Barndarrig bounce back with big win over Knockananna
BARNDARRIG KNOCKANANNA 1-19 0-4
BARNDARRIG bounced back after an opening day defeat to a very strong side in Valleymount with as they cruised to victory in the Group 1 of the Junior ‘A’ championship against a very disappointing Knockananna in Pearse’s Park.
They were impressive throughout the bout, particularly in defence as they only conceded 4 points in the game.
They opened the scoring through Andrew P Kavanagh before Michael Cullen pointed his first. Knockananna were failing to get forward as their heavy defeat to Valleymount seemed to knock a lot of confidence out of the side.
Eight minutes in and a big chance for Barndarrig to net as full forward Martin Cullen was one on one with goalkeeper Sean Canna, but Cullen struck the upright.
Reid Byrne was a bright spark for Knockananna with his quick feet being the main danger for Barndarrig to deal with, but support for Byrne was lacking.
Barndarrig hit the woodwork again a couple of minutes later Michael Murphy hit the crossbar after being played through by Patrick Redmond.
Knockananna finally got themselves on the scoresheet as the clock hit 11 minutes after a close range free from Lorcan Tyrrell.
Barndarrig then pulled their lead out to three after both Cullens, Michael and Martin, pointed for their side.
Sean Canna in the Knockananna goal seemed really comfortable early on with a couple of good catches and good distribution.
Barndarrig captain and midfielder Bernard Quinn was a dominant force in the aerial battles with his tall stature causing many a problem.
Barndarrig extended their lead to six, again with points from the Cullens and another for Kavanagh. They were unfortunate not to net as Martin Cullen’s movement in the full forward position was causing problems, but the full back line dealt well.
Knockananna struggled to pick up their markers, as lots of free blue shirts could be seen across the field.
Three consecutive frees from Michael Murphy pulled Barndarrig’s lead to ten points as referee Darragh Byrne blew for the half time interval. Knockananna were very poor in the first half, particularly going forward, as they failed to point from play, with their only score coming from a very close range free.
Knockananna finally got another score just two minutes after restart, a Kevin Tyrrell free. There was certainly an improvement to be seen from the side but Barndarrig were still getting the better opportunities to add to the scoreboard.
Very little action occurred in the opening half of the second period, with Barndarrig leading by eleven. Knockananna were beginning to get more and more frustrated, this led to Patrick O Keeffe blasting the ball out of the ground after a side line was awarded against his side. From the resulting ball into the box, Barndarrig’s captain netted. The high ball aimed in towards Quinn was knocked down, this was saved by goalkeeper Canna, but the ball fell into the arms of Quinn who blasted into an empty net to put the game to bed.
Knockananna became sloppy late on as they struggled to do the simple things like hand pass to a team mate. Yet Barndarrig did defend solidly, making the most of their opponent’s mistakes by intercepting the ball in good positions.
Barndarrig broke away in the end with several points on the spin. Substitute John Andrew Kinsella added two points, with Murphy and Michael and Martin Cullen continuing to add to their good tallies.
It finished an 18-point game with an impressive Barndarrig display. It’s the end of the road for Knockananna as their campaign with a whimper after a decent victory in their first clash against Newcastle. Next up for Barndarrig is a clash against bottom side Newcastle, again to be played at Pearses Park.
Scorers: Barndarrig – Michael Murphy 0-5 (3f); Michael Cullen 0-4; Martin Cullen 0-4 (1f); Andrew P Kavanagh 0-3; Bernard Quinn 1-0; John Andrew Kinsella 0-2; Tom Doyle 0-1.
Knockananna – Kevin Tyrrell 0-2 (2f); Lorcan Tyrrell 0-1 (f); Joseph Byrne 0-1.