Sports scholarships:University College Dublin yesterday announced 97 sports scholarships for the present academic year, the largest amount by any Irish university.
The scheme was initiated by Dr Tony O'Neill in 1979 to ensure talented soccer players had an outlet to continue third-level education. Now, under the directorship of former Dublin footballer Brian Mullins, the awards have expanded to 13 sports with several recipients expected to compete at the Olympics in Beijing 2008 and London 2012.
The high-performance centre is the main outlet for most scholarship students on campus. "The centre provides a supportive framework of biomechanical, biochemical and nutritional information, facilitating the use of techniques found in the best universities in the world," read a statement.
Current UCD students to have made a breakthrough at national level include Ireland A and Leinster winger Robert Kearney, 200- and 400-metre champion Joanne Cuddihy and Cathriona Buckley of the Cork women's football and camogie teams that recently retained both All-Ireland titles.
As expected, the three major field sports are heavily represented with men's GAA receiving 23 scholarships, rugby 19 and soccer 16.
In a new departure, Cadbury's are sponsoring two under-21 Gaelic footballers in five third-level institutions in Ireland. The UCD students are Cormac Brady (Monaghan) and Cathal O'Dwyer (Meath). The other recipients are Fintan Goold (UCC), Mark Ronaldson (NUIG), Gerard Cafferkey (NUIG), Owen Coyle (Dublin University) and Martin Stapleton (Dublin University). The University of Limerick has yet to announce their recipients.
UCD receive financial support from the Royal and Ancient (golf's governing body) to maintain a centre of excellence. They handed out nine golf scholarships this year.
UCD Sports Scholars
ATHLETICS:Joanne Cuddihy (Kilkenny), Stephen Darcy (Carlow), Padraig White (Meath). Enda Gallery (Triathlon, Kildare).
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 AND LADIES FOOTBALL:Cathriona Buckley (Cork).
CYCLING:Louise Moriarty (Dublin).
LADIES 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 FOOTBALL AND 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) and 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).
