St Paul’s travelled down to Musgrave Park on Monday evening and came away with a 10 point win in the Reserve Football Shield.
A young St Brigid’s team had the better of things in the early stages and led by 0-3 to 0-1, with two points from Conor Taylor and one from James Gorman, but St Paul’s got going around the midway point in the first half and points from Niall Martin, Conor Hughes and Ruairi Hamill, plus a goal from Conal Duffy put them four clear. Conor Taylor and Oisin McDonnell pulled two back for St Brigid’s but Duffy and Hughes hit two for St Paul’s in first half injury time to put their team 1-6 to 0-5 ahead at half time.
A Sean Munce goal for St Paul’s seven minutes into the second half left the home team with a mountain to climb, and when Caomhin Killyleagh grabbed his team’s third the win was sealed. To their credit St Brigid’s kept battling away and points from Lundy, Burns and Toner (2) gave the scoreboard a better look, but the men from Shaw’s Road grabbed two more in injury time from Munce and Hamill to win by double scores.
All roads in the South West lead to Dreen in Rasharkin this Sunday 4th September for the official opening of the local St. Mary’s GAC superb 4G facility. The fruits of hard work and fund raising by club members, their floodlight 4G pitch has provided vital training facilities for both juveniles and seniors alike and will enable training at all times of the year.
Events on Sunday get under way with underage games from 9-30am with Uachtarain CLG, Larry McCarthy performing the Official Opening at 1-00pm. A tuck shop and inflatables will be available from 11-30am to 3-30pm to keep the younger members entertained.
The day will conclude with a JHC game between the local St. Mary’s side and Davitt’s, a game that will decide who tops the Casements SC Group 1 and St. Mary’s will be hoping that a good home crowd can cheer their side to victory.
Loughgiel secured their place in the Senior Reserve Hurling Final with familiar foes Cushendall with an emphatic win over a battling Rossa side. The foundation of their success was built upon a dominant display in the middle third in the first half and an unrelenting desire to press and despatch scores ruthlessly in the second. Maol Connolly, often the conductor and pulling the strings in attack, notched up a personal tally of 1-08 and was unplayable at times with Damian Quinn also in potent form boasting a total of 1-04 for his side. Perhaps even more pleasing for the Loughgiel management team was the fact that scores were shared across the team with 10 different outfield players getting on the scoresheet. A purple period in the last ten minutes of the first half essentially sealed Rossa’s unfortunate fate as the hosts rattled over eight points without reply to stretch into what would be an unassailable lead of 0-15 0-04 at the short whistle.
Centre forwards Callum McVeigh and Maol Connolly exchanged scores in the opening minutes before Loughgiel seized the early initiative and raced into a 0-06 0-01 lead with scores from Connolly, Damian Quinn, Michael McGarry and the mercurial Shay Casey. Rossa responded well though and had cut the deficit to three points midway through the half as Dara Rocks began to exert his influence on proceedings with Diarmuid Rogan and Callum McVeigh on target yet again for the Shaws Road outfit.
The Shamrocks though switched to another gear approaching the half and began to turn the screw. Pinpoint passing and interchanging of attacking options bamboozled Rossa and the hosts were turning on the style. Maol Connolly was in on the scoring act and turned provider for the next three scores from McGarry and Quinn with the pick of the bunch a fine score from wing back Conal McCloskey who finished a slick and flowing attacking move. Declan Gillan’s long range effort saw the sides retreat to the changing rooms with Rossa looking to scale a steep mountain in the second half, trailing by eleven.
The men in blue and yellow started brightly in the second period with early scores from Eoin Trainor and McVeigh but the hosts seemed to have an answer for any minor setback and replied with scores of their own with corner forwards McGarry and Ronan McCollum on target.
Rossa’s fate was well and truly sealed after the first green flag of the evening. Rather fittingly it was Connolly who dealt the blow with a thunderous effort to the net from a close range free on the thirty eighth minute as the deficit was now fourteen points.
To their credit though, Rossa’s spirit was never in question and they sought about their business with their determination never waning. Rocks and Trainor responded with points from range but the cogs in the Loughgiel machine began to turn with even more vigour and they were relentless in their pressing and intensity. Caolan Blair got in on the act with an excellent point after embarking on a surging run from centre half back before Quinn got himself a major after tenacious work and utilising his blistering pace to cause havoc in the Rossa rear-guard. The scores kept coming for the hosts and it was the trusty hurl of Connolly who continued to heap misery on the visitors, devastatingly accurate from the placed ball.
Rossa continued to fight despite the sizable margin and with Niall Devlin marshalling the defence, they did all they could to supress the might of the Shamrock’s attack. Further scores from Quinn and Patrick Laverty put the seal on an efficient and domineering performance.
Credit to both teams for an entertaining game of hurling. Despite the discrepancy on the score sheet, Rossa had their moments of class in the game but just couldn’t cope with the ferocity and relentlessness of the Loughgiel attack. A very intriguing final with Cushendall is certainly on the cards.
