Rapps in command
Ryan returns as Ferns swatted aside
LAST YEAR’S disappointing semi-final performance has been consigned to history if the commanding manner of this Rapparees victory over neighbours Ferns St. Aidan’s in Group A of the Pettitt’s Senior hurling championship in O’Kennedy Park, New Ross, on Saturday is a reliable yardstick.
A team primed to deliver a big display flopped against St. Martin’s last October, but the desire to make progress wasn’t dealt a fatal blow by that defeat as the Enniscorthy men marched to a decisive seven-point success.
Being able to welcome back Liam Ryan was obviously a huge plus, while they also gave Senior debuts to two members of last year’s fine Minor team who are destined for long careers at this level – netminder Anthony Larkin and busy midfielder Oran Carty.
Indeed, the latter’s point in added time was a fitting way for the Rapps to close their scoring as, not alone did it stem from a fine move featuring a Darragh Pepper catch and a subsequent Alan Tobin pass, it also rewarded the industrious teenager on the scoresheet for a fine debut.
On the down side, Ryan Mahon departed early in the second-half with a shoulder or collar bone injury which is likely to keep him out of Saturday’s clash with Fethard.
However, another member of that clan, Tomás, was flying in spite of his veteran status and finished with twelve points, including three from play and one sweet line ball.
Waterford’s Pat Bennett is a member of the Ferns backroom team, and what they lacked more than anything was an inventive forward or two like his sons, inter-county duo Shane and Stephen, to supplement the work of Paul Morris.
All bar four points of the losers’ tally came from the Wexford attacker, with his first-half goal the only thing that saved his team from a bigger defeat.
That arrived in the eighth minute when Anthony Larkin hared off his line to challenge a forward.
The ball broke to Eoin Murphy who fed Morris with a handpass, and the Ferns captain was able to walk it into an empty net (1-1 to 0-4).
Tomás Mahon (three, two frees) and Darragh Pepper had picked off the earlier Rapps points, and they went on to make wind advantage count by adding a substantial 1-8 without reply.
Kevin Foley and Alan Tobin joined the prolific Mahon on the scoresheet, with his line ball conversion from the right flank in the 24th minute the highlight of his five-point haul during that sequence.
And it got even better for the Rapps when a Ferns defender fluffed a basic pick-up, with Alan Tobin handpassing inside to the unmarked Eamonn Furlong who drilled the sliothar to the net to extend his side’s lead to 1-12 to 1-1.
The only period when the victors allowed their standards to slip arrived on either side of half-time.
Indeed, Ferns took a breather with renewed hope after Tommy Dwyer, Chris Turner and Paul Morris (free) hit the last three points before the break to reduce arrears to eight.
And when they followed with the first four on the re-start – three more Morris placed balls plus his assist for a Gavin Bailey finish – there was a mere four points in it and bear in mind that Ferns had the wind (1-12 to 1-8).
That momentum stalled, though, and the Rapps looked comfortable again for the remainder of the game as Mahon’s finishing outshone the losers whose last three scores all arrived from Morris, two from play.
That four-point gap was as close as they came, however, and James Lawlor made one fine save to deny Alan Tobin, but Ferns do have a chance to get up and running next Sunday as they meet a St. Anne’s crew at their lowest ebb for quite some time.
Rapparees: Anthony Larkin; Dillon Redmond, Liam Ryan, Mel Doyle; Ben Edwards, Ricky Fox, James Peare; Oran Carty (0-1), Kevin Foley (capt., 0-1); Eamonn Furlong (1-0), Ryan Mahon, Jack Kelly; Darragh Pepper (02), Tomás Mahon (0-12, 8 frees, 1 line ball), Alan Tobin (0-2). Sub. - Anthony Roche for R. Mahon, inj. (34).
Ferns St. Aidan’s: James Lawlor; Patrick O’Hagan, John Breen, Rory Scallan; Ciarán Roberts, Conor Scallan, James Tonks; Niall Murphy, Gavin Bailey (0-1); Jonny Dwyer, Eoin Murphy, Tommy Dwyer (0-1); Paul Morris (capt., 1-7, 0-5 frees), Chris Turner (0-1), Ian Byrne (0-1).
Referee: David O’Leary (Rathnure).