Coming up this Saturday, the 23rd of February at the Stinger Dome –

• 6pm – Na Fianna Rouges vs St Henri Harps
• 7pm – Concordia Warriors (Men’s) vs Griffintown Gaels (Men’s)
• 8pm – Griffintown Gaels (Ladies) vs Goose Village Blackrocks (Ladies)

We’re firmly in the business end of the season now, and this week sees a crucial fixture in the Hurling for the St Henri Harps, a chance to go top of the league for the Concordia Warriors in men’s football, and a visit to the last chance saloon for the Griffintown Gaels in the ladies’ football.

First up we have hurling action with Na Fianna Rouges facing off against the St Henri Harps. Na Fianna are currently undefeated this season, and last week were the first team in the entire superleague to book their place in the final with a closely fought win over PSC Cu Chulainn. With all the hard work done, onlookers might expect the Rouges to take this handy and concentrate on the finals, but if they were expecting an easy game to coast through, then they’ll be sorely disappointed. The Harps have yet to put points on the board this season, but there’s still time for them to turn things around and claim a place in the finals, as PSC only have two points to their name and could well be caught. But that comeback will have to start here, which means that the Harps will need to see off a team that’s soundly beaten them twice already this season. It’s a tall order, but if there’s any team up the challenge it would be the St Henri Harps. Expect plenty of scores and even the occasional broken hurl in what is sure to be a hotly contested game.

Next we turn our attention to a league that’s found it’s to be a much tighter place. In the men’s football we have the Concordia Warriors taking on the Griffintown Gaels. The Warriors currently find themselves in third, a point behind the second placed Verdun Vikings and two adrift of the leader, the Goosevillage Blackrocks. A win for the warriors here would bring them at least up to second, and could even put them in first if the goal difference is great enough. And they’ll be thankful they’re facing off against the Gaels who have been struggling to find their form this season. That confidence could be their undoing, as the Gaels have the makings of a team that could rival any in this league, and have a well documented habit of having a stronger second half of a season than the first. Both sides will need a win here, for the Gaels it’d be the shot in the arm their season needs, and for the warriors it’d be exactly what they need to keep their path to the finals on track. Whose to say which way this fixture will go, but we do know it’ll be a great game to watch.

And wrapping things up for us are the Griffintown Gaels lining out opposite the Goose Village Blackrocks in ladies’ football. The Blackrocks have had a funny couple of weeks, from narrowly beating the Vikings two weeks ago, to being routed by that same side last week, you could forgive the Blackrocks for feeling disorientated going into their third fixture in as many weeks. But if there was ever a time for a steady hand to right the ship, that’d be now. A first or second place finish will most probably rest on the performances given during the run in, and the Blackrocks would have to know that any slip up here would be pounced upon by their rivals. The Gaels, like their male counterparts, haven’t had the best start to the season, but they might well be smelling blood in the water going into this. It’s a rare sight of late to see the Blackrocks beaten so soundly, and the Gaels might be hoping to compound their misery with a smash and grab performance to pluck two points for themselves. If there was ever a time for that, it would surely be now.
Will the Blackrocks get back on course, or is it time for the Gaels’ engine to finally start firing? Either way, this should be a cracker of a game to see out the day.

Coming up this Saturday, the 16th of February at the Stinger Dome –

• 6pm – PSC Cu Chulainn vs Na Fianna Rouges
• 7pm – Goose Village Blackrocks (Ladies) vs Verdun Vikings (Ladies)
• 8pm – Griffintown Gaels (Men’s) vs Verdun Vikings (Men’s)

Week six sees the hurlers return with a top of the table clash, a rematch of last week’s dramatic ladies game, and a men’s game with a spot in second on the cards.

Opening things this week are PSC Cu Chulainn facing off against Na Fianna Rouges. The rouges are currently three for three and a win here will book their passage to the finals, so all eyes will be on this fixture. Their road to the Summer Superleague finals was never certain, so they’ll be eager to make sure that’s not the case here. PSC also fancy themselves as finalists, and would love nothing more than to put a stop to Na Fianna’s run of form, while putting themselves on the front foot to see off the challenge of St-Henri. If that is to be a reality, then they’ll need to bring everything they have to this game, as what’s being asked of them is no small task. But PSC have been a consistent thorn in Na Fianna’s side these past few seasons, and there’s nothing stopping them from continuing that hoodoo here. This should be a fantastic display of Hurling, and a great start to the evening.

