Antrim Hurling League – Division 2

St Gall’s 0-11 Cushendun 1-11

A decisive second-half goal from defender Thomas Scally proved to be the difference as Cushendun Emmets claimed a hard-fought three-point victory over St Gall’s in their Antrim Hurling League Division Two opener on Sunday afternoon. Played at a blustery Bog Meadows, the opening game of the new club season was heavily dictated by a fierce spring wind that hampered both sides’ scoring abilities, turning the contest into a gritty, physical battle.

The hosts had the wind at their backs in the opening period. Despite initially struggling to adapt to the ferocious gusts, the Milltown men eventually settled and took control of the scoreboard. Tomás O’Ciarain was the man to break the deadlock. Evading heavy traffic in the midfield, the forward utilized the wind perfectly to fire over two terrific scores in quick succession, granting St Gall’s an early advantage. The hosts had chances to extend their lead, but Mark Napier pulled a few tight-angle efforts narrowly wide before finding his rhythm to convert two carbon-copy frees.

It took Cushendun time to find their footing. After a few early wides, sharpshooter Connlaoth ‘Loaf’ McNeill opened their account, drilling a powerful free directly into the teeth of the wind. McNeill would be the Glensmen’s talisman in the first half, keeping them well in touch with his dead-ball accuracy. As tempers occasionally flared in the tough conditions, McNeill added two more crucial scores before the break, leaving St Gall’s with a slender one-point lead at half-time.

With the wind now in their favour, the North Antrim men emerged for the second half with renewed intensity. They immediately leveled the tie when Archie McSparran won a battle out on the wing and fired over an excellent point off the shoulder. Moments later came the turning point of the match. St Gall’s failed to secure the resulting puck-out from goalkeeper Sean McAreavey, turning the ball over to a surging Cushendun attack. The Emmets quickly capitalized on the numerical advantage; after a scramble in the St Gall’s defense, the loose ball fell to Thomas Scally, who ruthlessly drilled it low into the net to flip the scoreboard and put the visitors in front.

Rather than folding, St Gall’s showed immense spirit to roar back into the contest. Fergus Donnelly gathered possession and used his short-stick brilliantly to power over a vital point, followed shortly by an effort from Ewan Rush that leveled the game once more. However, Cushendun’s depth and experience shone through in the closing stages. A flurry of late scores from Dominic Sharkey, substitute Colm McKeegan, and Pierce Bannon re-established a three-point cushion for the Emmets.

There was still time for late heroics. Deep into injury time, St Gall’s were awarded a close-range free. Mark Napier stepped up and unleashed a goal-bound rocket, but Cushendun’s Donal O’Hara threw his body on the line to deflect the effort away, sealing the opening-day victory for the Glensmen. While the points head back to the North Coast, St Gall’s will take massive encouragement from a resilient performance that pushed the visitors right to the final whistle.

St Gall’s

Sean McAreavey, Gregory McGreevy, Dan Churchill, Eoghan McCurdy, Gaireach Adams, Paddy Friel, Michael Marlow, Jack Hopkins and Ewan Rush, Oran McIlhatton, Jackson McGreevy, Fergus Donnelly Mark Napier, Tomás O’Ciarain, Ronan Crossan. Subs – Tom McGhee, Emmet Loughran, and Michael McMullan.

Cushendun

John V Morgan, Thomas Scally, Mark McSparran, Paddy Morgan, Andrew Breslin, Donal O’Hara, Jack McKay, Matthew McCartan and Calum Kilgore, Conor McHugh, Archie McSparran, Dominic Sharkey, Conor Barron, Connlaoth McNeill, Pierce Bannon

Subs Colm McKeegan, who scored a point, Conrad McDonnell, Liam Magee, and Sean Hamilton.

Referee – Fiontan McCotter

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