Fethard still unbeaten
FETHARD BLACKWATER 1-20 1-17
IT WASN’T their most polished performance by any means, but Fethard eventually made it three victories from three outings with a 1-20 to 1-17 victory over winless Blackwater in Tuesday’s The Courtyard Ferns Intermediate hurling championship Group A tie at St. Patrick’s Park.
The sides were level on eight occasions in a water-tight firsthalf, with the biggest margin up to that point being Fethard’s 0-5 to 0-3 lead by the 14th minute.
Blackwater had led no less than five times in that opening period, but could never open up any daylight against the reigning Leinster Junior hurling champions, with Rúairí Tubrid firing over a minute in to injury time to ensure 0-9 apiece parity at the interval.
Kevin Corrigan’s sixth point edged Blackwater back in front from a free immediately on the resumption, but then Fethard reeled off six points in succession to really alter the course in their favour.
Four of these were frees from captain Graham O’Grady, while Darren Foley and John Tubritt tagged on points from play as the score stood at 0-15 to 0-10 by the 42nd minute.
Blackwater had introduced Shane O’Leary as a substitute in the 36th minute, but he was sent-off barely two minutes later for an over-zealous attempt at a tackle on Martin Power.
Still, they belied their numerical disparity by outscoring Fethard by 1-3 to 0-2 over the next eleven minutes, with youngster Jake Nobbs prodding home when reacting quickest to the breaking ball to bring the difference down to the minimum after 53 minutes (0-17 to 1-13).
But Blackwater had been hampered by the low-lying sun peering just above the trees for much of the second-half, and they missed four scoreable frees as a result.
Meanwhile, the otherwise quiet Mikie Dwyer sprung to life five minutes from time when making direct inroads towards the dressing-room end and slapping to the roof of the net for a brilliant, game-clinching goal.
Three successful Michael Lillis frees kept Blackwater in touch, but it now looks like a do-or-die match against fellow strugglers Rathgarogue-Cushinstown is on the cards to steer them clear of a relegation decider.
Fethard: Seán Foley; Martin Power, Jesse Foley, Daniel Mullan; Richard Waters, Kevin Rowe, Joe Sutton (0-1); Graham O’Grady (capt., 0-12, 11 frees, one ‘65), John Tubritt (0-1); Edmund Power, Rúairí Tubrid (0-1), Mikie Dwyer (1-1); Ciarán Dwyer (0-1), Darren Foley (0-1), Jimmy Sutton (0-2).
Blackwater: Peter O’Brien (capt.); Richard Blake, Eoin O’Neill, Kieran Roche; Kevin O’Brien, Denis Carroll, Ben Redmond; Paul O’Leary, Darren Byrne (0-2); Kevin Corrigan (0-7, 5 frees), Paul Murphy (0-1), Jake Nobbs (1-0); Michael Lillis (0-5, 4 frees), Diarmuid Murphy (0-1), Lar Leacy (0-1). Subs. - Dean Whelan for Carroll, inj. (17), Shane O’Leary for Leacy (36).
Referee: David Jenkins (Gusserane).