Valley Rovers 1-20
Tracton 2-13
JJ HURLEY REPORTS
VALLEY Rovers were crowned South East junior B hurling champions in Minane Bridge thanks to an unanswered 1-9 scoring spree in a ten-minute period in the first half.
Despite Valleys’ racking up a significant lead, Tracton fought back into this encounter to entertain the large crowd right down to the wire.
Indeed, Tracton struck the first real blow in the game with a goal from Aaron Lyons in the opening minutes. From there to the 20th minute, the Innishannon men were in total control as they looked like they would run away with the game, with Richie Butler, Eric Duarte, Noel O'Donovan and Brian Lordan all adding points.
A goal from Chris O'Donovan piled further pressure on the home side, but David Griffin brought stability back into the Tracton ranks, with four points leading up to the 27th minute.
Butler and David Carthew's scores kept the well-oiled Valleys machine ticking over, but points from Edward O'Callaghan and Billy Lynch had only five between them at the break.
A point apiece after the break from Shane Ryan and Stephen Nunan was followed by an outstanding save from Tracton's Declan O'Neill as O'Donovan looked to claim his second of the day. Butler was battling it out with Griffin, with both men proving as deadly on scores from play as the dead ball.
A superb point from O'Donovan was followed up the other end by Lyons' second goal of the day, as 1-18 to 2-10 separated the sides on 45 minutes.
With both sides battling it out, there were some fine performances from both sides, including man-of-the-match Eric Duarte. Tracton would rue several second-half chances that had drifted wide of the mark or had fallen short into the goalkeeper's hand.
Despite Tracton securing the final two points of the game from Griffin, the third elusive goal never materialised, and Valleys claimed the title.
Scorers
Valley Rovers: Richie Butler 0-9 (5f, 1 65); Chris O'Donovan 1-1; Eric Duarte, Dave Carthew 0-3 each; Shane Ryan 0-2; Noel O'Donovan, Brian Lordan 0-1. each.
Tracton: David Griffin 0-9 (8f); Aaron Lyons 2-0; Edward O’Callaghan, Billy Lynch, Stephen Nunan, Robin O'Donovan 0-1 each.
