GAA News
The final lotto draw of 2025 took place last Sunday December 7th and there was no winner of the jackpot. The numbers drawn were 5, 6, 26 and 27. There were six lucky dip winners of €50 each and they were Melissa Condon, Paul Connolly, Sue Kavanagh, Annie Veale, Barbara O Brien and Stan Bergin. The first draw of 2026 will take place on January 18th 2026.
The club and organisers of the lotto would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone for their continued support and to wish them all a very happy and healthy Christmas and every best wish for the New Year.
A big well done to Matthew Masterson from the U14 squad who was awarded the MOTM award in the Division 4 Football Final earlier this year against Kilrossanty. Matthew was presented with his award at the annual Bord na N’og awards night. Presenting the award on the night was Waterford star Caoimhin Power.
Congratulations to Cormac and Cian from the U13 Panel who will be part of the U14 Deise Og Waterford Gaelic Football Panel 2026. This is a great achievement and the club are very proud of them.
Ballyduff AFC News
The women’s team will return to training in January and are eager to welcome some new members. If you are over the age of 15 please check out the enrolment form on the Ballyduff AFC Facebook page. The second division will begin in April so it is now time to start to build a strong squad.
Experienced players are also wanted for the new junior season. These are a very young team with great potential. You can check out the form on the Facebook page.
The U13 girls had a disappointing 1-0 loss to Villa but put in a great display and worked very well together as a team.
Well done to Ballyduff AFC players Michael Brophy and Dylan Kelleher who played starring roles for the Waterford U12 Development Squad in their 4-3 win over Limerick. Well done to both players.
The U13C team had a fantastic 5-0 win over Piltown. The lads played a great game from all positions on the field.
The U11C team netted a 4-2 win over Dungarvan with some great strong confident play.
Bridge News.
Ballyduff/ Portlaw Bridge game played their latest game on Monday December 8th and the results were as follows:
1st: Elizabeth Mooney and Evan Walsh
2nd: Tom Power and Margaret Pragnell.
3rd: Kate Hayes and Helen Kavanagh.
New members are always welcome, please contact Anne Marie Brown on 087-6722482
Community Alert
The local community alert group held their latest meeting on Wednesday December 3rd at 8pm in Ballyduff Community Centre. The €10 text alert fee is now due. If you were unable to attend but want to renew your subscription, please contact any of the following Jay Dowdall, Chris Pragnell or MJ Healy. Our community alert group are a very important group in our area, and the text alert scheme is invaluable and has helped on numerous occasions to apprehend those involved in a crime. It alerts people of crime in other areas so that we are aware of suspicious vehicles or activities. Please spread the word about this text alert scheme to your friends and neighbours as together we are stronger.
Church News.
Excitement was building for an evening of carols which took place on Wednesday December 10th at 8pm in St. Nicholas Church, Ballyduff. This beautiful candlelit evening featured St. Nicholas’s Church choir under the direction of Bridget Jordan and many special guests on the night. Tickets included entry to a fantastic raffle and the winners received some beautiful prizes. This was a lovely relaxing evening full of beautiful music and song and an ideal way to welcome the Christmas season. Bishop Cullinan attended also and even performed a solo himself. MC for the evening was Mary Power who did a wonderful job. The choir, musicians and soloists performed brilliantly and treated everyone to some glorious hymns and pieces of music.
Refreshments were served in Ballyduff Community Centre after the concert which were enjoyed by all. All proceeds from this night will go towards the Church renovation.
Renovations are making great progress on our church but there is still a lot of work to be done. All donations are very welcome and can be made online or to any committee member or can be dropped into the weekly collection basket in an envelope marked Church Fund.
You are asked to keep Fr.Francis in your thoughts and prayers. He became ill while visiting his family in India and cannot travel back for a while. We all wish him a speedy recovery. We are blessed to have some wonderful priests helping but not all masses can be covered so for the moment our masses at the weekends are as follows Saturday at 6pm in Portlaw Church and Sunday at 10am in Ballyduff Church. There will be Christmas Eve mass in Portlaw and Christmas Day in Ballyduff.
Recent Deaths
We extend our deepest sympathy to the family of the late great Tommy O Brien, Ballyduff Village. Tommy was a very popular character loved by all. He was a fantastic family man and he and his late wife Mary raised their family to support and help each other always. He had a sprightly step and a cheeky smile and loved nothing more than a chat. His good nature and kindly ways will be remembered by all, sand he will be remembered by all. We take special comfort in the fact that he and his beloved wife Mary are now dancing in each other’s arms again. We pray that Tommy now rests in peace.
We extend our sympathies to the Grant and Gahan families on the recent death of Ann Grant nee Gahan. Ann was a kind and sincere lady who was loved by all who met her. Her kind nature and friendly smile made everyone comfortable in her presence. She will be deeply missed by her husband Michael, daughter Susie, son-in-law John, granddaughters Sophie and Anna, brothers Davy and Paddy, sisters Dina and Margaret and extended family and her many friends. May she now rest in the peace and love of Christ.
Christmas Greetings.
As the writer of these notes, I would like to wish everyone a wonderful Christmas and every best wish for 2026. I would like to thank all who contribute to these notes and those who take the time to read them. I really enjoy writing the notes and feel it is a great way to let people know what is going on in their area.
Quote for the week.
Be who you are and say what you feel
because those who mind don’t matter
and those who matter don’t mind.
Notes
If you would like me to include any items in these notes for you please contact
me Linda Spillane on 087 9838392 or spillanelinda2017@gmail.com It is a
wonderful way to keep in touch with what is going on in the local community
and to inform people about things happening within your club or organisation.