Antrim senior ladies gained promotion to Division two of the national league following their two point victory over Down on Sunday.
This win secures back to back promotions for Antrim, something this group can be really proud of.
Indeed with only seconds remaining Antrim were down by 2 but a long ball into the square from Theresa Mellon found its way to Laura Agnew who somehow managed to finish to the Down net.
Antrim played against a very strong wind in the opening half but were probably unlucky to go in at half time 3 points down.
Even against the wind Antrim were dominant but just couldn’t convert all their chances into scores.
The second half started well for Antrim when they hit two points and reduced the lead to the bear minimum.
But Down hit them with a sucker punch of a goal and Antrim had to regroup again…
But this team just never gives up and they chipped away at Down’s lead to again leave the bare minimum in it with time running out.
The Saffrons pushed hard and with virtually the last kick of the game Laura Agnew found the net to send the Antrim supporters wild and confirm promotion for the team.
This game lived up to its billing of a shootout with promotion the prize for the winners and the result was in doubt right up to the final seconds.
Antrim management said after the game:
This is a remarkable achievement for these girls.
They work so hard and give up so much of their time to play county football.
Every player in our group played in the league this year so credit to them all as each and every one of them have helped Antrim reach division two.
They now look forward to the national league final on Sunday April 12th against Louth. Venue to be confirmed later!
Antrim Scorers …
Maria O Neill 0-3
Ciara Brown 1-0
Laura Agnew 1-0
Theresa Mellon 0-2
Lara Dahunsi 0-1
Alyssa Davison 0-1
Aine Lynch 0-1
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Ballycastle McQuillans produced a dominant opening quarter and a resilient second-half display to claim a hard-fought 1-12 to 0-10 victory over Ruairí Óg Cushendall in the Antrim Hurling League Division 1 clash on Sunday afternoon. Despite a spirited fightback from the home side before the break, a crucial second-half goal from Diarmaid McShane ensured the points went back to Ballycastle.
The visitors flew out of the traps, establishing a commanding 0-07 to 0-00 lead by the end of the opening quarter. Seamus McAuley was in scintillating form early on, hitting the game’s first two points from play within the opening three minutes. Darragh Kelly added a third shortly after, before McAuley took over dead-ball duties with clinical precision, converting three frees to stretch the lead. A well-taken point from play by Conor Donnelly in the 12th minute capped off a flawless opening spell for Ballycastle.
Cushendall, shell-shocked by the early onslaught, finally found their rhythm in the 17th minute when Thomas McLaughlin registered their opening score from play. This sparked a massive momentum shift. The experienced Neil McManus, now operating further out the field, nailed back-to-back frees to cut the deficit, followed by a smart point from play by Fergus McCambridge.
With their tails up, Cushendall continued to press. Fiontan Bradley proved lethal from placed balls, converting two consecutive frees to incredibly close the gap to a single point (0-06 to 0-07) approaching half-time. However, Ballycastle had the final say of the half, with McAuley slotting another free deep into stoppage time to give his side a narrow 0-08 to 0-06 cushion at the interval.
Ballycastle emerged from the dressing room determined to reassert their early dominance, and they did exactly that. Within three minutes of the restart, they hit three rapid-fire points from play courtesy of Diarmaid McShane, Conor Donnelly, and veteran Neal McAuley
Cushendall responded through an Edward McQuillan point, but the decisive moment of the match arrived in the 36th minute when Ballycastle sliced through the Cushendall defence, and Diarmaid McShane made no mistake, firing the ball into the net for the game’s only goal, extending the visitors’ lead significantly.
From there, Ballycastle managed the game intelligently. While Cushendall kept fighting—adding further frees through Bradley (two) and McManus (one)—they struggled to break down a resolute Ballycastle defence to find the goal they desperately needed. A final free from McAuley in the 22nd minute of the half kept the scoreboard ticking over for the visitors, who comfortably saw out the remainder of the game to win by five points.
