Good workout for our senior hurlers

SENIOR HURLERS Fermoy 2-14 Newcestown 2-18

On Saturday evening last we headed to Newcestown for our re-fixed senior hurling league round 1 game against the hosts. I know it’s a cliché, but this was definitely a game of two halves as Fermoy played all the hurling in the first half, before Newcestown turned it on in the second half. This was an excellent match for some of our younger lads to experience a game of good tough hurling where mistakes were punished detrimentally. The pitch was in very good condition with very little bounce on the sliothar and there was a stiff breeze blowing down the field.

The game started at a hectic pace with both sides looking for the ascendency. David Lardner got the opening score on 2 mins before Newcestown replied on 4 mins. They took the lead on 5 mins before a Jake Carr pointed free had us level at 0-02 each on 6 mins. A Jake free on 7 mins put us ahead, then he tapped over another free on 12 mins, before David got his second point of the game on 13 mins to make it 0-05 to 0-03 to us.

Newcestown responded with a free on 15 mins, but Fermoy got the next two scores with frees from Jake. It must be noted that the referee was very strict with both sides on the hand pass rules as he awarded several frees during the first half for this, so he should be applauded for that. Padraig de Roiste scored a point from play to put us four points ahead. Again they responded with two points to leave it 0-08 to 0-06 in our favour.

We hit a truly wonderful purple patch in the next 5 mins. On 28 mins Brian O’Sullivan found himself in space and was found with a delightful pass, he bore down on goal and from 10 metres out he blasted the ball which the goalie reached but only ending up putting the ball in to the net. A minute later Jake score a point from play and then Padraig got another point. In the next play Liam Coleman took a sideline puck spotting David Lardner on the run.

Liam hit it superbly, David caught it brilliantly on the run and hit the ball from his hand from the 21m line into the top left hand corner. We were not finished yet as Jake put over another free just on the half-time whistle. Extraordinary stuff from the boys and we were very optimistic for the team in the second half - half-time Fermoy 2-11 Newcestown 0-06.

We arrived out in the second half and looking around, we noticed that Brian O’Sullivan had not taken his place. The significance of this is that the balance of the team was unsettled and this point is proved by the way the second half unfolded.

Whatever was said to the Newcestown players at half-time had an immediate effect as they tore in to the game and had four points on the board by the 35th min. It was evident that we were under extreme pressure which led to lots of mistakes and we would pay dearly for this.

Jake scored a free on 37 mins to stem the tide but again Newcestown were incessant in their attacks. Points on 39, 41 and 43 mins made it 2-12 to 0-13 in our favour but the pressure was building up. Another Jake free put us 5 points up but from here to the finish it was all Newcestown. A point for them was followed almost immediately by a goal and then another goal came Newcestown way after a mistake in our defence. This now put Newcestown ahead by 2-14 to 2-13.

We got the equaliser when Jake scored his 10th point of the game and this was to be our final score as Newcestown consolidated their superiority in this half by finishing the game very strongly. They scored four points in the last 10 minutes to no reply to end up victorious, Fermoy 2-14 Newcestown 2-18.

There is certainly no reason to look on this game in any way negatively, as it was our first competitive hurling game of the year. If one was to be honest with oneself, the thought was that we could have been at the end of a bad beating but the boys proved, certainly in the first half, that there can be huge optimism for the season ahead. Well done lads and on to the next one against Killeagh in Fermoy on Sunday next.

Team: Josh Shanahan; Greg Lardner, Adam Creed, Luke Aherne, Kieran Morrison, Brian O’Sullivan, David O’Callaghan; Martin Brennan, Tomas Clancy, David Lardner (0-02), Jake Carr (0-10, 0-08f), Arlen Aherne, Liam Coleman, Padraig de Roiste (0-02), James Molloy. Subs: Killian Fitzpatrick, Mark Flynn, Bryan Shanahan.

FIXTURES

Cavanagh’s of Fermoy Division 1 Hurling League - Fermoy v Liscarroll/Churchtown Gaels in Fermoy on Saturday, 26th March at 19.00.

Cavanagh’s of Fermoy Division 3 Hurling League Group 1 - Fermoy v Ballygiblin in Ballygiblin on Sunday, 27th March at 11.00.

Red FM Division 1 Senior Hurling League round 2 - Fermoy v Killeagh in Fermoy on Saturday, 27th March at 12.00.

RESULTS

RedFM Division 1 HL Group A - Fermoy 2-14 Newcestown 2-18. Cavanagh’s of Fermoy Div 1 Football League - Fermoy 0-15 Ballyhooly 3-08.

CONGRATULATIONS

Congratulations to our own Peter Murphy who was part of the management of his school team, St. Francis College, Rochestown who were successful in winning the Paddy Buggy Cup All-Ireland Senior B Hurling Championship.

SPECIAL GENERAL MEETING

The club held a Special General Meeting online on Sunday, 20th March at 19.30. There was a generous turnout on the evening to discuss the two motions and to get people’s views on the motions.

The meeting was to consider the following 2 options:

The executive of the club has proposed that the existing trustees should retire and that the corporate trustees should be appointed as trustees in their place. It is further proposed that the existing lease will be vested in the corporate trustees.

Thereafter it is proposed that the corporate trustee will surrender the existing lease over the club grounds and that the corporate trustee will thereafter be granted a new lease over the club grounds from the Minister, for a term of 30 years at an annual fee of €1,000.

After a brief explanation of the motions they were put to the members to decide to accept or decline the motions. Both were unanimously accepted and passed and now the work will begin to get the old lease ceased and the corporate trustees take on the new lease, which will hopefully enable us to receive sport capital grants. Many thanks to everyone who took part online and it shows that support for our club is thriving.

MAIN SPONSOR

Laya Healthcare.