U16 County League D2
Balllintubber 3-11, 1-17 Mayo Gaels
Ballintubber and Mayo Gaels played out an entertaining draw in this keenly contested game played in Mayo Abbey on Tuesday evening.
The game was tight throughout with the lead changing hands on numerous occasions. Ballintubber lead bo 2 points at half time 1-10 to 1-8 but Mayo Gaels came out for the second half and upped thier performance to push ahead early in the second half. But the Tubber lads show great determination to fight back and went ahead in the final couple of minutes only for Mayo Gaels to equalise as the final whistle approached.
Bobby Reilly was on fire for Ballintubber finishing with a tally of 2-5!
Team - 1. Diarmuid Heneghan, 2. Magnus Malone, 4. Ciaran Heneghan, 5. Stephen Burke, 6. James King, 7. Jamesie Lally, 8. Josh Mahon, 9. Darragh Joyce, 10. Cillian Joyce, 11. Caomhlin Flately, 12. Damien Jennings, 13. Colm Larkin, 15. Bobby Reilly.
Subs - Robbie Finnerty, Luke Biggins, Noah Corbett, Sean Duffy, Dean O'Malley, Jack Clarke, Matthew Coyne and Sean McEvilly
Match Reports
Kelly Cup Rd. 2 Report
As Reported by Oisin McGovern
March 19th 2017 - Kelly Cup – Ballintubber 2-16 Westport 0-16
Our seniors claimed an impressive victory away to Westport today in fresh, sunny conditions in the Kelly Cup today. In what was a fast-paced and entertaining affair, James Horan’s men were unable to make their dominance in possession count at vital stages as his former side yielded an almost perfect shot conversion ratio. Our full-back line were solid in the absence of at least three regulars while Jason Gibbons gave a superb display at midfield, marking on at least three occasions. Particularly impressive up front for the Abbeysiders was the experienced Alan Plunkett while Jamesie Finnerty gave another excellent performance in what was only the second appearance of his fledgling senior career.
Playing with a strong eastern breeze in the first half the Covies cancelled out three early Ballintubber points with four unanswered scores, with centre-forward Paul Lambert giving our defence plenty to think about. However we regained the lead after twenty minutes when Jamesie Finnerty rattled the net after a clever dummy and solo run through the Wesport defence. Four further points before the break, including a fine outside-of-the-boot effort from Padraic O’Connor was enough give us a two point half-time lead in the face of a Westport side playing with a direct, attacking mentality.
Despite dominating possession early in the second half the home side were unable to claw back the lead as white flags from Jamsie Finnerty, Alan Dillon, Alan Plunkett and the superb Jason Gibbons stretched our lead to six. ‘Tubber corner-back Jarlath Staunton was forced to block a goal bound effort midway through the second half after the home side created their only genuine goal chance of the match.
The contest was put well and truly out of Wesport’s reach when a long ball from Jason Gibbons was assisted by Noel Geraghty into the path of Alan Dillon for the Mayo veteran who slotted home our second goal from the right-hand side. Two more white flags, including a superb strike from Jamsie Finnerty rendered three unanswered Westport points largely tokenistic as Kevin Johnson’s charges made it two wins from two for the season so far.
Ballintubber team that line out: (1)Brendan Walsh (2)Keith Coleman (3)Joe Geraghty (4)Jarlath Staunton (5) Myle Kelly (6)Damien Coleman (7)John Kerrigan (8)David McHale (9)Jason Gibbons (0-1) (10)Padraic O’Connor (0-1) (11)Alan Dillon (1-4, 4f) (12)Stephen Finnerty (0-1) (13)Jamesie Finnerty (1-3) (14)Alan Plunkett (0-5,4f) (15)Noel Geraghty (0-1)
Substitutions used: Darragh McGovern for David McHale (h-t), Hugh Geraghty for Stephen Finnerty, Ray Geraghty for Jamesie Finnerty, Johnny Duffy for Noel Geraghty
KELLY CUP Round 1 Ballintubber v Breaffy
February 25th 2018 Kelly Cup Ballintubber 0-12 Breaffy 0-9
Our seniors put in a solid shift today to kick off their season with a win against local rivals Breaffy in a freezing cold Ray Prendergast Memorial Park. A superb first half scoring display from Mayo captain Cillian O’Connor spearheaded a Ballintubber attack buttressed by the experience and guile of Alan Dillon and Padraic O’Connor. Senior newcomers Jamsie Finnerty and Noel Geraghty also brought pace and freshness to the attack with telling contributions in both halves. It was an ideal start to the tenure of new manager Kevin Johnson, who will no doubt look to build up on the good groundwork laid by Tom Prendergast last season.
