February 11, 2023February 11, 2023 by thesaffrongael

Donaghmore too strong for gallant Rathmore in McLarnon final

McLarnon Cup Final

St. Joseph’s Donaghmore 4-10 Rathmore Grammar 1-3

A sparkling second half performance from favourites, St. Joseph’s Donaghmore saw them run out convincing winners over Rathmore Grammar in this McLarnon Cup final at the Dub on Friday night.

The Belfast side kept in touch during the opening half, thanks to a goal from Garret Cowan in the 4^th minute when he finished to the net from close range after a Se Ferris free had dropped short and Gearoid Adams side will feel they should have had a penalty when Fiontan O’Boyle was brought down with 12 minutes gone.

At that stage Rathmore led by 1-0 to 0-1 with their well organised defence denying the Tyrone side time and space but slowly Niall Kelly’s side began to take control.

Cormac Drayne fired over their first score in the 16trh minute and the same player added a second from a 30 meter free before Darragh Donaghy tied the contest when he split the posts in the 21^st minute.

John McKenna, who had an excellent game at mid-field for the Tyrone side, edged them in front for the first time with two minutes remaining to the break but the final score of the half fell to Rathmore’s Rory McErlean who’s pointed free in injury time left it all square at the short whistle.

With the slight breeze now behind them it was St. Joseph’s Donaghmore who started the second half on the front foot and Leo Hughes restored their lead with a point after 25 seconds and the lively Cormac Drayne added another with only two minutes on the clock.

The Tyrone College were started to move the ball about with precision and stretching the Rathmore defence and when Noah Grimes got in for a goal in the 5^th minute it already looked a long way back for the Belfast side.

Drayne received a Black card for shenanigans during the celebration but even with 14 men St. Joseph’s continued to dictate possession with Rathmore now relying on the counter-attack as they tried to keep in touch.

Rory McErlean opened their second half account from a well struck free in the 7^th minute but Darragh Donaghy replied immediately for the eventual winners to restore their five point advantage.

Rathmore Grammar continued to fight against the ever increasing odds as Rory McErlean struck another excellent free between the uprights in the 13^th minute and then a great block from Leo Hughes denied Michael Morgan as the big Glenavy man looked in for a goal.

Back came the Tyrone side as they began to stretch the Rathmore defence with their accurate passing and slick movement of the ball and Cormac Drayne announced his re-introduction from the sin-bin with a couple of wides before the impressive Conor O’Neill pointed in the 20^th minute.

Drayne followed with a goal, a minute later when he was first to react to a Grimes free that rebounded of an upright and when a Leo Hughes free sailed through a crowded goalmouth in the 24^th minute and ended in the Rathmore net it was well and truly over.

Ratmore never gave up but could find no way through an excellent St. Joseph’s defence and both sides emptied their bench at this stage as Donaghmore moved the ball around with increasing confidence.

The last score of the game fell the way of Niall Kelly’s side with wing half, Conor O’Neill getting in for his side’s fourth goal with time almost up to put the icing on a fine individual performance.

This was an excellent performance from the Tyrone College and they look a side well capable of going on to contest the All Ireland series and they have excellent players all over the field.

Ben Hughes, Darragh Donaghy, Leo Huhges, James Rafferty, Conor O’Neill, John McKenna, Ronan Molloy and Cormac O’Neill were their best performers on a night where every player played their part.

Spare a thought for Rathmore Grammar who threatened to cause an upset during the early exchanges and had their claims for a penalty been awarded in the 12^th minute it might well have given them the cushion they needed to push on.

They defended superbly during the opening half but seemed to run out of steam after the break but Conor Logue, Se Ferris, Rory McErlean, Michael Morgan Garret Cowan, and Fiontan O’Boyle all look players with a bright future.

