The second set of fixtures this week is all about football as the Goose Village Blackrocks men’s and ladies’ teams both take to the field, facing the Montreal City Blues and Griffintown Gaels respectively.

First up, the men’s football sees the Goose Village Blackrocks face off against superleague debutantes the Montreal City Blues. Following Monday’s result, the Blackrocks are now six points adrift of the top spot with a game in hand, but only two points stand between them and their opponents tonight. Dreams of topping the table will have to be put on hold for the moment, as the more pressing matter of seeing off the competition for their precarious second place slot takes precedence. The Blackrocks will be hoping that their win over the Gaels two weeks ago will give them the momentum needed to overcome the challenge the Blues present, and from there make their push to the top.
The Blues will be looking further back than two weeks for inspiration, but should find plenty of it in their previous meeting with the Blackrocks. A repeat of the grit and determination they showed that night would be very welcome here – it would lift them into second place, and keep them in the running for a place in the final, and showing the more established superleague sides that they’re not to be underestimated.
With so much to play for, and both sides looking to have most of their squads available, expect this to be an unrelenting battle that could give a strong indication as to which one of these teams will make the superleague final.

Next, we have Ladies football which sees the Goose Village Blackrocks taking on the Griffintown Gaels. The Goose Village Blackrocks find themselves in a somewhat similar situation to their male counterparts. Currently in second place they trail the leaders, and their opposition tonight, by a mere two points, but unlike the men, they have two games in hand, putting them on stronger footing coming into this clash.
The last time these sides met was two weeks ago, with the Gaels coming off the better. The Blackrocks will be itching to write that particular wrong, and know that a win here could put them back on top. Anything less would keep them in second where they’ll undoubtedly find the Verdun Vikings snapping at their heels.
The Gaels will have the confidence that their last performance gave them going into this, but also knowing that they have a lot less room for error. With only two games left to play after this fixture, they’ll need every point, and a dose of good fortune, to maintain their place at the top.
This promises to be an intense game and with so much at stake, expect nothing but the best from both these teams.

This week we have Men’s Football and Hurling action, and both fixtures should be fierce clashes, with plenty at stake.

First up, the Verdun Vikings will take on the Griffintown Gaels in the midpoint fixture of this season. With four more games to play and a potential eight points up for grabs for all teams, it’s not time to write anyone off just yet, but only the most ardent Gaels supporter would deny they’ve a mountain to climb. Currently bottom of the table, by virtue of score difference, it’s not been the Gaels’ summer so far and facing a currently undefeated Vikings side certainly won’t be the fixture that they’d be hoping for right now. But needs must and the Gaels must be ready to dig deep and claim some points here. They’ve had some close games already this season, so the Gaels must be feeling that their time is due.
The Vikings will be looking to extend their lead at the top, as every game seems to take them one step closer to the point where their place in the final is uncontestable.
But complacency can be as deadly a foe as any, so it’ll be on captain Ronan Corbett to keep everyone focused on the task at hand. Current form suggests that this will be a formality for the Vikings, but if ever there was to be a game on which the season could turn it’ll be this one.
A loss here will see the Gaels star rise, but also open the top slot to other challengers, so expect the vikings to give it their all, and for the Gaels to give a loud reply.

Next up, we have the game that will define the rest of the Hurling season, one way or another.
PSC Cu Chulainn have had an incredible season, winning all three of their games so far and still top of the table despite playing less games than their opponents tonight Na Fianna Rouges (who have played five) or third place St Henri Harps (who have played four). So if Na Fianna have any hope at all of unseating PSC victory is a must tonight. Na Fianna will be buoyed by their victory over St Henri in last weeks fixture, and hoping that this is exactly what they need to mount a challenge, but they’ll also be keenly aware that they’ll only have two games left to play after this, so no matter their performance, things are mostly out of their hands.
PSC have had a few weeks of a break, and will undoubtedly have enjoyed watching their rivals bloody each others noses and fail to make any real ground while they rested. But without game time in so long, there’s the spectre of rustiness that PSC will be hoping to exorcise, and another win would be exactly the way to do it. They have the most room for error out of all the teams, but that’s the sort of thinking that allows teams to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory, so it’ll be time to put the heads down and get to work for PSC.
This promises to be a ferocious clash, with neither side willing to settle for anything less than a win, should be fantastic stuff.

Week eight of the superleague sees Hurling and ladies football action, and as we move into the back half of the season and the tables take shape, each and every fixture becomes more and more important.

And one team who will be keenly aware of just how important these games are is Na Fianna Rouges who will face off against the St Henri Harps in our opening fixture. The last meeting between these two was very one sided, with the Harps running rampant over the Rouges. Currently bottom of the table, by virtue of score difference, the Rouges will know that nothing less than victory will do here. Anything less will leave them with a mountain to climb, as they would be two points adrift of the Harps, and four behind the leaders, with only three games left to play.
The Harps will be keen to use their blowout over the Rouges as a springboard to mount a challenge on first place PSC, another win here would move them to within striking distance of the table toppers, and with a game in hand over the Rouges would make them confident of being finalists regardless how their challenge for the top spot goes.
The last time these sides met, we promised a tense game that failed to materialise, but with so much at stake and both teams looking likely to have their full squads available, this should be one of the games that will define the rest of this summer’s hurling superleague.

The second game will have some big shoes to fill, but these are exactly the teams you’d want to fill them. In ladies football the Verdun Vikings will be eager to have a go at the high flying Griffintown Gaels. The Vikings are without a win this season, but that won’t be much comfort to the Gaels, as both meetings between these sides have been closely fought affairs. On paper the Vikings are the equal of any team in the league, and now with a nearly impossible task ahead of them this is exactly when they’ll need a bit of magic to turn things around. It’ll be all hands on deck and eyes will be turning to Captain Eimear O’Leary-Barrett to lead the way.
In their last fixture, the Gaels saw off their closest rivals, the Goose Village Blackrocks, to move two points clear at the top. Buoyed by this, they’ll be coming into this match eager to do the business and put more space between them and the rest of the pack, but they will be aware that they’ve played the most games of all three teams, so there’s less room for error. A slip up here against a hungry Vikings side would throw the race for the top spot wide open.
With so much at stake here, this game should be a classic, with no quarter asked for, or given.

Both these fixtures are on Monday the 16th of July at the Vanier College

7:00pm – St Henri Harps vs Na Fianna Rouges
8:00pm – Verdun Vikings (Ladies) vs Griffintown Gaels (Ladies)