Posted: 29 November 2006
UCD awards 97 sports scholarships to students from across Ireland
The largest number of sports scholarships in an Irish university was announced by UCD on 28 November 2006. The university awarded 97 scholarships to students selected for their outstanding sporting ability.
UCD sports scholarship recipients in Ladies Gaelic Football are from left, Ciara McDermott, Mayo, Edel Farrelly, Cavan, Fiona Claffey, Westmeath, and Ailish Coryn, Cavan, at the Sports Scholarships Reception for the announcement of the 2006 scholarship recipients. Astra Hall, Student Centre, University College Dublin, Belfield Campus, Dublin
Irish 200 metre and 400 metre national champion, Joanne Cuddihy joins students from thirteen sports to receive scholarships that guarantee them access to top coaches, training facilities and the support and services of the UCD High Performance Centre.
Since it was initiated in 1979 by Dr Tony O’Neill to help talented soccer players who wished to stay in education, the UCD sports scholarship programme has expanded and supported over 600 students across athletics, basketball, camogie, cycling, ladies gaelic football, men’s gaelic football, golf, handball, ladies hockey, men’s hockey, hurling, rugby, and ladies soccer. Sport at UCD is now under the directorship of Brian Mullins.
At the reception for the announcement of the 2006 UCD sports scholarship recipients are, from left, members of the UCD Dublin Senior Championship winning side Cathal O'Dwyer, Meath, Stephen Gallagher, Westmeath, Shane Lennon, Louth, Pat Navin, Mayo, John McCarthy, Limerick, with Brian Mullins, UCD Director of Sport . Astra Hall, Student Centre, University College Dublin, Belfield Campus, Dublin
Some of Ireland’s best known sports figures are former UCD sports scholars including the current international rugby players, Brian O’Driscoll, Paddy Wallace and Ronan McCormack, captain of the Dublin County Gaelic team, Collie Moran and team mate Alan Brogan, Meath star, Trevor Giles and the late Cormac McAnallen, from Tyrone.
This year’s UCD sports scholars include:
- Riona Buckley dual player on the victorious Cork sides in the 2005 & 2006 Camogie and Ladies Gaelic Football All-Ireland Championships
- Senior home international team and Irish youths team golfer, Shane Lowry
- Hockey player, Lisa Jacob, who was capped for the Irish Senior team in 2006
- Robert Kearney captain of the Irish Under 19 World Cup rugby squad in 2004 and current member of Leinster and Irish “A” squads
- Dara Lernihan, winner of the Leinster Youths Amateur Open Golf Championship
The UCD sports scholarship programme aims to develop elite athletes who can compete at the highest national and international level.
Access to the High Performance Centre is a great boost to athletes preparing for Bejing 2008 and London 2012. The centre provides a supportive framework of biomechanical, biochemical and nutritional information which facilitates the use of techniques found in the best universities in the world. To develop their performance, a tailored Strength and Conditioning Programme is devised for sports scholars and supervised by Lisa Regan UCD’s Director of High Performance. In addition, the scholars also have access to Sports Psychologist Dr Aidan Moran.
Team sport is specifically encouraged through the scholarship programme and the university fields teams at the highest competitive level. The rugby team competes in division 1 of the AIB all-Ireland league, the Gaelic club are current Dublin senior club champions, the ladies hockey team are holders of the Jacqui Potter Leinster Senior Cup, the soccer team are the only university side to play in the Eircom League premier division and the ladies soccer club has again reached the final in the WFAI Cup which will be played on 2 December at Richmond Park.
At the reception for the announcement of the 2006 UCD sports scholarship recipients are, from left, UCD Rugby Scholars Cian Aherne, Andrew Cummiskey, Cathal Doyle, Paul O'Donohoe, Robert Shanley and Vasily Artimiev
UCD has been in receipt of financial support from the Royal & Ancient (Governing body for golf) for a number of years. In 2005 UCD was included in the R & A’s Foundation Bursary Scheme and is the only third level institution in the Republic of Ireland to be a member of this scheme and be able to establish a Golfing Centre of Excellence.
