The February and March Rebel Óg awards were presented at the Clayton Hotel, Silversprings.
The February winners were Coláiste Choilm, Ballincollig, Junior A camogie team who won the All-Ireland championship.
March winners were St Francis College, Rochestown, who won the O’Callaghan Cup, defeating CBC in the final.
Two quickfire goals from Leah Hannigan in the 26th minute turned the Allianz Corn Gobnait All-Ireland Junior final in favour of Coláiste Choilm, who collected their first ever title in the 50th final of the competition. Hannigan had already scored a goal after nine minutes when Emily McGrath took two defenders out with a hand-pass from a move on the right wing.
But Hannigan’s two goals ensured her side came out on top by 3-8 to 0-13 against St Patrick’s Maghera. It was a superb win for the school with their goalkeeper Tara O’Donoghue, being name Player of the Game.
In winning they became only the second Cork school to ever win this competition, St Mary’s, Charleville, being the other. In the O’Callaghan Cup final Rochestown College got off to the perfect start with Ronan Dooley grabbing their first goal after two minutes and a minute later he got their second, to make it 2-0 to no score.
From here they drove on to victory with impressive displays from the likes of Dooley, Liam Kelleher, Mark O’Brien and Charlie Lucas.
CBC recovered from the slow start but in the end Roco won by 2-15 to 2-9 after a top-class game of hurling.
Michael O’Mahony, chairman of Rebel Óg congratulated the two winners on their success and wished those facing exams in the next few weeks the best of luck.
He said to be only the second Cork school to win that particular All-Ireland competition was a major honour and one all involved with Coláiste Choilm should be proud of.
Michael said the same of Rochestown College, winning the O’Callaghan Cup is never easy and it was great to see the school win the title for the first time in a number of years.
Rory Noonan, on behalf of the judging panel, also congratulated both schools on their wins and said that success at schools’ level was vital to the future of both hurling and camogie for Cork inter-county sides.
To nominate a team, club or person for a monthly award email: probng.cork@gaa.ie stating who and why you are nominating them. All nominees are passed on to an independent judging panel.
The Rebel Óg monthly awards have returned for 2024 and the January winners are Gaelcholáiste Mhuire AG An Mhainistir Thuaidh.
They recently won the Cork Colleges U16 A hurling championship, defeating Midleton CBS in the final by 2-14 to 3-9.
This was a huge win for the school as they took on a side that won the Münster U15 A championship last year and would have been considered favourites to win.
The corresponding AG team lost the first round of Münster U15 B to Glanmire Community College, so huge credit must go to all involved to turn that disappointment around.
At the start of this championship, no one expected Gaelcholáiste Mhuire an Mhainistir Thuaidh to reach the final let alone win the championship. But after an inspirational 14-point victory against Christians in the county semi-final, this team showed that it had a phenomenal spirit and work ethic.
Five of the starting AG team were U15 hurlers, all of Na Piarsaigh GAA – Jack O’Connor, Ruairí Quinlan, Jayden Cregan, Nathan Coffey, and Callum Coffey – all playing a year above their age, which made this feat even more impressive. These young U15s were supported by U16 stars such as Luke Hurley, Craig O’Sullivan, Ryan Cronin, and Evan McGuckin.
To beat Midleton CBS teachers and selectors of the AG team, Donagh Seartan, Tomás Ó Mainnín, Seamas Mac Amhlaioibh, and Éanna Ó Deasúnaigh, knew they would have to have a plan and execute it meticulously to have any chance of winning. It was a surprise to many when they came out on top, winning only a second A grade hurling title for the gaelcholáiste since 2002.
The outpouring of emotions and celebrations spoke volumes of the victory.
Vice-chairman of Rebel Óg, Peter Watson, congratulated the school on their win and wished them the best for the coming season, both with their school and clubs.
Nominations for the monthly award can be sent to probng.cork@gaa.ie stating why they are being nominated and by whom. All nominations are considered by an independent judging panel whose decision is final.
Please note that all Feile games planned for this weekend are now postponed. New fixture dates to follow.
GAMES OFF: All Rebel Óg games scheduled for tonight, Monday, have been postponed due to the weather.
POSTPONED: Rebel Óg are postponing all games this Friday, Saturday and Sunday due to the wet and hazardous conditions forecast and for the safety of all, due to the storm warnings issued by Met Eireann. The refixing of these games will be discussed at a later date.
Link to the calendar for the 2024 season so clubs have an idea when games are on.
Please note these are subject to change by the CCC
If you want to follow the draws tonight download document here to fill in as you go along.
Rebel Og, the heartbeat of youth GAA in Cork, is all set to kickstart the anticipation for the upcoming season with their highly anticipated championship draw.
The draws are set to take place on Thursday, February 8th, at 7pm, this event promises to set the stage for an exhilarating season of hurling and football competitions across various age groups and regions.
Rebel Og will live-streaming the event. Catch the draw live on both the Cork GAA website and Rebel Og site. Additionally, the draw will be streamed on various social media platforms for maximum accessibility.
The championship draw will encompass
- U14 Hurling and Football
- U16 Hurling and Football
- Minor Hurling and Football
Competitions from the following regions will be included:
- Rebel Og Premier
- Rebel Og East
- Rebel Og North
- Rebel Og Mid
- Rebel Og West
Watch the draw below
It was a night of celebration as more than 400 people attended the annual Rebel Óg awards banquet at the Clayton Hotel, Silver Springs.
Michael O’Mahony spoke on behalf of Rebel Óg and he thanked the hotel, the sponsors of both the annual and monthly awards for their continued support.
He also thanked Cummins Sports, trophy sponsors, and the two media partners, The Echo and Red FM for their support over the years.
From the monthly winners the judging panel, chaired by Michael Evans, picked an overall winner which was the Cork minor camogie team, who made it two in a row of All-Ireland titles and three in the last five years.
Jerry Wallace, manager of the team who has gone on to take over the Waterford senior side this season, thanked Rebel Óg for honouring the squad and praised the players and management for all their hard work to ensure they won the All-Ireland title.
With U16 and senior camogie titles on Leeside it was a great year for Cork camogie, one they will be hoping to repeat in 2024.
Also honoured with the Hall of Fame award was Mairead O’Callaghan for her service to Sciath na Scol.
She has been involved for many years and was also a teacher at Glenville NS for more than 40 years.
Away from Sciath na Scol she was a selector with the Cork senior camogie team and was also a member of the management of the Cork ladies football team.
Mairead won numerous titles with Watergrasshill Camogie Club, including a club All-Ireland title in 1982.
She was the first female officer of Sciath na Scol in Cork when she was elected secretary and went on to become treasurer of Cumann na mBunscoil in Munster.
She is the current president of Cumann na mBunscoil and for her many years of service Mairead was inducted into the Hall of Fame.
They recently completed a Feile double, winning the Premier 1 hurling title for the first time. They also won the P2 football title making it a great season for these young players.
After coming through the group stages on both occasions they then had to keep that momentum two days later for the semi-finals and then final.
In the hurling, they took on Na Piarsaigh, which was always going to be a tough contest. But, led by Sam Ring, the East Cork side came through to take the title for the first time in the club’s history. He scored 10 of their 13 point tally to secure the cup and get the chance to represent Cork in the national finals.
The football final was also a top-class game and it took extra time to separate them and Kiltha Óg in the final. A Ben Fitzgerald goal in extra-time proved to be a crucial score for Carrigtwohill.
In presenting them with their award Steven Lynch, assistant secretary of Rebel Óg congratulated the players on their success and wished them well in the upcoming national finals.
He said to win one Feile title is an achievement but to win two was outstanding.