PIGEON RACING: Saturday, May 22, was another busy weekend for the members of the Wexford North & South Road Invitation Pigeon Club, with two races on the cards.

The first of these took place from Castletownbere, just under 155 miles to Wexford, and the birds were liberated at 10.30 a.m. This was the seventh race of the season and another new name came to the winners' enclosure, namely Des and Trevor Nolan from Ashfield Drive.

Des and Trevor can always be looked upon to upset the formbook and must take great pride in winning this race and beating firm favourite Billy Cullimore. It is obvious from the result that these birds flew wing to wing over the entire journey, but Trevor's bird had the edge at the home end.

Trevor and his father, Des, have been introducing some top-quality birds over the last year, and it is now nice to see that they are starting to reap the rewards.

Second and third prize went to the inform lofts of Billy Cullimore from Clonard. The form that the Cullimore lofts are showing has never been better and they will surely be one of the favourites for the upcoming national event.

Results: 1, Des and Trevor Nolan, 1,205.832; 2, Billy Cullimore, 1,205.218; 3, Billy Cullimore, 1,204.234; 4, William O'Neill, 1,202.152; 5, L. and D. Whitmore, 1,198.142; 6, Billy Cullimore, 1,195.708; 7, Billy Cullimore, 1,186.607; 8, Dempsey brothers, 1,170.377; 9, Dempsey brothers, 1,159.589; 10, L. and D. Whitmore, 1,143.873; 11, William O'Neill, 1,138.951; 12, William O'Neill, 1,137.734; 13, Dempsey brothers, 1,114.573; 14, Dempsey brothers, 1,106.194; 15, L. and D. Whitmore, 1,096.994.

The second event was from Kinsale and the birds were liberated at 12 o'clock. Taking the top two positions in this race was Ger Furlong from Hollyville Heights. This secures Ger his second win of the season.

Ger is another fancier who has been blending together new stock over the past number of seasons, and he can be more than pleased with the results that he is now getting. Ger's two pigeons led the way into Wexford and they had five yards per minute to spare over third-placed Francis Dempsey from Ballytramon who is also having an excellent season.

Results: 1, Ger Furlong, 1,332.770; 2, Ger Furlong, 1,332.079; 3, Dempsey brothers, 1,327.878; 4, Dempsey brothers, 1,327.709; 5, Billy Cullimore, 1, 327.146; 6, Dempsey brothers, 1,326.866; 7, Billy Cullimore, 1,326.799; 8, Billy Cullimore, 1,326.626; 9, Billy Cullimore, 1,326.105; 10, Thomas Hore, 1,324.353; 11, Thomas Hore, 1,323.502; 12, Dempsey brothers, 1,320.659; 13, Thomas Hore, 1,319.600; 14, Ger Furlong, 1,319.083; 15, W. and M. Hore, 1,318.938.

GOREY RANGERS F.C.

Gorey Rangers Under-12s capped off a wonderful season by defeating Forth Celtic 3-0 in the Wexford Cup final in New Ross on Friday last. Having secured the league title by going undefeated for the season, there was a certain amount of pressure on the young Gorey team as they looked to claim the double.

This did not show on the evening, however, as they produced a polished performance to see off Division 2 side Forth Celtic in an entertaining contest.

Rangers showed their intent from the outset and there was barely two minutes on the clock when a perfectly-weighted ball over the top by Daniel Brennan found Nathan Brennan whose effort tailed just wide of the post. The opening minutes saw further chances for Gorey, with Conor Levingston and Eoin McGuckin coming close on separate occasions.

The breakthrough came around the 20minute mark. After a neat passing move down the left found Eoin McGuckin in the box and his shot was saved, Paul Brennan latched onto the loose ball and chipped the 'keeper from the edge of the box to make it 1-0. It was no less than Rangers deserved and, despite continued pressure, they went in to the break with a slender one-goal advantage.

