Antrim Hurling League – Division 1
St John’s 1-16 Ballygalget 1-16
On Wednesday evening at Corrigan Park, St. John’s hosted Ballygalget, in a compelling Antrim Hurling League Division 1 clash that ultimately saw the home side claim a commanding 1-26 to 1-16 victory.
The match opened with early scores from both teams, featuring a mix of long-range strikes and individual points. St. John’s gradually built a strong lead, driven by consistent scoring from both open play and dead balls. Oisin MacManus and Oisin Donnelly were particularly instrumental during this period, keeping the scoreboard ticking over with impressive accuracy. Ballygalget stayed in the fight with key scores of their own, including notable long-range efforts from Jon Fisher and Marc Fisher, but they were left to rue several missed opportunities. The visitors’ frustration was compounded by the heroics of St. John’s goalkeeper Domhnall Nugent, who produced two crucial point-blank saves to preserve his team’s advantage. The defining moment of the first half came just before the 26-minute mark when a defensive error by Ballygalget was punished by Ruairi Galbraith, who found the back of the net to leave the halftime score at 1-18 to 0-9 in favour of the home side.
Ballygalget started the second half with immediate intent, as Marc Fisher fired over a point within seconds of the restart. The second period became heavily dominated by frees, with Oisin MacManus consistently splitting the posts for St. John’s and Eoin Pucci matching him with multiple conversions for the Ardsmen. A pivotal moment arrived 17 minutes into the half when Ballygalget were awarded a penalty, but Marc Fisher was unable to convert the opportunity, significantly stalling their momentum. To their credit, Ballygalget responded swiftly; just half a minute later, an end-to-end sweeping move culminated in Shea Pucci finishing to the net for a well-worked goal from play.
Despite this lifeline for the visitors, St. John’s maintained their composure, continuing to score consistently from both placed balls and open play to keep Ballygalget at arm’s length. The home side’s clinical efficiency in front of goal proved to be the difference, while Ballygalget were left to reflect on missed chances. The 1-26 to 1-16 final scoreline was a fair reflection of a game marked by strong individual performances from the likes of McManus and Donnelly for St. John’s, alongside Marc Fisher and Shea Pucci for the visitors.
St. John’s: 1 Domhnall Nugent, 2 Michael Darragh, 3 Conall Morgan, 4 Lorcan McCallin, 5 Ryan McNulty, 6 Enda McGurk, 7 Ronan Donnelly, 8 Caoimhin Hanna, 9 Aaron Bradley, 10 James Wilson, 11 Shea Shannon, 12 Oisin Donnelly, 13 Oisin MacManus, 14 Michael Bradley, 15 Ruairi Galbraith.
Ballygalget: 1 Eoin Clarke, 2 Michael Toner, 3 Ben Taggart, 4 Caolan Coulter, 5 Joe Dynes, 6 Marc Fisher, 7 Conaire Monan, 8 Jon Fisher, 9 Tim Prenter, 10 Oisin Coulter, 11 Shea Pucci, 12 Eoin Pucci, 13 Daniel Toner, 14 Michael Dorrian, 15 Owen McDermott.
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