Belgium GAA

Belgium GAA V Hugh O’Neills (Leeds) – Ladies Football Match Report

Another outstanding achievement by the Belgium Ladies Football team as they continue their great success by winning the All Ireland Club Junior Championship Preliminary round against Hugh O’Neills. For the first time since 2014, Belgium GAA will now be competing in the All Ireland Junior Club Quarter Final against the Ulster champions, Castleblayney Faughs (Monaghan).

Back row (L-R): Jade Tenwick, Clara Lambert, Aisling Fenton, Sonja Beekman, Elena Postantzi, Ana Rios, Jennifer Moore, Ruth O’Laoide Kelly, Marla Candon (c), Rachel Corcoran, Caoimhe O’Farrell
Front row (L-R): Margaux Mansanarez, Orla Butler, Danielle Brady, Florina Tobon Escobar, Lola Woydt, Aimée McGrath, Áine Charlton

Belgium made the trip over to Leeds on Saturday 05 November 2022 to play the British Junior Champions, Hugh O’Neills. One of the toughest encounters of the season was on the cards for the Belgium Women as they aimed to book their place in the All Ireland Quarter final. Within the first 30 seconds, Hugh O’Neills got a score on the board to go a point up but Belgium had a great response as Jade Tenwick put the ball in the back of the net. The goal settled Belgium and Ana Rios ran down the wing to score a well-taken point soon after. In the 8^th minute, Florina Tobon Escobar does what she does best by intercepting the ball and laying it off to Clara Lambert who does what she does best by sticking the ball in the top right corner and making the score 2:01 – 0:01. Aimée McGrath collected a ball off the post and slotted it over to make it 2:02 – 0:01 after 12 minutes. The Belgium defence were running a tight ship, but Hugh O’Neills found a purple patch for the last 15 minutes of the 1^st half by scoring 4 points in a row. The whistle blew for half time and Belgium were still in the lead by 3 points with a score of 2:02 – 0:05.

The Belgium women knew they were in a battle at half time and that they would have to dig deep to win this game out. Belgium started the 2^nd half with Clara Lambert winning and scoring a free to make it 2:03 – 0:05. Hugh O’Neills responded with a point a minute later to show they weren’t going anywhere. There was no goal-line technology in Leeds as a Clara Lambert free came off the crossbar and was cleared off the line which would have sealed the game for Belgium. But that gave the women a lift as Aimée McGrath added another point to her tally after 42 minutes making it 2:04 – 0:06. Hugh O’Neills got a point back and closed the gap to 3 points with ten minutes to go. The fitness of the Belgium Women showed as Margaux Mansanarez came up from wing back to get a point and make it 2:05 – 0:07 in the 56^th minute. Marla Candon was fouled running in on goal and was awarded a free which Jennifer Moore slotted over to give a 5 point lead. Hugh O’Neills gave a final push but only managed to get one more point on the board resulting in a final score of 2:06 – 0:08.

This is an incredible achievement by the Ladies’ Team which will see them play the Ulster Junior Champions, Castleblayney Faughs on November 19/20.

A special shout-out to Hugh O’Neills who have been a great host to our ladies football team. They really have gone the extra mile this weekend! Go raibh míle maith agat.

Great to see both teams smiling together after the game

The location is to be confirmed but wherever the venue is, we’ll be cheering them on! #BelgiumAbú

Belgium GAA Scorers: Clara Lambert 1-1; Jade Tenwick 1-0; Aimée McGrath 0-2; Ana Rios 0-1; Margaux Mansanarez 0-1; Jennifer Moore 0-1.

Belgium GAA: Elena Postantzi (Greece); Danielle Brady (Cavan); Aisling Fenton (Kerry); Lola Woydt (Belgium); Áine Charlton (Mayo); Rachel Corcoran (Roscommon); Margaux Mansanarez (France); Jennifer Moore (Kildare); Florina Tobon Escobar (Belgium); Orla Butler (Meath); Aimée McGrath (Kildare); Jade Tenwick (South Africa); Ana Rios (Spain); Clara Lambert (Denmark); Marla Candon (c) (Roscommon); | Ruth O’Laoide Kelly (Kerry); Annie-Rose Deegan (Laois); Sonja Beekman (Australia); Malin Thor (Sweden)

Manager: Cosmos Gilmore (Galway)

Belgium GAA Jersey Launch

Belgium GAA has now launched their new jerseys with thanks to our sponsors All Ireland Foods and IBEC. The jerseys featured in this year’s Pan European Championship where our Ladies Football team won the Senior and Intermediate Championship. The launch took place in front of the iconic Arc in Parc du Cinquantenaire where Belgium GAA trained before moving to the VUB.

