Mayo will have plenty of involvement in the Connacht Cup and Shield this Sunday with five Mayo teams in action across the quarter-finals and semi-finals of both competitions.
In the main event, both Westport United and Iorras Aontaithe are the two Mayo sides who’ve made it to the last eight round. Westport United are of course the defending Connacht Cup champions after picking up the trophy on penalties against Athenryin a rainswept Terryland Park last May. On Sunday afternoon they will be hosting opposition from Sligo when City United from the Sligo-Leitrim Super League come to the Sportspark. City United are currently in sixth place in the Sligo Southern Super League table, but have a number of games in hand on the sides ahead of them.
Iorras Aontaithe will be making the trip to Galway to take on Mervue United’s junior side. Even though Mervue United are also supporting a senior side in division one of the Airtricity League they are still more than holding their own in the junior game. They are currently three points ahead at the top of the Galway League Premier League with six rounds to go.
The draw for the semi-final pairings have already been made and it has pitted the two winners of the games involving Mayo sides against each other and they have been scheduled for the weekend of April 20/21.
In the Connacht Junior Shield there are three Mayo sides into the last four guaranteeing at least one team from Mayo will have the chance to replicate Ballyheane’s success from last year in the competition. The all Mayo semi-final will see Swinford and Urlar United go head to head. Both sides had contrasting fortunes last year in the league with Swinford making the drop down from the Premier A league and Urlar United picking up the League one title. The other semi-final will see Partry Athletic who came second to Urlar in League One last year host Cregmore from Galway in Partry. All games in both competitions kick off at 2pm on Sunday.
Celtic ladies head for Dublin
Castlebar Celtic senior ladies will be travelling east on Sunday when the take on Shamrock Rovers in a catch up game in the Bus Eireann Women’s National League. Last weekend Celtic’s ladies side went down 2-1 away to DLR Waves in the capital and they are currently sitting in fourth place in the table, with Peamount United, Raheny United and Wexford Youth’s ahead of them in the table.
Celtic to take part in future football programme
Castlebar Celtic Football Club will be the first football club in Mayo to take part in the McDonald’s FAI Future Football programme, a brand new initiative to support grassroots football clubs and enhance the work they do at local level. Castlebar Celtic FC will be championed by the local McDonald’s Restaurant in Mayo, which is owned and operated by Rhoda Cramp.
Castlebar Celtic will be one of 83 football clubs nationwide who are signed up to the Future Football programme, where up to 4,000 boys and girls (u8, u9 and u10 ) are will participate in a range of exciting future football events to be rolled out over the coming months. The events include free coach education workshops which will deliver best practice for the coaching of small sided games (4 v 4 and 7 v 7 ), aimed at developing skills in young players; community. Fun days will also be held in 25 locations around Ireland supported by McDonald’s; and a future football competition for clubs culminating in a McDonald’s Cup Final, with the chance to play in Aviva Stadium at half time during the Republic of Ireland’s final home qualifier against Kazakhstan on October 15 2013.