Forth came out for the second-half with added determination and caught Rangers by surprise early on. Darragh Rossiter broke into the box and was taken down by a clumsy challenge to give his side a chance to draw level. The resulting penalty was missed and this was a huge let-off for Gorey.

It was the wake-up call they needed to start playing again and they duly responded. The two Brennans, Daniel and Paul, were bossing the game from the middle of the field, and it was from a Paul Brennan corner that Rangers bagged their second. His beautifully-flighted ball was met with a perfectly-timed run and header by captain Paul Murphy to make it 2-0.

The goal was a carbon copy of Murphy's semi-final header against Taghmon and it gave his side the breathing space they needed. Bobby O'Sullivan came close to making it 3-0 shortly afterwards when his bullet free-kick was a whisker away from finding the top corner.

Rangers then introduced all five of their substitutes and it was one of these who sealed the win five minutes from time. Ryan Cullen played a lovely long pass to Conor Levingston, who cushioned his header expertly into the path of newly-introduced Stephen Hempenstall.

Faced with a tight angle and just the 'keeper to beat, he slotted the ball into the far corner with confidence and precision. It was Hempenstall who wrapped the semifinal up also, and his ability to turn a game should see him being one of the central figures next season when Rangers look to defend their Under-12 double crown.

The win was met with joyous scenes at the final whistle as the Gorey players celebrated a terrific achievement. Paul Murphy was then presented with the trophy before Nathan Brennan deservedly picked up the man of the match award.

All 16 players were outstanding on the evening and can be proud of a season where they won every game in both the league and cup, scoring 86 goals and only conceding three in the process.

All 17 players have been on the scoresheet at various times and this more than anything shows the depth of quality that was in the squad.

The double-winning squad is as follows: Adam Dunbar, Ryan Cullen, James Lynch, Paul Murphy, Bobby O'Sullivan, Killian Cush, Daniel Brennan, Paul Brennan, Nathan Brennan, Conor Levingston, Eoin McGuckin, Neil Murphy, Stephen Hempenstall, Conor Gibson, Paul Carton, Dylan Kearon, Eric Quinn.

Seven of the squad were also involved in St. Joseph's All-Ireland Schools five-a-side triumph earlier in the week, a feat that has never been achieved before by a Gorey school. Congratulations to Adam, Paul, James, Daniel, Conor, Bobby and Eric and to everyone else involved.

WANDERERS CRICKET

Unfortunately, the Wexford Wanderers first XI match scheduled for Saturday away to Sandyford was postponed due to the wet conditions. Hopefully this fixture will be rescheduled for later on in the season.

Sunday saw the club's first home game for the season when the second XI faced Merrion C.C. In great conditions for cricket, Wexford were sent in to bat first on a lively pitch.

Opening batsmen Ravi Kumar and Adrian Campbell made a cautious start, getting the score to 22 runs before both being dismissed in successive deliveries. It was then left up to Sudath and late inclusion Ramesh to up the run rate a bit, putting on 27 runs together before Ramesh was out for 20.

Sudath went on to make a well-compiled 33 runs, helping Wexford to post a total of 98 runs all out after 38 overs. Wexford's tailenders did well to see out the majority of their overs.

With only a small total to defend, it was important that Wexford's bowlers got early wickets to put pressure on Merrion. That was exactly what young fast bowler Stef Carty did, dismissing the first three Merrion batsmen with the score at only 19 runs.

He was well supported at the other end, with Tim Toby taking one wicket for ten runs from five overs. When Stef took his fourth wicket, Merrion were reeling at 5-19.

After starring with the bat, Sudath was having a day out, taking three great catches from behind the stumps. Andrew Askew added to the entertainment, taking a spectacular catch off Ramesh's bowling for his first wicket. Ramesh finished with figures of 2-2 off three overs.