Match Scorers
Ballycastle McQuillans (1-12)
Seamus McAuley: 0-08 (5 frees)
Diarmaid McShane: 1-01
Conor Donnelly: 0-02
Darragh Kelly: 0-01
Ruairí Óg Cushendall (0-10)
Fiontan Bradley: 0-04 (4 frees)
Neil McManus: 0-03 (3 frees)
Thomas McLaughlin: 0-01
Fergus McCambridge: 0-01
Edward McQuillan: 0-01
Ruairí Óg (Cushendall) Ruairi Sharpe Conor McCann Liam Gillan Martin Burke Callagh Mooney Stephen Walsh Charlie McAuley Padraig McKillop Darach Bradley Edward McQuillan Thomas McLaughlin Fergus McCambridge Nicholas McLaughlin Neil McManus Fiontan Bradley
Mac Uílín CLG (Ballycastle) Eamonn Elliott Oran Kearney Ryan McCook Conal Colgan Eoin McAlonan Conor Boyd Cathair Donnelly Reuben McClean Ardan Kelly Darragh Kelly Seamus McAuley Niall McClean Conor Donnelly Neal McAuley Diarmaid McShane
Tir na nOg rode the gale-force storm that blew into their face in the second half to secure an opening day win in division 2 of the ACHL when they withstood the challenge of Cloney Gaels in the proverbial game of two halves.
Despite playing into the elements in the opening half it was the Ahoghill side who opened first through a Colla McDonnell free in the 4th minute but the home side slowly settled and Emmet Murray and Kevin McCann edged them ahead for the first time with 6 minutes on the clock.
Cloney Gaels were back on terms when Fionnbar O’Neill struck a free from distance and as the Randalstown side began to adjust to the difficult breeze, Tiarnan Bonnes edged them ahead again from a 65 meter free.
Colla McDonnell, who top scored for Cloney Gaels misjudges the flight of the sliothar as Manus Smith Challenges
Colla McDonnell tied the contest for the third time from a 16th minute free and given the strength of the wind, the Ahoghill management would have been happy how things were developing.
Slowly though the Whitehill side began to stamp their authority on proceedings as Kevin McCann edged them ahead and Connor McCamphill struck two excellent points from distance as they began to find their range.
The momentum was now very much with Tir na nOg as Sean McKinley, Tiarnan Bonnes and Joshua Higgins moved them seven ahead before Fionnbar O’Neill finally got Ahoghill’s final point of the half from a ‘65’ in the 29th minute.
There would be one final play and Declan Mallon split the posts to leave Tir na nOg 0-11 to 0-4 ahead at the break but given the strength of the breeze, the Cloney side certainly didn’t look out of it.
With the wind now firmly at their backs Cloney Gaels were expected to push on but it was the home side who extended their lead when Colm Duffin pointed in the 3d minute.
The Gaels came back strongly however with points from Diarmaid Graham 0-2, and Colla McDonnell 0-2 f’s and another from play but Tiarnan Bonnes and Daniel Martin kept the score board ticking at the other end before Colla McDonnell finished to the net after 13 minutes for the Ahoghill side.
McDonnell’s goal left just two between the sides and it still looked anybody’s game at this stage of the contest though Cloney’s insistence on going for long distance scores was failing to pay dividends.
They were made to pay when after a period of dominance from the visitors, Tir na nOg struck decisively and Emmet Murray started and finished a move which saw him bat to the net from close range.
Ryan O’Neill on the attack for Tir na nOg
Murray’s goal would prove the difference in the end though Cloney Gaels replied with points from Colla McDonnell, Fionnbar O’Neill 0-2 and Patrick Graham, it was Colm Duffin who sent over the final point of the game to see the Whitehill side home by two points.
Emmet Murray, Colm Duffin, Tiarnan Bonnes and Ryan O’Neill were excellent for a solid Tir na nOg while Colla McDonnell was the outstanding performer for a Cloney Gaels side who missed too many scoring chances.