Photographer: Susana Tobon Escobar (@quedubleu).

Pan Euros Football Report: BGAA Ladies Football Team – Most successful team in Europe

The Pan European Football Championship took place in A Coruña, Spain this year being the final tournament of the season. Our ladies’ football team had great success and continued their unbeaten streak by completing the double on the day, winning the Senior and Intermediate Championship. The Belgium men’s team were competing in the senior championship, where they qualified for the semi finals but lost to the Champions of the day.

An extra bag will have to be checked in to fit all this silverware!

The Belgium GAA men’s football team made the trip to Galicia fielding one team that had a great quality of players. They won their first game against Berlin, beating them by a point with a final score of 0:09 – 1:05. A tougher task was ahead in the next group game where they fell short of Valencia 0:04 – 2:03. The men still managed to qualify out of their group finishing 2^nd and were drawn against a strong Madrid team in the senior semi final. The eventual champions of the day were too strong for the Belgium side and lost to Madrid 0:04-0:10.

The men’s team enjoying the rain in Galacia

The Belgium GAA ladies’ team were at full strength as they brought two teams to the Galician province, where both squads were competing in the Senior and Intermediate Championship. Belgium ‘B’ lost their first game of the day to Aurlense/Herderlas with a final score of 0:05-1:05. In their 2^nd match of the group, Belgium ‘B’ overcame Nantes 2:03-2:02. This meant that Belgium ‘B’ qualified for the semi final of the Intermediate Championship where they were drawn against Fillas. The teams could not be split at full time, but the women managed to beat Fillas after extra time by one point. In the final, Belgium ‘B’ showed a great performance as they overcame Paris to win the Pan European Intermediate Championship.

Belgium ‘B’ after winning the Intermediate Pan European Championship

Belgium ‘A’ started their morning by having comfortable wins against Independiente and Estrela. This meant that Belgium ‘A’ topped their group qualifying for the senior semi final where they overcame Madrid Harps. It was a repeat of the last Pan European Senior Final in 2019, Belgium vs Warsaw. With torrential rain throughout the whole day, the women knew this would be one of their toughest fixtures of the year. At half time, Belgium were leading after two well-taken goals from Clara Lambert with a score of 2:02 – 0:05. In the 2^nd half, the women dug deep to keep that 3-point lead intact and won the Pan European Champions with a final score of 2:05 – 1:05. If you missed the final, you can watch the replay of the full stream here: http://www.crtvg.es/tvg/a-carta/futbol-gaelico-final-feminina-cpto-europa-de-clubs-5847561?t=990

Overall, it was another successful day for the women of Belgium GAA where they won every competition they participated in this season. This is a huge achievement for them which has the Belgium Ladies Football team as the most successful team, across all codes, in Europe winning 13 Pan European Championships. It was also great to have the GAA President, Larry McCarthy, and the LGFA President, Michael Naughton present on the day to see this historical achievement. Congratulations to Florina Tobon Escobar for being awarded the Senior player of the tournament and Aisling (from Rennes but played with Belgium B) for winning the Intermediate player of the tournament!

Anay Rios and Clara Lambert recieve the Pan European Trophy from LGFA President, Michael Naughton

Flo Tobon Escobar Receiving her Player of the Tournament Award

For the Men’s team, the year has come to an end with one of the highlights of the season winning at the first tournament of the year in Maastricht. For the Belgium GAA Ladies’ football team, the season is not over yet as they are competing in the All Ireland Junior Championship against the British Champions on November 5/6^th (venue TBC). Best of luck to all involved in that fixture and the club have your full support!

