History written by Passage hurlers with first county minor title

For Passage West GAA, their 2025 campaign marked an incredible first, winning a Cork County Minor Hurling Championship title.

That championship success was the centrepiece of an outstanding season which also included league honours and a divisional championship triumph, completing a historic treble for the club.

Months on from that achievement, the medal ceremony was the opportunity to receive acknowledgement for that success. Players and management were recognised, intercounty contributions acknowledged, and an unforgettable campaign given its night in the spotlight.

Among those singled out were Seán Coughlan, whose year also included Munster success with the Cork minors, and Callum Griffin, an All-Ireland winner with Cork’s Celtic Challenge side.

Medals were presented by club president John O’Reilly and chairperson John O’Connor. O’Reilly himself was part of Passage West’s last adult county-winning hurling team back in 1960 – the link between past and present – between what was and what might yet be for this group of young hurlers.

Their success was about more than just the silverware, though.

The management steered the group brilliantly over the course of the season sure, but parents, volunteers and supporters who as integral to their success. And for Passage West, it shows what the accumulation of work put in at juvenile level can yield and what pathways lie ahead for these young players.

Winning a county is what every player wants to achieve in hurling, and doing so in the form of a treble makes it ever sweeter.

But for Passage, it may yet prove to be the beginning of something special.

Passage West team that beat Kilbrittain in the county final: Brian Griffin; Dermot Buckley, Shane Whyte, Ollie O'Neill; Ruben Ring, Callum Griffin, Josh Barry; Jack Barry, Sean Coughlan (0-11, 8 f); Sean O'Regan, Ben Horgan (0-1), Cian Barry; Zac Hanlon, Morgan Kelleher, Odhran O'Donovan (0-2).

Subs: Alex Meagher, Josh Walton, Oisin O'Sullivan, Ben Walton, Aidan O'Connor, Sean Cash, Eoin O’Byrne, David O'Connor, Dean Connelly, Finn Brady.