Martin’s master 14 men
THE KEY moment of Sunday’s Tom Doyle Supplies Senior football championship Group B opener in O’Kennedy Park, New Ross, arrived early in the second-half, and only one team stood a chance of victory thereafter.
St. Martin’s had been hot favourites to build on their facile first round win over Taghmon-Camross, but a plucky Horeswood side had matched them every step of the way and only trailed by 1-7 to 1-6 at the break.
P.J. Banville kicked the equaliser for the underdogs on the restart from a free, and 90 seconds later persistent fouling on the inter-county attacker was finally acknowledged in the form of a yellow card for a St. Martin’s defender after a late challenge.
However, the real flashpoint occurred in the 35th minute when Banville received a straight red card from referee Billy Dodd for his part in an incident which saw Jack O’Connor booked.
The Horeswood contingent were apopleptic, and from a neutral viewpoint it also sounded the death knell for what had been an engrossing contest up to that stage.
Maybe St. Martin’s would have driven on to a handsome victory one way or the other, but that can’t be stated with any degree of certainty.
What cannot be denied is that they utilised the extra man fully on an afternoon when the overall strength of their panel was clear.
They went on to outscore Horeswood by 1-10 to 0-2, with those consolation points coming late on from Declan Murphy including a beauty with the outside of his boot, although he had missed a handy one closer to goal earlier.
Horeswood had threatened from the off, with Murphy unfortunate to rattle the crossbar from a sublime P.J. Banville pass after one minute before dual county Minor Seán Nolan followed up with the first of three well-taken first-half points.
Daithí Waters, deployed at full-forward before moving to midfield after the interval, fisted the equaliser before Conor Firman came forward to edge the saints ahead, but Ed O’Byrne blazed a gilt-edged goal chance to the left and wide in the eighth minute.
Less than a minute later Horeswood were in business at the other end after Michael O’Hanlon played a beautiful pass over the top to P.J. Banville, operating in a two-man full-forward line with younger brother Eric whom he set up perfectly to palm to the net from close range (1-1 to 0-2).
Confidence was high as P.J. added a point from a David Larkin pass, but St. Martin’s drew level in the twelfth minute when Conor Firman and Jamie Carty combined to play Daithí Waters in for a wellworked goal.
Horeswood were clearly up for this one though, a point underlined by the three points in response from Eric Banville, David Larkin and Seán Nolan (1-5 to 1-2).
Barry O’Connor (free) and Ciarán Lyng made it a one-point game before Nolan picked off his third on his first-ever Senior start, and it took a decent save from Tomás Hayes to prevent him from adding a goal in the 24th minute.
The depth in the St. Martin’s squad gave them the luxury of making a couple of substitutions in the third quarter, with the second new face, Patrick O’Connor, levelling with his first touch after Jake Firman had pointed earlier.
Jamie Carty latched on to a quick Jack O’Connor free to ease the men in maroon clear by one, but P.J. Banville brought the sides level for a third time on the re-start before it went rapidly downhill for the experienced attacker.
St. Martin’s kicked five points on the trot before the third quarter had ended, with Daithí Waters, Ciarán Lyng (three) and substitute Joe Coleman ensuring that the game was over by that stage.
An Aaron Maddock goal attempt was saved by Conor Swaine before the flow of scores continued, with points for Jake Firman, Barry O’Connor (black carded in the last seconds), Jamie Carty (’45) and Joe Coleman followed by a Carty goal in the 57th minute after good approach from the O’Connor brothers, Jack and Rory.
St. Martin’s: Tomás Hayes; Willie Devereux (capt.), Mikey Coleman, Conor Firman (0-1); Jack O’Connor, Aaron Maddock, Paudie Kelly; Rory O’Connor, Jamie Carty (1-2, 0-1 ’45); Jake Firman (0-2), Ed O’Byrne, Darren Codd; Ciarán Lyng (0-5), Daithí Waters (1-2), Barry O’Connor (0-2, 1 free). Subs. - Harry O’Connor for Coleman (20), Patrick O’Connor (0-1) for Codd (27), Joe Coleman (0-2) for O’Byrne (40), Michael Codd for C. Firman (47), Ben Maddock for Kelly (51).
Horeswood: Conor Swaine; Kevin Parker, Paddy Murphy, Barry Hearn; Eddie Shiely, Ryan Harris, Dale Flynn; David Larkin (capt., 0-1), Darren Shannon; Michael O’Hanlon, Declan Murphy (0-2 frees), Seán Nolan (0-3); Leigh O’Brien, Eric Banville (1-1), P.J. Banville (0-2, 1 free). Subs. - Gary Conway for E. Banville (42), Jim Wall for O’Brien (47), Niall Collins for Nolan (51).
Referee: Billy Dodd (Sarsfields).