Cup up for Ballina in comeback win over Westport
Ballina Town in high spirits after defeating Westport United in the Calor Super Cup Final in Solar 21 Park, Castlebar. Picture: Michael Donnelly
Ballina Town came from behind to deny Westport United a cup double and win a first Calor Gas Super Cup since 2019.
The Super League runners-up were down a host of bodies including Chris Maughan, Chris Moore, Matt Hamilton and Niall Casey while the likes of Jamie Cawley and Benny Lavelle had limited training time with returns from injuries. But their starting team still contained Dylan McKee, Dan Gorman, Andrew Shally and Raff Cretaro, the latter delivering a man of the match performance in a much deeper role in midfield than usual as Gorman and McKee made up a makeshift centre-back pairing to cover the aforementioned absences.
McKee was later freed up to play a more advanced role in the middle of the park and he along with Cretaro became the driving force as Town claimed silverware in Alan Henry’s first year at the helm as manager.
United, who had their own manager Kevin McNamara watching from the stand due to suspension, will be kicking themselves given they had half a dozen good chances to win this final while captain Gary Cunningham will also be disappointed with how Town got their winner in the second half.
The defeat is United’s first since early June and they will hope to return to winning ways when they face Cartron United on Sunday week in the FAI Junior Cup.
Ballina Town made the brighter start but gaps inside a resolute United defence meant little in the way of clear cut chances. It was United who got the first serious opportunity on ten minutes after Darren Browne broke down the left but Kevin Kitterick’s header came back off the bar. Town punished a minute later as Raff Cretaro fired a piledriver past Cunningham from the edge of the penalty area to give the Belleek outfit the lead.
Browne was put though shortly after by Dylan O’Malley only to scuff the shot at Peyton but he made up for it on 20 minutes when he pounced on Stephen Melvin’s short pass back and slid it under the legs of the Ballina Town goalkeeper to level.
It remained that way until four minutes into the second half. Mark McDonagh broke down the left and his cross was volleyed home by Paul Mee for United to take the lead.
They missed a golden chance to put the final to bed after Paul Mee went down the right and cut it back to Adam Nugent but the former Sligo Rovers U19 striker could not get the touch to divert it in.
Ballina punished them with 20 minutes to go after a brilliant through ball by Conor Gorman split the United centre-halves and Matthew Cowan, on as a second half substitute for the injured Benny Lavelle, finished coolly to equalise.
The winner would come on 78 minutes as Dylan McKee’s free kick from 25 yards was curled around the wall and through the hands of Cunningham into the back of the net.
United spurned two glorious opportunities to take this final to equalise but another Kevin Kitterick header went wide while Nugent was denied by a great stop by Peyton as Ballina held on to win a sixth Super Cup title.
