By Tommy Butler Longford RFC PRO tommylbutler@gmail.com 

Senior Men

Midland League Final

The Leinster League is taking a break until the 6^th of January, in the meantime the Senior Men will turn their focus to the PST Sport Midland League Final versus Edenderry, which will be hosted by Tullamore on Saturday December 29^th at 1.30 PM.  Longford are the current holders of the title and will have a hard task on their hands against an Edenderry side who are going well in Division 2B.

Midland League Finals days will see three trophies up for grabs; the Midland League Overall Winners Trophy in which Longford are competing, along with Shield and Plate Finals.  It is a concept that has worked well over the last few years, with kick offs taking place in tandem.

All travelling support would be appreciated.

Provincial Towns Cup Draw

The Draw for the 2019 Provincial Towns Cup took place in the Aviva Stadium prior to the Leinster v Bath match on Saturday.  Longford got a very tough draw away to 1A leaders Enniscorthy last year and had their fingers crossed for a home draw in CPL Park this time.  Longford were indeed drawn at home against Cill Dara, who Longford have played quite a bit over the last ten years.  It is by no means an easy draw for Longford, with Cill Dara lying in second place in Division 2A (the Division below Longford).  However, the lure of a home cup fixture is certain to draw a big crowd to CPL Park on January 20^th and with Longford’s good form in 1B this year the lads will be training hard looking to earn a good run in the famous competition. The Provincial Towns Cup is one of the oldest rugby cup competitions and widely regarded as one of the Premier Junior Rugby cup competitions in the world.

Amazing Fundraising Draw by Longford Senior Men

The Senior Men's Rugby team will be holding a draw this Christmas to support the local rugby club. The tickets will range from 1 cent up to €15 and will be available from all senior players. There is a big prize fund so get your tickets to be in with a chance to win!  The first prize is €1000!!! Second prize is €500 and three further prizes of €100 each.

Upcoming Fixtures

Saturday December 29^th Midland League Final v Edenderry (Tullamore) KO 1.30 PM. Sunday January 6^th Leinster League Monkstown (Home).

Sunday January 13^th Leinster League DLSP (Home).

Sunday January 20^th Provincial Towns Cup 1^st Round Cill Dara (Home).

Kick offs are 13:00/14:30 in January.

 Longford Women (Warriors)

Like the Senior Men, Longford Women have a break from League action until January 13^th.  However, they will continue training hard looking to keep their great three match winning streak going into 2019.

The Warriors train every Tuesday and Friday night at 7.30 PM. New players of all fitness levels are welcome, even if they have not played before. Contact Nuala on 082482005.

Upcoming Fixtures:

Sunday January 13^th Leinster League Greystones (Away).

Sunday January 20^th Leinster League Naas (Home).

Sunday Januarys 27^th Leinster League Portlaoise (Away)

All Kick Offs are at 1 PM.

Longford Mini/Youths

Longford Minis rounded off 2018 with a final hard training session on Sunday with a special guest appearance by Santa.  Training will recommence in the New Year.  It is not too late to start playing Mini rugby.  Longford RFC welcome new players at all levels both boys/girls with no previous experience necessary.

Santa makes a visit to Longford Minis Training

Please note that most of the club gear orders from Uniformity are available for collection at Davis Supervalu, Longford.

Training

Longford RFC field teams at Youth level from U6 to U18. Training and coaching information can be found below.  Gerry Carthy is Minis/Youths Chair. We are always looking for more coaches, managers, referees, administrators or helpers. If you can help out for even a few hours or make sandwiches for a game or have an ideas/concern’s please contact Gerry on; 086-8046857.

Youths

Longford Youths are back training at all levels. New players are welcome at all age levels throughout the season (it is never too late to join in!). There is no better time to start with the Rugby World Cup looming large on the horizon next November after Irelands record breaking 2018. Training times and Fixtures can be found on www.longfordrugby.com or at https://goo.gl/qAVBPv

New players are welcome at all age levels – just come to the club on the relevant training night or contact the contact the relevant coach via the link above for details. Don’t worry about not having played before – we have the coaching staff to teach the basics to any player. Jimmy Murphy is the Youth’s Co-ordinator and can be contacted at 086 2555621.

Minis (U6-U12)

Our future Leinster and Ireland stars train every Sunday at 10.30 am. New players are very welcome, we have a comprehensive team of trained coaches. Just remember to bring a gum shield and a bottle of water along with your training gear. Two new innovations for the coming season are that we have a new state of the art 4G training area, which are suitable for contact sports along with Girls Training from U8-U12.

The Full Mini (U7-U12) Season Planner can be downloaded at the following link; http://goo.gl/DAZ5GK  

Padraig Murphy is the Mini’s Co-ordinator and can be contacted at 086 2526741 or prgm@me.com 

Happy Christmas and a Peaceful New Year

What a year 2018 was for the club.  We would like to wish all our players, coaches, administrators, helpers, members and friends a Very Merry Christmas and a Peaceful New Year.  We can’t wait to see what 2019 brings.

Some of the 2018 highlights;

1. The Senior Men winning the Midland League, finishing third in Division 1B and reaching the Plate Final.
2. Kieran O’Gorman captaining the Leinster Juniors to the Provincial Title.
3. Our U18.5 Men doing the League and Cup Double.
4. Underage Girls rugby kicking off and the U18 Longford Girls Rugby Team play their first match along with Underage Girls Blitz’s.
5. The car park was fully tarmacked thanks to Kilsaran Concrete.
6. The Opening of the Mel Diffley 4G Pitch.
7. The Longford RFC Hall of Fame Awards with Joe Schmidt in the Mansion House with over 300 guest.

St. Stephens Night at Longford RFC

The Sin Bin will be hosting our normal great St. Stephens night party on December 26^th.  On what is a very busy night in town the rugby club is perfect place to meet friends and family in a more chilled atmosphere.  Remember to put it down on your diary and get down to the club early.

Social Dancing at Longford RFC

Did you know that social dancing takes place every Wednesday evening from 10 PM – 12 PM?  We have one of the newest and best clubhouses in the country, along with great music and a great crowd.  Admission is €10 including refreshments with all funds raised going directly to the club. Contact 087 9843331 for more information.

Upcoming Lineup:

19/12/18 John Molloy

Great Food/Events & Christmas Parties at Longford RFC

The Sin Bin at Longford RFC serves great quality and value food on Wednesday, Thursday, Friday from 12-3 and 12-7 on Saturday and Sunday. Booking for events such as birthdays, christening, confirmations, communions, weddings and funerals are available.

The Sin Bin also shows all Irish rugby/Leinster/Munster matches live.

For bookings and information phone Kris on 0872872357.

4G All Weather Pitch Rental

Our state of the art floodlight Mel Diffley 4G pitch is available for rental.  It contains shock absorption so that players can play contact sports/fall over without hurting themselves.  It is also perfect for 5 a side soccer.  If you would like to book it phone Damian on 0862757103.