Bathshack Senior Hurling Championship – Semi Final
St John’s 1-26 Cushendall 1-22 (aet)
Saturday 4 October
Brendan McTaggart reports from Dunsilly
Six semi-final defeats, twice on a replay and two in extra time but on Saturday afternoon, some associated with the Corrigan Park club could have been forgiven if it ever was going to happen. But on an autumnal afternoon at Dunsilly, St John’s finally broke their semi-final curse. It took extra time again against Cushendall, another comeback of sorts in normal time and an inner metal to get over the line as they booked their place in the county final.
It was a remarkable contest between two sides who we thought we had seen it all before. We didn’t. St John’s showed a determination to get over the line that might have been missing in recent years and while they finally, got to celebrate a semi-final victory.
Cushendall looked like they were doing exactly when Cushendall do. Maybe not firing on all cylinders but find a way to get the job done. Six points up with a little over 11 minutes remaining, they’ll be wondering how they let this one slip from their grasp.
On a day where they lost Neil McManus to a straight red card at the beginning of the second half in normal time, they found another serious match winner in Fiontan Bradley. It felt like he was singlehandedly keeping Cushendall’s championship hopes alive and the Ruairi’s couldn’t get enough ball his direction. He was giving the Johnnies defence a torrid time and playing the match of his life while Paddy Burke was holding their defence together with a show of leadership, skill and a tenaciousness that made him a nightmare to come up against.
Playing with a man less for nearly an hour proved to be decisive however as St John’s powered on in extra time.
Conor Johnston took the Bathshack man of the match award and rightly so. Top of the Johnnies scoring charts with seven white flags but this was a day where plenty in blue and white put their hand up and showed their leadership qualities. Ciaran Johnston was immense while Peter McCallin was outstanding at the heart of the defence. Playing as their spare man later in the game, McCallin’s reading of the game to get to the break of the ball was uncanny.
With the wind blowing from the scoreboard end at Dunsilly, this was always going to be a game of two halves. Cushendall had the elements in their favour and built a four point lead by half time. It wasn’t exactly the most fluent game of hurling we’ve witnessed this year but the intensity was incredible. There was no such thing as a yard given, space was earned while time on the ball was a rarity. McManus accurate from frees, Bradley at his impish best while goal keeper Conor McAlister landed two massive frees from deep in his own half.
The Johnnies were slowing the game down at every opportunity. It felt like it took an age for every restart from the Corrigan Park side but there was little who could blame them. They set out with a game plan and they played it to perfection. Shea Shannon, Conor Johnston, Aaron Bradley and Oisin MacManus all with the scores.
Four points wasn’t a big lead and the Johnnies would have been the happier of the two sides at the interval. Cushendall made changes with Fergus McCambridge and Ciaran Neeson introduced, looking to a running game to combat against the elements. The Ruairi’s management were forced into a rethink with barely a minute on the clock in the second half. When Fergus McCambridge was felled, both sides got involved in pushing and shoving. Players were felled and referee Mark O’Neill had a call to make. After consulting with his linesmen, Neil McManus saw red and the Johnnies had got a serious boost of momentum.
The opening goal of the game came moments later with a quick puck out from Domhnall Nugent finding McCallin. He sent the sliotar towards Conall Bohill, the sliotar wasn’t taken cleanly but Aaron Bradley ran onto the loose ball, jinking one way and the other before speeding towards goal. He left the Ruairi’s defence in his wake and fired to the bottom of Conor McAlister’s net.
Cushendall still managed to keep the score board ticking with Bradley taking over the free taking responsibility from McManus while Conall Bohill was growing into the game.
The sides were tied on 0-14 to 1-11 half way through the second half when Cushendall hit another purple patch. They would score 1-3 in a little over four minutes to put six between the sides and Cushendall in pole position to book their place in the final. Ryan McCambridge, Joseph McLaughlin and Bradley (free) with the points while Ciaran Neeson’s goal looked to knock the stuffing out of the St John’s challenge.
Incredibly, Cushendall would only score one more time before the final whistle as St John’s dug deep. Conall Bohill was immense as every high ball seemed to come his way while MacManus’ frees were reeling the Cushendall lead in.
One point separated the sides as the clock ticked into injury time when Bradley’s eighth white flag put two between the sides once again. St John’s rallied and points from Domhnall Nugent and a brilliant effort from Conor Johnston sent the semi final to extra time.
As the teams regrouped, extra time began with St John’s playing with the wind. A couple of wides looked to derail their challenge and when Bradley split the uprights to give Cushendall the lead it looked like the Ruairi’s were going to use all their knowhow of eeking out games to get over the line.
Scores from Shannon (free), Michail Dudley, Mick Bradley and a brace from Conor Johnston gave them a four point lead. The second of Johnston’s brace coming as he was completely off balance and hit in mid-air.
Four points was a slender lead but St John’s controlled the second half of extra time. Any time Cushendall got a score, they replied to keep the three point deficit with a brace of frees from captain Shea Shannon getting them over the line in injury time.
It’s been a generation since St John’s last graced the Antrim County Final, you’ll have to go longer than that since they last took the Volunteer Cup back to Corrigan Park to stay. This team are 60 minutes away from writing their names in St John’s folklore.
TEAMS
ST JOHN’S: Domhnall Nugent; Ryan McNulty, Ciaran Johnston, Jack Bohill; Conal Morgan, Peter McCallin, Enda McGurk; Sean Wilson, Aaron Bradley; Oisin Donnelly, Conor Johnston, Conall Bohill; Donal Carson, Shea Shannon, Oisin MacManus
Scorers: Conor Johnston 0-7, O MacManus 0-6 (5f), S Shannon 0-5 (4f), A Bradley 1-2, C Bohill 0-3, D Nugent 0-1 (1f), Michael Bradley 0-1, Michail Dudley 0-1
CUSHENDALL: Conor McAlister; Charlie McAuley, Paddy Burke, Martin Burke; Scott Walsh, Eoghan Campbell, Ryan McCambridge; Fred McCurry, Ed McQuillan; Ronan McAteer, Neil McManus, Thomas McLaughlin; Fiontan Bradley, Sean McAfee, Joseph McLaughlin
Scorers: F Bradley 0-11 (6f), Ciaran Neeson 1-1, N McManus 0-3 (3f), J McLaughlin 0-2, R McCambridge 0-2, C McAlister 0-2 (2f), E Campbell 0-1
Referee: Mark O’Neill (Armoy)
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