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September 17th
Longford's Sheridan star man in Kick
Fada
This year's All Ireland Kick Fada competition proved to be
the most competitive in its 13 year history with Longford's Damien
Sheridan emerging victorious for the second time in three
years with a massive kick into the wind of 65 metres at Bray
emmet's last Saturday.
The Dromard netminder has to beat off a number of top class
intercounty kickers such as Joe Sheridan (Meath), Padraig Kelly
(Offaly) and Tony Hannon (Wicklow) as well as Paul Flood of Kildare
who finished runner up with last year's winner Shane Duffy
(Monaghan) in third position.
Although the prevailing conditions of a headwind into the
kickers didn't augur for long kicking, Sheridan made a very
creditable attempt to claim the record of 72 metres held by
Kildare's Mark herbert and wasn't too far away, suggesting
that he has the firepower to wrestle that kicking landmark
sometime soon in the future.
Dublin girl wins Kick Fada in Bray
The women's All Ireland Kick Fada in Bray Emmets last
Saturday turned into a great kicking duel with a Dublin-Meath
flavour. In the end, Clanna Gael's Serena Hannon brought the title
back to the capital with a kick of 45 metres which the holder Irene
Munnelly was unable to match on this occasion and finished
second.
The women's event saw 25 participants take part which was a
record number of kickers.
Photos of the day can now be viewed here. Can you spot
yourself...
Photos of our U6's having a go can be found here
Photos of the Ladies competition can be found here
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September 12th
The Kick Fada will take place on the
15th September 2012 at Old Conna. Further
information regarding the kickers who will be participating is
detailed in the further down this piece. We will also have U16
Hurling and Camogie tournaments a mini all ireland, stalls, food
and lots more. The ladies competition starts at 1.15pm
whilst the men's competition starts at 2.00pm. We would look to all
the club members to support us on this annual club day.
Many of the country's leading GAA stars will line up on Saturday
next in Bray Emmets for the 13th annual All Ireland Kick Fada
competition at Old Conna (1.15pm start)
There have been a number of great champions in the history of
the competition with Mark Herbert (Kildare) leading the way with
four titles to his credit. Offaly's Padraig Kelly was a double
winner in his time and both will be seeking to make history by
returning this weekend to claim the top prize.
Last year Monaghan's Shane Duffy came through a crowded pack to
claim the ultimate honour but Wicklow pair Tony Hannon and Conor
McGraynor showed enough form on their debut performances to suggest
that they might be even closer this time around.
McGraynor is a prodigious kicker from the hand but Hollywodd
star Hannon is a lethal deadball kicker who on his day is more than
capable to bringing the All Ireland home to Wicklow for the first
time.
The star-studded list which will once again feature Dublin's
Mark Vaughan and Armagh's Paul Hearty, as well as the three
Sheridans - Meath brothers Joe and Brian, and Longford's
Damien.
Wicklow will also make a big effort to strike gold in the Ladies
competition with a number of members of the high-flying county team
expected to take part.
Only once in the history of the competition has the All Ireland
medal stayed in Wicklow. That occurred in the first year -2000-
when Aine McGillycuddy from An Tochar emerged victorious in the
ladies competition.
Speaking at the launch of this year's competition, Emmets
Chairperson Frances Stephenson paid tribute to MBNA for the
sponsorship over the past 12 years and explained that when they
pulled out of it this year, she was determined that the Emmets club
would still run the event.
"What we are talking about is an All Ireland senior football
competition in Wicklow on an annual basis and I think it is
something we should fight to keep on the GAA calendar."
The club is hopeful that they will be able to source a new
sponsor for the event for next year and are most happy to hear from
any businesses inside the county who might be interested in
the association which carries a lot of national profile and
coverage.
The Kick Fada determines who is the longest and most accurate
kicker of a Gaelic football in Ireland. Competitors must kick the
ball over the bar through specific competition goalposts twice the
width of conventional goal sizes.
Explaining the considerable interest in the All
Ireland Kick Fada competition among established GAA
inter-county stars, competition organiser Pat Wogan of
Bray Emmets said: "For the past dozen years a huge array of
inter-county stars have taken part annually in the competition.
Ultimately, any player at inter-county level is a serious
competitor at heart and the opportunity to test the core skill of
kicking a Gaelic football against top quality opposition in a novel
fashion becomes addictive. Last year , we had players
from over 15 counties represented and our aim is to have every
county in Ireland represented."
The ladies event begins at 1.15 pm with the Men's
Final due to kick-off at 2.00pm. As part of the activity at the Old
Conna Grounds on Saturday, there will be a hurling mini All
Ireland blitz
List of Kickers in 2012 All Ireland Kick
Fada
Shane Duffy (Monaghan) HOLDER
Conor McGraynor (Wicklow)
Damien Sheridan (Longford)
Irene Munnelly (Meath) HOLDER
Geraldine Norton (Wicklow)
The champion male and female kickers receive the Kick Fada All
Ireland medal as well as holiday vouchers with the
overall winning kicker receiving the Bray Emmets All Ireland
Champion Trophy.
The Kick Fada record, which stands at 73 metres, was
achieved by four time champion Mark Herbert from Kildare.
Suzanne Hughes from Ballyboden St Endas GAA Club holds the all time
female record of 52m from back in 2001.
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September 9th
The Kick Fada will take place on the
15th September 2012 at Old Conna. Further
information regarding the kickers who will be participating will be
available in the next few days and will be posted on the website
and facebook.
