Cup exitees Brentford (John Egan) and Norwich City were in Championship action at Griffin Park with the ‘Canaries’ scoring the only goal for victory while Queens Park Rangers (Ryan Manning) went down to a two nil defeat at Bristol City. Mick McCarthy’s Ipswich Town (David McGoldrick, Stephen Gleeson) lost to the only goal, scored by Matt Doherty, for leaders Wolverhampton Wanderers at Portman Road.
News
Great night – RISSC London raise €5000 at our Quiz for MS Ireland 🇮🇪
Great night @Rissclondon raise €5000 at our Quiz for MS Ireland 🇮🇪 thanks for your support @FAIreland @CRISClubs pic.twitter.com/85ZjsGzwMl
— RISSC London Branch (@Rissclondon) January 26, 2018
The Republic of Ireland Soccer Supporters Club (London) hosted our thirteenth Annual Charity Quiz in the Bentley Room at the Clayton Crown Hotel, Cricklewood on the evening of Friday the 26th January 2018, with the proceeds going to our nominated charity for the current club year, the Multiple Sclerosis Society of Ireland.
The number thirteen is linked with negative connotations but happily this years’ event suffered no such drama. Through the support of our club members and our many friends we were delighted to preside over another hugely successful event and at the end of the night were able to present the MS Society with a cheque for €5,000.
We were joined on the evening by Paul Halpin from the MS Society in Dublin and Paul provided attendees with an outline summary of the work carried out by the Society all across Ireland. Also in attendance were perennial supporters, Gerry Reardon, Grassroots Development Manager with the Football Association of Ireland and leading light of the Republic of Ireland Supporters Club in Derry, Jim Barr.
Quizmaster Michael Mulvaney, supported by his stalwart team of Sandie, Karen, Kelly, Gemma and Dave presided over the quiz in his own inimitable fashion and set a series of challenges which tested the mental resolve of the twenty four participating teams.
Victory went to ‘The B Team’ led by Catherine Booth in tandem with Turlough Booth and Emily Beaumont. They were hotly pursued in second place by ‘Oak Hunt’ comprising Cathal Chu, David King and Damian Byrne while the ‘What World Cup’ trio of Pat Cosgrave, Charles and James Henry gave them a run for their money in third place.
Some photos of the night:
Our gratitude goes out to our generous sponsors, Cara Stationery, Cityjet, The Claddagh Ring Hendon, Connolly’s Bar Chiswick, Euro Diamond Drilling, O’Donoghue’s Goldhawk Road, Alliance Managing Agents Limited, Solas Management, Red Cow Moran Hotel Dublin, The Oxford Arms Camden Town, The Football Association of Ireland and our event hosts The Clayton Crown Hotel.
Our warmest gratitude also goes to Roisin Kennedy who’s arm twisting and cajoling sales technique persuded our attendees to dig deep and generate a quite significant contribution from our dual raffles.
FA Cup Fourth round action on Friday evening…26/01/2018
FA Cup shock romantics who looked towards Huish Park on Friday evening when struggling League Two side Yeovil Town met the wealth of Manchester United in front of a 9,565 crowd in the Fourth Round of this year’s competition were denied as the Premier League side ran out comfortable four nil winners. The hosts had Connor Smith (substitute 83′) and Liverpool loanee Corey Whelan (unused) in their matchday squad.
UEFA Nations League fixture dates confirmed
League B, Group Four
The dates for the four League B, Group Four UEFA Nations League fixtures have been confirmed. Ireland travel to Cardiff to face Wales on Thursday the 6th September 2018 before hosting a double header at the Aviva Stadium on Saturday the 13th October 2018 against Denmark and three days later against Wales on Tuesday the 16th October 2018. The final Group Four contest against Denmark in Copenhagen is on Monday the 19th November 2018. All four matches will kick-off at 7.45pm.
UEFA Nations League draw – Lausanne on Wednesday…24/01/2018
The draw for the UEFA Nations League was made at the SwissTech Convention Centre in Lausanne this Wednesday morning and provided a sense of ‘deja vu’ as our last two opponents Denmark and Wales were drawn alongside us in our Group. The new competition has sparked much confused debate relating to structure with an underwhelming sense of anticipation surrounding the event. In the draw structure for the three team group, Ireland fell into the League B section covering the countries ranked from 13 to 24 in the UEFA standings. Ireland (ranked 19) were in Pot B and set to face one side from Pot A (Austria, Wales, Russia, Slovakia) and one from Group C (N Ireland, Denmark, Czech Republic, Turkey) on a home and away basis. So now we know, Cardiff and Copenhagen, here we come again.
