Duggie Fresh going for goal
Setanta San Diego Gaelic Football and Surf Club Win North American Championships
By Nate Bazydlo
After 7 years of grueling defeats in the North American Gaelic Football Championships, our very own San Diego Men’s Gaelic Football club has defeated all odds and triumphantly succeeded in bringing home the 2017 Cup!
A team comprised of hard-bodied young men of both Irish nationals and American-born players, this storied club based in San Diego trained tirelessly for the last 6 months in order to overwhelm the competition once and for all to win the North American Championships held in San Francisco.
Although the North American Championship has its origins back in 1949 when the first competitive games were held between cities, the history of Gaelic Games in the US has a much longer history, predating the founding of the Gaelic Athletic Association itself. There are records of Gaelic Football being played in San Francisco’s Hyde Park as early as the 1850’s.
Cup with Nate Bazydlo and other American born players
The storied past and today’s growing popularity carries teams in from all over North America as far south as the Cayman Islands and as far north as Canada to compete in the Championship weekend.
The hoisting of the Cup does not come easy in the North American Championships. No team knows the bitter taste of defeat better. Setanta is fresh off two straight years of fighting their way into the Finals only to be delivered crushing defeats.
R to L Rauri, Tom, Podge, coach Neil, Captain Peter
Sentanta came into the 2017 season with renewed optimism led by team Manager Neil Morrison. A talent-filled line up of both returning, old veterans led by Peter Quillinan Mark Hagerty and Thomas Cinco were matched with the power, speed and skill of mighty new additions in Podge O’Connor, Martin Clarke, Duggie Fresh, Ciaran McGregor, Dermot McCann and Cyril Squirrel.
The culmination of the gelling of old and new came on Sunday morning in San Francisco. Setanta’s overwhelming skill and athleticism was on full display in the Final’s match with their complete dominance over Philadelphia to win the Cup. Hours upon hours of disciplined training and hard work has given way to elation and the return of the Championship Cup to its rightful home, San Diego.
Dermot McCann
It does not stop on the field,as the Setanta Gaelic Football and Surf Club epitomizes the real value of cultural exchange, athletic competition and community service in San Diego. The Men’s Gaelic football team joins forces with Irish Outreach San Diego and the greater San Diego Gaelic Athletic Association to host its annual flagship event ‘Irish You a Merry Christmas’.
Local school children in need are served a delicious hot meal with authentic Irish music and dance being performed, all while Irish Santa arrives with loads of gifts. Setanta’s values of work ethic, brotherhood and excellence is exemplified both on and off the pitch. True to form, they have humbly decided to harness this rush of championship fame and attention for good. They are ‘taking it all off’ for charity in a chiseled 2018 calendar spread of the Championship squad. Keep an eye out for it.
The Cup will reside in San Diego for next 360 some days until it returns to the confines of the 2018 North American Championships to be held in Philadelphia. The strapping young men of Setanta Gaelic Football and Surf Club will also be here in San Diego for those days, so take a moment to both congratulate and inquire further about this unique sport with this cast of extraordinary gentlemen. If you would like to know where to find them, one hint – a local Irish Pub on Adams Avenue.
Setanta website: http://www. setantasandiegogfc.com/index. html
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Fair play to ya lads! Maybe next year ya can get Jimmy McClean to play for ya.