Cillian leads the scoring as ‘Tubber record first win
Cillian O’Connor fires home Ballintubber's first goal in their away win against Hollymount-Carramore last Saturday evening. Picture: Tom Quinn
Hollymount-Carramore were outclassed by visitors Ballintubber in the second-half when these two sides met in Division 1B on Saturday. The West Mayo side led by just one point, 0-9 to 2-2, at half-time, but with a strong breeze at their backs after the resumption and making a number of positional changes, Ballintubber were a different team.
Hollymount-Carramore could easily have led at the interval but they kicked some poor wides while the opposition’s goalkeeper Brendan Walsh also pulled off a brilliant save in only the third minute to deny the hosts a certain goal.
The South Mayo outfit, with their manager Mark Concannon notably absent from the sideline, had received a major boost prior to throw-in when star forward Darren Coen was passed fit to start having been out of action recently. The former Mayo attacker delivered some terrific kick-passes but also missed opportunities from play and placed balls that, on another day, would have made this game much closer. The star of the show in the first-half was unquestionably Coen’s teammate Matthew Morris, operating at top of the right. He kicked all of his side's scores in the opening half with both his goals superbly struck to the roof of the net in the ninth and fifteenth minutes respectively, two that any footballer in the country would be proud of. The assist from Darren Coen for Morris’ first was equally as impressive.
Cillian O’Connor kicked four of Ballintubber’s nine first-half points, three frees and one from play, and these were supplemented by singles from Jack Prendergast, Ciaran Gavin, a free, and Stephen Burke, and a brace from Noel Geraghty. That gave them a one point advantage at the break.
Hollymount-Carramore changed goalkeepers during the interval as Niall Campbell replaced Nathan Moran but it mattered little as Ballintubber were a transformed team in the second-half. They outscored their opponents 2-8 to 0-5, doing all the damage in the opening fifteen minutes of the half – now aided by the wind. It almost became the ‘Cillian O’Connor Show’ as the man on a sabbatical from the Mayo senior football panel showed that he has lost few of his powers, kicking 1-3 in a blistering six-minute period.
O’Connor had just added his fifth point of the day from a free before he was picked out by a marvellous long-range pass from the centre of the field by Ciaran Gavin, and the centre-forward just turned and struck home instantly, leaving Campbell with no chance in the Holly-Carra goal.
Ballintubber – led not for the first time in centre-field by Jason Gibbons – were winning all the breaking balls and huge pressure was mounting on the home goal. Two further frees followed by Cillian O’Connor before Bryan Walsh got his first point of the day. Then came their second goal midway through the half to all but end this tie as a contest, roaring into a 2-14 to 2-4 lead. Noel Geraghty finished it, bringing his tally for the day to 1-3, continuing the good form that also saw him goal in Ballintubber’s first round league defeat to Crossmolina the previous week.
The game gradually faded out from here as Hollymount-Carramore never threatened a comeback of any sorts with both sides introducing a host of substitutes for the final ten minutes. Matthew Morris did convert two further points and finished with 2-5 in total for his side but Noel Geraghty, Michael Plunkett and Cillian O’Connor, who finished with 1-9 in total, concluded the scoring for Damien Coleman’s visitors with three late points.
The Red and White will be very pleased with their second-half display while Hollymount-Carramore, having also lost their opening round game against Claremorris, will have to quickly park this result and turn their focus to the short journey across the parish to Garrymore who they face next in Round 3 in a fortnight’s time.
Scorers – Ballintubber: Cillian O’Connor 1-0-9 (8f), Noel Geraghty 1-0-3, Jack Prendergast, Ciaran Gavin (f), Stephen Burke, Bryan Walsh and Michael Plunkett 0-0-1 each.
Hollymount-Carramore: Matthew Morris 2-0-5 (1 ’45, 2f), JJ Connolly and Darren Coen (f) 0-0-1 each.
Hollymount-Carramore: Nathan Moran; Rory Walsh, Stephen Conroy, John Walsh; Conor Geraghty, Dylan Jennings, Barry Sheridan; Michael Sheridan, Nathan Moran; Finian Walsh, Enda Maloney, JJ Connolly; Thomas Morris, Darren Coen, Matthew Morris. Subs: Niall Campbell (for N Moran (gk) ht), Oisin Duffy (for F Walsh 33), Joseph Lydon (for T Morris 57), A Murphy (for J Walsh 60), Alex Connelly (for Maloney 60+1), Conor Kelly (for Coen 60+1).
Ballintubber: Brendan Walsh; Gavin Murphy, Finian Bourke, Gary Loftus; Michael Plunkett, Joseph Geraghty, Bryan Walsh; Jason Gibbons, Jack Prendergast; Stephen Burke, Cillian O’Connor, David McHale; Ciaran Gavin, Josh Mahon, Noel Geraghty. Subs: Jack Walsh (for Murphy 34), John Kerrigan (for Burke 49), Robbie Finnerty (for Mahon 52), Eoghan Breslin (for Prendergast 60).
REF: Garryowen McMahon (Davitts)