Tir na nOg: 1 Caoimhin Duffin, 2 Brandon McLarnon, 3 Oliver McAtamney, 4 Manus Smith, 5 Ryan O’Neill, 6 Ciaran O’Neill, 7 Daniel Martin, 8 Connor McCamphill, 9 Emmet Murray, 10 Kevin McCann, 11 Sean McKinley, 12 Joshua Higgins, 13 Tiarnan Bonnes, 14 Declan Mallon, 15 Colm Duffin
Cloney Gaels: 1 Aiden Graham, 2 Harry O’Donnell, 3 James Magee, 4 5 Fionnbar O’Neill, 6 Diarmaid Graham, 7 Bernard Graham, 8 Eamonn Brady, 9 10 Patrick Graham, 11 Jack McFall, 12 Patrick Graham, 13 Colla McDonnell, 14 Eoin Graham, 15 Noah Friel, 17 Ben Friel, 18 Conall Walls, 19 Daniel O’Neill, 20 Donal Graham
Referee: Ciaran McCloskey (Loughgiel)
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Final Score: Glenariffe Oisíns 3-11 | St. John’s Belfast 1-09
The Oisíns went into this game as outsiders despite the fact St. John’s were short a good few regulars, but they got their new Division One League campaign off to the perfect start with a convincing win. Played in gale force winds at Glenariffe, the home side adapted better to the tough conditions, delivering a dominant second-half display to secure the two league points
St. John’s opened the scoring with a well-taken point from their talisman Oisín McManus, but Glenariffe quickly settled, however, with Alec O’Boyle responding from a free. The Oisíns then struck the first major blow of the game when Seanie McIntosh found the back of the net on four mintues to give them a lead they woud not subsequently relinguish.
St. John’s fought hard to claw their way back and McManus added another free on 12 minutes, and they nearly snatched a goal of their own when Donal Carson drove dangerously in from the corner, but Oisíns goalkeeper Paul McMullan produced a fine save to deny him.
By the 20-minute mark, an Alec O’Boyle free kept the Oisíns ahead (1-02 to 0-02), but St. John’s enjoyed a purple patch leading up to the break. A 50-meter free from McManus and a brilliant point from play by Tomas Adams—who turned his marker sharply in the corner—cut the deficit to one. In the 29th minute, McManus converted again to tie the game at 1-02 to 0-05.
Just when it looked like the sides would go in level, Glenariffe found another gear. Donall Kearney restored the lead with a spectacular point from the sideline and moments later, David Kearney swung over a superb point to give the Oisíns a two-point cushion at the interval.
Half-Time: Glenariffe Oisíns 1-04 | St. John’s 0-05
The second half belonged almost entirely to Glenariffe, and specifically to David Kearney. Just four minutes after the restart, Kearney swept a ground ball, sending it to the net to extend the Oisíns’ lead to five points (1-04 to 0-05)
This sparked a ruthless scoring spree from the home side whihch saw Michael O’Boyle, Calum McIlwaine and Kearney all add scores to stretch their lead even further.
Trailing by eight, St. John’s finally registered their first points of the second half. McManus tapped over two frees by the 12th minute, and substitute Bradley hit a good point from play to reduce the gap to five (2-07 to 0-08).
However, any hopes of a St. John’s revival were quickly extinguished. Donall Kearney stretched the lead back to six, while McManus suffered a rare dip in accuracy, putting two frees wide for the visitors.
From there, David Kearney upped the ante as he slotted two points inside a 30-second window, and followed it up on 22 minutes with a brilliant left-sided score, pushing the scoreboard to a commanding 2-11 to 0-08.
Despite late substitutions from St. John’s (bringing on Caolan Devlin and Finn O’Meara), the Glenariffe attack couldn’t be contained. On 30 minutes, David Kearney turned provider, threading a pass to Orrin O’Connor inside, who confidently grabbed his team’s third goal.
St. John’s managed a late consolation goal and a fine 34th-minute point from James Wilson, but the final whistle confirmed a comprehensive and deserved victory for the home side.
