14-man Bonni’ battle back from the brink
Midfield action during last Saturday's enthralling Mayo JFC final between Cill Chomáin and Bonniconlon at Hastings Insurance MacHale Park, Castlebar. Picture: David Farrell Photography
Seldom have so many of the key championship matches in Mayo ended in stalemate than in 2024. Until Saturday, however, the junior competition had been a lot more straightforward than its senior and intermediate counterparts, but a drawn final means that Cill Chomáin and Bonniconlon must duke it out one more time to decide the destination of the Pete McDonnell Cup and who takes a place in the intermediate ranks for the 2025 season.
Beaten junior finalists in 2021 and ’22, a nervous looking Cill Chomáin took 22 minutes to land their opening score, nor would they score for the final 19 minutes either, but playing an entire second-half with the advantage of an extra player, and leading by three points entering the final quarter, the Erris side will – or should, at least – be bitterly disappointed not to have ended their junior hoodoo.
The fact that four minutes of stoppage time was announced but that referee Kieran Barnicle blew full-time before the third had expired, didn’t seem to perturb either set of supporters too much; having scored three points without reply, Bonniconlon had momentum yet Cill Chomáin had been presented a tricky but scorable free on the 13-metre line just one minute before the full-time whistle. Derek Moran had opted against shooting from the right wing but his quick free to Eoghan McGrath resulted in the wing-back firing wide of the right upright.
Bonniconlon played against whatever breeze there was and into a blinding setting sun during the first-half yet still managed to dictate the play. They might have lost twice in the championship already, to their opponents Cill Chomáin and to Swinford, but Nobby McLoughlin’s side defied their underdogs status throughout and while at one end Justin Healy and Liam Maloney snatched at early point opportunities, Sean Neary delivered an excellent right-wing finish and Ciaran Gaughan popped over a free to see Bonni’ 0-2 to no score ahead after eight minutes.
Their full-back, Eoghan Greavy, in between his excellent marking of dangerman Healy in that first-half, even got forward to smash a goal chance into the Cill Chomáin stanchion before Bonniconlon did in fact land the game’s first three-pointer in the 17th minute. It came after centre-back Conor Redmond had helped weave a lovely move upfield which saw corner-forward Ciaran Gaughan give Maloney the slip and handpass across the square to Brian O’Malley. The full-forward’s shot was blocked but James Harrington was on hand to squeeze the ball past goalkeeper Kian Gallagher at the back post.
Cill Chomáin, for whom Darragh Murphy had returned from Australia to line out around the middle, were now five points in arrears and their nerves were far from helped by the usually reliable Justin Healy kicking his second wide, this time from a 35-metre free in a central position. The Erris side would actually kick six wides before Eoghan McGrath finally opened their account eight minutes before the break.
His point was swiftly negated by one from Brian O’Malley and after 24 minutes, Bonniconlon held a 1-3 to 0-1 lead.
The Ox Mountain side would actually extend their advantage to six points, as after Justin Healy eventually struck his first point, receiving an excellent Sean Murphy pass and curling over on the turn, Bonniconlon hit back with two more of their own, through Conor Igoe and Sean Neary, his another superb finish after a sprint up the right wing.
But the half was to end disappointingly for the Blues and for wing-forward Neary, in particular.
Cill Chomáin halved their arrears in the 29th minute when Joe Corduff launched a high ball on top of Healy who caught fired low to the net past ‘keeper Aiden Doherty. And just 60 seconds later, their opponents were reduced to 14 players when Sean Neary was shown his second yellow card by referee Kieran Barnicle.
That chain of events had seemed to change everything as Cill Chomáin began the second-half like a steam train. Justin Healy grabbed another 1-1 inside two minutes of the restart, his major coming off the back of Eoghan McGrath’s pass in from the right, meaning the full-forward had landed 2-2 in little more than an eight minute spell either side of half-time. And with substitute Derek Moran pointing a free and Jack Healy clipping over a point from the left wing with the aid of the post, the Black and White had gone from trailing by six to leading by three, 2-5 to 1-5, after 39 minutes.
Quite incredibly, though, the team who had more or less waltzed through their six games to the final, save for a little test from Swinford in the semi-final, would score just once more, despite their advantage of the extra man.
Bonniconlon managed to open their second-half account in the 40th minute when Ciaran Gaughan swept a high-pressure 40-metre free off the ground and between the posts. Derek Moran’s free negated that four minutes later but from here to the finish line it was all about the spirit and resolve of Bonni’, and their determination to try and win a first Mayo JFC title since 1978.
A loose pass out of defence by Cill Chomáin full-back Lorcan McGrath saw the hardworking Jonathan Lavelle land his first of back-to-back points, the second coming in the 58th minute when he followed the flight of sub David Walsh’s sideline kick and punched over the crossbar.
At the other end, Derek Moran had kicked two wides from frees on opposite wings, but there was no such misfortune for Walsh who, on the hour mark, kicked the equaliser after Cill Chomáin had messed up a kick-out to concede a free.
There remained, however, that one last chance for the coastal outfit to win their first Pete McDonnell Cup since 2013, but Moran didn’t fancy his chances from the top right corner after a foul on Justin Healy and the subsequent move from play came to nought.
Roll on the replay.
Scorers – Cill Chomáin: Justin Healy 2-2, Derek Moran 0-2f, Eoghan McGrath and Jack Healy 0-1 each.
Bonniconlon: James Harrington 1-0, Ciaran Gaughan (2f), Sean Neary and Jonathan Lavelle 0-2 each, Brian O’Malley, Conor Igoe and David Walsh (f) 0-1 each.
Cill Chomáin: Kian Gallagher; Seamus Mason, Lorcan McGrath, Liam Maloney; Lorcan Mason, Darragh Murphy, Eoghan McGrath; Sean Murphy, Luke Tighe; John Flannery, Joe Mason, Joe Corduff; Jack Healy, Justin Healy, Adam Conroy. Subs: Derek Moran (for Joe Mason ht), David Walker (for Conroy 50), Shane Moran (for Jack Healy 52), Brendan Moran (for D Murphy 60+2).
Bonniconlon: Aiden Doherty; Eoin Fox, Eoghan Greavy, James McKenzie; Ronan Conlon, Conor Redmond, Conor Igoe; Niall Greavy, Jonathan Lavelle; Sean Neary, Ronan Neary, Dara Fox; James Harrington, Brian O’Malley, Ciaran Gaughan. Subs: Cillian Upton (for Fox 36), David Walsh (for O’Malley 39), Cathal Kelly (for R Neary 50), James Kelly (for Conlon 53), Richard McKenzie (for Gaughan 58, inj).
REF: Kieran Barnicle (Breaffy)