DONAGHMORE: L Quinn; J McNally, B Hughes, D Donaghy (1-2, 1-0 free); J Rafferty, J Clarke (0-2), C O’Neill (1-1); S Scullion, J McKenna; L Hughes, N Grimes (1-1), MJ Mansell; C Drayne (1-3, 0-1 free), M McNally, R Molloy.
Subs: C Sweeney (0-1) for MJ Mansell (37), C Donaghy for C Drayne (53), E O’Neill for D Donaghy (55), J Field for J McNally (57)

RATHMORE: K Dobrowolski; C Devlin, D Mooney, M Lloyd; T Lloyd, C Logue, S Ferris; R Grant, O Arthurs; D McGurk, R McErlean (0-3, all frees), O Conlon; G Cowan (1-0), M Morgan, F O’Boyle.
Subs: S Doyle for M Lloyd (HT), R Smyth for G Cowan (HT), C Blaney for O Arthurs (39), D Martin for D Mooney (52), S McCarthy for R Grant (52)

REFEREE: Kevin Fallon (Armagh)

February 10, 2023February 10, 2023 by thesaffrongael

Saffrons must improve as they travel to Dublin

Allianz Hurling League – Division 1b

Antrim v Dublin

Date: Sunday 12 February – Throw in: 3:30pm

Referee: Colm Lyons (Cork)

Brendan McTaggart looks ahead to Sunday’s game with Dublin at Parnell Park

The National Hurling League rollercoaster heads down the M1 on Sunday as Antrim travel to Dublin in search of their first league points of the year. A ground where the Saffrons have notoriously struggled to come away with any positive result, the north Dublin venue will play host to Darren Gleeson’s men looking to get rid of frustrations borne from the Kilkenny defeat last Saturday.

I called it the one that got away in my report after the game and with some time to digest and after watching it again on the BBC iPlayer, it still feels that way. Antrim came close to declawing the Cat’s, despite hurling below par for long periods of the game. Too often ball went to ground in search of a pass or the precision just wasn’t there when trying to find a man in space. A poor first half performance preceded a workman like second half but there was no hiding the disappointment at the full-time whistle. There may have been an air of relief coming from those from Kilkenny while Antrim manager Gleeson tried to make sense of it all. When it comes to welcoming the likes of Kilkenny to Corrigan Park, his side have been more than up for the occasion in the recent past. “There’s an air of disappointment about the place” said the Antrim manager, “the conditions came with us in the second half. They didn’t really influence things in the first half but it was difficult to play into it in the second half as Kilkenny found with their new style of hurling that they’re trying to play. They found it hard to work the lines like they did in the first half. We got an opportunity but we didn’t take it.”

Gleeson alluded to how the elements swung in Antrim’s favour. Trailing by four points at half time, the wind made a 180 degree turn and were at the back of Saffron shirts in the second half. Antrim failed to capitalise in what was hugely difficult conditions if not favourable for Antrim: “We hit five wides in a crucial period in the second half. We struggled to retain possession that we would normally be slick enough with or I’d like to think we’d be slick enough with but it was basic errors in the first half that put us on the backfoot.”

Antrim will certainly be disappointed with the first 35 minutes. Unforced errors against a side who don’t need any invitation to capitalise was never going to end well but as Gleeson continued, he told us it was a reminder of playing hurling at this level where time and space is at a premium: “They put pressure on you and stop you from giving that good ball to hand and that’s the difference. That’s the difference when playing against a top team, last years All-Ireland finalists. They will work and hound, that’s in their DNA and put pressure on those strikes but there were some bad turnovers. Losing ball on our own puck outs, giving away some silly frees. I counted 1-6 in the first half that was our own making. If you take that away from the half time score or even half of it, it’s a different reflection.”

There’s lessons to be learned from last Saturday, Antrim need to be 100% on their game when it comes to the Allianz League. Teams of this calibre will punish you at every opportunity and while Kilkenny didn’t exactly do that, they had an ace up their sleeve in Billy Drennan who stole the show with his man of the match performance. That being said, Paddy Burke was hot on his heels with his 70 plus minutes.

