Oylegate cruise through
WHILE THE attention has been on what St. Martin’s and Naomh Eanna have been doing, Oylegate-Glenbrien have quietly gone about their business and will take some beating in the Greenstar Under-21 hurling Premier championship.
They were too strong for hosts Glynn-Barntown in Killurin on Monday of last week, that much was evident 13 minutes in with the lead already 2-8 to nil.
Thereafter it was an exercise in patience, playing out the remaining time without dropping their levels too much.
And it really was as comfortable as that. Things tend to be easier when the team hits the ground running and reaches match intensity right from throw-in, and that’s just what Oylegate-Glenbrien did as they blitzed their hosts.
Seamus Casey, who ended with a mammoth 1-14, flipped over early dead balls while captain Ciarán Hourihane set the tone for his side with a delightful long-range score against the breeze.
The opening goal came in the sixth minute and was the product of a sublime Patrick Cullen handpass. The Oylegate-Glenbrien midfielder was under intense pressure but hit Damien Reck in stride and there was only one likely outcome once the young inter-county star broke in on goal.
After points from Jack Reck and Barry Dunne, Casey collected a long ball, soloed 25 yards untouched, and drilled low to the net. When he quickly added his fifth point, his side led by 14 after 13 minutes.
As well as a Rowan White point that broke the run of Oylegate-Glenbrien scores, Matthew Joyce popped over five second quarter points to give Glynn-Barntown something to work with after the interval.
Yet, after Ciarán O’Brien and Conor Doyle added their names to the scoresheet, the visitors looked comfortable at 2-12 to 0-6 ahead at the break.
Oylegate-Glenbrien made sure that there would be no comeback pretty quickly in the second-half, scoring the first three points. Ciarán Joyce drilled a classy point for Glynn-Barntown but with Casey popping over scores for fun, the lead was out to 2-21 to 0-11 with nine minutes left.
Sibling telepathy played a part in Fiachra Hourihane’s cracking goal after being picked out by Ciarán on the left wing before flashing to the top corner. Rowan White scored a well-taken late consolation major for the hosts but it’s Oylegate-Glenbrien who progressed to the last four and a home clash with Naomh Eanna.
Oylegate-Glenbrien: Eddie Mernagh; Niall Parker, Kieran Lambert, Lee Kehoe; Mike Kelly, Shane Reck, Ciarán Hourihane (capt., 0-1); Patrick Cullen, Jack Reck (0-1); Conor Doyle (0-1), Damien Reck (1-2), Tom White; Ciarán O’Brien (0-1), Seamus Casey (1-14, 0-9 frees, 0-1 ’65), Barry Dunne (0-2). Subs. - Fiachra Hourihane (1-0) for O’Brien (27), Pierce Murphy for Dunne (47), Ryan Hill for Cullen (51), Evan Kelly for White (58), Niall Kinsella for Kehoe (59).
Glynn-Barntown: Jamie O’Shea; David Roche, Ger Dempsey, Dylan Lyne; Ciarán Joyce (0-1), Kevin Mahoney, Cormac Rowe; Frankie Hynes, James Stafford; Rowan White (capt., 1-1), Ben O’Shea, Fionn Cooney; Jack Brazzill, Aaron Kehoe, Matthew Joyce (0-9, 8 frees). Subs. - Ian Moran for Kehoe (33), Shane Doyle for C. Joyce (47), Daniel O’Regan for Brazzill (56).
Referee: Brendan Martin (Ballyhogue).