News 2014
Club Dinner
The annual club dinner took place in the Westwood Hotel on November 13th. This event is organised fully by the rowers. There was a large turnout of rowers and there were even a few 'recently retired' rowers. A selection of photos now follows.
Kai McGlacken receiving the award for club person of the year from club Chairman, Evan Molloy
2014 club captain, Eoghan Walls-Tuite with a few words of thanks to the coaches
There were also messages of appreciation from the younger rowing crews (l to r): Imogen Silke, Adam Burke, Hannah Wortmann
Senior boys coaches, John Lawless (left) and Liam Molloy
Some other coaches (l to r): Darragh McCarthy (new to coaching in 14-15), Matthew Kelly and Nicole Cooke
Eamonn Colclough (Senior girls coach 13-14) with Laoise NiGhriofa
The 2014 senior boys squad
Some of the girls who were in the senior squad in recent years
The 2014 girls J16 and J15 crews
The 2014 girls J14 squad with coach Nicole Cooke back left
The 2014 boys J14 and J15 squads with coach Matthew Kelly back right
80th Anniversary Celebration
October 18th saw the culmination of Colaiste Iognaid Rowing Club 80th anniversary celebrations. The day began with the rededication of the clubhouse in honour of one of the founding fathers, Fr. Eddie Diffely, S.J. The ceremony attracted a very large crowd of rowers, past and present along with many friends and suppoters of the club. Former rower, Colm O'Donnellan (a member of the 1974 national championship crew) was the master of ceremony and another former rower, Sean O'Rourke was the guest speaker. Fr. Murt Curry, S.J., former President of the club, performed a blessing of the clubhouse and the plaque in honour of Fr. Diffely was unveiled by Bobby Molloy and Brendan Healy.
Brendan Healy, Bobby Molloy and Sean O'Rourke unveiling the plaque to Fr. Diffely
l to r; Colm O'Donnellan, Brendan Healy, Fr. Murt Curry, S.J. and Sean O'Rourke
A history of the club, Eighty Years Rowing, was also launched and this book outlines the growth of Jes rowing from the foundation of the club in 1934 to the present day. It includes some fascinating insights into the early days of the Jes rowing and charts the successes and challenges of the Jes on the water down through the years. The history is a tremendous archive of Jes rowing and it also provides commentary on the key figures and characters who made the club what it is today.
The highlight of the commemorations was a dinner in the Ardilaun Hotel later that evening of October 18th. The club was delighted to welcome back a large number of former rowers, particularly from the 50's, 60's and 70's. We heard again from Colm O'Donnellan and Sean O'Rourke along with school principal, Mary Joyce and club Chairman, Evan Molloy, the latter being the driving force behind the 80th celebration events. A great night was had by all and it was a tremendous occasion for rowers to renew acquaintance and to recall old times.
The club is very appreciative of the many people who contributed to the organisation of the anniversary celebrations including those who worked on the club history, organised the dinner, decorated the clubhouse, prepared the refreshments for the re-dedication and those who gave of their time to speak at the events.
The club was particularly pleased to welcome a number of relatives of Fr. Diffely - spanning several generations - to the re-dedication ceremony. These included Eithne Gleeson (niece); Kieran and Frances Daly (nephew and niece in law); grand nephew Derek Fernandes and his family; Eoin Gleeson (grand nephew) and his family.
l to r; Daniel Gleeson (great grand nephew), Eithne Gleeson (niece), Eoin Gleeson (grand nephew), Kieran Daly (nephew), France Daly (niece in-law), Front; Isobel Gleeson (great grand niece)
l to r; Derek Fernandes (grand nephew) and his family
Colm O'Donnellan (left) and Sean O'Rourke in full flow during the re-dedication ceremony
l to r; Catherine Hickey (vice-Principal), Sean O'Rourke, Mary Joyce (Principal) and Tom Kenny
Those who looked after refreshments in the clubhouse include (l to r); Majella Coughlan, Colette Lydon, Mary Byrne, Catriona Power, Barbara Coen, Eleanor Coughlan
Ger O'Máille and Kevin Murphy: CIRC oarsmen of 1960s
Club Chairman, Evan Molloy, and Principal, Mary Joyce, addressing the attendees at the anniversary dinner
Sean O'Rourke (left) and Colm O'Donnellan still going strong at the podium
Jes 80th Anniversary Celebrations
Colaiste Iognaid Rowing Club was founded in October 1934 so this year marks the 80th anniversary of rowing at the school. To celebrate this significant occasion and the proud Jes rowing tradition, the club will be holding a series of events on Saturday, October 18th. The Jes rowing club is one of the largest and most successful in the country. These successes have come at home and abroad and the club has won a total of 18 national championships. Its most recent success on the international stage was at the prestigious Ghent regatta in May of this year when it won the junior coxed four event. The club has also produced a remarkable number of 63 rowers who have represented Ireland at junior level with several of these going on to later row internationally at senior level.
The highlight of the commemorations will be a dinner in the Ardilaun Hotel on the evening of October 18th. The club is also preparing a book that will chart the history of rowing at Colaiste Iognaid down through the generations. This book will be launched at the dinner by former Jes rower, Sean O’Rourke. There will also be a naming ceremony for the Jes clubhouse. The driving force behind rowing in the school for fifty years was Fr. Eddie Diffely, S.J., beginning when he was a student in the school in the early 1930s. To mark his enormous contributions, the clubhouse will be re-dedicated as the Fr. Eddie Diffely clubhouse in his honour. The naming ceremony will also take place on October 18th, at 4.00pm, the venue for this being the CIRC clubhouse at NUI Galway.