Full Details:
LEAGUE A
Group 1: Germany, France, Netherlands
Group 2: Belgium, Switzerland, Iceland
Group 3: Portugal, Italy, Poland
Group 4: Spain, England, Croatia
- Four group winners play-off for the UEFA Nations League trophy in June 2019
- Four sides that finish bottom of groups relegated to League B for 2020 edition
- Top four-ranked League A teams that do not qualify for UEFA EURO 2020 enter play-offs in March 2020, with one EURO finals place on offer
LEAGUE B
Group 1: Slovakia, Ukraine, Czech Republic
Group 2: Russia, Sweden, Turkey
Group 3: Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Northern Ireland
Group 4: Wales, Republic of Ireland, Denmark
- Four group winners promoted to League A for 2020 edition
- Four sides that finish bottom of groups relegated to League C for 2020 edition
- Top four-ranked League B teams that do not qualify for UEFA EURO 2020 enter play-offs in March 2020, with one EURO finals place on offer
LEAGUE C
Group 1: Scotland, Albania, Israel
Group 2: Hungary, Greece, Finland, Estonia
Group 3: Slovenia, Norway, Bulgaria, Cyprus
Group 4: Romania, Serbia, Montenegro, Lithuania
- Four group winners promoted to League B for 2020 edition
- Four sides that finish bottom of groups relegated to League D for 2020 edition
- Top four-ranked League C teams that do not qualify for UEFA EURO 2020 enter play-offs in March 2020, with one EURO finals place on offer
LEAGUE D
Group 1: Georgia, Latvia, Kazakhstan, Andorra
Group 2: Belarus, Luxembourg, Moldova, San Marino
Group 3: Azerbaijan, Faroe Islands, Malta, Kosovo
Group 4: FYR Macedonia, Armenia, Liechtenstein, Gibraltar
- Four group winners promoted to League C for 2020 edition
- Top four-ranked League C teams that do not qualify for UEFA EURO 2020 enter play-offs in March 2020, with one EURO finals place on offer
Calendar (fixtures to be confirmed)
Matchday 1: 6–8 September 2018
Matchday 2: 9–11 September 2018
Matchday 3: 11–13 October 2018
Matchday 4: 14–16 October 2018
Matchday 5: 15–17 November 2018
Matchday 6: 18–20 November 2018
Finals draw: early December 2018
Finals: 5–9 June 2019
UEFA EURO 2020 play-off draw: 22 November 2019
UEFA EURO 2020 play-offs: 26–31 March 2020
Irish World Article 22nd Jan 2018
MS No barrier for One of Ireland’s Most Dedicated Supporters
Irish World Article 22nd January 2018
The London branch of the Republic of Ireland Soccer Supporters Club (RISSC) will be fund raising for MS Ireland at its Quiz Night on Friday 26th January at the Clayton Crown Hotel in Cricklewood.
It’s a cause very close to the supporters club’s heart, as one of its long serving members, Carmel Mackey, has lived with multiple sclerosis for over 30 years.
But that hasn’t stopped her following the team and she still travels to home and away matches to cheers the lads on.
So much so, that Carmel’s commitment to the green jersey featured in the official match day programme for the Republic of Ireland’s World Cup qualifier with Moldova at the Aviva Stadium last year, as part of an on-going feature acknowledging the team’s most dedicated supporters. Carmel definitely qualifies.
She said in the article: “I’ve gone to games when I could walk, I’ve gone [to games] on two sticks and now I go in a wheelchair. I’ve had some great times and I’m relaxed and easy going anyway. I have fun and I enjoy the football.
“My attitude was, ‘well I don’t have a tumour, nobody died. And please God I would live long enough that I would survive’. I just accepted it and I was fortune enough I guess.
“I can stand up and take steps. I have fallen a few times, but you just get up and go. Now, because of my disability, I really choose where I can go more and more. I have had times where I arrive at stadiums and there’s nowhere to get in.”
From a GAA background in Tyrone, it was Carmel’s husband Sean who first got her into football and the supporters club, when he took her to a RISSC meeting.
Sean, who has roots in Limerick, has been involved with the supporters club since its formation in 1984. It currently has approximately 600 members.
The RISSC supports various charities as well as St Kevin’s Boys football club in Dublin, as an important part of its ‘contribution towards football in Ireland’ says Sean.
To complete the family’s involvement with the RISSC, Sean and Carmel’s daughter Roisin Kennedy (nee Mackey) is the club’s kit officer.
There will also be a raffle on the night, which gets underway at 7:30pm, with a signed Ireland shirt, a signed James McClean photo and a special VIP package (including flights, hotel and match tickets) amongst the prizes.
To find out more about the RISSC or to purchase raffle tickets online visit www.rissc.org Online ticket sales end at midnight on Wednesday 24th January.
This article appeared in The Irish World 24th January 2018, and on irishworld.com
Catalogue of serious injury continues to grow…21/01/2018
The double leg break injury sustained by Everton midfielder James McCarthy yesterday will rule him out for the remainder of the season and very likely beyond. Robbie Brady is of course already ruled out indefinitely while fellow Burnley player Jon Walters underwent surgey this week which is likely to rule him out for about two months. Sean Maguire of Preston North End is of course another ruled out indefinitely through injury. On a more positive slant, Seamus Coleman has returned to full training with Everton while Alan Judge is back in action, tentatively at present, with Brentford.