Well done to our under 12's who reached the Final of the recent prestigious Gowna Tournament. A total of 24 team from many counties took part, so finishing second was a fantastic achievement. Despite being without several players and with some late withdrawals/call ups to the squad, the team drew with Round Towers from Meath in the first match, a late goal from the excellent Miroslav Cureja earning us a well deserved share of the spoils. Two comprehensive victories over the host Club Gowna and another Cavan team Cootehill saw us progress to the Quarter Final of the main Cup Competition as group winners. Prominent in these early games were Tim Connellan, Mairtín Kenny, Ronan Sheahan and Callum O'Leary. Our next opponents, Summerhill from Meath were defeated well, with outstanding performances from Ben Lynn in defence and Grace Shannon in attack. Local rivals St. Patrick's, Ardagh were our semi Final opponents and an excellent first half performance was the basis for a comfortable win. Stand in goalkeeper Danny Ogboko (deputising for the injured Stephen O'Brien and Cian McGuinness who was unavailable), Sean Morgan, Dean Coughlan and Micheal Mulcahy were all to the fore in the match. Our final opponents were Ballinteer from Dublin and despite being level at half time, our small squad ran out of steam in the second half as our opponents got their hand on the Cup. Despite the disappointment of losing, the squad can be immensely proud of their efforts, they were a credit to themselves and the Club. In a busy week for the u12s, on Sunday morning they travelled to Fenagh to take on the locals in the Longford / Leitrim League. This turned out to be a great game of football, with the result in the balance right up to the last few minutes. Playing with the aid of a slight wind, Fenagh went in at half time leading by 5 points. Slashers made life difficult for themselves by overplaying the ball when scores were on and by the concession of a couple of softish goals through defensive mix ups. However, the team showed great spirit to lift their game in the second half, scoring heavily and running out winners on a score line of 4-10 to 2-6. On a day when everybody played their part, there were huge performances from Ben Lynn, Danny Ogboko, Dean Coughlan, Ronan Sheahan, Donal Sheahan and Miroslav Cureja. Cian McGuinness was excellent in goals and there were great defensive contributions from David Nevin, Sean Morgan and Mairtín Kenny. Dean Wykes, John and Stephen Murray, Micheál Mulcahy, Tim Connellan, Liam Sloane, Jack Tyrell and Callum O'Leary all played well up front when needed. Well done to all, this result keeps us well placed in the League. Our u10's were in blitz action on Wednesday last, full report to follow next week. Training resumes for our u10s on Thursday at 6. Training for u6 and u8 continues on Thursdays at 7. New players always welcome.