Emphatic win for Baltinglass
Walshe’s men recover well
BALTINGLASS stuttered and spluttered their way to defeat last week against St Pat’s but they had no such trouble with an emphatic win over Newtown to re-ignite their championship challenge.
Newtown actually got off the start line quicker with two early points but Baltinglass smoothly moved through the gears and lapped them by half time. The second half was merely a matter of the final winning margin.
Mikey English put in a wonderful performance in full forward. In last year’s county semi-final against Rathnew he was named at midfield but positioned at full back to deal with the long balls going in to Mark Doyle.
This time he was the target for long balls and it worked a treat. He scored two goals, was involved for the other two along with a few points and a few chances that weren’t converted.
Late in the game he moved out the field and caught a high ball coming into the Baltinglass square as Newtown went in search of a consolation goal.
Kevin Murphy dominated midfield, Peadar Burke did the same at wing forward and then midfield while Daniel Kelly and Christopher Heaslip didn’t do anything spectacular yet still kicked twelve points between them.
The team as a whole played with a ferocious intensity that just wasn’t there in the first game against St Pat’s.
Newtown simply had no answer to them and failed to convert a couple of late consolation goal chances.
Newtown scored the first two points inside ninety seconds, a Ross Davis free and a classy Dean Odlum point, and then Baltinglass hit back with 1-02, each with Mikey English’s finger prints all over them.
He got his fist to a high Kevin Murphy ball for the goal and flicked the ball into the paths of Christopher Heaslip and John McGrath for the points.
Newtown struck back with a good point by Neil Martin under pressure but the Baltinglass scores came much easier. After Martin’s point Mark Jackson pinged the kick out into McGrath’s chest in midfield who passed to Heaslip for an immediate response.
Baltinglass won Kenneth Turner’s kick out and launched the ball once again into English. He failed to catch the ball but it ricocheted off John O’Donohoe’s knee for an own goal.
They kept up the scoring and led by 3-09 to 5 points at half time. English got his team’s third goal, this time McGrath, Brian Lord and Heaslip did well to set up the full forward for an easy finish. McGrath, Murphy and Kelly also failed to take more goal chances.
Mark Fitzsimons and Luke Martin had a couple of goal chances in the second half for Newtown but last gasp blocks, including one from Billy Cullen who dived at Martin’s feet, meant Mark Jackson kept a clean sheet.
Baltinglass used the second half to ring the changes and introduce a whole host of young players to the senior championship. They’ve laid down a marker and sets them in good stead in Group 1 before their season defining games against AGB and Blessington in August.
Scorers – Baltinglass: Daniel Kelly (1f) 0-07; Michael English 2-00; Christopher Heaslip 0-05; Darragh Doyle, John O’Donohoe (OG) 1-00 each; John McGrath, Peadar Burke, Brian Lord, Mark Jackson (f), Sean O’Brien (f) 0-01 each.
Newtown: Dean Odlum 0-03; Ross Davis (2f), Mark Fitzsimons 0-02 each; Neil Martin 0-01.
Baltinglass: Mark Jackson; John Murray, Ian Sheerin, Billy Cullen; Patrick Burke, Stephen Heaslip, Brian Nolan; Kevin Murphy, Jason Kennedy; John McGrath, Daniel Kelly, Peadar Burke; Brian Lord, Michael English, Christopher Heaslip. Subs: Sean O’Brien for Jason Kennedy (20-22, BS); Cian Lee for Patrick Burke, Aaron Barrett for Jason Kennedy (both HT); Jordan Deans for Brian Nolan (39 mins); Lee Furlong for Billy Cullen (41 mins); Darragh Doyle for Cian Lee (46 mins, inj.); Sean O’Brien for Peadar Burke (49 mins).
Newtown: Kenneth Turner; Darren Walsh, John O’Donohoe, Luke Greenan; Neil Martin, Shane Mooney, Karl Carthy; Paul O’Riordan, Declan Doyle; Mark Fitzsimons, Luke Martin, Ross Davis; Dean Odlum, Cathal McNicholas, Conor Odlum. Subs: Sean Gregory for Cathal McNicholas (HT); Glenn Carthy for Robert Greenan (52 mins); Adam Heffernan for Neil Martin, James Synott for Luke Martin (both 58 mins); Thomas Maher for Conor Odlum (59 mins).
Referee: John Keenan (Aughrim)