Clodiagh Rangers make history by winning big in the south of France

A large contingent from Clodiagh Rangers football club travelled to the south of France in June to take part in the Euro Pub League.

An invitational football tournament which the Drombane club has competed in since 2010, each year club teams from across the European Union compete in a blitz like competition which caters for amateur players.

After 14 years of competing and registering four final defeats, Clodiagh Rangers finally reached the top of the mountain this summer in the Euro Pub League.

Over the years the competition has been held in places as diverse as Rome, Nice, Ghent, Mannheim in Germany, Berlin, Vienna, Stockholm, Bucharest and Tipperary when, in 2013, Clodiagh Rangers hosted the annual tournament in Drombane.

As a cross cultural football tournament, the EPL contains the spirit of sportsmanship, camaraderie and respect which is evident amongst the teams and their travelling parties each summer.

A continental pub or restaurant with an amateur football team attached to the business is designated as the host each year and this time around the tournament took place in the mountains just outside Nice, France with Ma Nolan's Irish Pub on the Cote d'Azur the designated host for an enjoyable trip to the south of France.

The beautiful surroundings and hospitality were appreciated by the participants and spectators alike, and the 25 plus travelling contingent from Clodiagh Rangers felt at home instantly in the beautiful surroundings.

After the tournament draw on Friday night at the opening ceremony the football action got underway early on Saturday morning and across the day Clodiagh Rangers played five teams from across the continent.

Both Johnny Carew and John Ryan Casey have terrorised north Tipperary teams over the past few seasons, and again they combined in that old familiar fashion with Carew scoring goals freely across the competition.

In their first game Clodiagh defeated Nice, represented by a Ma Nolan's local selection, and the incessant running from midfield of the experienced Paddy Lowry, Sean Stakelum and Shane Davern instantly put the French side on the backfoot.

Clodiagh pushed on dominating the game against Scholars Lounge from Rome with John Ryan Casey pulling the strings in midfield for the Drombane side and emerging as a playmaker in the fast-paced matches.

Tom Purcell too proved a serious threat to opponents in their goalmouth area as the Upperchurch native proved himself a dominant figure in the centre forward position against the continental defences.

After a good start and two wins in a row the early tournament momentum was halted somewhat by the experienced Belgian side Spartak Gent in the next game.

A gritty, determined performance by the Belgians ensured they held the Drombane side to a 1-1 draw but Clodiagh had done enough in the other two group games to qualify for the knockout stages.

In previous years, Eamon Maher travelled with the Tipperary contingent and was always a highly capable manager since the first tournament which was held in Rome in 2010.

This time around Clodiagh were managed by Michael Browne from Ballycahill who slotted comfortably into a player manager role by organising the team and rotating players to ensure no one felt the effects of the high temperatures.

It also ensured freshness amongst the squad. After topping their group Clodiagh Rangers went into the semi-finals where they took on seasoned opponents and former EPL tournament winners, The Cork Eagles.

Their side is made up of Polish nationals who have plied their trade in the Cork city leagues for many years and always hit the right note each summer in the EPL.

This year Clodiagh struck early through good combination play between Tom Purcell and Johnny Carew and despite the Cork Eagles fightback and incessant attacking, Clodiagh caught the Polish representatives on the counter attack to secure a 2-0 victory after an exhausting encounter.

Austrian and German combo Dynamo Donau / Inter Almenhof narrowly defeated Sparta Gent in the other semi-final which set up a mouthwatering final pitting the Drombane side against the EPL defending champions from the football heartlands of Bavaria.

The Combo had knocked Clodiagh out of last year's tournament held in Berlin and once more the continental side started the final as hot favourites. Again, Clodiagh boss Michael Browne started with an attacking formation driven on by John Ryan Casey's quick passing in central midfield but the Combo were quick to repel the attacks and counter.

Approaching the halfway mark though, the high tempo attacking finally paid off with Johnny Carew finding himself put through the centre and bearing down, one on one, against the advancing German keeper.

Cool as a mountain spring, the Drombane striker chipped into the corner out of the reach of the keeper and before the ball had hit the net, Carew was on his way over to the vocal Clodiagh supporters to celebrate a sublime finish.

Confidence grew as passes went to feet but the Irish representatives still had to repel late attacks. The final whistle was greeted with much joy because Clodiagh, who had lost four finals previously, finally sealed the deal.

Afterwards Michael Browne said it was a famous victory “Look we are delighted with the win and with the trip to France where we represented our club. The trip has been superb overall.”

Later that Saturday evening, back in the host's premise in Nice, the presentations were made and at the end of a fantastic weekend the EPL trophy finally made its way back to Drombane.