With just a week to work out those areas that needed ironing, the inclusion of Nigel Elliott into the squad for Sunday’s game will be a welcome sight for Gleeson as he looks ahead to Dublin: “You could feel it (the disappointment) from the crowd and the group themselves. It was an opportunity and we didn’t take it but look, it’s a league and we’ll be judged at the end of it. Even if we got a win I’d say the same thing. Our boys have to focus now going down to Parnell Park and it’s a long time since Antrim got anything out of Parnell. It’s an opportunity again, every day you wake up it gives you an opportunity in life so we’ll have to go for it.

“It’s a hard place for any team, let alone Antrim. Anyone who gets points at Parnell earns them that’s for sure. We’ll get back into the gym on Monday night and back to the field on Tuesday and go from there.”

February 9, 2023February 9, 2023 by thesaffrongael

La Salle beat Aquinas in Shield final

The 2023 Gaelfast Antrim Shield Final took place between De La Salle College and Aquinas Grammar School in Dunsilly last night.

In very tough conditions both teams battled hard throughout the game.

It was La Salle who started the game quickly. A long ball was played into Carl McCaffrey in full forward, Carl rounded the goalkeeper for the first goal. From the resulting puc-out Dylan Rodgers-Duffy added a point for La Salle. Aquinas battled hard to keep the La Salle forwards from scoring but Oisin McLaren added two further points before Dylan Rodgers Duffy added his Second of the game. Just before half time Oisin McLaren and Eoin Coleman added two further scores to leave it 1-6 to 0-0.

Aquinas started the second half quickly and had two points on the board. In driving rain and freezing conditions both teams continued to battle. Oisin McLaren added 3 further points and La Salle finished the game as winners

Congratulations to De La Salle College who now add the Antrim Hurling Shield to the Football Shield they won in October.

February 9, 2023February 9, 2023 by thesaffrongael

Rathmore face a tough challenge in McLarnon final

McLarnon Cup final preview

The Dub Friday 10^th February 7-30pm

Rathmore Grammar Belfast v St. Joseph’s Donaghmore

St. Joseph’s Donaghmore will start Friday night’s McLarnon Cup final against Rathmore Grammar as firm favourites after recording a big win over St. Louis, Ballymena in Slaughtneil in the semi-final two weeks ago. The Tyrone side have been mighty impressive in this year’s competition and have looked the team to beat throughout the campaign.

After topping their group St. Joseph’s recorded an impressive win over another Antrim school, St. Mary’s CBS, Glen Road. It was a game that they always had the upper hand in and were well in control by the break having gained an eight point lead. Full forward Mattie McNally bagged all three goals for the winners on the day against opponents who battled hard but only managed a single point from play over the course of the sixty odd minutes.

Rathmore Grammar lost on the opening day of the league section to St. Louis in Ballymena but have shown steady improvement since and despite going into Friday night’s final at the Dub as outsiders should not be ruled out.

Under the guidance of former Antrim and St. John’s player, Gearoid Adams Rathmore defeated Aquinas 0-8 to 0-6 in the quarter final but went into their semi-final meeting with Milford of Donegal as underdogs.

The Belfast side refused to read the script however and a goal and two points by man of the match Michael Morgan helped them bridge a sixteen year gap as they overcame a slow start to beat Loreto Milford in their semi-final on the 4G pitch at Owenbeg a fortnight ago. It was Morgan who settled his team down with their first score of the game after Milford had dominated possession in the early stages.

The Donegal School were on top during the opening exchanges but when Morgan found the target things began to happen and they were soon level as Rory McErlean and Fintann O’Boyle sent over points. McErlean pointed a free to put them ahead for the first time, and though Rory McGrenra brought Loreto back on terms soon afterwards, further points from Morgan and McErlean gave Rathmore a two point lead at the interval. (0-8 to 0-6)

Milford cut the gap back to a point on the restart but three minutes later Michael Morgan hit the telling score when he came out to collect a long ball from the half back line, won possession before battling his way past two defenders and finishing to the net with a clever flick off the outside of his right foot. Morgan then added a point from play and McErlean pointed a free from out on the right.

***Rathmore centre forward Rory McErlean who scored 0-4 in the semi-final win over Milford***

The Donegal side had plenty of possession, but Rathmore defended well and never really looked under any great pressure. Milford dropped a few longs balls in on the square in the closing stages but the Belfast side held firm to book their place in Friday night’s final.