Teams
Loughgiel:
C McFadden; F Henry, D McPeake, C Henry; R McCormick, C Blair (0-01,) C McCloskey (0-01;) D Gillan (0-01,) C McKay (0-01;) P Laverty (0-01,) M Connolly (1-08,) D Quinn (1-04;) R McCollum (0-02,) S Casey (0-02,) M McGarry (0-04)
Pearses
C Rocks; A McLean, E O’Neill, C Boyle; P Short, E Trainor (0-02,) N Devlin; O May, D Rogan (0-01;) D Rocks (0-02,) C McVeigh (0-04,) C McPartland; J Quinn, R O’Neill, J Reynolds
A point from corner forward Orlaith Prenter in the final minute gave Tir na nÓg victory over Ballycastle in the opening round of the Intermediate Camogie Championship at Whitehill on Sunday. With five minutes left for play Ballycastle were well positioned to take the victory when they lead by 1-9 to 1-7, but the home team finished strongly and two of the stars of Antrim’s All Ireland Junior Football winning side, Orlaith Prenter and Aine Devlin got them the scores which turned the game around.
Devlin, playing at full forward, had a goal on the scoreboard in the opening minute, but her opposite number on the Ballycastle team Shannagh Heggarty hit one at the other end two minutes later to tie up the scores and Maubh O’Neill put them ahead on seven minutes. Naimh Martin brought Tir na nÓg level on tem minutes and they went two clear when Niamh Martin and Orlaith Prenter fired over points. It was nip and tuck during the second quarter with Ellen and Janey McIntosh bringing Ballycastle level. Prenter put the home side ahead again on 28 minutes but Heggarty’s late points for Ballycastle left the sides level at 1-15 apiece at half time.
Points by Graham and Heggarty put Ballycastle on top early in the second half but Aine Devlin cut the gap back to one with a pointed free. Maria Bakewll and Shannagh Heggarty added points on either side of one from a 45 by Devlin and when they held that lead until five minutes from time they it looked like they were set for a semi-final place. However Tir na nOg finished the game strongly and Preneter and Devlin brought Tir na nOg level, before Prenters struck the winning with just a minute to play.
Casement’s Portglenone powered their way into the quarter-finals of the Northern Switchgear SFC when they travelled to Moneyglass on Sunday and proved too strong for Division 2 league winners, St. Ergnat’s in this final Group 2 game.
The impressive Bann-siders were well on their way to victory at half time when they led by 0-13 to 0-5 but a goal from Paddy Kelly early in the second half and another from Niall McKeever in the 41st minute put the game out of reach of their opponents.
Niall McKeever pointed Casement’s ahead with a point in the 2nd minute before Seanchann Duffin replied from a ‘45’ to get the Marian Hill side off the mark.
The visitors soon settled into a rhythm as Paddy Kelly, Aidan McAleese 0-3, Ruairi Hagan and Paddy Kelly edged them six ahead at the end of the opening quarter as the St. Ergnat’s defence struggled to deal with the pace and movement of a fluent Casement’s attack.
Conleth McCann from a free and Tiernan Duffin with St. Ergnat’s first point from play in the 19th minute closed the gap to four to the approval of the home support but it brought another flurry from the visitors as Ruairi Hagan, Dermott McAleese, Paddy Kelly (f) and Conal Delargy hit four on the bounce to extend the visitors lead to 8 with 8 minutes remaining to the break.
The home side were fighting hard to get their own game going but to no avail but Shay Madden rasised his side’s fourth white flag in the 22nd minute but again the visitors responded with points from a Paddy Kelly ‘45’ and another from Aidan McAleese.
The final score of the opening half went the way of the Marian Hill side as Colum Duffin pointed a free in the 30th minute but it was going to take a massive turn around in fortunes if St. Ergnat’s were going to salvage anything from this game in the second half.
Colum Duffin for Moneyglass and Conal Delargy for the visitors exchanged early points as the second half action got under way but when Delargy got through for the game’s opening goal in the 33d minute Casement’s already looked on their way to the quarter-final.
Paddy Kelly added a point before Niall McKeever made victory secure when he fired home his side’s second goal in the 41st minute with Oisin Doherty following with his first point of the evening a minute later.
Shay Madden replied with St. Ergnat’s second point at the end of the third quarter but the Portglenone pressure continued as Paddy Kelly continued to punish any indiscretion from the home side.
To their credit St. Ergnat’s battled right to the end and Dermot ‘Buggsie’ McErlain got some reward for his efforts when he fired past Ryan O’Neill in the 51st minute but it was Casement’s who finished as they had started with points from Oisin Doherty 0-2, Conal Delargy, Paddy Kelly (f) and Dermot McAleese.
Portglenone now go forward to meet Gort na Mona in the quarter-final and on present form look favourites to win that one but they will get nothing easy from a Turf Lodge side who will feel they are going into this one with nothing to lose.
Moneyglass: 1 Danny McErlain, 2 Callum McStocker, 3 Peter McCormick, 4 James McCormick, 5 Jack McCoy, 6 Conor Boyd, 7 Patrick McCormick, 8 Tiernan Duffin, 9 Colum Duffin, 10 Seanchann Duffin, 11 Dermot McErlain, 12 Fearghal Duffin, 13 Shay Madden, 14 Conaill Prenter, 15 Conleth McCann. Subs: Tyler Cassidy for Conleth McCann, Luke O’Donnell for Jack McCoy
Portglenone: 1 Ryan O’Neill, 3 Johnny Convery, 19 Shane Delargy, 4 Ronan Delargy, 5 Caolan Tierney, 6 Dermot McAleese, 7 Ryan Convery, 8 Niall Delargy, 9 Niall McKeever, 10 Ruairi Hagan, 13 Aidan McAleese, 14 Conal Delargy, 22 Paddy Kelly, 15 Oisin Doherty, 24 Michael Kelly. Subs: Kevin O’Kane for Shane Delargy, Daniel McNicholl for Michael Kelly, Ciaran Mckenna
