Bathshack Senior Hurling Championship – Group 1
Rossa 2-21 St John’s 0-21
Saturday 15 August
Brendan McTaggart reports from Corrigan Park, Belfast
Goals from Eoin Trainor and Dominic McEnhill in either half ensured it was Rossa who started their championship campaign on a winning note at Corrigan Park. In a match where it was a classic case of a game of two halves, Rossa dominated St John’s after the interval but the tide, momentum and game change in the last action of the first half.
St John’s at one stage were ahead by six points and with Oisin MacManus his metronomic self from frees and Ruairi Galbraith giving the Rossa full back line plenty to think about, the home side had Rossa chasing shadows. With the game ticking into first half injury time, Rossa had reduced the St John’s lead to four points before scoring the opening goal of the game. Eoin Trainor breaking from a ruck of players before bearing down on goal and despite the efforts of Declan Creggan, the sliotar went over the line.
Rossa controlled the second half and took the lead for the first time in the game from the 42nd minute and never looked like relinquishing that lead in the time that remained with McEnhill putting in a man of the match performance while Cormac McGettigan, Stephen Shannon and Eoghan McMenamin also had a great game for the visitors.
St John’s played with plenty of intensity and precision in the first half and their interplay was at times breath taking to find a man in space but they struggled they were reliant on the free taking ability of MacManus while they never looked like causing a goal threat. There were times that Rossa looked shaky in the full back line but they had the ability to recover and clear any danger that may have come their way.
MacManus fired the opening three scores of the game from placed ball inside the first five minutes. The home side had settled more quickly than their city neighbours but it was McMenamin who scored the first from play with the opening score for the Shaws Road men. Stephen Beatty and an O’Brien free tied the scores for the first time in the match. They would be level another four occasions throughout the hour but with the sides tied at five points each, St John’s found another gear in attack. They outscored Rossa seven points to one in a 15 minute period that saw MacManus punish any indiscretion from frees while Mick Bradley was his usual workhorse self in the middle third.
Rossa hit back in first half injury time however. O’Brien’s third free of the half preceded a brace of scores from McEnhill, and while Conall Morgan fired over after a super catch, Rossa had the final word of the half with Trainor’s goal on the stroke of half time.
The goal felt like a sucker-punch at the time for St John’s who had did the majority of the positive hurling in the half. Rossa would have been delighted to go in just one point down at half time (0-13 to 1-9) and while there wasn’t a substantial wind blowing towards the Whiterock Road, it would have been enough to give the visitors to Corrigan Park incentive to push on after the break.
The Johnnies fired over the opening score of the half with Aaron Bradley hitting the target, but Rossa began to show signs of how the second half would transpire in those early exchanges. Gerard Walsh and a classy over the shoulder score from McEnhill tied the scores and while MacManus split the posts from another free, O’Brien and Rossa responded in kind. A run of three unanswered frees and another McEnhill score gave Rossa a two point lead midway through that second period.
Substitute Conor Hand briefly halted the Rossa charge, firing over with what was his first touch but the Jeremiah’s turned the screw a little further in attack. Scores from Dara Rocks and McMenamin stretched the Rossa lead to four before McEnhill found the back of the net in the 46th minute. A long delivery sent to the edge of the square from Pearse Short and while McEnhill still had work to do, he showed plenty of composure to get the yard needed to beat Cregan in the Johnnies goals.
St John’s responded well with MacManus (free) and Conor Johnston firing over but they rarely looked like threatening a water-tight Rossa defence while the vistors were creating chances at will at the other end of the pitch.
MacManus took his tally to 0-13 for the match with white flags from placed ball while Beatty, Cricky McGuinness and two further scores from man of the match McEnhill ensured the championship points and bragging rights went to the Shaws Road.
As fate would have it, these two sides will face each other once again in the football championship next Saturday at Lamh Dhearg before they then turn their attention to the ash once again the following weekend.
TEAMS
St John’s: Declan Cregan; Aaron Bradley, Ryan McNulty, Ciaran Johnston; Ciaran McKenna, Conall Morgan, Michael Bradley; Conor Johnston, Sean Wilson; Oisin MacManus, Daragh McGuinness, Niall McCallin; Jack Bohill, Ruairi Galbraith, Lorcan Heenan
Subs: Dannan McKeogh for R Galbraith (HT); Conor Hand for N McCallin (40); Jordan McAllister for C McKenna (54)
Blood sub: Conor Hand for A Bradley (30+4) – reversed (30+6); Louis Boyd for J Bohill (56) – reversed (60+3)
Scorers: O MacManus 0-13 (13 frees); R Galbraith 0-2; A Bradley 0-2; C Morgan 0-1; M Bradley 0-1; Conor Johnston 0-1; C Hand 0-1
Rossa: Matthew Devlin; Ciaran Orchin, Chris McGuinness, Conal Shannon; Declan McCartney, Stephen Shannon, Pearse Short; Gerard Walsh, Eoin Trainor; Dominic McEnhill, Stephen Beatty, Aodhan O’Brien; Cormac McGettigan, Eoghan McMenamin, Dara Rocks
Subs: Diarmuid Rogan for E McMenamin (60+3); Niall Devlin for P Short (60+3); Owen May for D McCartney (60+5); James Close for C McGettigan (60+5)
Scorers: D McEnhill 1-6 (1f); A O’Brien 0-6 (6fs); E Trainor 1-00; E McMenamin 0-2; G Walsh 0-2;
Referee: Colm McDonald (St Galls)
