Mary Immaculate College to celebrate Fitzgibbon Cup success on Monday

MARY Immaculate College will celebrate the achievements of their Fitzgibbon Cup-winning hurlers with a Celebratory Homecoming Dinner at the Strand Hotel in Limerick this Monday, Match 11.

Tánaiste Micheál Martin TD will be the special guest on the night and will present the winning team with their Fitzgibbon Cup medals.

The occasion will also see the launch of Cumann na mBunscol: Caoga Bliain ag Fás, an acclaimed publication celebrating 50 years of Gaelic Games in Primary Schools, written by MIC alumni Ciarán Crowe and Joe Lyons and published by MIC.

According to Professor Eugene Wall, President of MIC: “This Fitzgibbon Cup win is a truly remarkable achievement for a college with a modest student population in comparison to many of the other institutions in the competition.

“The win also comes at a very special time for the College as we celebrate its 125th anniversary this year. We are delighted to announce details of this special celebratory gala dinner and we are honoured that Tánaiste Micheál Martin TD will attend the homecoming. I invite our staff, student and our community to join us on the night to celebrate our Champions.”

The gala event will begin with a drinks reception at 6pm, followed by dinner at 7pm. Deuces Wild band will entertain the crowd with live music followed by a DJ until late. Tickets are available to the public for €75 each and have been on sale since Monday of this week, March 4.

Tickets have been available from Tailteann Reception in person or via phone (061-204306) between the hours of 9am–4pm, Monday to Friday.

It is the third time that MIC has won the Fitzgibbon Cup in the competition's history, and the second win under the management of Jamie Wall.

Wall was also a player on the first MIC side to reach the competition's final in 2013 and was a Coach under the management of Eamonn Cregan when the College won the Cup for the first time in 2016.

Speaking after their exciting Fitzgibbon Cup final win over local rivals, the University of Limerick, Wall said: “To be here and to win it against such strong opposition is incredible. We said in the dressing room that this could be a surprise for the whole country but it won't be for us.

“The spirit, belief and drive the team have is something you can be so proud of.”

MIC’s 2-14 to -1-15 win over the University of Limerick in the Fitzgibbon Cup final ended UL’s run of 22 undefeated games in the competition as they chased a third consecutive Cup win.

Winners in 2016 and 2017, there was a sweetness to the latest Mary Immaculate College Fitzgibbon Cup success for all involved. Victories over UCC and Maynooth ensured they topped a group before getting by TUS Midwest and SETU Waterford in the knockout phase before overcoming UL in the final in Abbeydorney, Co Kerry. Last month's final was first meeting of the Limerick sides since 2016 where Mary I came out victorious against their local rivals after extra time.