Central (Chicago) Division:Senior Hurling:
Cuchulainn 5-12 Harry Boland's 2-19Chicago senior hurling champions, Cuchulainn, had to pull out all the stops before ensuring victory over a gallant Harry Boland's team last Sunday. That victory was eventually achieved was a tribute to the stern qualities of the champions, who fought back with great determination after the Boland's opened up the second half in an aggressive mood, scoring 2 goals and two points within the first six minutes to take the lead. Two very determined sides did themselves and the game of hurling proud and while victory went deservedly to Cuchulainn there was a good deal of sympathy for Harry Boland's too, as their steadfastness contributed much to a fine encounter which was thoroughly enjoyed by the biggest crowd of the season at Gaelic Park. In addition to the intensity and quality of the hurling the crowd were treated to an abundance of scores, many of them in the spectacular category. The games top scorer was the Harry Boland's Center half forward, David Martin (Meath), who notched 12 points with half of them coming from placed balls. Ironically, Martin's deadly accuracy failed him in the closing moments of the game when two frees well within his range were wide of the post and denied his team a draw. No doubt, tiredness may have effected his sharpness at that stage following his tremendous work rate throughout the contest. Both sides had their periods of dominance and it was Harry Boland's who ruled for most of the opening quarter. While Cuchullain opened the scoring with a point in the first minute the Boland's took control and were soon in the lead scoring six points without reply. However, a Danny Carney goal in the eleventh minute started a Cuchulainn rally that converted a five point deficit into a three point lead. Colm Eagan pointed, Adrian Hudson shot to the net from close range and David Colllins pointed a free before Harry Boland's stopped the rally. They got three unanswered points from Sean Barret, Enda Ryan and Martin to tie the game. Just before the half time whistle Carney notched his second goal to give Cuchulainn the lead which they carried into the second half. Within three minutes of the turnover Harry Boland's recorded their first goal of the game when Kieran Hanalin shot to the net and Martin pointed to put them back in the lead. While Carney completed his hat trick with a fine goal in the forty first minute the Boland's maintained a three to four point lead well into the final quarter. However, a late great rally by the champions ended the Boland's grip on the game. The drive produced six points without reply from Gordon Malone, Dan O'Brien, Timmy Lawless, Phillip Loane, Carney and Hudson to win the game.

Junior Football:
Padraig Pearse 1-11 John McBrides 1-8Padraig Pearse and John McBrides, considered up to now as the two weakest teams in junior football, showed tremendous improvement over recent performances when they clashed at Gaelic Park last Sunday. Displaying great heart and determination missing in previous outings both teams played fast open football to the delight of the early arrivals at the park. McBrides were the strongest team in the opening quarter and jumped into an early 1-4 to 0-2 lead, their goal being scored by Tom Perkins. Padraig Pearse reduced the gap to two points when their best forward, Eoin O'Donovan, goaled from the penalty spot just before half time. McBrides maintained their narrow lead through most of the third quarter as both teams exchanged points. Led by the hard working O'Donovan the Pearse gradually gained control at the end of the quarter and went on a scoring spree which produced five unanswered points, three by O'Donovan and two by Pat Morressy to give them a five point lead. McBrides, held scoreless for 23 minutes, launched a couple of attacks in the final moments which produced a couple of points from their place kicker, Adrain Donlon, but not enough to save the game
Junior Football:
Wolfe Tones 0-11 St. Brendan's 0-9Wolfe Tones continued their winning ways with a deserving two point win over arc rivals St. Brendan's in a most entertaining game last Sunday. This game produced good quality football at junior level and the closeness of the scoring contributed to a most enjoyable contest for the fans. While the Brendan's kept close to their opponents for most of the hour there was little doubt that the Tones would prevail in the end. Despite missing two penalties, one in each half, they led for most of the game and maintained a one to two point until the final whistle.
In the last of the 5-game schedule at Gaelic Park last Sunday, St. Brendan's continued their dominance over Wolfe Tones in senior football this year with their second victory in a row by the score of 2-13 to 1-11. This result sets the stage for a wonderful contest between these two great clubs on July 20th which should attract a big crowd to Gaelic Park.
In the first game of the day, St. Brigid's defeated Erin's Rovers in ladies senior football by the score of 5-21 to 1-5.