Next we have what may well be the best game you’ll see all winter. Last week’s clash between these sides was tense, tough, and not without controversy – and in a gift from the scheduling gods, they’re back this weekend for round two. The Vikings will be coming into this with something to prove, they kept pace with the blackrocks all game last week, and the result was balanced on a knife’s edge for most of it, a well kicked point here, a good pass there, and the Vikings could well have walked off the field winners. And that’s something the Blackrocks will be all too aware of, and will need to be ready to deal with. Their side is experienced, but they’ll find the Vikings to be as tenacious, if not more so than last time. The Blackrocks’ forwards will need to be relentless and their backs to be on their game if they want to take another two points. If this is half the game last week was, we’ll be in for a treat.

And finally, we will have the men take to the field in the last fixture of the day. The Vikings and Geals go head to head in what is a pivotal game for both sides. The Vikings are now just a point behind second place Concordia Warriors, with a game in hand. Victory here would see them leapfrog into second, and just a point behind the leaders. This is a very clear chance for the Vikings to pull themselves into strong contention for the finals, and they’ll want to grab it with both hands. The Gaels will be going into this in a familiar position, halfway through the season and all but written off, so they’ll be feeling the pressure, but knowing full well that they can turn things around. And if they are going to do that, then it will have to start here, nothing less than a win will do. This should make for some exciting football, with both teams in need of a positive result here. Exactly the kind of game you’d want to wrap things up with.

Coming up this Saturday, the 9th of February at the Stinger Dome –

• 6pm – Griffintown Gaels (Ladies) vs Concordia Warriors (Ladies)
• 7pm – Concordia Warriors (Men’s) vs Goose Village Blackrocks (Men’s)
• 8pm – Goose Village Blackrocks (Ladies) vs Verdun Vikings (Ladies)

Week five sees the hurlers taking a well earned break, as we have all four ladies’ teams in action, and a top of the table clash in Men’s football.

For our opening game, the Griffintown Gaels and the Concordia Warriors will face off against each other. Both sides will be hungry for a win here, as they’ve both failed to take points from their games so far and if they’ve any chance at all of earning themselves a place in the finals, their comeback will need to start here. On paper these sides are the equal of any team, but they’ve both been misfiring, so this game will all come down to who finds their rhythm first – if the Gaels are first out of the traps, they’ve got the experienced players that should see them through, but if the Warriors come out swinging then they could easily take the game by the scruff of the neck and not let go. This should be a tight game, with both sides unwilling to give an inch, and a fantastic start to the day.

Sandwiched in between all the ladies’ football action the current table toppers in the men’s football, the Goose Village Blackrocks will answer the challenge from the currently second placed Concordia Warriors. The Blackrocks have seen off the Vikings and the Gaels so far this season, and will be looking to go three for three here, and with that almost certainly booking their place in the winter superleague final. The Warriors started strong against the Gaels, before being pipped at the post by the Vikings last weekend, so they’ll be looking to reassert themselves here, as much to keep the pressure on the Blackrocks as to put some daylight between themselves and the rest of the pack. This should be a high scoring game, and could very well be a preview of the final itself, all eyes in the men’s league will be on this fixture, as it should be a cracker.

And to round things off we have another top of the table clash, this time in the ladies’ football. The Goose Village Blackrocks will line up against the Verdun Vikings. Both these teams are currently undefeated this season, so this is a chance for one side to pull away from the other, and make a good claim on a place in the finals. The Blackrocks will be looking to make a strong statement of intent here, as they plan to make it two winter superleague championships in a row. Meanwhile, the Vikings haven’t laid hands on silverware since winter 20017 and are just itching to put an end to their time in the wilderness. A win here for either side will set the tone for the rest of the league, both these teams will fancy themselves as finalists, so the winner here would go into the second half of the season with their head held high. This should be a high stakes, high scoring game, exactly the way you’d hope a day of football would end.