Antrim Hurling League – Division 1
Glenariffe Oisin 3-15 Ballycastle McQuillan’s 1-22
Ballycastle McQuillans made it four wins out of four in the Antrim Hurling League Division 1 after edging out last season’s Intermediate champions, Glenariffe Oisins, in an absolute nail-biter in Waterfoot. Just like their previous three outings, Ballycastle found themselves in a game that went right down to the wire, ultimately surviving a breathless conclusion to win by a single point. The story of the match was undoubtedly the spectacular scoring duel between Ballycastle’s Seamus McAuley and Glenariffe’s Alex O’Boyle. Both talismanic forwards were in scintillating form, trading blows throughout a contest that truly could have gone either way.
Ballycastle started brightly, opening the scoring with early points from Diarmuid McShane and Tiernan Smith. However, Glenariffe responded emphatically. Alex O’Boyle quickly made his mark, hitting a point and firing home a goal to give the Oisins an early 1-1 to 0-2 advantage. The McQuillans refused to panic and clawed their way back. By the seventh minute, scores from Niall McClean and a Seamus McAuley free leveled the tie at four apiece. Glenariffe quickly regained their rhythm, with O’Boyle converting another free before Brogan O’Connor found the back of the net, capitalizing on a sharp pass from his brother Orrin to extend the Oisins’ lead.
As the half progressed, the sides matched each other stride for stride. O’Boyle and McAuley traded frees, while Aaron Cosgrove and Ballycastle’s Reuben McClean swapped points from play. A point from Glenariffe’s James Kearney kept the pressure on, but the momentum shifted just before the break. After O’Boyle slotted another free, Ballycastle struck a crucial blow, and following a long free into the danger zone, Tiernan Smith gained possession and fired home from close range. McAuley, after an earlier miss, found his range from distance, and McShane tacked on two more points to send Ballycastle into the dressing rooms with a narrow lead, 1-12 to 2-07.
The second half opened with McAuley extending Ballycastle’s lead via a free, only for O’Boyle to instantly reply at the other end. The action flowed end-to-end as Orrin O’Connor split the posts for Glenariffe, while Conor Boyd and Ronan McCarry contributed vital scores to keep Ballycastle’s noses in front. The midway point of the half produced the game’s highlight reel moments. First, McAuley launched a towering free from around 70 meters out. Not to be outdone, O’Boyle stepped up and executed a remarkable sideline cut straight over the bar, dragging Glenariffe back to within two points.
McAuley and O’Boyle traded scores once again, before Brogan O’Connor reduced the deficit to the bare minimum. The tension peaked in the 28th minute when O’Boyle held his nerve to convert a free, leveling the match. However Ballycastle’s response was immediate, with McAuley tapping over a close-range free to restore their one-point cushion. As the clock ticked into injury time, Glenariffe pushed desperately for an equalizer and found it through Oliver Kearney, setting up a grandstand finish.
But cometh the hour, cometh the man. Seamus McAuley kept his cool to tap over a close range free and split the uprights to put Ballycastle ahead one last time. Glenariffe had one final roll of the dice, but David Kearney’s long-distance effort drifted agonizingly wide in the dying seconds. Ultimately, Ballycastle had that little bit of luck youn need down the stretch saw them scrape by with a one-point victory, maintaining their perfect start to the season.
Glenariffe Oisins: 1. Paul McMullan, 2. Michael Haughey, 3. David Kearney, 4. Conor Patterson, 5. Donall Kearney, 6. Daniel Kearney, 7. Cailin Devlin, 8. James Kearney, 9. Calum McIlwaine, 10. Orrin O’connor, 11. Oliver Kearney, 12. Michael O’Boyle, 13. Alex O’Boyle, 14. Brogan O’connor, 15. Aaron Cosgrove.
Ballycastle McQuillans: 1. Eamonn Elliott, 2. Oran Kearney, 3. Ryan McCook, 4. Conal Colgan, 5. Ardan Kelly, 6. Conor Boyd, 7. Eoin McAlonan, 8. Ronan Laverty, 9. Cathair Donnelly, 10. Reuben McClean, 11. Seamus McAuley, 12. Ronan McCarry, 13. Diarmaid McShane, 14. Tiernàn Smyth, 15. Niall McClean.
Referee – Declan McGarry (Loughgiel)
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