Cookstown and St Andrew's are set to renew rivalries at Campbell College next week as the pair were once agin drawn in the same group for the All-Ireland Schools competition.The two schools were the major winners last year with Cookstown taking the John Waring 'Super Sixes' title while Andrew's overcame the Co Tyrone school in a 3-2 nail-biter in the group stages of the enlarged competition en route to overall glory.
This time out, neither are likely to be favourites going in to the tournament as Banbridge - who won three years ago when Campbell last hosted - look set to blaze the trail.
Featuring nine of the recently triumphant Ulster U-18 panel - including star man Stephen Dowds - Bann look the team to beat. Bandon GS look their biggest competitor for the one semi-final spot on offer from Pool C.
Wesley, as always, will hope to have a major say at the business end of the competition and are drawn against Sutton Park, Sullivan Upper and Raphoe's Royal and Prior.
The competition will get underway with group matches on October 21 and 22 and the semi-finals and finals on Friday, October 23.
All-Ireland School’s draw
Pool A: Ashton School, Kilkenny College, Kilkeel HS, Friends School
Pool B: Cookstown HS, Wallace HS, St Andrew’s College, Midleton
Pool C: Bandon GS, Banbridge Academy, Campbell College, Mount Temple
Pool D: Wesley College, Sutton Park, Sullivan Upper, Royal and Prior Raphoe
* A full preview will appear in Thursday's Evening Herald.
was this an open draw? how can munster 1 get ulster 2?
ReplyDeleteAndrews will win the whole thing
ReplyDeletewesley will win the tournament..they have a great set of players.
ReplyDeletefirst group is veryopen, no real "jump out" team. should be a close 1
ReplyDeletethat draw was a joke there is no way munster 1 should get ulster 2
ReplyDeletewesley and banbridge are the teams to beat! i predict Ashton, Wallace Banbridge and Wesley to qualify.
ReplyDeletekilkenny will take first group for sure unbelievable team this year
ReplyDeletej codd , k young and m styles tipped to be main key players for st andrews this replasing spears carson coley and loughery
ReplyDeleteandrews have lost about 6 players due to injury
ReplyDeleteThe Bann lads are unbeatable
ReplyDeletedoesn't look gud for mount temple, talk about thrown in the deep end
ReplyDeleteBanbridge have a quality side of players including Dowds, Bruno, McShane and the Kelly twins...
ReplyDeletePredicted winners with Wesley coming second.
Andrews have a seriously depleted squad at the moment. Plenty of influencial players gone. The lads like Westy are going to have to be on the top of their games, and the others are going to have to stop up a level if they want to get further in this tournament.
ReplyDeletebann have a key forward s. dowds
ReplyDeleteand defender p.brown which will
be very hard to break down! Bann
for the win!!
WESLEY TO WIN THE TOURNAMENT!GREAT SQUAD OF PLAYERS
ReplyDeleteGroup A Winner: Aston College
ReplyDeleteGroup B Winner: Cookstown HS
Group C Winner: Banbridge Academy
Group D Winner: Wesley College
Semi Final A vs B: Cookstown HS
Semi Final C vs D: Banbridge Acad
Winner: Banbridge Academy
the seeding system is a joke. pools A and D are way weaker than B and C. it doesnt make sense that the best teams in munster(bandon) and ulster(bandbridge) are in the same group. And the current champions of the Irish Schools(andrews) and the champions of the John Waring(cookstown) are in another group when ashton and wesley have simple groups. in my opinion cookstown, bandon, andrews and bandbride are the 4 best teams but only 2 of them can make the semi's.
ReplyDeletedoesnt anyone no that cookstown only have 1 player from last years squad?
ReplyDeletewesley to win
ReplyDeletefor a better insight everybody should watch hockey demo on youtube ....
ReplyDeleteAndrews will miss David Cole and Conor Stephens big time and now Jake Beirne is a doubt. Wesley and Banbridge two strongest sides.Wouldn't like to call it except Wesley beat Bann well in a friendly at the beginning of the term.
ReplyDeleteThis argument is rubbish. It presupposes that teams are the same as last year and it is just not true. Cookstown winning the John Waring last year has no bearing on this year. They have only one player left!!! Same applies to Andrews who have lost key players. The problem is that qualification rounds should take place in this academic year for ALL teams and not be based on what a previous generation of players has done.
ReplyDeleteIs Lynch out for bandon?
ReplyDeleteI believe Karl Lynch has moved school to an Institute style place and so will not be lining out for Bandon.
ReplyDeleteKilkenny,Wallace,Wesley and Bann guaranteed in last 4!
ReplyDeleteDoes anyone have the timetable for the School all Ireland tournaments in Campbell college?
ReplyDeletewhat times are all the matches at?
ReplyDeleteits going to be a tough one this time. The Cookstown lads have been written off already, many claim rightly so, but i think they will grab 1st in the group given the pressure they are under. Banbridge will be the team to beat though, and i think they will beat everyone easily until the semi's. Campbell is a poor place to play given garvey is only down the road but it will be the most open for years. Wesley could surprise again, but Kilkenny... no
ReplyDeleteits ridiculus how they could just pull out a munster team from the all irelands giving 2 weeks notice .how do they expect to promote the game in munster when there not giving our lads the chance to perform at high underage hockey levels.
ReplyDeleteThe draw was seeded.Ulster teams were seeded on this years basis .Banbridge 1, Wallace 2 Friends 3, Sullivan 4.As for Munster not getting a 4th side well look at RBAI, Bangor G.S and Methody are not there because the Ulster sides have to qualify not just get given a place like Villiers did last year.Ulster gets more sides because they have greater numbers of schools trying to qualify.
ReplyDeleteI think Leinster got the extra-side this time which would seem fair given they had two finalists last time out!
ReplyDeletemurph you forgot about cookstown surely they were number 1 seed. if bann were 2 they should not have got munster 1
ReplyDeletethe change in rules for qualification was crazy.the rules were changed after the four teams from munster had 'qualified'.it should be noted that leinster got the extra team and that munster had 2 semi-finalists last year
ReplyDeleteDoes anyone know when Ireland U18 Trials are to be announced this year? The Under 16 squad has already been announced...
ReplyDeleteTo 6-33 the seedings were as i said. Fact. I didn't forget Cookstown but they were not seeded in the top 4.So Munster 1 did not get Ulster2
ReplyDeleteFrom the IHA's notes on their website:
ReplyDeleteIt was indicated that Munster Schools were unhappy with their level of entries (3) in this year's All Ireland School Boys competition but it was agreed that last year was an exception to allow the host School to participate.
Maybe a second all ireland competition should be sceduled for the schools that don't qualify. Or else expand the current competition by adding another group. A lot of the bigger Ulster schools mentioned RBAI/Methody etc. would be far stronger than villiers I imagine
ReplyDeletewesley to win.
ReplyDeletevilliers are a far better team than last year and were unlucky to qualify as munsters 3rd team.
ReplyDelete