Young gun James Meier impressed all at the ground with his fine bowling, finishing with a well-deserved 2-3 from four overs. It was fitting then that Carty took the last wicket, finishing with match-winning figures of 5-14 from six overs. Wexford earned a great victory by 67 runs and continue to head in the right direction.

Team: Adrian Campbell (capt.), Ravi Kumar, Sudath, Athol Henwick, Ramesh, Eugene Carley, Tim Toby, James Meier, Tim Monahan, Andrew Askew, Stef Carty.

The first XI now can look forward to two home matches on Saturday and Monday respectively over the long weekend. Anyone interested is welcome to come down for a look.

ENNISCORTHY RUGBY

The Bud Light Tag 2010 summer season in Enniscorthy kicked off on Thursday last. And the numbers really stacked up - over 400 men and women players, 30 teams, 15 matches, six pitches, 166 tries, two overflowing car parks, one sizzling barbeque, hundreds of burgers, a game of two halves, eight hypnotised volunteers, one great night and nine more to come!

With the popularity of the only official tag rugby venue in Co. Wexford growing, Enniscorthy R.F.C. saw the 30 teams split into three leagues of ten in order to accommodate eight beginners' teams. Despite the afternoon rain, the opening round of matches kicked off in very pleasant and dry conditions. Michael Coughlan, I.R.F.U. Leisure rugby department, was suitably impressed and commented on how high the standard of tag was in Enniscorthy.

In the beginners' league, the pacesetters are Fit 2 Drop who were impressive winners against Tagalicious with a 15-4 scoreline. They are joined at the top of the table by The Misfits and Bladerunner who beat Blue Lineout and The Crusaders respectively. The other two matches were very tight affairs, with Saffron Strikers sharing the points with Tagalong for the Ride. Odds and Sods also drew their match with D Junkies 6-6.

In Grade B, last year's winners, Pump Palace Pimps, were the night's top scorers when running out 24-15 victors against Tag Party. The form book was turned on its head as two teams promoted from last year's Grade C had victories against experienced teams. The Antagonisists were impressive 18-8 winners over Tagtastic. Last year's Grade C winners, Scorthy Hookers, continued the winning streak by beating Karmasutra Kings 11-10 in a tightly-fought game.

The standard of play in Grade C was top notch. There were victories for three of the newly-promoted teams from beginners including last year's winners, Fearstream, and The Forward Passes. Class Act looked the part with a comfortable 15-5 win over Ever Readies. There were also good wins for Slaney Sirloins and I'll Have What He's Having.

Afterwards, players enjoyed the Aprés Tag entertainment in the clubhouse as hypnotist Tony Black had the crowd in stitches, as tag players were hypnotised - one imagines You Tube is the place to check! Many thanks must go to Declan Cullen for his kind sponsorship.

This week sees players test their knowledge as the annual tag table quiz returns. The following week, June 10, sees Blue Moose bring their exciting show to Enniscorthy Rugby Club.

Fixtures, results and more information are available onwww.enniscorthyrugby.com or the Enniscorthy venue page on the official I.R.F.U. tag website - www.irfutag.ie.

MENAPIANS A.C.

Menapians A.C. had another fabulous weekend at the Leinster pairs and Under-12 championship, which was held in Tullamore.

In the Under-9 pairs in the 60m, Shane O'Neill and Cillian Larkin won gold with a combined time of 20.75. Shane then picked up a silver in the long jump when he paired up with Mark Kilgannon. Cillian and Mark then got a bronze in the ball throw.

The Under-10 team of Dion Donovan and Josh O'Connor also won the gold in the 60m and got another gold in the long jump.

The Under-11 team of Conall Clancy and Aaron Smith were the third Menapians team to win the 60m sprint, making it a clean sweep for the club. We are now the only club to have won all the Under-9, Under-10 and Under-11 Leinster relays and also the pairs in the same age group, in the same season.

Aaron and Conall also got a bronze in the long jump. Just to add to the haul of medals, Conall, Aaron and Josh won gold for Wexford in the inter-county relays.