The club will be delighted to welcome Jes past pupils, particularly ex-rowers, to these events. For further information on the dinner and the other commemoration activities is available from Maeve McManus (087-1206524), Evan Molloy (087-2257121) or by contacting the club at rowingiognaid@gmail.com.
The picture below shows the first Jes crew from 1934.
From left, Bertie Kavanagh (cox), Bill Donovan, Gerry Colgan, John Keogh and Austin Caulfield.
Jes Rowers Represent Ireland at Home Internationals
The Home Internationals took place in Cork on July 26th and it was great to see four Jes rowers as part of the Irish Junior (under 18) mens rowing team that finished second in this event. The four from the Jes that were on the Irish team were Alex Coyne, Darragh McCarthy, Donal Coen and Luke Rigney. As an additional recognition for Jes rowing, senior boys coach, John Lawless, was coach to the Junior sweep team at the home internationals. This is the second year in a row that John has had been honoured to coach at the home internationals.
The Irish Junior sweep team; From Back left; John Lawless (Coach, Coláiste Iognáid R.C), Darragh McCarthy (Coláiste Iognáid R.C), Ciaran Higgins (Cork B.C), Jack Bennett (St. Josephs R.C), Alex Coyne (Coláiste Iognáid R.C), Adam Browne (Shannon R.C), Christian Killeen (St. Josephs R.C), Patrick O’Connor (St. Michaels R.C), Luke Rigney (Coláiste Iognáid R.C), Thomas Higgins (Cork B.C), John Walsh (Coach, St. Josephs R.C). Front left; Donal Coen (Coláiste Iognáid R.C), Darragh O’Donovan (Cox, St. Josephs R.C).
The Junior 4+; (l to r) Jack Bennett (St. Josephs), Luke Rigney (Coláiste Iognáid), Darragh O’Donovan (St. Josephs) , Daragh McCarthy (Coláiste Iognáid), Christian Killeen(St. Josephs)
The Junior coxless 4; (l to r) Alex Coyne (Coláiste Iognáid), Patrick O’Connor (St. Michaels), Adam Browne (Shannon), Donal Coen (Coláiste Iognáid)
The fine summer weather brought a large crowd to the 2014 summer barbeque. This was held in its usual time - the Monday after the champs weekend. The pictures below give a flavour of the atmosphere of a most enjoyable evening.
Four Jes Rowers Selected for Irish Team
The Irish Junior (under 18) rowing team for the Home Internationals has now been been announced and four Jes rowers have been selected for the sweep rowing team. There are ten on this team so to have four from one club is certainly a tremendous achievement. The four from the Jes that have been picked for the Irish team are Alex Coyne, Darragh McCarthy, Donal Coen and Luke Rigney.
The team was selected following an exhaustive series of of four trials that started back in September last year and culminated in a highly competitive session in Cork last March. It is great to see four of our rowers coming through such as demanding process. This year, the home internationals will take place at the NRC in Cork on July 26th. Hopefully the home advantage will benefit our boys.
Aside from congatulating the rowers, their coaches also deserve particular mention for these selections. John Lawless and Liam Molloy put endless hours into the training of all of our rowers and it is fantastic to see that their efforts are rewarded in this manner. As an additional recognition, John Lawless has been invited to coach the Irish team at the home internationals. This is the second year in a row that John has had been honoured to coach at the home internationals.
Part of the Irish squad (l to r) Alex Coyne, Darragh McCarthy, Donal Coen, Luke Rigney.
John Lawless, coach to the Irish home international team
Dave Mannion Appointed as New Head Coach
Colaiste Iognaid is delighted to announce the appointment of Dave Mannion as the new Head Coach on a part-time basis. Dave took up the role in February of this year and the initial appointment is until next September.
It is a tremendous boost to the club to be able to appoint a person with Dave Mannion’s skills and abilities. Dave is a very experienced oarsman at under 18, at senior and international level. He has rowed with St Josephs, NUIG, Grainne Mhaoil and Ireland. He is a top class sweep and sculling oarsman and has won many senior titles particularly in eights and fours. He has coached successfully for many years in NUIG in both the mens and womens club and also in St Josephs (ie our rivals the Bish). Dave is already a level two coach and is currently involved with the Irish Rowing in rolling out coaching seminars on water and land based rowing programs for club coaches and has come to us with very high recommendations from the Rowing Union coaching staff.
Recognising the enormous commitment of our coaches and the need to provide assistance to maximise the results of their efforts, a number of former rowers have generously provided funding specifically to employ coaching expertise. The club is extremely appreciative of this support. Following much discussion with our existing coaches and with former members and coaches, it was agreed that an appointment of this nature would definitely be in the best interests of the club. The key aim of Dave’s appointment will be to develop our rowing, maximising the available resources and particularly to coach our coaches and develop a rowing plan and standards encompassing all aspects of rowing within the club which can be used in the years ahead.
Dave was formerly captain of NUIG Boat Club when we were rebuilding the club and had to vacate our site, Dave very graciously provided Colaiste Iognaid with boathouse and boating facilities throughout this period.
This appointment is very good news for Colaiste Iognaid Rowing Club and we very much welcome Dave and wish him every success. It is important for all to maximise the benefits that the club can gain from his appointment.
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