GALVIN AND KENNY HONOURED AT BUCCS AWARDS
FERGUS GALVIN and SINEAD KENNY were the major winners at Buccaneers Rugby Football Club’s end of season awards event which took place in The Bounty on Friday last. Outgoing President Lorna Stuart Trainor, who presented the winners with their awards, welcomed all the nominees, players, coaches and guests to the informal gathering, which proved very popular and highly sociable.
Presentations to ladies kicked off the proceedings with a delighted JESS HOEY being named Womens Player of the Year. Flame-haired and fiery, Jess came to Buccaneers from Portlaoise RFC after taking a work placement in Athlone. She was one of the first people to register for the revival of the Buccaneers Senior women squad and has given a very large contribution of time since.
Jess has given her all on the field, playing as prop. She has shown her strengths supporting the hooker all season and our jumpers have been in safe hands when Jess is lifting. She has played a crucial role in the pack’s overall performance across all aspects of the game. As well as excelling on the pitch, Hoey has given her support to the U-18 girls across the season and time to the Mini Blitz mornings at the club. Jess is certainly a club lady leading the way.
BUCCANEERS INTERNATIONALS
Next up the club honoured ANNA McGANN who wore the green of Ireland with distinction this season. Anna played other sports before coming along to the club to participate in our Summer Tag League and her romance with rugby grew from there. She swiftly adapted to the sport and was soon involved with Ireland’s Womens 7s squad. McGann has since progressed to the 15s team and scored a memorable Six Nations hattrick away to Italy. Anna currently plays with UCD but we are very proud that her impressive rugby career commenced here at Buccs, where she still gives time and is an ideal role model for young girls taking up the sport.
Buccaneers had no less than 4 young players who represented Ireland at U-18 level this season, which augurs well for the future of the club. KAILIN BLESSING and SEAN GLENNON played on the Ireland Clubs team while LEO ANIC was selected on the Ireland Schools side. ANDREW HENSON went one better than this trio by featuring on both the Clubs and Schools teams! This is a particularly rare achievement. We congratulate these young guys on their achievements which was reward for their hard work, talent and dedication. And, of course, they also enjoyed considerable success on various Buccs teams.
DARRAGH MURRAY came through Buccs Youths ranks before progressing to the U-20 and Senior sides where his displays soon attracted the attention of Connacht for whom he won his first senior cap in 2022. He has since played 40 times for the province and was also capped by Ireland U-20 and the Emerging Ireland squads. Murray recently put in a splendid performance for Ireland A against a strong England side and the hugely promising young lock will surely earn a first Senior cap during Ireland’s Summer Series next July.
SENIOR PLAYER OF THE YEAR
FERGUS GALVIN had an excellent season, delivering consistently quality performances across the year. He battled through injury for most of the campaign and it finally caught up with him for the final number of games, where his leadership and tenacity were greatly missed. Galvin has been with Buccaneers from Minis, Youths, Juniors and now playing Senior rugby consistently for the past number of seasons.
He is the exact player profile the club needs to invest in and nurture through to adult rugby. Fergus has shown great leadership through his work rate while his commitment to on and off field preparation is a template for other players to follow. Galvin is renowned for doing the dirty work, putting his body on the line and never giving up the fight. He is a true clubman and, in an extremely challenging year, the tough results hit Fergie harder than most, but he never backed down.
His set-piece skills have always been his calling card but it has been his increased ball carrying and defence work that set him apart this season. Accordingly, Fergus Galvin is a worthy recipient of the Ray McLoughlin Trophy for Buccaneers Senior Player of the Year.
U-20 PLAYER OF THE YEAR
THOMAS COTTON was a driving force in our U-20s backline as they captured the J.P.Fanagan Leinster U-20 Premier 2 league title. He was also a leader for the Marist College double winning Senior squad. Defensively very strong and also a scorer of key tries, Thomas’ consistent and influential contributions singled him out as Buccaneers U-20 Player of the Year.
JUNIOR PLAYER OF THE YEAR
LUKE BALSIGER has been a driving force behind the Junior team’s survival in Connacht J1A this season. His relentless effort, smart decision-making and physical presence on the field have made a huge impact. His unforgettable try-saving tackle in the league play-off showed just how far he is willing to go for the team.
Balsiger leads by example and his performances speak for themselves. Luke has more than earned his Junior Player of the Year honour.
CLUB PERSON OF THE YEAR
Awards to females commenced the evening and the final award also went to a lady with a highly surprised SINEAD KENNY receiving the ultimate accolade as Buccaneers Club Person of the Year. She has been coaching here for a number of years, from Minis to our Girls U-10s & U-12s. She loves to see these girls learning new skills in an enjoyable environment, making new friends and creating memories. Sinead is moving up to our U-14s Girls where, no doubt, she will be a huge asset to the overall womens development in our club in the future.
Kenny can be found helping at the regular busy blitzes at Dubarry Park and she also finds time for GAA, mentoring solo singers and ballad groups, the great outdoors, travel and gardening among her many interests and pursuits. So a great all-rounder and organiser who is an invaluable resource for Buccaneers RFC and a truly worthy winner of our Clubperson of the Year honour. The Michael Hanley Memorial Perpetual Cup was presented to Sinead by Eileen and Aoife Hanley.
