Stephen Sharpe

St Marks GAA club had three representatives on the South Dublin Juvenile Colleges Hurling side that successfully retained the Leinster League title. The under 15s game between Dublin South Juvenile Colleges, and Good Counsel College, of New Ross, Co. Wexford took place on the 30th of March 2017 at Éire Óg GAA Club in Carlow.

Representing St Marks on the day were corner back Conor Burke, half forward Ross Byrne and full forward Jack Kielthy, all of whom play for the Under 15s and Under 16s within the Tallaght club.

A motivated Dublin team were gunning for revenge, having come second best to Good Counsel College in the group stages of the Leinster League.

Leinster Champions

Playing into the wind for the first half, Dublin fired ahead with three unanswered points, which included one from Tallaght lad Jack Kielthy. With strong performances from the St Marks trio, Dublin pushed on to gain a stronghold in the game, running out winners on a score line of 3.19 to 0.8.
Such a momentous occasion was made all the more special for young Jack Kielthy, who raised the cup, proudly captaining his county on the day.

The success of the three Tallaght stars was a historical first for the Springfield based St Marks GAA Club having such strong representation at county level, explains Juvenile Secretary Paul Burke.

“This is the first time in the history of St Marks that we have had three members on the same team representing the South Dublin Colleges team. These same lads also represent the club on the Dublin Hurling panel which is a massive achievement and something St Marks GAA club are extremely proud of”

Presently,  Dublin Senior Hurlers Dotsey O’ Callaghan and John Kelly represents St Marks only players to represent Dublin at senior level. But with the extensive effort invested in the underage setup by the club over the last few years starting to pay dividends, the pairs lonely standing might soon be ended and the new crop come of age.