Antrim Under 16 A Hurling final
Naomh Eanna 1-16 Ard na Rí 1-14
A great second half fightback by Naomh Eanna saw the Hightown outfit get the better of Belfast rivals Ard na Rí in Tuesday evening’s Under 16A Hurling final at Dunsilly, and in doing so made a bit of history for the club by winning their first ever A competition in hurling.
In a great game of hurling both teams gave their all, in what was the first all Belfast juvenile final in a long time, competitions which are normally dominated by north Antrim sides. Last season St Enda’s were well beaten by Dunloy at the same stage, but they bounced back this time, gaining revenge against the Cuchullains in last week’s semi-final, before going on to take the title this time around.
For most of the first half it looked like Ard na Rí would be collecting the silverware after five points in a row put them six clear nearing half time. However St Enda’s got the break they needed just before the break when a long ball from midfield confused the Ard na Rí defence and ended up in the net, meaning there was just three between the sides at the change of ends.
St Enda’s took control of the game right from the restart, hitting eight of the next nine points to move well clear. However Ard na Rí made a late bid to save the game but despite a late goal Naomh Eanna held on to take the title
Ard na Rí got off to a great start and a point from full forward Conail Dempsey and two from the stylish Padraig Kelly had them 0-03 to 0-01 up after eight minutes, the St Enda’s score coming from Christopher Roberts. Despite shooting a few bad wides Naomh Eanna began to settle and points from Aaron Quinn and Shea Bell brought them level, but Ard na Rí got back on top and five points on the trot, three from Kelly, and one apiece from Ronan Taylor and Fionn McCann gave them a five point lead, Kelly really catching the eye with some excellent finishes.
The gap was out to seven nearing half time when St Enda’s got the break they needed when a long delivery by centre back Aaron Quinn ended in the back of the Ard na Rí net, though Odhran Bellew replied for Ard na Rí with a point from play to put his team three clear at the short whistle. (1-04 to 0-10)
The smart money would probably still have been on Ard na Rí as the second half got underway, but Naomh Eanna were a transformed side and they flew from the traps with two points each from Darragh Quinn and Shea Bell plus one from Cormac McCann to move ahead. Kelly pulled one back for Ard na Rí but Naomh Eanna pushed on again and appeared to be cruising to victory. However their fans had to endure a few nervous minutes before that victory was secure as an Ard na Rí substitute grabbed a late goal. With just two points between them it was nerve-racking for both sets of fans, but that was as close as they got and final whistle sounded to spark scenes of great celebrations for Naomh Eanna
Naomh Eanna’s Harry Feeney and Christopher Roberts celebrate their team’s win. Pic by Aaron Alatas
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