Opposition – Wolfe Tone’s GAC
Venue – Valley Leisure Centre
Date – Sunday 16th July 2023
In conditions that were less than perfect, Carryduff Rounders team took to the field for their debut against an experienced Wolfe Tones outfit that had seen All-Ireland competition this season.
If they existed, pre-match nerves were certainly not evident for the Purple and Gold, possibly masked by visible child-like excitement.
Brian Keenan strode to the centre of the diamond like a hunter stalking its prey and took to the Pitcher position like a duck to water, which was entirely befitting of the conditions. Erin Marsh assumed responsibility for the Catcher’s mitt and was steadfast in the face of the driving rain.
Cheered on by the raucous visiting support of the Gallagher family, the Carryduff outfit quickly settled into their rhythm. A combination of fine pitching and fielding saw them through the first half of the first innings and now it was time to step up to the plate.
Some fine batting performances saw multiple runners make it home as the scoreboard started to rack up.
During the 2nd inning the weather broke, and a large orange ball appeared in the big blue thing overhead. It dazzled and confused in equal measure. Suddenly, Carryduff had found their swagger and at the bottom of the 2nd we were tied at 10-10, despite the fierce protestations of a certain coach who shall remain nameless.
Wolfe Tones were promptly dismissed in the 3rd inning without adding to their tally. This left Carryduff needing only a single run to record a maiden victory. With some lovely strikes they duly obliged with Carryduff eventually running out 13-10 winners.
As famous debuts go, this will go down in history as one of the more memorable. All the hours spent on the training ground paid their dividend, and the experience gained will be invaluable as we continue our Rounders journey. With more matches to be scheduled for the weeks ahead, we are looking forward to getting back out onto the diamond, hopefully the weather is a little kinder the next day out!
A special word of thanks to our hosts, it was an invaluable learning experience, and more importantly it was great craic, we really appreciate the efforts they made. We look forward to welcoming Wolfe Tones to Carryduff in the near future.
Team – LJ Collins, Emma Swail, Caroline Morgan, Erin Marsh, Niamh McGuire, Naomh Gallagher, Lisa McGovern, Michael Drysdale, Brian Keenan, Stewart Long, Eamonn McKeever