The ladies competition starts at 1.15pm whilst the men's
competition starts at 2.00pm.
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August 29th
KICK FADA 2012 has been launched with Mickey Whelan
inducted into the All Ireland Kick Fada hall of fame.
WHERE:
CrokePark
WHEN:
Wednesday, August 29th 11.00am
Former Dublin star Mickey Whelan was today inducted into the All
Ireland Kick Fada Hall of Fame as its 2012 winner. The
St Vincent's man has been a GAA colossus over the years as a
player, coach, manager and mentor to a myriad of different
teams.
He joins fellow Dub Jimmy Keaveney in the Kick Fada Hall
of Fame list. Other players who have been honoured by the Bray
Emmet's initiative over the years include Brian McEniff (Donegal),
Peter Nolan (Offaly), Donie O'Sullivanand Mick O'Dwyer (Kerry),
Billy Morgan (Cork), Paddy Doherty (Down), Frank McGuigan (Tyrone)
and the late Roscommon stalwart Dermot Earley.
Bray Emmets Chairperson Frances Stephenson today said Bray
Emmets and the All Ireland Kick Fada Committee were honoured and
enriched by Mickey's acceptance of the award. "He has been an
outstanding servant to Gaelic Games at all levels and I would like
to congratulate him on what he has given back to the association
after his playing career ended. He is an example to all about
giving a life commitment to the GAA."
The Bray Emmets Chairperson also announced that the annual All
Ireland Kick Fada competition would take place at the Club grounds
in EmmetPark, Old Connaught Avenue in Bray on Saturday September
15th at 1pm.
Now in its 13th year, the All Ireland Kick Fada draws
the top long-kickers from around the country in both male and
female categories. Past winners include such players as Paul Hearty
(Armagh), Padraig Kelly (Offaly), Brian Sheridan (Meath), four-time
winner Mark Herbert (Kildare) and current holder Shane Duffy
(Monaghan). Past female winners include Mary Sheridan (Meath),
holder Irene Munnelly (Meath) and Suzanne Hughes from Dublin who
holds the all-time female record of 52m from back in 2001.
The Kick Fada competition tests the abilities of the country's
best footballers in one of the most vital skills of Gaelic Football
- kicking for distance and accuracy. Every year, the country's best
inter-countyGaelic Footballers compete in two divisions - Senior
men and Senior ladies.
The champion male and female kickers receive the Kick Fada All
Ireland medal as well as a voucher towards a holiday.
For further information please contact Frances Stephenson
(087-2499362)
MICKEY WHELAN - BACKGROUND
Mickey was a selector on the Dublin senior football team which
won last year's All Ireland final against Kerry.
That team's manager Pat Gilroy, played for Mickey when he
managed St Vincent's to All Ireland club success in 2008
Indeed he holds the rare distinction of being a former player
and manager of both St Vincent's and Dublin senior football
teams.
Before joining the Marino Club, Mickey played for Clanna Gael
with whom he won a Dublin SFC medal in 1968
Inter-county career
Mickey was on the All-Ireland winning side for Dublin in 1958 as
a substitute and again in 1963 when he won a Cú Chulainn
award for his performances with the Dublin senior football team
during that campaign.
He won the National football league division one title with
Dublin and three Leinster SFC medals in 1962, 1963 and 1965.
As well as winning a Dublin SFC medal with Clanna Gael, Mickey
won championships with St Vincent's in '75 and '76. He won a
Leinster SFC club medal and All Ireland SFC club medal with
Vincent's in 1976.
Whelan was the Dublin senior football manager between 1996 and
1999. In 2007 he won the Dublin SFC as manager of Vincent's and
later that year the Leinster SFC against Tyrrellspass. The
following year he led St Vincent's to All Ireland club victory over
Nemo Rangers and stepped down from that role two weeks later.
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August 29th
RULES OF THE KICK FADA
COMPETITION
The competition is open to all current GAA members over the age
of 18.
The object of the event is to find the longest yet most accurate
kickers of a standard GAA football.
The winner of the competition will be the contestant with the
longest successful kick.
A successful kick is deemed to be one where the ball crosses
over the bar and between the posts prior to touching the
ground.
The ball used will be standard Size 5 for men and Size 4 for
ladies.
Each kick will be taken from a pre-determined marked distance
from the target.
The kick may be taken from the hand or from the ground.
Players may use a tee if they so wish.
The taking of a kick by each remaining contestant as a specific
distance will be called a 'round'.
There will be a maximum of three rounds per distance.
Once a contestant has achieved a successful kick they will be
deemed to have qualified for the next round and will not be
required to take a further kick at the current distance.
Each contestant will tak a kick in turn until all remaining
members of the group have completed an attempt at the current
distance.
After a maximum of three rounds at a particular distance the
distance will be increased by a pre-determined number of metres and
a new round will begin for all successful kickers.
If a contestant fails to make any successful kick at a
particular distance they will not go forward to the next round.
In the event of no contestant achieving a successful kick in a
round, there will be a sudden-death playoff of all contestants who
qualified for that round.
The winners of the competition whill have the choice of
continuing within the rules, to establish the longest successful
kick and attempt to set a new record.
The decision of the Kica Fada Event Co-ordinator will be final
in the event of a dispute.
Patrick Wogan,
Kick Fada Event Co-ordinator
