Ballymurn by one
CROSSABEG-B’MURN 1-11 NAOMH EANNA 0-13 (AET)
TWO WEEKS after Crossabeg-Ballymurn looked to be heading for a stroll to the Ashdown Park/Amber Springs Hotels Intermediate football championship final only to be denied by the floodlights, they were pushed right to the wire by Naomh Eanna.
Back to Bellefield it was on Friday evening, and this game bore no resemblance to what had come before.
The Wexford District side had ledby1-9to0-3after25minutes of that encounter, but didn’t match that tally until extra-time here.
In truth, they were lucky to get that far. They could have had no complaints had Gorey won the game in normal time, as the underdogs were the better side for long spells of the second-half and were hugely unfortunate not to win it in 60 minutes.
Naomh Eanna accomplished something very difficult against Crossabeg-Ballymurn, as they had their opponents frustrated. Gorey were compact defensively, often funnelling 14 men behind the ball, and they were disciplined in the tackle too.
Crossabeg-Ballymurn resorted to poor shots and running down blind alleys for much of the period, and it was only a stroke of good fortune, a looping Paddy Devereux goal in the 57th minute, that kept them in contention for the title.
Marginally the more impressive side in the opening quarter, Crossabeg-Ballymurn built a 0-4 to 0-2 lead.
Aodhán Doyle had kicked Gorey ahead, but his point from the right of goal was countered by a Pádraig Foley effort in the fifth minute.
Jack Cullen put Naomh Eanna in front again, the second of three times they led, but three points in just three minutes from Sam Kelly (two) and Mark Byrne ensured Crossabeg-Ballymurn held the advantage after the opening quarter.
Maybe buoyed by their solid start and growing in confidence, Gorey tails were up. It was clear this was not going the same way as the abandoned game, and that fact had a clear impact on the psyche of both sides.
The impressive Cathal Dunbar and dominant Ronan Devereux exchanged points, but Naomh Eanna almost dealt a critical blow to their opponents when David O’Brien cut in from the left and crashed a shot off the post with Ben Turner well beaten.
Gorey scored two of the last three points of the half, with William Cullen and Dunbar on target, to go in just 0-6 to 0-5 down.
Paddy Devereux made the lead two in the 35th minute, but there was already evidence that his side were struggling to make their usual impact.
As frustration started to set in, Naomh Eanna got themselves level with points from Cullen and Peter Travers. Kelly registered in the 44th minute to make it 0-8 to 0-7, but again Gorey responded through Dunbar.
With their attacks boasting more direction and purpose, Naomh Eanna looked to be heading for a shock victory when a Charlie McGuckin point was soon followed by a long-range Conor McDonald score to give their side a two-point lead with five minutes left.
They could have reacted badly when Paddy Devereux’s dipping point effort from 30 metres out beat a back-pedalling Gearóid Cullen, but they knuckled down again and deservedly brought the game to extra-time when David O’Brien kicked a 59th-minute free.
Despite the goal, the break came at a great time for Crossabeg-Ballymurn, as they regrouped and took control in the first period of extra-time. Pádraig Foley flashed over from close range, and Kelly kicked his fifth point to make it 1-10 to 0-11.
Both sides added a point each before the interval, as Gary Molloy kicked a nice minor for Gorey, only for Conor Devereux to respond.
Crossabeg-Ballymurn survived one huge scare in the 74th minute. Turner somehow kept Aodhán Doyle’s punch from Jack Doran’s feed out, and the ball rebounded to McDonald who fired wide from eight yards.
An O’Brien free did narrow the gap to one point with three minutes left. Molloy sliced one wide in the 78th minute, and they didn’t get another chance. Crossabeg-Ballymurn kept possession of the ball for the final 75 seconds to advance by the minimum.
Crossabeg-Ballymurn: Ben Turner; Martin Redmond, Oisín Foley (capt.), Conor Barlow; Seamus Carroll, Ronan Devereux (0-1), Conor Devereux (0-1); Paddy Devereux (1-1), Davy Kehoe; Bill Eviston, Pádraig Foley (02), Cian Lambert; Mark O’Connor, Sam Kelly (0-5, 3 frees, 1 ‘45), Mark Byrne (0-1 free). Subs. - Jack Fortune for Byrne (26), Robbie Murphy for Barlow (44), Andy Butler for O’Connor (56), Oran Maddock for Lambert (60+2), Rob Byrne for Maddock, black card (68), Matty Sludds for Redmond (73), Conor Maddock for Carroll (79).
Naomh Eanna: Gearóid Cullen; Eoin Molloy, Simon Doran, Seamus O’Donnell; Brendan Travers, Pádraig Doyle, Seán Doyle; John O’Brien, Jack Cullen (0-1 free); Peter Travers (capt., 0-1), David O’Brien (0-2 frees), Conor McDonald (0-1); Cathal Dunbar (0-3), William Cullen (0-2), Aodhán Doyle (0-1). Subs. - Charlie McGuckin (0-1) for B. Travers (35), Jack Doran for W. Cullen (49), Jack Cushe for J. Cullen (53), Lee Kinsella for J. O’Brien (60), Gary Molloy (0-1) for P. Doyle, inj. (63), Jack Cullen for D. O’Brien (78).
Referee: David Jenkins (Gusserane).