Belgium GAA Recap: Can’t Stop, Won’t Stop

Mr.PRO has been on a small sabbatical and has missed some key events with the club. Here is a recap of what has been going on in the club with the Ladies Football and Camogie team accomplishing some great achievements.

Ladies Football

It has been a busy month for our ladies football team as they competed in the final Benelux round of the year in Amsterdam (Sep 17) and the European 15-a-side competition in Rennes (Sep 24). In Amsterdam, Belgium made it 4 tournaments from 4 to win all of the Benelux rounds. This meant that the ladies teamed were crowned champions of Benelux. A great achievement which saw the women be a dominant force throughout the Benelux region.

A week later they had their eyes on a different competition, the 15s. The women made the trip to Rennes who were the hosts and competitors for the weekend. The final was a great performance which saw Belgium win the 15-a-side competition against Rennes with the final score 3:07 – 1:06. This meant Belgium became the county champions of Europe and qualified for the club All Ireland series against the British champions.

County Chairperson @Rebel_in_theDam the trophy to the winning Co captains of @BelgiumGAA pic.twitter.com/u4LodULtdi
— Gaelic Games Europe (@GaelicGamesEuro) September 24, 2022

Jenny Moore and Orla Butler receiving the 15-a-side trophy

Coming up, the ladies football team will be competing in this year’s Pan European competition on October 15^th in A Coruña, Spain. Belgium will be looking to win their 13^th Pan European championship and make it two in a row after overcoming Warsaw in 2019. For the 15-a-side competition, Belgium will be playing a Preliminary Round in the All Ireland Junior Championship on November 5^th/6^th (Venue TBC). If Successful, it would see them qualify for the All Ireland quarter finals, so best of luck to them!

Camogie

Our Camogie team brought 2 teams to the final round of the European Camogie Championship in Amsterdam on October 1^st. The woman made it 3 tournament wins from 3 after showing their dominance travelling around Europe. Soline Whooley accepted the trophy in Amsterdam by making the point that it was good to see 6 teams travel but recruitment for Camogie still needs to be improved across Europe. Aine Charlton won (another) player of the tournament award on the day which added more silverware to be brought across the Dutch/Belgian border.

For the Camogie team, the season finishes after seeing them travel in great numbers across Europe all year by winning two of the Benelux tournaments and three of the European rounds. Congrats to everyone involved for the great year and don’t forget that training is still continuing with some fun games to be played over the next month.

Hurling

The Hurlers brought two teams to the final round of the European Hurling Championship in Amsterdam on October 1^st. The two teams were split to allow everyone to have as much competitive game time as possible. Belgium ‘A’ qualified for the cup and gave a good game against Amsterdam, but fell short to the winner of the tournament. This meant the hurlers finished 2^nd overall in the rankings of the European Hurling Championship. Belgium ‘B’ had a great day where they won the plate competition which resulted in them winning the European Hurling Plate, so congrats to them!

All is not lost however as they will have their eyes on the first 15-a-side Hurling Championship on October 8^th. The winners of the 15-a-side competition will qualify for the Leinster Junior Club Championship against the Wicklow Intermediate Champions Kilcoole. The hurlers will play the semi final against Amsterdam in Maastricht at 2:45pm, so get down to Maastricht to show your support and watch a great game of Hurling!

Men’s Football

The men’s football team recently competed in the final round of the Benelux Championship in Amsterdam on September 17^th. The men had a tough group but managed to beat Amsterdam B and Den Haag while narrowly losing out to Luxembourg. They finished off the day by winning a very competitive 3^rd/4^th place playoff against Luxembourg after extra time. The men’s team will be competing in this year’s Pan European competition on October 15^th in A Coruña, Spain where they will face good competition throughout the day and will be a great weekend! Best of luck to everyone involved in their preparation and travels.

European Hurling/Camogie Tournament Report: Leuven September 03 – Two in a row for Camogie!

The second round of the European Hurling/Camogie Championship was held on September 3rd in Leuven. The tournament was co-hosted by Belgium GAA and the Earls of Leuven. Belgium GAA brought a total of 45 players who were all ready for action. Our Camogie continued their good form by winning the competition outright with both men’s teams falling short.

