BRIDGE NEWS.
The Ballyduff and Portlaw Bridge Club played their latest bridge game on Monday October 2nd and the results are as follows:
1st: Nano Fitzgerald and Geraldine McMahon.
2nd: Mary O Brien and Elizabeth Mooney.
3rd: John Fitzpatrick and Peggy Murphy.
4th: Kate Hayes and Sean Hennessy.
GAA LOTTO.
Ballyduff Lower held their latest lotto draw on Sunday October 1st and the numbers drawn were 1, 14, 22, and 24. There was no lucky winner of the jackpot and the 3 lucky dip winners of €50 each were JP Tierney, Aidan McNamara and Finbar Tynan. The next draw will take place on October 15th and there will be a jackpot of €11,300 on offer. Tickets cost just €2 or 3 for €5 and are available from all committee members, online and will also be on sale at Centra in Kilmeaden on Saturday October 14th. What a fantastic jackpot, so make sure that you choose those four lucky numbers very carefully.
DEATH OF ANNA NOLAN
Our community deeply mourns the loss of Anna Nolan, late of Ballyduff Hill who died recently. A gentle, quiet woman, she loved spending time with her family and enjoyed chats with her grandchildren and great grandchildren. She enjoyed knitting and doing puzzles and was a lady whose faith was very important to her. During periods of ill health in recent years it was of great comfort to her that she could remain at home with her family, and they ensured that she was very well taken care of. She will be sadly missed by her daughters Noeleen and Maria, her grandchildren Siobhan and her husband John, Josh and his partner Romina and Niamh, her brothers JJ and Sean, sisters May White and Kitty Stone, her great grandchildren Kasey, Emmie, Ayla, Jack and Robyn, her extended family, neighbours and friends. Anna’s funeral mass took place in her parish church, St. Nicholas’ church, Ballyduff and she was laid to rest in the adjoining graveyard. We pray that she now rests in gentle peace and is reunited with her beloved husband Ted. May she rest in peace.
RECENT DEATHS
We extend our deepest sympathy to Eleanor Foley, Ballyduff on the recent death of her beloved father. Seamus O Neill, Slieverue will be sadly missed by his wife Maureen, his children Eleanor, Alison and Nigel, his grandchildren, great grandchildren, extended family, neighbours and friends. Seamus’s funeral mass took place in The Sacred Heart Church, Ferrybank will burial in the adjoining graveyard. May he now rest in peace and may his family draw comfort from all their wonderful memories.
We offer our condolences to Rory Phelan on the recent death of his father Maurice Phelan, late of Grantstown. Maurice will be remembered and loved always by his wife Betty, daughters Tara and Lisa, sons Muiris, Niall and Rory, grandchildren, sisters, brother, daughter-in-law Maura, sons-in-law Michael and Adrian, extended family, neighbours and friends. Maurice’s funeral mass was celebrated in St. Mary’s Church, Ballygunner and he was laid to rest in the adjoining cemetery. May he now beat peace in God’s heavenly kingdom.
CHURCH NEWS.
The annual Autumn station masses will be held in St. Nicholas’s Church on Wednesday October 11th and 18th at 7.30pm. This is a lovely opportunity for neighbours and parishioners to come together and offer prayers for all the people living in their community. These two masses will cover all the townlands of the parish and your annual Autumn dues collection envelopes are available in your yearly pack or you can use any envelope and mark it Autmn collection. We all lead such fast and busy lives; it is nice to come together and pray for blessings on the health and wellbeing of our neighbours and friends.
GOLDEN COUPLE.
We send warm congratulations to John and Minnie McGrath, Kildermody who recently celebrated 50 years of wedded bliss. Still smiling and enjoying each other’s company as much as ever, they are most certainly an example to all of a happy marriage. Always willing to support and help their family, friends and neighbours, it was lovely to hear that they were treated to a beautiful meal in The Sweep with their family. We wish this happy, popular couple every best wish for the future and many more years of happy marriage.
BIRTHDAY GIRL
We send congratulations and best wishes to a very popular lady, Ann Dunphy, Lisahane who recently celebrated her 80th birthday. Ann enjoyed her special day at her son Seamus’s house where her family ensured that her birthday was marked with great celebrations. She enjoyed good food, drink and lots of laughs with her family and maybe there was a dance or two around the kitchen. Ann always has a wonderful smile to greet everyone, and we hope that she enjoyed her birthday celebrations and wish her many more happy birthdays.
BALLYDUFF LOWER GAA.
Busy times at Ballyduff Lower GAA club with lots of different groups competing and enjoying games. The Portlaw/Ballyduff LGFA U8’s and U10’s had a busy couple of weeks in some very unpleasant weather conditions at times. They began by travelling to Kilmacthomas on September 23rd to take part in a blitz and showed great strength of character as they worked hard during heavy rain. Thursday September 28th was the final training session for this group and once again the weather was against them. It did not stop the fun though as the U8’s were presented with certificates and the U10’s/U11’s took part in an in-house tournament. Cork, Waterford, Tipperary and Kerry took to the pitch in the hope of winning the LGFA trophy and medals. Tipperary and Waterford progressed to the final with Tipperary coming out on top in an exciting game. The U10’s travelled to Lemybrien the following day to take part in their final outing of the year. Great fun was had as they met with teams from Kilrossanty Brickey’s, St. Pat’s, Stradbally and Kilmacthonmas. The club would like to thank all the girls, their coaches and their parents for their commitment and looks forward to next season.
The U9 hurlers travelled to De La Salle to take part in their Festival of Hurling. There were teams from Waterford, Kilkenny, Tipperary, and Cork. It was a wonderful sight to see all the teams walk behind the pipe band around the pitch. A big thanks to De La Salle for organizing this event and providing refreshments and treat bags for all the participants.
The U8 and U10 camogie girls took part in the County Camogie Blitz in the SETU Arena on Sunday October 1st. The U8 team played Butlerstown, Ferrybank, Brickey Rangers and Gailltir while the U10’s took on Gailltir and two Mount Sion teams. This was a great opportunity for the girls and showed how much they are improving every day.
A big well done to the U15 Portlaw/Ballyduff hurlers who beat Passage to win the U15 Hurling Plate Final. They have enjoyed a great year, and this is a just reward for their hard work. Congratulations to all the team, their coaches and parents for their dedication.
BALLYDUFF AFC
Ballyduff AFC are always improving their facilities and they have now opened a coffee shop on their grounds. You can enjoy teas, coffee, and sweet treats when you visit the grounds. This is a great addition to the club, and we wish them the very best.
The club are asking for your support as they take part in the Circle K/ FAI Club Mark competition where your club could win up to €30,000. Just download the Circle K app, select Ballyduff AFC and then upload your Circle K receipts. The more entries the club gets the more chance they have of winning.
Congratulations to the U11 girls who took on a very skillful Southend team. Ballyduff’s panel of 17 showed some great skill scoring three great goals in the second half but it wasn’t enough to win over Southend. The girls put on a brilliant display showing great promise for the future.
THOUGHT FOR THE WEEK
If life was a book, every day would be new page,
Every month would be a new chapter.
And every year would be a new series.