has to be said Michael McMorrow was playing having worked throughout the night and still put up creditable performance while Seamus Duffy was never found wanting on the right and played some top handball to stem the Crossakiel men overall skill and strength. The final score didn’t matter as Crossakiel had one hand on the cup after the first doubles match. Following the contest both sets of players and supporters assembled in the Welcome Wagon where the games were shown clearly on the big screen. After a delicious meal Steven Quinn the Crossakiel club Chairman gave a speech as did club Secretary Michael McGee who thanked his former club mates for making the long journey from Sligo to attend the event. He warmly praised the Collooney club for welcoming him to the club during his time there and also praised the Collooney club for its fundraising efforts which now sees Collooney with a state of the art 40 x 20 handball Court. Turning to his Crossakiel colleagues he said “these men from Sligo are the envy of everyone not only in Crossakiel but throughout the country with what a small but dedicated number of members have achieved in a relative short space of time under former Chairman Hugh McGarry and now Peter Davey. Following the speech McGee presented the Family Perpetual Cup to Captain Steven Quinn. 

Crossakiel members have expressed their intentions of travelling to Collooney in 2018 to try to make it a first 3-in-a-row of wins. Collooney on the other hand will be making plans to scupper this and will be bolstered by the inclusion of players such as the calibre of Shane Bruen, Peter Chambers, Dave Mulhern & Mark Murphy . Next year’s competition is already eagerly awaited