It was a much more clear-cut victory for St. Joseph’s Donaghmore when they took on St. Louis Ballymena in the second semi-final in Slaughtneil the following day. The Ballymena side gave it everything but were no match for a slick moving Donaghmore side who dominated in nearly every department

The men from Tyrone did the majority of the damage in the opening half with the talismanic Noah Grimes at the forefront. St Joseph’s diminutive number eleven grabbed the all-important goal on the 13^th minute and from there St Louis faced an uphill battle.

Despite battling tirelessly, the Kintullagh side struggled to deal with the fluidity and precision of their opponents. Patient and calculated approach play from the Tyrone side combined with tidy finishing from their talented weaponry up front proved to be the blueprint for their success.

**Portgtlenone man Niall Kelly who is part of the St. Joseph’s management team**

A Ronan Molloy pointed free on the tenth minute was followed up quickly with a superb goal from Grimes. The Donaghmore centre forward weaved this way through before caressing a pinpoint effort into the top left of the St Louis net.

Darragh Donaghy’s marauding runs were a constant threat for the Antrim side and he split the posts twice from range before another effort from Grimes found its mark.

Another Donaghmore danger-man, Ronan Molloy, had the final say of the first thirty right on the stroke of the half-time whistle as he converted from the placed ball to leave the score at the interval 1-06 to 0-01 in favour of the Tyrone side.

Despite a much improved second half performance by St. Louis Donaghmore continued to hold the upper hand as Molloy popped up with another two fine scores from play. The Ballymena side responded through Shea O’Broin but Leo Hughes increased the margin for St Joseph’s with a beautifully angled effort from the left flank.

As the game entered its final stages St. Louis threw caution to the wind but with the game more stretched, Donaghmore took full advantage and the ever-dangerous Molloy was on hand to put the gloss on a sweeping counter-attack with five minutes on the clock. Moments later, his partner in crime, Noah Grimes, then finished off yet another flowing attack to increase the gap to eleven points and effectively seal Donaghmore’s final berth.

**Mattie McNally who scored three goals in the quarter-final against St. Mary’s CBS**

Noah Grimes, Mattie McNally, Ronan Molloy and Darragh Donaghy have been regular scorers and danger men for St. Joseph’s but the Tyrone College are a well-balanced side and carry a threat from all over the field and will go into Friday night’s final confident that they can lift the McLarnon Cup.

Portglenone man Niall Kelly is part of the management team at St. Joseph’s Donaghmore and the former St. Louis student found himself in the opposite corner against his former school in the semi-final and will bring a good knowledge of Antrim football to the table.

Rathmore Grammar will start this one as underdogs but that won’t worry Gearoid Adams or his charges, indeed the St. John’s man will probably relish the challenge. His side have shown improvement throughout the campaign but will have to find another level if they are win this one.

Michael Morgan hit 1-2 against Milford in the semi-final while Rory McErlean won U17 and U20 championship medals with St. Brigid’s in 2022 and is a player capable of troubling the St. Joseph’s defence.

Conor Logue was another member of that St. Brigid’s double winning side while Vice Captain, Deaglan Mooney has just broken into the Davitt’s senior side and has been prominent in the Rathmore success story this year.

Glenavy’s Fiontan O’Boyle, grandson of former Antrim chairman Joe O’Boyle, captains the Rathmore side and has enjoyed a great debut season with St. Joseph’s where he was voted senior player of the year for 2022 so the Belfast side have plenty of talent at their disposal.

Both colleges will bring a big support to the Dub tomorrow night (Friday) and that support can play a part to lift the under dogs who will need to bring a level of controlled aggression to the game if they are to unsettle a St. Joseph’s side who should have just enough to edge the contest.