Team Line-ups
Glenariffe Oisíns: 1. Paul McMullan, 2. Odhran Gillan, 3. Colla Ward, 4. Oisín Gillan, 5. Michael Haughey, 6. Daniel Kearney, 7. James Kearney, 8. Calum McIlwaine, 9. Donall Kearney, 10. Michael O’Boyle, 11. David Kearney, 12. Orrin O’Connor, 13. Seanie McIntosh, 14. Oliver Kearney, 15. Alex O’Boyle. Subs used: McKinney.
St John’s: 1. Simon Donnelly, 2. Michael Darragh, 3. Conal Morgan, 4. Lorcan McCallin, 5. Caolan Wilson, 6. Enda McGurk, 7. Ronan Donnelly, 8. Sean Wilson, 9. James Wilson, 10. Aaron Bradley, 11. Oisin McManus, 12. David Robinson, 13. Donal Carson, 17. Michael Bradley, 15. Tomas Adams. Subs used: Caolan Devlin, Finn O’Meara
Referee – Tarlach Conway
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Gort na Mona got their Division Three campaign up and running with a 0-12-0-8 win over Lámh Dhearg at a windswept Enright Park on Sunday afternoon.
Any chance of a free-flowing hurling encounter taking place were dealt a blow by the blustery conditions on the foot of Black Mountain.
The hosts were dominant in the opening stages and raced into a 0-4 lead with Dessie McClean converting two early frees in the space of 60-seconds, dropping over an angled score from play and Darron Boyd adding a further score inside of five-minutes.
It took Lámh Dhearg 12-minutes to open their account, Daniel Mulholland was fouled and Adam Murray conveyed the resulting free to get his side up and running.
Just after the midway point in the half, Gort na Mona conjured up three further scores without reply to extend their advantage.
Darron Boyd swept a pass into the path of Neil Henry to pop over, McClean landed his second from play and registered a further free to make it 0-7-0-1.
In response, Adam Murray clipped over an angled free, he then played a role in the next score with a slipped pass to Conor McConville to in turn find Daniel Mulholland to swing over a point, and Murray landed his third score from the placed ball to half the deficit at the interval.
Gort na Mona should have found the net twice within the opening five minutes of the restart. The first opportunity came when talisman McClean got out in front to claim a fine pass and his close range shot was parried by Paddy Joe Herron in the Lámhs goal.
McClean dropped the resulting 65’ over and a few minutes later a fine passing move saw Ruairi O’Scollian through on goal, his low shot was somehow kept out by Herron and the loose ball was flicked wide.
They instead had to settle for a O’Scollian point a few minutes later, with Conor McConville jnr replying and getting the Lámhs first score of the half.
The hosts pressed ahead and McClean added another two frees to his increasing tally to make it 0-11-0-5 with a quarter of an hour remaining.
Donal Martin dropped a high shot over and Daniel Mulholland doubled his account for the afternoon in his senior debut to ensure their side kept in touch with 10-minutes remaining.
They were unable to make any further inroads in the remaining minutes however as free-takers McClean and Murray traded a further score before the afternoon was out and Gort na Mona ran out 0-12-0-8 winners at the conclusion.
GORT NA MONA: C McCrory, C Connolly, M Rea, C Scullion, C McCusker, R McKenna, N Gibson, N Henry (0-1), P McCaffrey, T McCaffrey, M McMullan, T O’Cadhlaigh, R O’Scollian (0-1), D McClean (0-9, 0-1 65’, 0-6f), D Boyd (0-1). SUBS: D Hughes for C McCusker (38), MJ Austin for T O’Cadhlaigh (51).
LÁMH DHEARG: PJ Herron, A Ferris, A McGuigan, F Clenaghan, SP GIbson, O Waldron, T McKenna, C Boyd, D Mulholland (0-2), C McConville (0-1), M McGarry, D Murray, A Perry, A Murray (0-4f), D Martin (0-1). SUBS: C Megraw for D Murray (12), O Kane for A Perry (43).
