Ballygarvan 2-17
Barryroe 1-15
JOHN MURPHY REPORTS
BARRYROE bowed out, but not without one hell of a fight in this action-packed Co-Op Superstores Premier Junior Hurling Championship Group 2 cracker.
At the final whistle at balmy Cloughduv on Friday, table-toppers Ballygarvan made it three wins from three to advance to the semi-final as one of the two top seeds, alongside Russell Rovers.
For beaten Barryroe – lining out with injured star forward Olan O’Donovan– there was the solace of avoiding the relegation dogfight and restoring pride following this superb display that saw the South East kingpins having to fight all the way.
But goals win games, as two magnificent majors by Ballygarvan inside a minute in the opening half had a huge bearing on the result. It had been a real nip-and-tuck opening quarter – Michael Cussen, Micheál O’Mahony, Niall Dowd and Stephen Fenton hit the target for Ballygarvan, while scores from Donal Ó Buachalla (free), Seán Holland and Adam McSweeney left it 0-4 to 0-3 at the close of a competitive opening quarter.
Barryroe's Adam McSweeney tries to get away from Michael Cussen of Ballygarvan.
Ó Buachalla and Cussen were on target with clockwork regularity, but after the former made it all square, 0-5 to 0-5, two defining moments left Barryroe having to battle even harder to keep in touch.
Speed merchant Evan O’Connor left a trail of defenders in his wake, letting fly a rocket that nestled in the bottom left-hand corner of excellent Barryroe shot-stopper Micheál Whelton’s net. In the next move Seán Brady, in almost a carbon copy, made it two green flags inside a minute. When Michael Cussen added a point the stunned Blues were 2-6 to 0-5 behind.
Resolute, picking up the loose ball with authority, playing with grit and determination, Barryroe tore into the fray. Ó Buachalla, Conn Dineen, Adam McSweeney, Ryan O’Donovan, Seán Holland, O’Riordan, Sheehy, James Moloney and Jerome O’Brien in overdrive. By half time they cut the deficit to a manageable 2-6 to 0-8, two gigantic frees by their goalkeeper Micheál Whelton marked features.
Ballygarvan’s Gary White entered the fray at the break, going on to play a crucial role as the ever-reliable Ó Buachalla bisected the uprights. O’Connor struck two sublime scores, one following a scintillating solo run up the left touchline. It was Ballygarvan’s ability to offset the Barryroe scores by breaking swiftly from defence to attack that proved a key weapon in their attacking armoury.
O’Halloran and Cussen again found the range, but after a hectic Barryroe attack, a 30-metre free saw a low trajectory shot by Ó Buachalla ushered to safety by the reliable Daniel Mackey, the former converting the subsequent 65. Barryroe craved a goal and Ryan O’Donovan delivered, the resultant Barryroe cheer reverberating through the compact stand.
Ballygarvan steadied the ship with three delightful white flags by Gary White, Niall Dowd and Stephen Fenton. Brian O’Donovan, Daniel O’Driscoll, Adam McSweeney all chipped in for the Blues, but Ray O’Halloran with some superb points and a fantastic free by goalkeeper Daniel Mackey saw the sands of time run out for gallant Barryroe.
Barryroe's Ryan O'Donovan scoring his side's only goal against Ballygarvan.
‘That is a very good Ballygarvan team, top of the table, but I am proud of the lads, they played today for the jersey, you cannot expect more. Those two goals inside a minute were killer blows,’ Barryroe manager Conor Walsh said.
‘Ballygarvan have the ability to break at speed from defence to attack, but we figured them out and we were only two points behind with a couple of minutes remaining. We will learn from this. This is an extremely competitive championship. The big plus is that we have avoided the relegation play-off. We will take a lot from this and go again.’
Scorers
Ballygarvan: Evan O’Connor 1-2; Ray O’Halloran, Michael Cussen (2f, 1 65) 0-4 each; Seán Brady 1-0; Niall Dowd, Stephen Fenton 0-2 each; Gary White, Micheál O’Mahony, Daniel Mackey (f) 0-1 each.
Barryroe: Donal Ó Buachalla 0-7 (4f, 1 65); Ryan O’Donovan 1-1; Adam McSweeney, Micheál Whelton (2f) 0-2 each; Seán Holland, Daniel O’Driscoll, Brian O’Donovan 0-1 each.
Ballygarvan: Daniel Mackey; Eoin Mackey, Richard O’Leary, Paddy Ryan; Stephen Fenton, Cillian Murphy, Kevin Lyons; Cillian O’Regan, Micheál O’Mahony; Seán Brady, Michael Cussen, Ray O’Halloran; Evan O’Connor, Dylan O’Connor, Niall Dowd.
Subs: Gary White for Cillian Murphy (ht); Callum Mackey for Kevin Lyons (inj, 57).
Barryroe: Micheál Whelton; Seán O’Riordan, Cathal Sheehy, Pa Moloney; James Moloney, Conn Dineen, Jerome O’Brien; David Murphy, Adam McSweeney; Ryan O’Donovan, Darren McCarthy, Michael Walsh; Seán Holland, Donal Ó Buachalla, Daniel O’Driscoll.
Subs: Brian O’Donovan for Darren McCarthy (42), Steven Madden for Michael Walsh (42), Diarmuid McCarthy for Pa Moloney (54).
Referee: Tom Manley (Inniscarra).
