Local Notes: Farewell to Sr Columba, Whist, musical society AGM and more news from Portlaw
PORTLAW: The St Vincent de Paul in the village paid tribute to these three lovely ladies recently for all their hard work.
The death took place recently of Sr Margaret Hackett, Convent of Mercy, Greenhill, Carrick-on-Suir and Portlaw. Late of Frehans, Newcastle, Co Tipperary. Sr Margaret died peacefully in Sonas Nursing Home, Carrickbeg. She is predeceased by her parents Richard and Catherine, her sisters Anne, Ena, Gabriel and Mary, her brothers Seamus, Richard and Michael.
She is sadly missed by her sisters Patricia, and Monica, her nephews, grandnieces, grandnephews, brother-in-law Tony, her sister-in-law Nan, her Mercy Sisters and extended family and friends.
St Columba as she was known here in Portlaw was a kindly woman. She spent most of her life at the Convent of Mercy where she taught at the National School and Greenhill School, Carrick-on-Suir. She spent her retirement years living in the community of Portlaw. Many students can thank her for her kind ways and help during exam times with grinds.
When the Mercy Convent closed, St Columba came to live among the people of Portlaw village. She was instrumental with the late Fr Sean and the Tidy Towns in planting the lovely mature trees, which we can now see around the town.
Requiem Mass was celebrated in St Patrick's Church, Portlaw, followed by burial in the adjoining cemetery. May she rest in peace.
Calling on all Whist enthusiasts and those looking for a new hobby. Checking if there is much interest in forming a new Whist Club in the Portlaw area, such a club would be a perfect place to learn the game, play with new friends and enjoy friendly competition. The club would be beginner-friendly as it would welcome players of all skills. Experienced players are welcome too. If you are interested, please contact Geraldine on 087 7762235. Start dates to be determined depending on public interest.
A lovely Mass was held in the community hall recently, arranged for two beautiful women to recognise their dedication and long-time work for Vincent de Paul and our community down through the years. They are a credit to their families and the community. Not finished yet though! They are still working away in the Fountain Centre with Ann Nolan, who joined the team, and who is also a great community lady. Congratulations and God bless our three lovely ladies for all you do.
Our AGM is scheduled for this Tuesday, September 30, in the community hall at 8pm. Come along and join us, all are welcome.
A fundraising Christmas concert with Michael English performing will take place in St Patrick’s Church, Portlaw, on Sunday, December 14. Doors 7pm, show 8pm. Tickets €30 on sale now fmro committee members Jackie 087 2025659 and Kathleen 087 6801144.
Many thanks to those people who got involved with our Portlaw Family Planters Project this year. We were delighted to see such a great interest in the idea of maintaining a planter. Some people have opted to take the name plates we offered indicating the name of those maintaining the planter, while others have dedicated the planter to a loved one. Some people have also opted to remain anonymous. We will be ordering more name plates on September 30, if anyone would still like to be involved please call 087 1361861 before this date.
Portlaw U15: Kilmacow 1 Portlaw 2. The lads maintained their winning start to the season with a hard-fought victory away to Kilmacow. We took the lead after a cool finish by Will Saunderson early in the half, however, Kilmacow hit back just before half-time with a superb individual goal. In the second half we got back on top with Ishmael Moyo scoring the winner. A winning start to the season with our new jerseys on show. A special thank you to Jimmy’s takeaway for sponsoring the team's new kit.
Premier League Result: Tycor 3-8 Portlaw. Team Sponsor: The Clodagh Bar. A goal fest - we started really well with Peter Woods giving us the lead in the first minute before Sam Croke had us two up inside three minutes and Jordi had us three up in 13 minutes. Tycor hit back with a penalty before Croke had us 4-1 up at half-time. Two goals from Peter Woods early in the 2nd half brought up Peter’s hat trick. Darryl Walsh scored a header from a corner before Sam Croke brought up his hat trick with a brilliant team goal. Great result for the lads and a bit of club history with two hat tricks in a top flight game.
U14 schoolgirls: Portlaw 7-0 Carrick. Our second match of the season we were away to Carrick; our girls put in a big performance with some lovely link up play and great goals. It was great to see all of the girls with smiles on their faces and playing with confidence; well done to all the girls. Goals: Taylor Flannery 2, Ruby Mulcahy 2, Lily Kinsella 3.
U17A League Result: Portlaw 6-3 De La Salle. Team sponsor: Pat Kerley Windows & Doors. Another goal fest for our U17’s with a good away win. We fell behind early but a close range finish from Peter Power had us level before two good finishes from Samuel Deevy had us 3-1 up at the break. Playing into the breeze we continued to make good chances with Sam Croke getting out 4th before Peter got his 2nd with a strike from outside the box. We wrapped up our scoring with a mazy run from Kevin Lyons who finished neatly past the keeper. Good performance all round and great to get our 1st win on the board in the A league.
County Champions: A massive congratulations to our U14s who were crowned County Champions in Fraher Field. The lads put in an outstanding performance, showing great skill and heart throughout the game. They withstood a strong second-half comeback from Kilrossanty, but showed unbelievable determination to see it out to the final whistle. Every single player was just fantastic – a proud night for the team, coaches, parents, and the whole club. Well done boys – Up The Village!
Meanwhile, our U14 hurlers also got a well-deserved end-of-year treat ahead of the County Final. The boys were put through their paces in a brilliant training session with none other than Waterford Senior Hurling Manager, Peter Queally – a huge thank you to Peter for giving up his time and sharing his knowledge with our young hurlers. After training, the lads enjoyed a hearty breakfast together before heading off to Tramore for some mini golf fun – plenty of laughs, banter and bonding along the way!
It was also a proud day for Portlaw GAA as senior football returned to our grounds for the first time in many years. We were delighted to host the championship clash between Gaultier and Kilrossanty and to see such a strong turnout for the game. Days like this don’t happen without the hard work of our club volunteers, who had the facilities and pitch in top condition and helped out with stewarding on the day — a huge thank you to each and every one of you. Here’s to more big occasions in Páirc de Hindeberg!
U7 and U8: Our U7s and U8s group finished off the year with their final hurling session. A great year had by all and these boys and girls came on loads, especially towards the end of the year. Looking forward to seeing them in action again next year. A massive thanks to their coaches Jim Barry and Conor Dooley for the year. They also had their plank challenge, together with the U10 camogie group, which was won by Ellie Grace who planked for over 5 (yes 5) minutes!
U10s: A big thank you to all the U10 kids for coming out for their last blitz of the year – they were brilliant and to our referee Jimmy! A huge thanks to all the parents for your support throughout the year, it’s hugely appreciated.
We’ll be organising an outing for the kids in the coming weeks . In the meantime, training continues on Thursday evenings – it’s important to keep it up over the winter as we prepare for U11 next year.
Mark your calendars for the Tractor / Truck / Vintage Car Run happening on Sunday, December 28, at 12 noon at Portlaw GAA Club.
€20 per vehicle, refreshments served. All in aid of Portlaw U15 and Minor Hurling trip to New York in 2026. Still a few months to go, but this one’s not to be missed! Start polishing those wheels.
Well done to our Premier Intermediate Footballers who beat Rathgormack in a rainy Kilmacthomas! Fair play to all the supporters who came along.
