If at first you don't succeed, just try again.
That could be Killeedy GAA club's motto.
They won the Limerick Junior B hurling championship in 2005. But that was the end of the road for them.
Just like it was for Junior B champions all over the country. Junior A, Intermediate and senior club championship winners all have a provincial campaign to look forward to but the Junior B lads had nothing.
Killeedy GAA club wanted to test themselves. The far-thinking club decided to act.
Sean Kelly was the president of the GAA at the time and the Killeedy lads got onto him about setting up a provincial and All-Ireland competition for Junior B hurling.
Kelly was game. He'd set up the All-Ireland junior club hurling championship in 2003, in his first year as GAA president and in 2005 the first All-Ireland intermediate club competition took place. He had form in giving the lesser club lights their day and he was the right man to get onto.
The Kerryman tried his best. He fought the good fight but after all, the championship proposal was turned down at Croke Park level because they didn't really see it turning the dials when it came down to it.
But Killeedy knew what they wanted and they saw no point in turning back from there.
They said to themselves that if Croke Park wouldn't approve it, they'd rally, they'd battle and they'd fight for this great thing.
They went on and set up their own competition for Junior B championship winners all over Ireland. There are only six degrees of separation between everybody in this island and they got onto the right people and eventually the Munster and Leinster councils gave them the go-ahead.
And so the un-official All-Ireland Junior B Championship was born.
In 2005 its first renewal was played in West Limerick. It was humble beginnings for the open-minded Treaty club, but they were rewarded for their efforts. What they have now is a far-reaching competition that iscompetitively contested by the winners of junior B championships in fourteen or fifteen counties. The best counties, like Limerick, Tipp, Kilkenny, Cork, Dublin and Galway.
It's 14 years going now and it's still going strong and it's getting stronger with each passing year.
It works like this:
- All the county Junior B winners are issued with invitations to take part in the competition (15 clubs will play this year)
- Winners in Leinster counties (as well as Antrim and Galway winners) advance straight to quarter finals of Leinster series...It's vice versa in Munster.
- These championships are ran off in November and are always finished before Christmas.
- Those games are played and then the Munster and Leinster finalists advance to the All-Ireland semis and the winners get a trophy for their provincial final win.
- The All-Ireland finals usually take place after Christmas.
- All of the games are played in the Killeedy GAA club grounds and the teams are playing for the All-Ireland title, the Killeedy Perpetual trophy.
These days, you've the Antrim champions coming down and making a weekend out of their Leinster quarter-final date. They fill out the local hotels and take over the bars and restaurants of Newcastle West for the weekend.
There's music and there's food, there's craic and there's an All-Ireland series to be won.
The draw for the 2018/2019 renewal has taken place and Killeedy are ready for another year of it.
Don't underestimate the prospect, the value of All-Ireland glory for any club, for any community. Killeedy have made dreams a reality.
It's a far cry from the glamour of Croke Park, but these lads are doing just fine a little bit away from the spotlight.
