Final Standings
| P | W | L | T | PF | PA | Pts | |
| *Dublin Rebels | 6 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 142 | 32 | 10 |
| *Carrickfergus Knights | 6 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 174 | 30 | 10 |
| University of Limerick Vikings | 6 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 12 | 177 | 2 |
| Dublin Dragons | 6 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 20 | 109 | 2 |
Week 1, 30 September 2001
| At Woodburn, Carrickfergus | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | Total |
| Dublin Dragons | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Carrickfergus Knights | 46 |
Week 2, 7 October 2001
| At Ringsend, Dublin | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | Total |
| University of Limerick Vikings | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Dublin Rebels | 48 |
Week 3, 14 October 2001
Dublin Dragons 0 Dublin Rebels 12 – The Rebels moved to 2-0 and the Dragons fell to 0-2 after this “hard-fought defensive encounter” went the Rebels way with two touchdowns – the first in the second Quarter from Brian Martin, and the second in the fourth quarter from Jason Shaw. Brian Dennehy was a standout for the Rebels on both defense and offense, and the stars for the Dragons were Ulli Zinneker and John Durrad on defense.
| At Ringsend, Dublin | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | Total |
| Dublin Rebels | 0 | 6 | 0 | 6 | 12 |
| Dublin Dragons | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Team | Scorers | Score |
| 2nd Quarter | ||
| REB | Brian Martin TD | 6-0 |
| 4th Quarter | ||
| REB | Jason Show | 12-0 |
Week 4, 21 October 2001
| At UL Sports Grounds, Limerick | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | Total |
| Carrickfergus Knights | 34 | ||||
| University of Limerick Vikings | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Week 5, 28 October 2001
| At Woodburn, Carrickfergus | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | Total |
| Dublin Rebels | 16 | ||||
| Carrickfergus Knights | 12 |
Week 6, 4 November 2001
| At UL Sports Grounds, Limerick | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | Total |
| Dublin Rebels | 34 | ||||
| University of Limerick Vikings | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Week 7, 11 November 2001
| At Ringsend, Dublin | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | Total |
| Carrickfergus Knights | 21 | ||||
| Dublin Dragons | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Week 8, 18 November 2001
| At Woodburn, Carrickfergus | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | Total |
| University of Limerick Vikings | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Carrickfergus Knights | 41 |
Week 9, 25 November 2001
| At Ringsend, Dublin | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | Total |
| Dublin Dragons | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Dublin Rebels | 18 |
Week 10, 2 December 2001
University of Limerick Vikings 12 Dublin Dragons 8 –
| At UL Sports Grounds, Limerick | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | Total |
| Dublin Dragons | 8 | ||||
| University of Limerick Vikings | 12 |
| Team | Scorers | Score |
| ULV | Tommy Conneely Fumble Return | |
| ULV | Paddy Ryan Pass from ?? |
Week 11, 11 December 2001
| At Ringsend, Dublin | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | Total |
| University of Limerick Vikings | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Dublin Dragons | 12 |
| At Ringsend, Dublin | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | Total |
| Carrickfergus Knights | 0 | 0 | 20 | ||
| Dublin Rebels | 0 | 0 | 14 |
Final Standings
| P | W | L | T | PF | PA | Pts | |
| *Dublin Rebels | 6 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 142 | 32 | 10 |
| *Carrickfergus Knights | 6 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 174 | 30 | 10 |
| University of Limerick Vikings | 6 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 12 | 177 | 2 |
| Dublin Dragons | 6 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 20 | 109 | 2 |
Shamrock Bowl XV
Carrickfergus Knights 7 Dublin Rebels 28 – The Carrickfergus Knights were appearing in their sixth Shamrock Bowl in seven seasons, and the Rebels, a merger of the Greystones Rebels and Dublin Tigers, were appearing in their first, although many, including Brian Dennehy saw Shamrock Bowl action in 1998 and 1999 for the Tigers.
The teams were evenly matched throughout the season, both finishing on 5-1 Won-Loss Records, with the Rebels giving up Home Field Advantage with a loss on the final day of the regular season to the Knights. The Shamrock Bowl, however, was to be a Rebel victory, as Running Back Brian Dennehy scored with a 90-yard Kickoff Return from the first whistle, and then ran in the two-point conversion. Carrickfergus didn’t get a hand on him until the one-yard line and never recovered.