Playing with an Arctic breeze in the first half, Mayo regular Cillian O’Connor led the line for the Red and White, helping himself to eight well-taken points in the first half from frees and from play. A point from the left boot of senior debutant Jamsie Finnerty put us five points ahead before Breaffy’s Gary Walsh kicked three unanswered points before Robert Fadden reduced the deficit to one. However three more precise dead balls from O’Connor gave us a three point-half point lead.
With Mayo panellist Jason Gibbons being introduced after half-time to battle Seamus O’Shea and Matthew Ruane at midfield the visitors did claw back some of this lead in the second half. Brendan Walsh was forced to tip a looping shot over his own crossbar before a fisted Conor O’Shea score reduced the deficit back to a single point.
In spite of the withdrawal of our main attacking threat in Cillian O’Connor, the Abbeysiders responded positively with older brother Padraic and Mayo veteran Alan Dillon kicking three splendid scores between them. A late free from Tommy O’Reilly was all the Breaffy attack could muster in the face of a stubborn Ballintubber defence, ensuring that we left a Baltic Clogher pitch with a well-earned win against our championship rivals.
Ballintubber team that lined out: (1)Brendan Walsh (2)Joe Geraghty (3)Cathal Hallinan (4)Declan Larkin (5)Myles Kelly (6)Damien Coleman (7)Brian Murphy (8)David McHale (9)Michael Plunkett (10)Padraic O’Connor (0-2) (11)Alan Plunkett (12)Stephen Finnerty (13)Jamsie Finnerty (0-1) (14)Cillian O’Connor (0-8, 5f) (15)Alan Dillon (0-1)
Substitutions used: Jason Gibbons for David McHale, John Kerrigan for Declan Larkin, Kevin Shannon for Joe Geraghty, Darragh McGovern for Cillian O’Connor, Noel Geraghty for Jamsie Finnerty
Michael Walsh Senior League Round 1: Ballinrobe 0-5 Ballintubber 0-18
Our senior team began their season with a comfortable victory over Ballinrobe in the opening round of the Michael Walsh Senior League. The wide open spaces of Ballinrobe Community School pitch provided the venue for the clash in windy but very mild conditions. Ballintubber took the lead with two well-taken scores from Stephen O’Malley, a member of last year’s Mayo Minor panel who finished the game with eight points to his name, kicking five from play. Playing with a strong breeze, the Abbeysiders remained comfortably in front for the rest of the game, taking some fine scores including a sweet score from wing-forward Brian Walsh and an outstanding second-half point from O’Malley from a very acute angel. Our full-back line were solid throughout as Ballinrobe’s lumbering full-forward Darren McDonnell made a nuisance of himself after number 3 Cathal Hallinan was withdrawn through injury in the second half.
It was a proud occasion for the Geraghty family as brothers Hugh, Ray, Danny and Joe lined out in the Red and White for the first time together. Midfielder Danny was lively throughout, kicking two points and taking Ballintubber first “mark” of the season in the second half. Senior debutant Hugh, a key player on the minor team which claimed the county “C” championship last year, impressed at corner forward, finishing with two very well taken points.
Our second-half substitutes all gave good accounts of themselves. Particularly impressive were Seanie Larkin who drove forward to raise a white flag and the youthful Gavin Roache, scoring a point on his senior debut and playing with no shortage of determination despite his inexperience at this level. The home side were ultimately unable to capitalise on a strong second-half breeze as the Boys from The ‘Tubber ran out comfortable thirteen-point winners in the end.
Ballintubber team that lined out: (1) Brendan Walsh (2)Gary Loftus (3)Cathal Hallinan (4)Brian Murphy (5)Kevin Shannon (6)Joe Geraghty (7)Myles Kelly (8)Danny Geraghty(0-2) (9)Dave Clarke (10)Damien Coleman (11)Ray Geraghty (12)Brian Walsh(0-1) (13)Hugh Geraghty(0-2, 1f) (17)Conor Finnerty(0-2) (15)Stephen O’Malley(0-8, 5f) Substitutions: Sean Larkin(0-1) for Cathal Hallinan, Declan Larkin for Kevin Shannon, John Kerrigan for Myles Kelly, Gavin Roache(0-1) for Damien Coleman, David McHale for Ray Geraghty, Aaron Lally for Hugh Geraghty
Ballintubber into Quarter-Finals of Mayo Senior Championship for the 9th season in a row!
