Bunclody make life tough on Ballygarrett’s return
HWH-BUNCLODY BALLYGARRETT
HWH-BUNCLODY laid down some early markers in Bellefield on Sunday, suggesting that they will stop at nothing in their quest to improve on last year’s qualification for The Courtyard Intermediate hurling championship final.
They were the clear masters of this Group B meeting with Ballygarrett, although the promoted side did at least keep plugging away and managed a decent haul of 1-17 for a well-beaten side.
There was much to admire about the winners’ overall play, particularly the fine partnership provided by Eoin and Billy Kelly at midfield, the power of Edward Dunbar on the ’40, and some super points by young attacker Ciarán Regan.
Of course, the chief source of their overall dominance was the power surge exerted by captain Aidan Nolan from centre-back, although Ballygarrett didn’t help their own cause by repeatedly driving deliveries straight down the middle.
Veteran centre-forward Patrick Naughter appeared frustrated as he drifted to the wings in search of passes that never came, but there’s time to work on that distribution before their do-or-die battle with Askamore in St. Patrick’s Park on Friday week.
The early loss of wing-back Harry Byrne to injury had an unsettling effect, although Cormac Moore-Kavanagh’s strong running into the breeze did pose early problems on an afternoon when all four midfielders were very prominent in the scoring stakes.
Ballygarrett would have been quite pleased to be only two points in arrears (0-7 to 0-5) after 18 minutes, with Moore-Kavanagh, Brendan Corcoran, Killian Doyle and free-taker Jack Hobbs all on target.
The key score of the opening half came direct from the puck-out after Doyle’s point, with Edward Dunbar using his strength to gather Art O’Neill’s long drive and bursting forward before applying a clever one-handed finish.
HWH-Bunclody really opened up after that tonic score, so much so in fact that John Dunne’s point to make it 1-13 to 0-8 close to half-time ensured that all six attackers, along with both midfielders, had scored.
Ciarán Regan and Billy Kelly (free) increased their lead to ten points before the break, but any complacency was wiped out just 49 seconds into the new period when full-forward Shane Quinn caught a Stephen Redmond free and buried it to give Ballygarrett brief hope.
It didn’t last, though, as HWH-Bunclody went for the jugular when the chance arose after initially replying with points from Ciarán Regan, Billy Kelly (free) and Cathal Doyle.
Peter Atkinson and Billy Kelly combined to leave Eoin Kelly with the opening for another handy point in the 39th minute, but he had other ideas.
He dreamed big and got the rewards such ambition deserved, taking on and beating a would-be Ballygarrett challenger before stitching the ball into Aaron Hall’s net (2-18 to 1-8).
If the HWH-Bunclody mentors want to get more from their charges versus Askamore this coming Saturday, being outscored by 0-9 to 0-4 from that juncture onwards might be seen as offering room for improvement, even though they were playing into the breeze.
Still, it would be nit-picking to suggest that the winners were anything but dominant and impressive on the whole, and the fact that Billy Kelly’s late injury wasn’t as serious as it initially looked was another big plus.
This game represented a steep learning curve for Ballygarrett, but their final tally would win several outings. And with relegation written out of the equation for everyone, they will be expected to have a real go at Askamore on Friday week.
HWH-Bunclody: Art O’Neill; Conor Hendrick, Colm Farrell, Martin O’Connor; Páraic Sinnott, Aidan Nolan (capt., 0-1 free), Conor Crean; Eoin Kelly (1-4), Billy Kelly (0-6, 4 frees); John Dunne (0-1), Edward Dunbar (1-1), Tadhg Ó Ceallaigh (0-1); Ciarán Regan (0-4), Peter Atkinson (0-1), Cathal Doyle (0-3). Subs. - Lee Levingstone for Sinnott (58), Mylie Connors for Atkinson (58), Sinnott for B. Kelly, inj. (60).
Ballygarrett: Aaron Hall; Eddie Redmond (0-1), Darren Morris, Seán O’Brien; Harry Byrne, Stephen Redmond (capt.), Adam Fleming; Cormac Moore-Kavanagh (03), Tom Sinnott (0-3); Brendan Corcoran (0-1), Patrick Naughter, Killian Doyle (0-2); Jack Hobbs (0-7, 5 frees, 1 ’65), Shane Quinn (1-0), John Doyle. Subs. - Johnny Sinnott for Byrne, inj. (4), Kevin Jordan for Naughter (37), Joe Burke for E. Redmond (46).
Referee: Matty Kinnaird (Rapparees).