9 Hurling teams competed on the day with Belgium ‘A’ (Schuman) and Belgium ‘B’ (Flagey) in search of some silverware. Belgium ‘B’ (Flagey) were drawn into a very difficult group losing out to Luxembourg, and Eindhoven. Because of their position they were entered into a playoff for a chance to qualify for the Shield semi-finals. A great performance saw Flagey overcome Darmstadt to advance into the semi-final against Paris. Unfortunately, after a close encounter, the lads just missed out on a shield final and gained 3^rd place in the shield competition receiving a walkover from Cologne.

Michael “The Claw Markey” and Steve Vitoux linking up to get a score for Flagey

For the Belgium ‘A’ (Schuman) side, they manage to top their group winning against Den Haag and Darmstadt, this meant they were drawn against Hamburg in Semi Finals. The Semi final resulted in Schuman overcoming Hamburg and Qualifying for the final against Luxembourg. A very exciting game against a strong Lux resulted in extra time as both teams couldn’t be separated. Unfortunately, after extra time Luxembourg proved too strong and won the tournament. A disappointing day overall from the Hurler’s side, but the lads will be looking to bounce back again and have a run at this year’s new competition, the 15-a-side Championship.

For camogie, 5 teams fought it out on brand new astroturf pitches: Eindhoven, Germany, Frenelux and two Belgian teams. Frenelux won third place and the two Belgian teams meeting in the final, with Belgium A winning by just a few points. It was Irene Kirwan’s big comeback to the club and we’re delighted to have her back! The camogie team continue their great success, where they will have their eyes on winning the final tournament of the season in Amsterdam.

Congratulations to Aine Charlton who went home with the player of the tournament award for her tremendous work throughout the day! Want to know her secret? She once said, “always bring your hurl and boots on holidays”. So now you know the key to success 😉

Soline Whooley collecting the Camogie trophy presented by Ambassador Conmy

A special shoutout has to be given to our very own Aiden Murphy, and The Earls Alan Fitzgerald. Without the cooperation from the two, we wouldn’t have been able to host a great day. Thanks to the Irish Ambassador to Belgium, Kevin Conmy, for attending and presenting the awards on the day.

Thanks to Jan from Jjt Gaelforce for providing pictures from the day which can be found here:

Belgium GAA and the Earls of Leuven GAA to co-host the next round of the European Hurling/Camogie Championship

PRESS RELEASE | 26/08/2022

The second round of the European Hurling/Camogie Championship will be held on September 3^rd in Leuven. The tournament, co-hosted by Belgium GAA and the Earls of Leuven, will see teams compete from all over Europe with approximately 200 men and women making the trip to Leuven. The event will take place at Sportkot – Heverlee, Leuven, with an approximate time of 09:00 am-17:00 pm and is free to enter.

Hurling (men) and Camogie (women) are some of Ireland’s native Gaelic games and ancient Irish sports that are thought to have been played for over 3,000 years. Hurling and Camogie in Europe are administered by Gaelic Games Europe (GGE). They are played throughout the world and are popular among members of the Irish diaspora and locals in North America, Europe, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, South America and Asia. The sport is considered the “fastest field sport in the world” due to the high velocity the sliotar (ball) can achieve during play.

This will be the third Gaelic Games event in Leuven this Summer. In April, The Earls of Leuven welcomed the students of Europe for the first-ever Collegiate games. In May, the Earls hosted the third round of the Benelux Football Championship. Although it’s a first for the Earls, Belgium GAA has hosted pan-European hurling & camogie tournaments in the past, most recently in 2019.

Irish Ambassador to Belgium, Kevin Conmy, will also be in attendance on the day. Both the Earls of Leuven and Belgium GAA are sure this tournament will be gripping and exciting the hurling and camogie players putting on a great display!

Belgium GAA Last Player Standing Competition

The Belgium GAA Fundraiser: Last Player Standing is back. The competition is based on the upcoming Premier League Season starting on Friday, Aug 5, 2022. This fundraiser was a success last year with over 100 people signing up during Covid. You don’t have to be a club member to join as the competition is open to all! The entry fee is €10 with the winner receiving a total prize of €250. You can register for the competition here: https://www.klubfunder.com/Clubs/Belgium_GAA/Belgium_Gaa__Last_PLayer_Standing?fbclid=IwAR2t91BKKkXZ2Gu4qcvyI125owNgFIv4wMZrqIOM-BIQQei35XBYGMWFlYo

Each week, simply pick a team playing that week to win – if your team wins, you go through; lose or draw and you’re out.

