Ashbourne Utd - Under 7 B - NDSL
Management: Alan Byrne, Frank Cantwell, Ken Gill
Team: Harry Wilson, Daniel Byrne, Evan Mc Guirk, Charlie Handley, Christopher Davis, Christopher Twomey, Cian Hayes, Cian Fitzgerald, David Fenton, Paddy Mc Donagh, Becky Deery, Jake Brady.
Season so Far:
This years Under 7's is made up of players who played in the Academy last
Year with John Broughan, so this season was going to be their first time facing competitive matches.
Sept 9th - Ashbourne Utd 0 - 6 Swords Manor
The season kicked off on Saturday 9th September with a 0-6 home defeat to Swords
Manor. The match was always going to be hard, considering it was Ashbourne Utd Under 7's very first game. On the other hand Swords Manor had played in the Under 7 league last year, so we came up against a team that had a full year of playing games ahead of us. This game was always going to be a learning curve for the management and team, allowing us to analysis which players were best suited to different positions. Some great performances from Daniel Byrne in defence and Christopher Davis in midfield. All the players this day gave a great display of courage and fight and most importantly the enjoyment of having FUN.
Sept 15th - Ashbourne Utd 1 - 3 Castleknock
Another home defeat with a difference, this time we scored our very first goal, and what a fantastic goal it was too. Christopher Twomey, playing as a defender on the day, ran the length of pitch with strength and pace to score from just inside the box.
To see the players celebrating their teams very first goal was a fantastic site. A fantastic performance from Christopher Twomey in defence, Paddy Mc Donagh in Goal and Becky Deery in midfield.
Sept 22nd - Darndale 4 -0 Ashbourne Utd
This was always going to be a tough match as it was a first away game, and tough it certainly was, against a side who played a full season the year before. They were well organised with their positions, compared to Ashbourne Utd who were still developing players into different positions. The positive thing to come from this game was that for the first time we had goalkeeper in Harry Wilson for the full match, this gave us some stability, previously we chopped and changed the goalkeepers to find a suitable one for the season. Harry has certainly secured the number 1 jersey for himself, producing some superb saves to keep the scoreline down against a side that's always looked likely to score. Some other great performances included Cian Hayes in midfield and Cian Fitzgerald as a striker.
Sept 29th - Ashbourne Utd 3 - 0 Kilmore
After 3 defeats and some great performances from all the players, a win was inevitable, and it came against Kilmore. This being our fourth match, the team was starting to settle, with players starting to find positions that suited them. We started off the match very strong, and the first goal came from Charlie Handley with a super strike from outside the box. Again the celebrations was a fantastic sight, and there was more to come, with Christopher Twomey and Christopher Davis both getting on the scoresheet, along with a clean sheet from Harry Wilson. Some other great performances included Evan McGuirk and David Fenton in defence and Jake Brady in midfield.
Oct 6th - Ballymun 0 - 3 Ashbourne Utd
This week we were back on our travels for our 2nd away game of the season. We travelled to Ballymun with our first ever win behind us. The players were excited and hoping to continue the wining streak, and it did continue, with 3 goals coming from the same 3 players the previous week in Christopher Davis, Charlie Handley and Christopher Twomey. Another clean sheet for Harry Wilson with a string of fine saves and we continued to create chances to score more goals but they never came. Some other great performances included Becky Deery and Cian Hayes in midfield.
Oct 13th - Woodlawn 4 - 0 Ashbourne Utd
This was always going to be tough game, considering that Woodland was brought down from 7A to 7B and it was our 3rd way game. From the start we had to defend against a strong side, which again were in the league last year. So with their strength and experience they constantly threatened our goal, with 2 goals in the first half and 2 goals in the second. The scoreline could have been greater only for the heroic defending of Daniel Byrne and Evan Mcguirk, together with some great performances from all the other players.
So with 6 games played, 2 wins and 4 defeats, Ashbourne Utd's under 7's are in a transition year, which will allow them learn and develop as players.
On behalf of the Under 7's management team, we would like to thank both the player's and their parents for the fantastic support we receive at every game.
A special thank you goes to John Broughan of the under 8's for his support in helping us coach the players at the beginning of the season and to all the other members of Ashbourne Utd that offered us support over the last 2 months.