Senior Championship Group 2 Saturday October 9th
Aghamore 0-9 2-11 Ballintubber
Congrats to our Senior team who made it a remarkable 9th Senior Championship Quarter-Final in-a-row following a strong second half performance against Aghamore in the impressive Tooreen hurling grounds on Saturday evening. Despite lining out without the always influential Alan Dillon who was out due to injury, the Abbeysiders were able to have the fit-again Jason Gibbons in midfield who had a fine hour while the O’Connor brothers got all but 0-2 of the scores . Conditions on the evening were ideal with little wind in cloudy, mainly dry conditions and the first half was a cagey affair although the boys in red did have a little extra punch when they attacked directly where Diarmuid O’Connor played in the full-forward line for most of the game. It was his brother Cillian wearing the number 14 jersey who opened the scoring with an excellently converted ’45 with Alan Freeman lining out in midfield who levelled proceedings shortly after. With the Ballintubber defence looking comfortable it allowed right-corner-back Gary Loftus the freedom to attack and kick over his sides second point while Cillian O’Connor added his sides third point after Diarmuid O’Connor was fouled. In fact Ballintubber were leading the way although scores from dual midfielder Kenny Feeney along with a point from centre-half-forward Darren Duffy had the sides level at 0-3 apiece. Further pressure from Ballintubber along with a number of fine catches from Jason Gibbons resulted in 2 more converted frees from Cillian O’Connor. However despite threatening to pull away on various occasions, Ballintubber failed to push the game enough where Alan Freeman showed his best side when he kicked over 2 points to level the game at 0-5 apiece. However the Abbeysider attack were looking more and more menacing as Aghamore number 4 David Kenny was shown his second yellow card with Cillian O’Connor calmly putting his side ahead at the interval at 0-6 to 0-5 with another free.
The 3 time County champions began the second half strongly as further pressure saw Ballintubber earn a penalty after Jason Gibbons was fouled where Cillian O’Connor comfortably found the net. The boys of the ‘tubber were rampant at this stage with Cillian O’Connor turning the screw following a fine long range free. In fact the Mayo number 15 created his sides second goal chance when he found the alert Ballintubber number 10 Diarmuid who hammered the ball to the roof of the Aghamore net to suddenly push the Abbeysiders ahead at 2-7 to 0-5. The game was over as a contest although the hard-working Aghamore midfielder Kenny Feeney did get a point back for his side. A very patient move from the West Mayo side saw Ruaidhri O’Connor get at the end of the move to kick over an excellent point. Another pointed ’45 from his brother Cillian followed although 3 points in succession from Aghamore did bring some respectability to the scoreling although the games top scorer Cillian O’Connor did kick over the games final point in the closing minutes. Details on the Quarter-Final opponents will be confirmed this week while it is expected that next weekend these games will take place. Best for Ballintubber included the roving Gary Loftus who ended with 0-2 while Ruaidhri O’Connor also who got his name on the scoreboard. Brian Murphy started at full-back but like Gary Loftus due to his marker going out the field he also was as comfortable at the other end of the field. Myles Kelly got through a good shift while Michael Plunkett and Cathal Hallinan also stood strong in defence along with sweeper Damien Coleman. The return of Jason Gibbons to midfield was a major bonus and he played a big part in the win with his partner Danny Geraghty also getting through a lot of work. The positioning of Diarmuid O’Connor into the full-forward line reaped dividends particularly in the second half while the place kicking of Cillian O’Connor was central to the win as he ended with a return of 1-8. Bryan Walsh, Damien McGing and Alan Plunkett also worked hard and helped achieve the win.
Ballintubber team that lined out : Frank Walsh, Gary Loftus (0-2), Brian Murphy, Myles Kelly, Michael Plunkett, Cathal Hallinan, Ruaidhri O’Connor (0-1), Danny Geraghty, Jason Gibbons, Diarmuid O’Connor (1-0), Damien Coleman, Bryan Walsh, Damien McGing, Cillian O’Connor (1-8, pen, 2 ‘45’s 6f), Alan Plunkett. Subs used : Ray Geraghty for Damien McGing, Stephen Broderick for Danny Geraghty, Joe Geraghty for Myles Kelly, Conor Finnerty for Diarmuid O’Connor.
