Our U20 hurlers put up a brave performance in the first round of the championship against a strong Shelmaliers side yesterday evening, but unfortunately ended up on the wrong side of a 3-18 to 2-15 scoreline.

Ferns had a number of other goal chances during the game and converting a couple of them would have made all the difference, but a combination of good goalkeeping and bad luck meant that chances went a-begging, and the match finished only in disappointment.

​The side now progresses to play Rathgarogue/Cushinstown in the quarter-finals of the Div. 2 championship next Wednesday evening (August 11).

Lotto numbers last night were 8, 13, 15 and 31, and there was no jackpot winner.

Lucky Dip winners were Gavin Bailey, Aine Morrissey, Pauline Drew, and Mag & Enda Doyle. The next draw will take place on Tuesday July 20, for a jackpot of €12,300.

The curtain will finally come down on the 2020 championships for us on Friday night (July 2), when our Junior B hurlers take on Ballygarrett in the replay of the Gorey District Shield Final. The game will take place in Ferns, and throw-in will be at 7.45 p.m.

​That'll be just 306 days after the drawn match on August 30 last year....!

There was disappointment for the U13 hurlers of Sliabh Bhuí Gaels, as they took on Clongeen in the long-delayed final of the 2020 Div. 4 Shield competition in Wexford Park, only to lose by 1-8 to 1-3.

Our boys got off to a bad start by conceding 1-5 in the opening quarter, and while they were probably the better team for the rest of the game, there was just too much work to do. All can be proud of how they played though, and there'll be many better days ahead for this promising group of young players.

Photos from the day can be viewed here.

There's a busy weekend ahead, with somewhere around 180 players to be lining out in Ferns jerseys! Fixtures are:

Friday: Junior B Hurling practice match – Home v Oylegate, 7.30 p.m.
Saturday: 2020 U13 Shield Final v Clongeen – Wexford Park, 10.30 a.m.
Saturday: Hurling League Div. 1 – Away v Crossabeg/Ballymurn, 7.30 p.m.
Sunday: U17 Football Tournament – Home v St. Martin’s, 10.30 a.m.
Sunday: Hurling League Div. 3 – Away v Rathnure, 4 p.m.

Also Go Games for U7s and U11s on Saturday morning, and for the U9s on Sunday morning.

It’s great to see so much action, after being without it for so long. Hon Ferns!

We tested the new walkway lights for the first time last night, and all is looking good! Big thanks once again to all who helped out with the fundraising and the work involved so far.

Some work remains to be done, particularly on resurfacing the walkway itself. All help will be greatly appreciated when the time comes....!

Big congratulations go to last year's U15 Sliabh Bhuí Gaels team (the Ferns/Clonee combination), who claimed the 2020 Division 3 Shield title by beating Clougbawn by 6-14 to 0-12 in Oylegate today.

The game was close at half-time (2-3 to 0-7), but the Gaels side really came good after the break, and proved far too strong for their opponents.

Lots of photos from the game here.

Club chairman Eoin Gethings and treasurer George Murphy today made a donation of €2,500 to Wexford Hospice Homecare Services, on behalf of the club.

The money was part of the proceeds of the "March On Together" fundraiser we held earlier this year. Sincere thanks once again to all who took part in it and supported it.