St Joseph’s Donaghmore v St. Louis

L Quinn; J McNally, B Hughes, J Rafferty; D Donaghy (0-02,) J Clarke, C O’Neill; S Scullion, J McKenna; L Hughes (0-01,) N Grimes (1-03,) MJ Mansell; C Drayne (0-01,) M McNally, R Molloy (0-05)

Rathmore v Milford: K Dobrowiski, M Lloyd, D Mooney, C Devlin, T Lloyd, C Logue, S Ferris, O Arthurs, R Grant, C Blaney, R McErlean, D McGurk, F O’Boyle capt., M Morgan, G Cowan.

Subs used: Rudi Smith and Oscar Conlon

Rathmore scorers: Michael Morgan (1-2), Rory McErlean (0-4), Fintann O’Boyle (0-2), Garrett Cowan (0-1), Cormac Blaney (0-1)

February 9, 2023February 9, 2023 by thesaffrongael

Laverty major seals it for St. Killian’s

Gaelfast Year 10 Hurling final

Gaelast Cup final

St. Killian’s 1-9 Cross & Passion 0-8

A goal from corner forward, Donncha Laverty in the 30^th minute finally decided this Year 10 Gaelfast hurling final in difficult conditions under the lights at Dunsilly on Wednesday night. In conditions that were not conducive to good hurling both sides gave it everything with the result still in the balance with time almost up.

St. Killian’s were awarded a side-line cut and Dylan McNaughton’s strike found its way to Shane McQuillan who combined with Charlie Black to put Laverty clear to the left of goal and the number 15 sent his shot out of reach of Patrick Campbell in the Cross & Passion goal to seal victory.

**CPC captain Liam Smth in action during the GaelFast Year 10 Hurling final at Dunsilly**

On a surface where it was difficult to get the ball up the passages of open play were few and far between but both side fought tooth and nail with a lot of rucks throughout and both defences making it extremely difficult for the opposition to score.

Charlie McAuley gave Cross & Passion the lead with a point in the 3d minute before Cahir McMambridge and Shane McQuillan replied for the Tower to edge them one in front with 7 minutes played.

Cross & Passion began to edge the exchanges at this stage with Darra Kinney hitting a couple of points and Joe Deery adding another to leave them 4-2 ahead by the 12^th minute before McQuillan replied with his second of the game to close the gap to the minimum once more.

Dylan McNaughton, who got through a mountain of work on the night, tied the contest once more before Cahir McCambridge edged the Tower ahead again and further exchanges from Dylan McNaughton and Damian McCaughan saw St. Killian’s hold a slender lead as Kevin Parke blew the half time whistle.

**St Killian’s Dylan McNaughton makes a great catch as he his team comes under pressure**

Throughout the first half both defences excelled with Eunan Johnston and Liam Smith to the fore for the Ballycastle boys and Paddy Morgan and Cadhan Graham dominant for St. Killian’s and the strong defending from both sides continued in the second half with clear cut opportunities hard to come by.

Matthew Donnelly tied the contest yet again when he pointed a free, four minutes into the second half but points from Dylan and Connlaith McNaughton edged St. Killian’s three in front after 36 minutes and they looked to be gaining the upper hand.

Back came the Ballycastle side however with a couple of pointed frees from the impressive Donnelly leaving it finely balanced once more and it still looked anyone’s game but Laverty’s sweet finish with time almost up sealed it for the Tower.

Both sides deserve massive credit for their efforts over the night and in a game where neither side gave an inch, a goal was always going to seal it and Laverty’s major, following an excellent build up proved a worthy winner.

St’ Killian’s: Ben Duncan, Jake Laffan, Paddy Morgan, Aidan McCormick, Charlie McGarrell, Caodan Graham, Brian McNeill, Dylan McNaughton, Ronan Magee, Charlie Black, Shane McQuillan, Christopher Leech, Connlaoth McNaughton, Cahir McCambridge, Donnach Laverty.

Cross & Passion: Patrick Campbell, Caolan Christie, Eunan Johnston, Connlaoth Woodhouse, Oisin Donnelly, Liam Smith, Odhran Baudant, Darragh Kinney, Eoin Bailey, Joe Deery, Damian McMahon, Logan McConville, Charlie McAuley, Matthew Donnelly, Cahir McCaughan.

Referee: Kevin Parke (St. Enda’s)