Drab final doesn’t dampen the delight for champions Ballina

Mayo SFC Final 

Ballina Stephenites 0-6 

Breaffy 0-4  

Ballina Stephenites have extended their record as the most successful club in Mayo senior championship history, but as finals go this victory over Breaffy was anything but a classic. In fact, 0-6 to 0-4 is the lowest total score in a Mayo senior final since the 1935 decider was decided by the exact same score — the Stephenites beating Castlebar Mitchels on that occasion, having lost the previous year’s final. Sound familiar?

Three points from play is all the teams between them could muster over the course of the near-70 minutes that were played in dark and drizzly conditions last Sunday evening, with not a single one of Breaffy’s starting team contributing to that statistic.

Ballina’s 37th title hung in the balance right up until the full-time whistle despite the toothless nature of Breaffy up front, simply because the Stephenites were less than impressive themselves in an attacking sense. A 64th minute insurance point scored by teenager Luke Feeney, who afterwards would pick up the Man-of-the-Match award, was only their second of the second-half, and first from play since Conor McStay had kicked them 0-2 to 0-1 ahead in the eighth minute.

The reason why Aidan O’Shea had everyone talking about his displays for Breaffy in this year’s county championship was for his impact in and around the opposition’s goal but strangely, the three-time All-Star spent practically the entire second-half between the two 45s, kicking a 61st minute chance to tie the match wide from a 47m free. From a dead central position, it seemed the sort of opportunity to hand over to Jack Livingstone, albeit the goalkeeper had earlier kicked a 45 short into the goalmouth.

The West Mayo outfit also saw their substitute James Minogue rush another stoppage time equalising attempt wide, and even after Feeney had stretched the difference to two points Breaffy still had one final chance to lump the ball into Ballina’s goal-mouth in search of a match-winning major score but their vice-captain Daire Morrin somehow screwed his sideline kick to send the ball flying over the endline. It summed up Breaffy’s evening.

The first-half was an utterly forgettable affair but one that should probably have ended with Ballina Stephenites more than just three points ahead. Breaffy goalkeeper Jack Livingstone stood up admirably to a barrage of deliveries, either catching or punching clear, as the Ballina attack, when it wasn’t shooting wides or hitting woodwork, dropped repeated shots short into the opposition’s goal-mouth. In fact, when you consider that the teams combined only managed to score five points in the entire half hour, and that only one of those scores was from play, it tells you much of what you need to know about the quality — or lack of — on show.

Breaffy had their first point on the board inside two minutes, as Conor O’Shea swung over a free awarded for Liam Golden’s tug on Davitt Neary. But that was also Breaffy’s only point of the first-half, which ended 0-4 to 0-1 in favour of Ballina. That hardly reflected the dominance that Niall Heffernan’s team had enjoyed in the possession stakes, however, with Conor McStay and Ciaran Boland, more than once each, and Niall Feeney, Dylan Thornton and Frank Irwin, among those who failed to hit the target for the Green and Red.

There was half a goal chance for Evan Regan, in the 10th minute, when Thornton struck an upright and the ball dropped into the arms of the corner-forward. Regan twisted and turned but couldn’t get his shot away so he had to be content with a pair of converted frees for the opening half, with Luke Feeney pointing a 30th minute mark to add to the earlier point by McStay, derived from Regan showing a clean pair of heels to Breaffy corner-back Conor Beirne.

The inaccuracy bug befell Breaffy before the interval too, with Davitt Neary, Matthew Ruane, Daire Morrin and Conor O’Shea registering wides, and a Rory Martyn handpass across the square only craved a touch into the Ballina net. But the Blue and White did narrow the gap to a single point shortly after the restart when Conor O’Shea added his second free of the game and half-time sub James Minogue struck his side’s first — and only — point from play. But a bad miss from a 35th minute free by Conor O’Shea, which would have tied the game, came as a major blow to Konrad Coghill’s side who would go on to score just one more point, that from an Aidan O’Shea free in the 42nd minute.

Frank Irwin had by then drilled over a 45 for Ballina’s opening score of the half while Livingstone saved low from both Evan Regan and Dylan Thornton in the 36th and 40th minutes, with the shooters perhaps unfortunate not to earn frees on both occasions for the challenges upon them in the build ups.

Down at the other end, Davitt Neary was unlucky not to find the net for Breaffy when David Tighe retreated to deflect the ball past the upright, with Jack Livingstone’s miss of the resultant 45 another hammer blow to his side’s hopes.

There’s probably a story to be told somewhere in that Padraig O’Hora and Sam Callinan, who spent most of their time in Ballina’s full-back line, were also contenders as their side’s most dynamic attackers and while both players kicked fourth quarter wides, the pressure was at least keeping Breaffy tied to their own end of the field.

Nothing went right for Breaffy in their desperate late attempts to at least force a replay, and it was actually off David Clarke’s kickout from James Minogue’s 63rd minute wide for Breaffy that Evan Regan latched onto the break and released full-forward Luke Feeney for a breakaway point at the death.

Aside from the title, Ballina’s other reward is a game against Fulham Irish in the quarter-finals of the Connacht Club SFC on Sunday, November 11. Fulham Irish were crowned London champions, also on Sunday, when they beat Tir Chonaill Gaels 0-11 to 0-8 in Ruislip.

Scorers – Ballina: Evan Regan (2f) and Luke Feeney (1m) 0-2 each, Conor McStay and Frank Irwin (’45) 0-1 each.

Breaffy: Conor O’Shea 0-2f, James Minogue and Aidan O’Shea (f) 0-1 each.

Ballina Stephenites: David Clarke; Liam Golden, Ger Cafferkey, Padraig O’Hora; Ciaran Boland, Sam Callinan, David Tighe; Frank Irwin, Dylan Thornton; Niall Feeney, Mark Birrane, Jack Irwin; Evan Regan, Luke Feeney, Conor McStay. Subs: Sean Regan (for Golden 37), Mikey Murray (for Thornton 41, inj), Ciaran Treacy (for Birrane 44), Keith Tighe (for J Irwin 54).

Breaffy: Jack Livingstone; Conor Beirne, Mark Dervan, Conor Melly; David Livingstone, Michael Hall, Daire Morrin; Conor O’Shea, Matthew Ruane; Oisin Tunney, Robbie Fadden, Rory Martyn; Tommy O’Reilly, Aidan O’Shea, Davitt Neary. Subs: James Minogue (for Tunney ht), Colm Flynn (for Neary 50), Conor Golden (for O’Reilly 58), Pierce Deane (for D Livingstone 60+1).

REF: Garryowen McMahon (Davitts)