Glynn-Barntown send Cloughbawn crashing
GLYNN-BARNTOWN CLOUGHBAWN 1-21 2-10
LESS than 12 months on from giving Oulart-The Ballagh a run for their money in the county final, Cloughbawn’s Senior hurling status hangs in the balance as they put in another below-par display in losing to Glynn Barntown by 1-21 to 2-10 in Saturday evening’s Pettitt’s Senior hurling round five Group A tie at St. Patrick’s Park.
Simply put, a win was the number one objective for both teams as Cloughbawn looked to leap-frog their opponents in the standings and avoid the dreaded relegation final.
But there was no sense of the do-or-die nature of the occasion as, truthfully, the Killurin-based side looked sharper from the first whistle, and had the win virtually secured at half-time, by which stage they sat comfortably in front by 13 points.
And although Cloughbawn didn’t break that double-score deficit until the dying embers of the game, in the end victory proved futile for Glynn Barntown, as Shelmaliers’ win over Buffers Alley on the same evening saw the Monamolin men nab the final quarter-final berth on the head-tohead ruling.
Chief scorer Gary Moore signaled his intent with Glynn’s opener after only 44 seconds, while Fionn Cooney and Rowan White (twice) followed suit soon after as they built a 0-4 to nil lead after six minutes.
Harry Kehoe pegged back a free for Cloughbawn, before a quick-fire 1-2 really strengthened Glynn’s position by the end of the first quarter.
Alan Cowman and Moore (free) picked off a point each before the latter zoned in on an short puckout attempt, gathered possession and confidently dispatched low to the corner of the net (1-6 to 0-1). The same player demonstrated his full repertoire of skills with a perfectly-judged side-line cut on 17 minutes, while at the other end Barry Carton out-muscled his bigger opponent Craig Doyle before pointing on the run on 20 minutes for Cloughbawn’s first score from play (1-8 to 0-3).
Incidentally, Doyle formed onethird of what was a formidable half-back line for the winners’, with John Leacy particularly outstanding as the launchpad for many Glynn attacks.
Meanwhile, five unanswered points on the spin, including two from the impressive Kevin Crean brought an ominous look to the scoreboard at the change of ends, with Glynn in control by 1-14 to 0-4. Kehoe attempted to ignite a spark with the first two scores of the new half, but Crean pounced on a loose clearance to point, while Moore found the range from another sideline cut to increase the gap to 1-17 to 0-6 after 37 minutes.
Kehoe did produce a moment of class nine minutes from time when he latched onto a cross field pass to fire low across the body of his Wexford colleague Mark Fanning (1-20 to 1-8). Fanning gained revenge soon after though when he pulled off an acrobatic save to deny Kehoe a certain goal. He also denied him from a close-range free at the death, but Kehoe made it three times lucky when another free squirmed over the ‘line for a consolation goal from the last play of a mediocre game.
Glynn Barntown: Mark Fanning (capt, 0-2 frees); Barry Doyle, Jack Fenlon, Shane Codd; Michael O’Regan, John Leacy, Craig Doyle; Brendan Doyle, Michael Doyle (0-1); Rowan White (0-3), Gary Moore (1-8, two sideline cuts, four frees), Kevin Crean (0-4); Fionn Cooney (0-1), Alan Cowman (0-1), Daire Barron (01). Subs: Matthew Joyce for Barron, Frankie Hynes for Cooney, David Clarke for M.Doyle, Rioghan Crosbie for B. Doyle.
Cloughbawn: Noel Carton; MJ Furlong, Tomas Furlong (capt), Gavin Murphy; Barry Kehoe, Paudi Cullen, Johnny Cullen; Connal Flood, Barry Carton (0-2); Harry Kehoe (2-6, 1-5 frees), Alan Carton, Conor Harrington; Paul Foley, Bob Whitty (0-2, one ‘65), Colm Kehoe. Subs: Corey Bolger for Foley, David Doyle Murphy for Harrington, Colin Doyle for MJ Furlong.
Referee: James Owens (Askamore).