2004 | ||
| This years game took place in Piltown on Saturday the 13th November and for the first time the game took place under floodlights.
Usually for the home leg of this fixture Piltown have a game on the Saturday and so the TSMS is played after this in
the evening. As luck would have it our full floodlit pitch was newly up and running so the game didn't have to be rushed ahead.
In fact playing under floodlights on a cold November evening definitely added something to the atmosphere of the game (well maybe
not for the freezing cold spectators).
But even more historic events than this were to unfold, as for the first time Piltown managed to win the shield. These games have always tended to end up in a penalty shoot out (even when they didn't end level strangely enough) and this year was no exception. After taking an early 2-0 lead Piltown looked to be cruising but Cootehill fought back to level the tie with the help of a dubious second half penalty. So off to penalties we went once more and just when it seemed nothing could separate these teams, Brian Sherlocks predictable 'Klinsman' penalty was feebly struck and easily saved. He claimed he did it on purpose to allow Piltown claim their first TSMS victory but we choose not to believe him (although in saying that his penalty was bad enough to be convincing). If you would like to see a 3 minute snippet of the 2004 game then please click here: Video So after showers etc all involved made their way to Anthonys Inn where we revelled away into the wee hours. Food and music had been organised and the pub was absolutely jammed with people, so much so that going to the bar became a Tom Crean-like expedition. Nonetheless the atmosphere was hopping, much aided by the excellent Raggett brothers band, and so when the time came for the Auction all wallets had been considerably loosened. The bidding on all items was frantic but none more so than the main attractions. Framed Ireland and Man Utd jerseys both signed by John O Shea which ultimately fetched over €400. The raffle, tickets for which had helped raise much of the funds, followed and a vast array of prizes donated by kindly folk were distributed. Mobile phones, hampers, Waterford Crystal, vouchers and all sorts were claimed. At the end of the night we were aware that we had broken the previous years €7000 mark. In the (semi)clear light of day and after all counts were complete, the total figure was actually revealed to be ......(drumroll).......€8000. So as has been the trend each year we again managed to surpass the previous years figure by a substantial amount. The thing is next year is the 10 year anniversary of Thomas' death, so the challenge is €10,000!! | ||