Rebels Quarterback Paddy Blood played the game of his life, returning from injury. With the Dublin defense winning the ball back, he drove the offense the length of the field, sweeping behind the offensive line, and finishing with a 20-yard Touchdown pass to Paraic Reddington.
The Knights recovered their composure momemtarily, as they recovered the ball from a blocked punt and Quarterback Stephen McDowell drove to the 10-yard line, where he connected on an out pattern to Wide Receiver Ron Smyth to bring them back to within one touchdown. The Extra-Point Kick was successful, making the score 14-7.
That was as close as the Knights would get for the rest of the afternoon, as the momentum was still with the Rebels. They scored again just before halftime on a half back option, as Dennehy connected with Wide Receiver Brian Martin for a 30-yard touchdown. Paddy Blood then hooked up with Dennehy for the two-point conversion.
Both teams stepped up on defense, as the Rebels hung on, comfortable and composed but not complacent. Michael Finucane and Steve Porteous were punishing Carrickfergus from the Defensive Line, and the Knights defense, playing tight as a unit, managed to halt the Rebels offense.
The Knights decided to switch to an aerial attack for the remainder of the game in the third quarter, and completed passes to Smyth and Paul McKillop. Two goal-line stands by the Rebels, with Free Safety Marcus Naylor making a crucial acrobatic tackle kept the Knights out in what was a nail-biting time for the Rebels.
The game was sealed late in the third quarter as Dennehy kept the ball for most of a 70-yard drive that culminated in him seeping in from two-yards out, making the score 28-7. That was the way the score stayed throughout the fourth quarter, as the Rebels celebrated their first Shamrock Bowl win, in a game which bode well for the future of Irish American Football, in its first season since 1999, and with a new Spring League just around the corner in 2002.
| At Carrickfergus | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | Total |
| Dublin Rebels | 7 | 0 | 28 | ||
| Carrickfergus Knights | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| Team | Scorers | Score |
| 1st Quarter | ||
| REB | Brian Dennehy 90yd Kickoff Return, Brian Dennehy 2XPT Run | 8-0 |
| REB | Paraic Reddington 20yd Pass from Paddy Blood | 14-0 |
| CAR | Ron Smyth Pass from Stephen McDowell, XP Kick Good | 14-7 |
| 2nd Quarter | ||
| REB | Brian Martin 30yd Pass from Brian Dennehy, Dennehy 2XPT Pass from Blood | 22-7 |
| 3rd Quarter | ||
| REB | Brian Dennehy 2yd Run | 28-7 |
Reference
Websites
[1] Irish American Football Association (2001) 2001 IAFL Standings/Schedule [Internet] Available from: http://www.americanfootball.ie/iafl-standings/2001-iafl-standingsschedule [Accessed 24 March 2014]
Internet Archive
[10] UL Vikings (2001) – Wayback Machine [2002/08/06] Ul Vikings 12 – 8 Dublin Dragons [Internet] Available from: http://web.archive.org/web/20020806223911/http://www.ulvikings.com/ [Accessed 13 October 2018]
[10] UL Vikings (2010) – Wayback Machine [2010/04/29] Vikings History: 2001 [Internet] Available from: http://web.archive.org/web/20100429042500/http://www.ulvikings.ie/index.php/vikings-history [Accessed 27 June 2018]
Sources
[4] Anon. (2001) Irish League: Dublin Rebels 12 Dublin Dragons 0 First Down. October 18-24, 2001. Pg. 28.
[14] Andrew Dennehy (2001) “Rebels’ yell dims lights for Knights” First Down December 20-26, 2001. Pg. 27
Acknowledgements
Thanks to Cillian Smith, Michael Smith and Ralph Schmeer of the Irish American Football Association and Irish American Football Officials Association..
About this document
Researched, compiled and written by Enda Mulcahy for the
Eirball | Irish North American & World Sports Archive
Last Updated: 13 May 2020
(c) Copyright Enda Mulcahy and Eirball 2020
You may quote this document in part provided that proper acknowledgement is given to the authors. All Rights Reserved.
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