Western (San Francisco, San Jose) Division:
Weds June 25
Men's Jr. A Football Young Irelanders (2-10) vs Cusacks (1-24)
Men's Jr. A Football Ulster (2-16) vs Celts (0-9)
(from Linda Ryan)
Saturday's game started off with a ladies football challenge match between Fog City's Senior and Junior clubs, and to keep things interesting, the clubs decided to mix up their players. Even though the change leveled the playing field to a certain extent, there was no stopping Tish Campbell and Catherine Bourke, both of whom will be in Boston come Labor Day weekend playing with the Harps' Senior team.
The second match of the day, also a challenge game, saw Senior Hurlers Na Fianna take on the Naomh Padraig Juniors. As expected, the senior team won, but Naomh Padraig held their own for a good part of the match and made some impressive plays along the way. Hopefully the challenge matches played throughout the summer will get this Junior team's skills sharpened for Boston.
In Men's Jr. B Football, the Sons of Boru went head to head with the Sarsfields. Like their Intermediate club counterparts, both of these Junior B teams have the drive and talent to take the Western Division title. The Sons of Boru ecked out a lead well into the first half, and skillfully hung onto it in the second, to beat the Sarsfield's by four points.

The match-ups on Sunday were impressive from start to finish, starting with Men's Junior A football, which found the Young Irelanders meeting up with the lads from Ulster. The Y.I.'s, who've been a bit inconsistent thus far, had the game of the season on Sunday, and set the competitive tone for the day. Were it not for Ulster's Eugene Cudden's remarkable knack for drawing silly fouls and consistently nailing the free that followed, the halftime score would have been closer than 1-9 to 1-5. Sparked by keeper Paddy White, who managed to sail the ball through the posts from midfield, the Young Irelanders heated up during the second half of the game. And as they heated up, tempers flared at close calls and questionable calls from umpires. In an impressive display of stick-to-it-ness, the Y.I.'s closed the gap on Ulster, making this game a true nail biter. At the whistle, Ulster claimed their one point victory, 1-15 to 2-11.
Sunday's second game, another Men's Junior A match-up, found the Cusack's meeting up with the Sean Treacys. In the first half, the Cusack's completely dominated the field, and literally ran circles around the Treacy's. Although the score at the half was 4-3 to 0-4, the Sean Treacy's did not give up. Two quick goals at the start of the second half put them right back in the thick of things, but victory on Sunday was not in the cards for the Treacys as a series of misses quickly extinguished hopes of a victory. Boxer Stadium is a field where a ball, when hit hard, will take a BIG bounce, and the Cusack's were better at compensating for this fact than the Sean Treacy's, which allowed them to win the ball at almost every kick out. The Cusack's took him a decisive 4-18 to 3-6 victory.
The Men's Intermediate Football match, Ulster vs the Sarsfields, started out quite a lopsided affair, with Ulster's Paul Bayley scoring a goal within the first two minutes of play. And another about five minutes after that. To say things were going well for Ulster would be a bit of an understatement, but when a serious knock to Bayley, which had him out cold for what seemed like an eternity, took him out of the game, the Sarsfield's rallied. What followed was an impressive display of Gaelic football, with both teams showing the kind of precise hand-passing skills that nimbly work the ball from one end of the pitch to other in a seemingly effortless manner. The standard of play did not drop in the second half, and both teams played with great heart. The Ulster Club managed to hang onto their early lead, and took home a well-earned 3-17 to 2-13 victory.
The Senior hurling match was played in front of an enthusiastic crowd whose appreciation for the game was made apparent by loud cheers and plenty of hearty applause. St. Joseph's faced Naomh Padriag for the first time this season, and both teams played to impress. This nail biter-of-a-game came down to the wire, as Naomh Padraig's quick, consecutive goals put them in the lead, 3-18 to 3-16, where they stayed until the whistle blew.

Midwest (Buffalo, Cleveland, Detroit, Pittsbugh) Division):
Men's Junior Football:
Buffalo CuCullain 3-12 Buffalo NaFianna 1-5
Detroit Wolfe Tones 7-20 Cleveland St. Pat's 1-5
Ladies Junior Football:
Detroit St. Anne's 3-10 Cleveland St. Pat's 0-4
Eamonn Kelly, PRO North American County Board