Muskerry Division determined to compete at Premier Senior in both codes

JOHN Feeney is no stranger to the Muskerry GAA scene.

The Dripsey club man has strong ties with Muskerry GAA spanning 30 years.

Feeney has held many roles and it was a special moment back in December 2020 when Feeney, who’s held in high regard within the association, was ratified as the chairman of the Muskerry Board replacing the long-serving Pat Malone.

A very knowledgeable and shrewd man who has an unconditional love for the GAA, the Muskerry chairman, who’s in his third season as the main man in the division, looks back on the day he was appointed.

“It has been a very busy few years and also a difficult couple of years. When I was ratified we were right in the middle of Covid-19 so everything was held online through Zoom calls and so on.

“It’s a massive honour to be chairman of the Muskerry Board when you just look down through the list of the people who have held this position before me.

“But to be honest it’s not the sort of honour I look for. 

I love the GAA and I want to do the best for Muskerry.

“We have made a lot of progress but there’s still lots more to do. This year we have prefixed all our league and championship games in the Muskerry division which gives clarity to all involved.

“It has been a huge help and has probably taken a bit of the workload off the board. We looked at the Cork GAA club schedule at the start of the year and we worked around that, there was a lot of work involved but thankfully to date, it’s working very well.”

ON TOP

The Muskerry senior football team have won the top grade of the Cork football championship back in 1970 and have lost three finals in 1962, 1995 and 2005.

2014 was a notable season when they reached the quarter-final but were defeated by eventual champions Ballincollig at a packed Cloughduv.

Despite boasting such proud history, one of the lowest points in the history of the division, which stretches from the straight road in Cork City all the way out to the Cork and Kerry border, came last season. The Muskerry senior football team withdrew from the Cork GAA club championship after being unable to field a team for their game against Imokilly.

So how did it come to that? Feeney talks at length about what exactly happened last year.

It was a dark day when we made the decision to withdraw from the football championship.

“On the same week, the Muskerry hurlers had 32 players togged out for a game. The hurling has been well looked after by manager Diarmuid Kirwan and his management team in recent years, they have made great progress and we are hopeful of a good run in the championship this year.

“To go back to what happened last year, when you look at it Muskerry have four Premier Intermediate clubs, to say we couldn’t field a team really is terrible.

“It’s just one of the modern difficulties within the game that the demands on players nowadays are scary and it’s the players getting the raw deal.

“I was privileged to have played for Muskerry in both codes and it’s a shame the players aren’t getting the opportunity to do that.”

BUZZ

The Mid-Cork Junior A football and Junior A hurling championships is alive and kicking after a few seasons of wonderful excitement. The 2023 championships is expected to be no different in both codes.

“There’s a great buzz in the division,” Feeney says. “I speak to the clubs on a regular basis and they are all happy with the new structure. The Muskerry Junior A championships are held in high regard in Cork and we are so proud of our championships.

“The crowds since Covid-19 restrictions ended have been really positive and I expect the championships this year to be a cracker in both Junior A football and Junior A hurling.

“There’s excitement even at this stage with championship still around three months away. The new league format has really brought things up another notch, every game is so important."