Match Report

Ballyvarley Get Off To A Bright Start But Fade Away In The Latter Stages

Date Filed: 08 August 2011

Down Junior Hurling Championship Semi-final:
Ballyvarley 1-9 Castlewellan 2-11
Ballyvarley bowed out of the Junior Hurling Championship at the semi-final stage when they fell narrowly by five points to a strong Castlewellan side in Kilcoo.
The Reds battled gamely to make it to a second consecutive championship final but a mini collapse in the third quarter saw the side slip into an eight point deficit that they never recovered from.
Ballyvarley started well and Paul O’Neill looked in fine form as he struck over two points to give them a deserved early lead. However the game turned decisively with the dismissal of Sean Kennedy and the Reds struggled to fill the gap left by their key player. A goal and three points from Castlewellan saw them slip into a four point lead as Ballyvarley struggled to make any progress in attack. Paul O’Neill pulled Ballyvarley back into contention with two well-taken points and when Steven Daly added another there was only one point between the sides. Sean O’Neill was introduced to add some experience to a light-weight attack and when he was hauled down on his way to goal Ballyvarley were awarded a penalty. However, Paul O’Neill’s shot was saved on the line and instead of going ahead, the Reds fell further behind to two further Castlewellan points. Paul O’Neill made amends for his penalty miss when he soloed through for two well-taken points to leave Ballyvarley trailing by just one point at the interval.

Half time: Ballyvarley 0-7 Castlewellan 1-5

The Reds never got going after the interval and an early point from Castlewellan was followed up by a decisive goal when goalkeeper Cathal O’Neill’s attempted clearance was blocked down and finished to the net. Another three points gave Castlewellan a comfortable eight point lead and there was really no way back from there. The Reds defence were superb throughout but otherwise they failed to compete with an exuberant Castlewellan side and in the second half Paul O’Neill found it difficult to escape the shackles of his markers. Thomas Lennon was pushed forward to add some impetus to the attack and for a time it worked as Paul O’Neill hit two more points and Thomas struck home his first senior goal to leave just four points between the sides and it was game on again. Ballyvarley lifted their game as they went in search of another goal but in an exciting finish it was Castlewellan who had the last say with a late point that saw them deservedly advance to the championship final.

Final Score: Ballyvarley 1-9 Castlewellan 2-11

Cathal O’Neill; Adan Twohig, Thomas Lennon(1-0) , Eunan McConville; Sean Kennedy, James McGrath, Micky Cairns; Ciaran Connolly, Niall Savage; Stephen Daly(0-1), Paul O’Neill(0-8), Conor McClorey; Jonathan Lennon, David Lavery, Tony Hegarty.
Subs: Sean O’Neill , James McConville, John O’Neill, Patrick Macken, Michael McKay, Peter McConville, Gavin McGreevey, Ciaron Davis, Rory McShane