GLENEALY TRIUMPH!
Reds come through tough battle to seal final spot
GLENEALY ÉIRE ÓG 3-17 4-09
GLENEALY motored on to the Dacia Cars Senior hurling final following a 3-17 to 4-09 victory over the men of Éire Óg Greystones after an entertaining semi-final clash in Joule Park, Aughrim, last Saturday afternoon.
A tally of 3-17 against a very decent defence will win you most games, but the concession of four late goals will be of major concern to Gary Laffan’s men as they face the quick turnaround before facing Bray Emmets this Sunday in the decider.
However, by the time Jonathan O’Neill jnr grabbed his second and his side’s third goal to make it 3-12 to 0-08, there could an argument for Glenealy taking the foot off the pedal ahead of Éire Óg’s late resurgence.
Nevertheless, such looseness at the back would be fatal against the forwards of the caliber possessed by Bray Emmets.
The tenacity and skill of Leighton Glynn was pivotal to Glenealy’s early dominance. He played a massive role in the majority of their early scores; winning the free for Jonathan O’Neill Snr’s opening point before catching low from a Danny Staunton clearance and making a defence tormenting pass to release Jonathan O’Neill Jnr for the game’s opening goal after five minutes to make it 1-02 to 0-01.
Jamie Byne had brought a fine save out of Dan O’Neill seconds earlier, while Anto Byrne had driven over a beautiful score from distance to open Éire Óg’s account with three on the clock.
Following the Glenealy goal there was a period of uncertainty in the Glenealy defence but they survived any major mishap with an Anto Byrne wide from a free from his own half all Éire Óg had to show for their efforts.
Despite Éire Óg’s honesty and determination, the Glenealy side were that bit sharper in some aspects of the play and by half-time they had created a 2-07 to 0-08 gap that was not insurmountable for the Greystones men by any stretch of the imagination.
Glenealy’s second goal of the first half came from the hurl of Alan Driver and followed points from Jonathan O’Neill Snr (free), Leighton Glynn (two), Jamie Byrne, and three James Cranley converted frees to make it 2-06 to 0-04, with Dan O’Neill pulling off a fine save from Enan Glynn’s shot in the lead up to Driver’s goal from a sweet ground stroke, Gary Byrne with a ball from midfield that unlocked the Éire Óg defence.
Credit to Éire Óg, they didn’t panic, and they bagged four points before the break, one from a mountainous free from Stephen Kelly, a super score from Shane Nolan, a wicked effort from Anto Byrne from a tight angle and an Andy Walsh point just before the break to send Éire Óg in with some hope on a score of 2-07 to 0-08.
A good start was vital for the Greystones men but a wide from James Cranley was followed by a devastating 1-05 for the Glenealy men with points from Jonathan O’Neill Snr (two frees and a 65), O’Neill Jnr, Jamie Byrne, and Glenealy’s third and final goal, this one from the hurl of Jonathan O’Neil Jnr to make it 3-12 to 0-08.
Again, full credit to the Éire Óg men. They refused to panic or throw in the towel and back they came with vengence. Andy Walsh rattled the net with 14 gone in the second half and this was quickly followed by a major from Anto Byrne and all of a sudden that mountain Éire Óg had to climb had been reduced to a steep hill at 3-12 to 2-08.
Garry Byrne, Jonathan O’Neill Snr (65) and Joey Driver Jnr stopped the Éire Óg resurgence in its track with three fine points but Shane Nolan and Anto Byrne would raise late green flags for the Greystones men who never once relented but Glenealy’s ability to pop over points helped them stay well ahead of their opponents with points from Jonathan O’Neill Snr (free), and a superb Jamie Byrne point coming between Éire Óg’s tw goals to make it 3-17 to 4-09.
Glenealy march on but this tough clash with a fine and improving Éire Óg outfit will stand them in good stead for the meeting with Bray Emmets this Sunday in Joule Park, Aughrim.
Scorers – Glenealy: Jonathan O’Neill Jnr 2-02, Jonathan O’Neill Snr 0-07 (5f, 2 65), Jamie Byrne 0-04, Leighton Glynn 0-02, Alan Driver 1-00, Garry Byrne 0-01, Joey Driver Jnr 0-01.
Éire Óg Greystones: Anto Byrne 2-02 (1p), Shane Nolan 1-01, Andy Walsh 1-01, James Cranley 0-03 (3f), Stephen Kelly 0-01 (f), Leon Browne 0-01.
Keith Snell, Tommy Doyle, Warren Kavanagh, Lee Kavanagh; Garry Byrne, Danny Staunton, Robert Byrne; Emmett Byrne, Jonathan O’Neill Snr; Enan Glynn, Leighton Glynn, Jamie Byrne; John Manley, Alan Driver, Jonathan O’Neill Jnr. Subs: James Manley for T Doyle, Joey Driver Jnr for A Driver.
Dan O’Neill; Shaun Hughes, Billy Cuddihy, Daniel O’Connor; Kristin Flynn, Mick Arrigan, Peter Keane; Stephen Kelly, Shane Nolan; Gavin Parslow, Anto Byrne, Leon Browne; James Cranley, Andrew Walsh, Hughie O’Neill. Subs: Sean Lawless for S Hughes, Michael Walsh for G Parslow, Danny Nolan for S Nolan
John Keenan (Aughrim)