St Louis Ballymena 1-16 St Malachy’s Castlewellan 2-10
St Louis Ballymena Complete Incredible Turnaround to Stun St Malachy’s and Reach Dalton Cup Final
Dalton Cup Semi-Final Venue: Coláiste Feirste, Belfast Date: Friday, March 20, 2026
St Louis Ballymena have capped off a spectacular turnaround to their season, defeating a heavily favored St Malachy’s Castlewellan in a thrilling Dalton Cup semi-final at Coláiste Feirste.
Having lost their first three games in the round-robin section—including a heavy defeat to St Malachy’s at this very venue—few would have predicted St Louis to emerge victorious. However, the Ballymena boys flipped the script to book their place in the final against St Joseph’s Donaghmore.
First Half: St Louis Dominate Early Exchanges
The game opened at a frantic pace. St Louis drew first blood after just three minutes when Alfie Gordon gathered a ball down the left wing, beat his man, and popped it over the bar. Castlewellan responded swiftly through their talisman Cillian Curran, who leveled the score from play and then nudged his side ahead with a free from the right on eight minutes.
St Louis quickly found their rhythm, heavily driven by Conan McKeever in midfield. McKeever slotted a free to tie the game before Kiran JayaPrakash won the resulting kick-out and fired over a point to reclaim the lead. Though JayaPrakash pushed a subsequent chance wide, St Louis kept the pressure on.
Curran showed his class again for Castlewellan, turning sharply inside to score and keep his side in touch. However, the final ten minutes of the half belonged entirely to St Louis. Oisin Agnew landed a brilliant score from just outside the D, and despite a Castlewellan free from Ryan Morgan, St Louis piled on the agony. McKeever added two more points—including a beautiful curled effort from the sideline. Mark Kirby nearly found the net after a great piercing run but settled for a dangerous point from play. Ronan Laverty and JayaPrakash tacked on two more excellent scores just before the whistle, leaving St Louis with a commanding 0-10 to 0-04 lead at the break.
Second Half: Castlewellan Fightback and Late Drama
Castlewellan emerged from the dressing room a different beast. Within three minutes, Ollie Brannigan rattled the St Louis net for a crucial goal. Shea Kearney quickly followed up with two points in a minute (one free, one from play) to completely erase St Louis’ comfortable cushion.
Sensing the shift in momentum, St Louis looked to their leader. Conan McKeever stepped up to convert two vital frees, steadying the ship for the Ballymena men. Castlewellan’s Aodhan Aldridge kept the pressure on with a point on 10 minutes, but the defining moment of the match arrived shortly after.
On 12 minutes, Kiran JayaPrakash produced a moment of individual magic. Soloing tightly along the endline, he unleashed a fierce, angled shot high into the Castlewellan net, giving the goalkeeper no chance. The goal galvanized St Louis; they rattled the crossbar a minute later before McKeever set up both Oisin Agnew and Ronan Laverty with piercing passes to stretch the lead back out to eight points by the 20th minute.
Refusing to yield, Castlewellan’s substitute Harry McVeigh made an immediate impact, pointing well from play. McKeever answered with another free, but Castlewellan found another gear. After tapping over a point, they won the resulting kick-out, racing through the St Louis defense to allow their number Mcveigh to fire in a dramatic second goal. They came close to claiming a third goal when one of the forwards rattled the ball of the base of the upright but St Louis held out
With the deficit slashed, Shea Kearney pointed a free on 28 minutes to set up a nerve-wracking finale. As the game entered injury time, Castlewellan won a close-range free with a chance to level the game and force extra time. The shot was struck with intent, but the St Louis defensive line stood resolute, blocking the ball out just as the final whistle blew.
The St Louis players, management, and fans erupted into scenes of jubilation. From losing their first three games to knocking out the tournament favorites, St Louis Ballymena now march on to the Dalton Cup final with massive momentum behind them.
St Louis Grammar School Ballymena
1 PJ Marron, 2 Charlie O’Brien, 3 Lir Hodkinson, 4 Lir Hamill, 5 Mark Kirby, 6 Joseph Killough, 7 Nicholas McCrory, 8 Conan McKeever, 9 Cayden McGuckian, 10 Kiran JayaPrakash, 11 Oisin Angelecki, 12 Ronan Laverty, 13 Cahan O’Kane, 14 Odhran Cassidy, 15 Alfie Gordon, 16 Daithi Diamond, 17 Luke Bradley, 18 Conalladh Clarke, 19 Charlie Herald, 20 Jack Curry, 21 Oisin Martin, 22 Tomas Matthews, 23 Luca McCamphill, 24 Oliver McCarroll, 25 Liam O’Neill, and 26 Aidan Scullion.
St Malachy’s Castlewellan
1 Conlon Andrews, 2 Ruairi McAvoy, 3 Tobias Ondas, 4 Diathi Ireland, 5 Niall Russell, 6 Conal Shields, 7 Aodhan Aldridge, 8 Cathal Doran, 9 Matthew Crowl, 10 Ronan Cunningham, 11 Shea Kearney, 12 James Morgan, 13 Ryan Morgan, 14 Ollie Brannigan, and 15 Cillian Curran. Subs Noah Keown, Barney Flynn, Patrick Feeney, Caelum McMullan, Jack Burns, Adam Flanagan, Harry Grant, Finn Daly, Finn O’Rourke, Aidan McVeigh, Harry King, Eoin Delaney, Louis Grant, Harry McVeigh, Rossa McAleenan, Kian Russell, and Nathan McLaughlin.
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