Under 21 team qualify for County Semi-Final after win over Davitts on Sunday!
County Under 21A Championship Quarter-Final Sunday November 20th
Ballintubber 3-16 1-9 Davitts
Our Under 21 team finally got their Championship campaign underway and were full value for their win over a plucky Davitts side played in sunny but cold and calm conditions in Clogher on Sunday. After both their group games against Ballaghadereen and Castlebar Mitchels were conceded to the boys of the ‘tubber, the Abbeysiders went into this game raw but were still able to put in some fine passages of play where full-forward Michael Plunkett was a constant thorn in the Davitts defence throughout. The opening half saw the sides matched at 0-3 each in the opening 10 minutes as both sides played the game in the traditional way with little defensive stuff that has somewhat stifled the game. It was the afore mentioned Michael Plunkett who looked sharp and scored twice while the youthful Hugh Geraghty also added a point. Further fast ball into the influential full-forward saw Ballintubber back in front again before the games opening goal. Left-corner forward Stephen O’Malley finally found the net after the Davitts netminder made a number of fine stops and this goal gave the hosts the required impetus as further points from Hugh Geraghty (2 ,one from a free), a fourth point from Michael Plunkett while a brace of pointed frees from Stephen O’Malley suddenly pushed Ballintubber into a 1-9 to 0-3 lead. However the South Mayo side did hit back with a couple of points before Young player of the year Diarmuid O’Connor burst through the Davitts defence to calmly place his left-footed shot into the corner of the net to leave the half-time score 2-9 to 0-5.
The second half began with a resurgent comeback from the Davitts boys playing in their alternative strip as they did reduce the leeway down to 2-11 to 1-8 inside the first 10 minutes. Indeed a great goal line clearance from full-back Dave Clarke along with an excellent stop from Tom McGing in the Ballintubber goal failed to prevent the goal. Both Michael Plunkett and Stephen O’Malley also scored during this spell and when centre-half-back John Kerrigan was shown a black card it suddenly could have been a game changer. However the West Mayo side responded excellently as a sharp point from Stephen O’Malley was followed up with a long range point from the roving corner forward Rory Murphy which saw Ballintubber go further out in front at 2-13 to 1-8. The ‘tubber pushed on strongly as a pointed free from Stephen O’Malley was quickly followed by a fine Diarmuid O’Connor point to put the game out of reach. The closing moments saw Bryan Walsh get in on the scoring while the hard-working Dara McGovern bagged Ballintubber’s third goal. Full-back Dave Clarke was the recipient of this sides second black card while a pointed Davitts free ended the entertaining game which sees Ballintubber into the Semi-Finals. While the performance did enough to win the game comfortably in the end, bigger tests await with semi-final details just confirmed where the winners of Castlebar Mitchels or Aghamore await next Saturday at 2.30 with venue to be decided.
Ballintubber had stars all over the field where the steady Tom McGing had a fine game between the posts while the commanding Dave Clarke impressed along with his corner-backs of Jarleth Staunton and Oran Scully. The half-back line of minor Gavin Roache, the slightly more experienced John Kerrigan and another minor Aaron Lally also had their moments. Captain Diarmuid O’Connor was everywhere while still finding time to score 1-1 while his midfield partner Dara McGovern also found the net. Another one from the minor brigade Hugh Geraghty had a fine first half scoring 0-3 (2f) where the promptings of centre-half-forward Bryan Walsh helped create a number of scoring opportunities. Ronan McLoughlin also got some game time while the full-forward line registered 1-11 throughout the hour. Rory Murphy got one of the biggest cheers of the day for his long range point while the excellent play of Michael Plunkett yielded 0-5 where the Abbeysiders number 15 inor Stephen O’Malley ended with an impressive return of 1-5 (3f).
Ballintubber team that lined out : Tom McGing, Jarleth Staunton, Dave Clarke, Oran Scully, Gavin Roache, John Kerrigan, Aaron Lally, Diarmuid O’Connor (Capt) (1-1), Dara McGovern (1-0), Hugh Geraghty (0-3, 2f), Bryan Walsh (0-1), Ronan McLoughlin, Rory Murphy (0-1), Michael Plunkett (0-5), Stephen O’Malley (1-5, 3f). Subs used – Louis Hoban for Ronan McLoughlin, Jack Jensen for John Kerrigan BC, Cian Corcoran for Hugh Geraghty, Sean Murphy for Dave Clarke BC