If you already made an account last year then you should be able to log in using your email again. Please click the “Donate” button and pay via that link (PayPal). Once you have done so, you should automatically get entered with “1 life”. An alternative option is to pay via bank transfer which you can so so by contacting the club and we will provide the account details.

Competition Rules:

Each week, simply pick a team playing that week to win – if your team wins, you go through; lose or draw and you’re out.
You can only pick a team to win once so be tactical about who you pick and when
All selections must be in before the game week closes. This is normally 60 mins before the first game starts
Should you forget to make your selection in any week, you will automatically be assigned the first team that you have not selected in alphabetical order. (A reminder email will be sent out so you dont forget).
If your team’s game is postponed you are automatically put through to the next round, and you cannot select that team again.
If more than one participant remains at the end, the accumulated ‘scored for’ of their selected teams will determine the winner. This also applies if during the competition the remaining players are knocked out in the same gameweek then the player with the highest score will be the winner.
If the remaining players ‘scored for’ points are equal then there will be joint winners. (Unless those players agree to continue).

European Hurling/Camogie Tournament Report: Munich July 23 – Camogie off to a winning start!

The First round of the European Hurling/Camogie Championship kicked off in Munich this year which saw Belgium GAA bring 37 players mad for action. We fielded a total of one Camogie team and two Hurling teams that competed in an action-packed day. Our Camogie continued their good form by winning the competition outright with both men’s teams falling short.

12 Hurling teams competed on the day with Belgium ‘A’ (Schuman) and Belgium ‘B’ (Flagey) in search of some silverware. Belgium ‘B’ (Flagey) were drawn into a very difficult group losing out to Amsterdam/Augsburg, Munich, and Hamburg. All was not lost as this meant the lads had qualified for the plate semi-finals against Darmstadt/Strasbourg. A great performance by Flagey secured the win by beating Darmstadt/Strasbourg: 1-09 to 0-02. This meant that Flagey were up against Vienna in the plate final but lost out to them by 5 points. Belgium ‘A’ (Schuman) managed to win all of their group games and topped their group by beating Luxembourg ‘B’, Berlin GAA/Zurich, and Stuttgart. Schuman were drawn against a strong Amsterdam/Augsburg side which was a very exciting game with Belgium scoring a goal in the last couple of minutes to draw the match, but lost out after conceding two late points in the end. This meant Schuman were matched up against the host Munich in a 3^rd/4^th place playoff and won it at the end of a long day to take home the bronze.

For Camogie, the tournament was run on a round-robin format with Belgium only fielding one team with the new 9-aside format. The Camogie team managed to win all their games in the round robin defeating Hamburg/Setanta Berlin/Darmstadt, Luxembourg/Berlin GAA/Zurich, Vienna/Paris/Zurich, and Munich ( / indicates an amalgamation). By topping their group, they were matched against a strong Luxembourg side which they only managed to beat by two points in the group stages. This time around the Camogie team was stronger and won the final by four points. This was a great success for the club which has the camogie team a step closer to winning the European championship.

Daughter-Mother Duo of Sara and Lili Velazquez

Overall the day was a very enjoyable and well-run tournament by Munich, so congrats to them on that. It was great to see so many Belgium players make the journey to play small ball (and drink big pints). A great individual performance from Marcus Cosgrave saw him win the player of the tournament award. Marcus didn’t let man, ball, and hurl go by him in the full back line, so congrats to him and up the Rebels! Soline Whooley collected the trophy for the Camogie pointing out a great team performance. Next up we take the trip to Luxembourg (September 3), where the Hurlers will be looking to go further than last time and Camogie will be aiming to keep up their winning performance.

Marcus Cosgrave (Kind of) collecting his player of the tournament trophy

Reminder: Belgium GAA is hosting a Last Player standing competition with the prize of €250. Register here: https://www.klubfunder.com/Clubs/Belgium_GAA/Belgium_Gaa__Last_PLayer_Standing

Belgium GAA Mid-Season Soiree BBQ: What’s 15 in French?

