Dear members, 

I hope you enjoyed the Halloween break. As we head into the Xmas season I wanted to give you an update on the progress of the club for the year thus far. 

We are now 5 games into the AIL and currently sit in 4th place. Two good wins over Young Munster and Nenagh Ormond have helped get us back up towards the top of the table. Mood in the squad is good currently with 4 matches remaining before Xmas – Old Belvedere (A), Ballynahinch (H), UCD(H) and finally St Marys (A).  
It would be great to get as much support as possible for the remaining home games. The Ballynahinch game will see us do a tribute (roasting!) of Brian Corrigan, with special guests Brian Carney and Mike Ruddock. We also have the 25th reunion of the JP Fanagan Cup winning team with close to 30 of the squad joining us. 
The UCD home game will see a reunion of the McCorry Cup winning team of 1986. Mick Quinn & Moss Kene coached this cup winning side & over 30 of the squad, Captained by Neill Swan,  will return to the club to remember how good they were, back in the day. 

 

 
Women’s 1st Team:
Our women’s team has swollen the ranks this year with over 35 players registered. This is a huge achievement and a notable increase on last years numbers. The team have had an unbeaten start to the season (4 from 4) which puts them now into the higher division (Div 5). This includes an historic victory over Wanderers last weekend in what was the first ever women’s fixture between the two clubs. We wish coach John Tobin and Manager Steve Rooney continued success for the remainder of the season. We have high hopes of achieving silverware this year ! 

Overall a good start from the U20’s team, with performances not being reflected in the league table. After a tough start with games against UCD, Barnhall, DUFC  & Old Belvedere, we currently sit in 6th place. An outstanding win against Barnhall lifted the spirits in the squad and has been the standout performance to date. 

J1’s: 
Mixed start to the season with 3 wins from 6. This season was always going to be a transitional one at this level due to the fact that we lost 10 players from this squad over the summer. Currently in mid-table (5th) 10 points behind leaders UCD.

J2’s:

A strong start to the season with 5 wins from 5. Sitting top of Metro Div 3 on 25 points  – 8 points ahead of 2nd placed Wesley.

The J3’s have also come out strong at the start of the season with 5 wins from 5. Sitting on top of Metro Div 5 on 25 points, 5 points ahead of Old Wesley in 2nd place. 

Our J4s also have 5 wins from 5 in Division 8/9 Group C. They sit on top of the table on 20 points with Bective following behind them on 16.  

Minis & Youths teams:

Our Mini’s numbers continue to swell with the addition of our new grounds in Claremont Road attracting a lot of younger members from the surrounding areas. Coaching numbers are also strong with some great victories being achieved recently, of note the U10’s beating an Old Belvedere outfit that have not lost a game in 2 years. 

The Youths Teams continue to perform well, with a standout performance in recent weeks by the U18’s team coached by Olivier Padioleu. Lansdowne beat a strong Barnhall outfit 43-19, with some magnificent flowing rugby on display. Our U20’s for next year will certainly benefit from such a strong team coming through, all the way from M&Y level.  

Representative Level:
Congratulations to Jerry Cahir and Bobby Sheehan on their first Caps for Leinster in the recent fixture v Zebre. Hugo McLoughlin & Charlie Tector were also included in that fixture.

On the international front it was great to see Tom Farrell receive his first international cap for Ireland v Japan. We were delighted to see Tom’s hard work and diligence paying off for him. It was also fantastic to see 4 other Lansdowne players taking the field v Japan – Ronan Kelleher, Sam Prendergast, James Ryan and Tadhg Beirne. 
Massive congratulations to Tadhg Beirne who recently won the Player of the Year in the recent Guinness Rugby Writers of Ireland awards. Well deserved no doubt. 

On a personal note, a highlight of the year was hosting Lansdowne’s 4 Lions players in an event we held in the Zurich room in October. Dan Sheehan, Ronan Kelleher, James Ryan and Tadhg Beirne all attending the event where we acknowledged their achievements on the historic Lions tour to Australia. 

1.      AIL home games before Xmas:
 

Saturday 29th November – Lansdowne v Ballynahinch – KO 2:30pm. 
Friday 5th December – Lansdowne v UCD – KO 8pm.
 

2.      Ecumenical service – Wednesday 19th November 2025

The Annual Commemorative Service for deceased members of Lansdowne Football Club and their families will be held in the Clubhouse on Wednesday 19th of November 2025 at 7:30pm. The Service will be conducted by Fr. Paul Lavelle P.P. and Rev Peter Campion, and all members and their families are cordially invited to attend.

3.       Minis & Youths Xmas party – Sunday 14th December

More details to follow shortly.


Gavin Lee 
President
Lansdowne FC 2025/26