The first of our three early bird draws took place last Thursday 28th. The winners were as follows: 

 

1st prize: Cumann na mBunscol (2 tickets toIreland Vs Australia)

2nd prize: Cumann na mBunscol (2 tickets to James Joyce Restaurant Greville Arms)

3rd prize: Mick McDonnell (online) (Dinner for 2 Oscars Restaurant)

 

The second draw takes place on December 23rd – get your tickets on the link below!!

 

We have developed fantastic facilities here at Na Dúnta and we need your help to maintain our club and continue to grow. We have fantastic prizes on offer this year so don’t miss out. Check out the details below and get your ticket in the bag. Huge thanks to all of our generous sponsors in particular QTP and Mills CNC for sponsoring our top prizes. 

 

Our ladies closed out the season in style on Sunday morning as they took home the Senior B title. We travelled to Rochfortbridge to take on Killucan in the long awaited final. Na Dúnta started the first half into the breeze and Britney McNamee opened the scoring early on from a free. There was end to end action and the goalkeepers on both sides were kept on their toes. Shauna Conneely saved a strong shot from Raleigh and McGuire pointed a clever pass from Britney Mcnamee before the Downs finally hit the net. Gillian Ferguson & Annie McDonald worked the ball down the field to find Beth McGuire's trusty left boot. Another McNamee point before Killucan put a score on the board at 18 mins. Killucan Ladies started to gain momentum and shortly after Raleigh hit the net for Killucan. They just miss another goal opportunity and Shauna Conneely makes another fine save to keep Killucan at bay.Mary Lynam gave  a lovely pass in to McNamee  who found Beth McGuire. McGuire hit the net once again. Killucan then hit a point to leave it 2-3 to 1-2 at the break. 

Britney Mcnamee got a yellow carded just before the break so the Downs had over 7 mins to play with 14. Nevertheless, The Downs hit 2 points ( McDonald & McGuire) and Andrea Coleman hit a rasper into the back of the net before the 7 mins were up. Killucan were never going to back down and the defence had to work hard to keep them out of the danger zone. Na Dúnta changed out some tired legs and the bench did all that was asked of them and more. Another goal from McNamee this time would leave the hill too much to climb for the valiant Killucan team. Points from McDonald Coleman and McNamee left the final tally Na Dúnta 4-9 Killucan 1-3. 

It was a fantastic way to end the season and these ladies certainly deserved their silverware after the work they put in all year. Well done ladies and management. #naduntaabù. Thanks as always to Bernie Conneely for the fantastic photos.

 
Scor na nÓg

What a day out for Na Dúnta at the Scór na nÓg Leinster Finals in Summerhill last Saturday afternoon. First up for na Dúnta were the Tráth na gCeisteanna team of Aaron Connaire, Padraig Monaghan, Oisin McGrath & Conor Cleary. The lads made it to the final after a fantastic morning only to be tied for first place at the finish. They were unlucky to lose out in a tie breaker to Dublin however still go through to the All Ireland Final on January. Following Rochfortbridge's brilliant performance in Rince Foirne , and Mullingar  Mullingar Shamrocks rousing solo singer Darragh McCabe, Alanna Corroon took the stage  for another outstanding performance in the Aithriseoireacht. Moate All Whites then stunned the crowd as always with their Bailéad Ghrúpa before the break. Na Dúnta were second out for the Nuachleas after the break and as always left the crowd in stitches with their antics. The girls from Bunbrosna Scor got the crowd going in the Ceoil Uirlise before the Rince Seit took to the stage for the final category. Na Dunta Rince Seit closed the show in style.
The hall was full as everyone waited for the results. With such a high standard across all competitions , nobody envied the adjudicators task this evening. But to our relief and delight Na Dúnta were winners of all three categories,  Aithriseoireacht,  Nuachleas and Rince Seit and join the Tráth na gCeisteanna team at the All Ireland Final in Monaghan on 25th Jan.
We were delighted to see Scór Iarmhí qualify in Ámhránaíocht Aonair,  Bailéad Ghrúpa & Ceoil Uirlise also. Hard luck to St Mary's Rochfortbridge who narrowly missed out after a fantastic performance. Huge congratulations to all the performers and their mentors.

Aithriseoireacht:Alanna Corroon

Nuachleas:Aidan Quinlan, Conor Quinlan Senan O'Neill, Orla O'Connell, Sophie Moore, Ronan Murtagh, Naomi Geoghegan,  Aidan Tuite and mentors Trudi Rowan, Grace O'Neill and Noel Lynam

Rince Seit  : Aaron Connaire, Orla Rijksen, Leah Bardon, Billy Carroll,  Bailey Shiels, Caleb Shiels, Conor Cleary & Ellen Connaire and mentors Alice & Brenda Deihy

Tráth na gCeisteanna Aaron Connaire, Padraig Monaghan,Oisin McGrath and Conor Cleary mentor Pat Leavy

Bronze Medal for the Promotion of Gaeilge

The Joe McDonagh Foundation provides support in conjunction with Glór na nGael to GAA clubs in the promotion of the Irish language. We registered with the foundation this year and the primary objective was to promote the profile of the language in the club. We wanted to encourage the use of the Irish language within the club, that Gaeilge would be spoken, heard and seen around the club by members and visitors alike. A survey was distributed to all members of the club and the responses are being used to inform the development of an Irish Language Plan for the club. We will be applying to the Foundation for grant funding that will fund various initiatives trí Ghaeilge for all members of the club. It is essential that the language is promoted as a living language and thrives in the years to come. It was lovely to get recognition for the club's dedicated endeavours when we were awarded the bronze medal at a special ceremony on Friday night last. 29th November in Croke Park. Our Irish Officer Deirdre Uí Chonaill accepted the award on behalf of the club. Congratulations to Ballycomoyle GAA who were the only other club from Westmeath to receive an award on the night. Sincere thanks to everyone who took part to date, there will be more to come in the coming months.# GAAGaeilge #FSMD

Mass for the Deceased

A mass for the deceased members of the club and community  will take place on December 11th in the clubhouse at 8.30 p.m.

 

The annual Ribbons of Remembrance will take place on December 15th at The Downs GAA grounds from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. Please come along and place a ribbon on the tree in memory of loved ones lost.

 

 

The club shop will be open on December 13th and December 20th for all your Christmas purchases. For urgent orders please contact Carmel on 0879496347.

Bingo continues every Friday night at 8.30 p.m. All new members welcome.

We will continue to live stream our Lotto draw via our Facebook page for the foreseeable future. Tune in at 9-30 on each Monday night to catch the draw.

1.Add a discounted bundle to your Downs GAA club membership by clicking here.
2.Play online at our website www.thedownsgaa.com
3. Play online at Clubzapp http://bit.ly/3ItlksQ
4. Contact your regular draw collector for your area or any Committee member who will enter
your numbers on to our Perma Book which is retained at the club.
5. Send a cheque for €100 to club secretary Tommy Kelly, Coralstown, Mullingar (one year’s
subscription).
6. Or scan here:

Thanks to our supporters for their loyal commitment to our Fundraising Draw and to those new players who have signed up online and in hard copy.

Keep up to date with club activities
There are lots of ways to keep up to date with our activities. Our award-winning website can be viewed at www.thedownsgaa.com where you can sign up to receive our weekly newsletter by email. Also check us out on Twitter, Facebook YouTube and Instagram.