Sport at UCD continues to thrive and recent announcements by the university in relation to the building of a swimming pool along with the provision of funds by the Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism, John O'Donoghue for the upgrading of the Belfield Bowl for use by soccer and rugby will further improve the facilities for sports players and spectators alike.
| Athletics – Triathlon | Enda Gallery (Kildare) |
|---|---|
| Athletics | Joanne Cuddihy (Kilkenny), Stephen Darcy (Carlow) & Padraig White (Meath) |
| Basketball | Barry Drumm (Dublin), Peter Finn (Galway), Kevin Foley (Dublin) & Conor Meany (Dublin) |
| Camogie | Mary Lacey (Wexford), Mairead Luttrell (Kilkenny) & Susan O’Carroll (Kildare) |
| Camogie & Ladies Gaelic Football | Cathriona Buckley (Cork) |
| Cycling | Louise Moriarty (Dublin) |
| Ladies Gaelic Football | Fiona Claffey (Westmeath), Ailish Coryn (Cavan), Edel Farrelly (Cavan), Ciara McDermot (Mayo), Grainne Nulty (Meath) & Aisling O’hAnnaidh (Wicklow) |
| Men’s Gaelic Football | Cormac Brady (Monaghan), Mark Delaney (Laois), Aidan Fennelly (Laois), Stephen Gallagher (Westmeath), Shane Lennon (Louth), Bryan Meredith (Laois), Cathal O’Dwyer (Meath), John O’Loughlin (Laois) & Pat Navin (Mayo) |
| Men’s Gaelic Football & Hurling | Tomas Brady (Dublin), John McCaffery (Dublin), & John McCarthy (Limerick) |
| Men’s Golf | Derek Dickenson (Donegal), Garreth Dillon (Laois), Ross Dunne (Wicklow), John Greene (Carlow), Andrew Hogan (Dublin), Shane Lowry (Offaly), Dara Lernihan (Dublin), Ciaran O’Connor (Westmeath) & Brendan Walton (Dublin) |
| Handball | Patrick Clerkin (Cavan) & Eimear Ni Fhalluin (Kildare) |
| Ladies Hockey | Jane Bourke (Limerick), Lisa Jacob (Wexford), Christine Quinlan (Dublin) & Elaine O’Neill (Kilkenny) |
| Men’s Hockey | Herbert Bagnall (Offaly), John Brennan (Kilkenny), Ben Grogan (Dublin) & Michael O’Connor (Dublin) |
| Hurling | Bryan Barry (Kilkenny), Keith Burke (Wexford), Diarmuid Fitzgerald (Tipperary), Tommy Fitzgerald (Tipperary), Brendan Murphy (Offaly), Maurice Nolan (Kilkenny), Patrick Nolan (Wexford), Paul Ormond (Tipperary), Dave Prendergast (Kilkenny), Eoin Quigley (Wexford) & Alan Tiernan (Wicklow) |
| Rugby | Cian Aherne (Limerick), Vasily Artimiev (Russia), Andrew Cummiskey (Dublin), Cathal Doyle (Kildare), David Gilchrist (Dublin), Morgan Hickey-Crowe (Dublin), Robert Kearney (Louth), Ian Keatley (Dublin), Killian Lett (Wexford), Ross McCarron (Dublin), Fergus McFadden (Kildare), Conor McInerney (Dublin), Gerard Moran (Dublin), David Nyhan (Dublin), Sean O’Brien (Carlow), Paul O’Donohoe (Dublin), Eoin O’Malley (Dublin), Robert Shanley (Dublin) & Kevin Sheahan (Dublin) |
| Ladies Soccer | Eimear O’Herlihy (Donegal) |
| Men’s Soccer | Billy Brennan (Kilkenny), John Brophy (Dublin), Conan Byrne (Dublin), Ronan Finn (Dublin), Shane Flynn (Dublin), Darren Forsyth (Dublin), Kieran Harte (Donegal), Damien Kelly (Kilkenny), David Last (Dublin), Aaran McEneff (Dublin), Evan McMillan (Dublin), Francis Moran (Dublin), Gerard O’Callaghan (Monaghan), Eoin O’Cinneide (Dublin), Declan O’Donnell (Donegal) & James O’Sullivan (Tipperary) |