On to the Under-12 individual Leinster events, and three more gold medals came to Menapians. Sam O'Neill won a very competitive 60m hurdles in great style, and David McDonald got the silver in this race. We also had two more athletes in the final, Marco Fleck and Conor Kilgannon, who ran very well in their heat to make this final.

David McDonald is really turning into a great long jumper, setting a new personal best of 4.41 metres to claim the gold medal. We had three athletes in the final of this event setting P.B's - Luke O'Neill with 4.19 metres and Sam O'Neill with 4.09 metres too, and all these athletes are still only ten years old.

Luke then went on to take gold in the 60m sprint with another personal best of 8.64 seconds into a head wind, while Sam took the bronze.

Menapians juveniles are really setting a very high standard at Leinster and All-Ireland level, and are really turning into one of the strongest clubs in the country. This is thanks to all the hard work by our great coaching staff.

Menapians then went on to break a world marathon record on Sunday last on the track in Rosslare.

The distance of 26 miles, 385 yards or 201 laps of the track was done in the time of one hour, 58 minutes, 46 seconds, knocking over five minutes off the orignal time of the great Haille Gabbresalisse.

This record was done by mostly Juvenile athletes. Some were only seven or eight-years-old, and what a fantastic day it was for the club and all its members.

The venue was great, thanks to Ray Flynn. M.C. was Dave Dempsey and our celebrity starter was John Godkin of North End, the winning Oscar Traynor team manager. Thanks also to David 'Dodger' Murphy and Fusciardi for supplying all our water.

Meanwhile, some of our Senior athletes are in Spain at a warm weather camp. David Hynes ran 10.81 in an invitational 100m race, Conor Wilson also ran well with a P.B. of 11.36, and Adrian Jackman ran 11.55. Barry Upton ran 50 seconds for the 400m at the same meet.

After the meet, David Hynes was selected to run an international in Belguim next week.

At all levels Menapians athletes are impressing a lot of people, both national and international. Well done lads and keep up the good work.

WEXFORD WHEELERS

A total of 181 cyclists turned out for the Frank O'Rourke Memorial race, sponsored by Ferrybank Motors and held on the Camross circuit on Sunday last. Run in ideal conditions, the riders provided a thrilling spectacle to the onlookers as they hurtled around the 20k circuit that included a very fast stretch of the N25 from Carrick byrne.

The numbers competing far exceeded the expectations of the organising committee under Chairman David Maguire and chief steward, Michael O'Flaherty, who provided races for A2, A3, A4 and under-age categories.

The club is very grateful for the assistance of the many members who acted as race officials and marshals, and for the use of Camross Hall which had ample facilities for the visiting cyclists, some of whom travelled from as far away as Cork and Kerry to compete in the event.

A2 race: 1, C. McGrath (Comeragh C.C.); 2, F. O'Connor (Fermoy C.C.); 3, B. Geraghty (Murphy Surveyors/Apex Builders/Kilcullen C.C.); 4, D. Travers (Dungarvan C.C.); 5, J. Gibson (South Dublin R.C.); 6, S. Kelly (Usher Irish Road Club).

A3 race: 1, P. Buggle (Rocky Mountain); 2, C. O'Shea (Killorglin Credit Union C.C.); 3, J. Nulty (M. Donnelly/Stamullen R.C.); 4, J. Murphy (Fermoy C.C.); 5, D. O'Mahony (Blarney C.C.); 6, B. Hallissey (Dungarvan C.C.).

A4 race: 1, A. Doyle (unattached); 2, R. Boden (Sorrento C.C.); 3, R. Dwyer (Dungarvan C.C.); 4, O. Wims (Galtee Wheelers C.C.); 5, P. O'Brien (Galtee Wheelers C.C.); 6, R. Farrell (Staggs/Lucan C.C.).

First lady: E. Walshe (Dungarvan C.C.).