With the smell of suncream in the air, Belgium GAA hosted a mid-season soiree BBQ in the ‘difficult’ conditions of 34-degree heat. The BBQ was held at the VUB with everyone spending most of their time in the shade while enjoying some warm cans and great food. A few games of Kubb and Spikeball (Seanie Ryan & Baynes undefeated) with a great playlist in the background from DJ John Mc.

Excellent food was provided and a shoutout to all the people who volunteered in setting up, cooking, and cleaning on the day as it wasn’t easy! Another shoutout to some of the organisers: Aidan Walsh, John McClean, Me (Seanie Ryan), Ronan Quinn, Mary Anne Issacs and the rest of the Committee. Cheers to Baynes doing everyone a solid by collecting and delivering all the burgers, sausages and salads. Thanks to everyone who came and made the day a great enjoyable day out. Now, what everyone has come to see from clicking this article: Pictures! Please see all the photos from the day and always tag the club (be like @rootoloot).

Benelux Hurling/Camogie Tournament Report: Maastricht June 11 – 1,2,3 Belgium!

The second and final round for this year’s Benelux hurling/camogie tournament held in Maastricht saw BGAA Camogie field three teams with hurlers fielding two teams. A total of 45 players lined out in the Belgium Colours which resulted in the BGAA camogie team ‘Les Tintins’ winning the competition and the hurlers losing out in the final. For the first time in a while (maybe ever?), three teams from the same club were competing in a camogie tournament which was great to see!

Belgium ‘Schuman’ after the final whistle still smiling

Seven hurling teams competed in Maastricht with Belgium in both the ‘A’ and ‘B’ competitions. For Belgium ‘B’ (Flagey) they started off the day against Luxembourg ‘B’ which resulted in a tough loss. Their performance improved for the 2nd game where they were defeated by Den Haag narrowly. The last game of the day ended against a strong Eindhoven side in the blistering heat which didn’t go the way of Flagey. The lads deserved their pints at the end, who did the club proud with their performances and have something to build on for the next tournament. For Belgium ‘A’ (Schuman), they competed in a group of 3 with Luxembourg and Amsterdam. A great win in the first game of the day beating Amsterdam with a score of 1-16 to 1-10. With Luxembourg defeating Amsterdam in their first game, both teams agreed to play straight in a final. We started with the bare minimum of 9 for the final. During the game, we had another injury which resulted in the injured Brendan O’Donoghue coming out of the shower and having to stand in goals wearing his lovely chino shorts (scoring 2 points). At halftime, Belgium was only 3 points down but a strong Luxembourg side ran away with it in the end winning the competition.

Shoutout to Bull for driving the party bus

Only three Camogie teams were competing in this Benelux round with all three teams being Belgium, with Luxembourg adding some players to ‘Les Tintins’. The three teams were named after famous Belgium comic books ‘Les Schtroumpfs’, ‘Les Chats’ and ‘Les Tintins’. ‘Les Tintins’ had some BGAA players wearing the Lux colours for the day!

‘Les Chats’ topped their group winning both their games against ‘Les Schtroumpfs’ (4-09 to 4-08) and ‘Les Tintins’ (4-04 to 2-07). ‘Les Tintins’ managed to beat ‘Les Schtroumpfs’ 4-06 to 3-06 to qualify for that final spot. This meant ‘Les Chats’ and ‘Les Tintins’ were matched against each other in the final. ‘Les Tintins’ won the competition with a final score of 3-12 to 4-03.

Áine Charlton and Alex O’Sullivan (Lux) collecting the trophy for Les Tintins. Sean Gunning with his Blue Steel impression

Over the two Benelux rounds, Belgium Hurlers managed to finish 1st and 2nd respectively. The hurlers will now have their eyes on the first European Championship round which takes place in Munich at the end of July. With the Camogie team winning both Benelux rounds, they will be looking to keep those great numbers and form for the first round also. The past two Benelux rounds have been great preparation overall for the European Championship. The aim now is to get more competitive game time for both codes against teams from all over Europe while having fun doing so.