Antrim Under 19 Hurling League
Ballycaste 1-16 Dunloy 0-19
A point from a free by full forward Crioistai McAuley three minutes into injury time earned Ballycastle a share of the spoils with visitors Dunloy in Monday evening’s Under 19 Hurling League game at Pairc MacUilin.
McAuley was to prove to be man of the match in an eventful evening which saw the home side start strongly, but fade away to trail by four at half time (0-9 to 0-13). The second half saw a marked improvement and a goal direct from a free by McAuley brought them back into the game. The drew level, but missed several chances to take the lead and looked set to pay the price as Dunloy free taker Aodhan McGarry hit a series of good points to put his team back ahead in injury time. However Ballycastle still and time to salvage something and McAuley saved the day as he split the Dunloy posts with the last poc of the game.
Ballycastle started like an express train and inside two minutes they had three points on the board, one of them from a McAuley free. Dunloy’s Daire McMullan and McAuley exchanged points to keep the gap at three, but Dunloy were getting on top throughout the field and McMullan and McGarry hit a series of points from frees to go 0-12 to 0-6 ahead with just minutes to go until half time.
Ballycastle were in trouble, but McAuley hit three points in the run in to half time, to cut the gap back to four at the short whistle. (0-9 to 0-13)
A point in the opening minute of the second half, which dropped in the Dunloy square and bounced high over the bar got the gap back to three, but Aodhan McGarry came back with one from a free at the other end to restore the four point cushion. Darragh Donnelly pointed for the Town to cut the gap back to three and when they were awarded a twenty metre free McAuley stepped up and drove it through a wall of players to the back of the net.
Ballycastle missed a three good chances to go ahead and as the tension grew it was Aodhan McGarry who his mark to put Dunloy back ahead. It was score for score between McAuley and McGarry for a while as both marksmen showed great accuracy but when Ballycastle’s Cormac Dallas cut in across the edge of the Ballycastle ‘square’ a goal seemed certain. However the half back hesitated slightly and a Dunloy defender got in a goal saving ‘hook. When Aodhan McGarry put Dunloy ahead again two minutes into injury time it looked like they had one enough t win the game, but ‘Bamba’ came to his team’s rescue as time ticked away and slotted
