Bonniconlon to stage the battle of North Mayo
St Brendan's College of Belmullet have already enjoyed victory over St Tiernan's this season, in the Mayo PPS Flanagan Cup 'D' final.
North Mayo bragging rights will be at stake when St Brendan’s of Belmullet face off against St Tiernan’s of Crossmolina in the ‘D’ final of the Connacht Colleges senior football championship.
St Brendan’s have representation from each of the four Erris clubs and many of them were involved in an national senior basketball semi-final loss in Monaghan last Thursday, where they were pipped by a solitary point in agonising circumstances.
They have in their ranks two players with experience of the white heat of the Mayo senior club championship in Belmullet duo Fionn O’Donoghue and Shane Ivers.
O’Donoghue, a younger brother of Eoin, was an eye-catching performer with Belmullet last year, his pace and power at full-forward very obvious for someone so young.
Ivers played at wing-back and is a younger brother of former Mayo senior panelist Evan Ivers and is similarly tenacious. There is pedigree too in John Howard, younger brother of current Mayo senior Séamus, while they have quality players too in the likes of Jack Gaughan, Keelan Barrett and young Jamie Ruddy, who is only in Junior Cert but has a big future ahead of him.
Belmullet will go a long way to victory if they can keep tabs on St Tiernan’s Tony Carey, ironically a man with considerable Erris lineage himself as son of former Kiltane star Seán Carey.
Tony Carey came to prominence with the Mayo minors last year with a series of eye-catching displays in the full-forward line. He struck 1-5 in their 1-13 to 1-10 semi-final win over Scoil Chuimsitheach Chiarain from Carraroe in the semi-final.
His younger brother, Conor, chipped in with two points while Crossmolina Deel Rovers’ Dylan Lavelle kicked six points, including two crucial second-half two pointers.
St Tiernan’s advanced to the semi-finals following a 2-14 to 2-11 win over Castlerea Community School and one cannot but wonder how a combined Crossmolina team – Tiernan’s and Gortnor Abbey – would fare out at ‘A’ level.
A hesitant nod to the Erris lads.
Verdict: St Brendan’s
