Orme denies Ballinrobe a winning start
Aiden Orme struck 2-3, including the equalising point for Knockmore in their Division 1A opener away to Ballinrobe.
Ballinrobe and Knockmore played out an entertaining game at Flanagan Park on Saturday evening, with a share of the spoils probably the fair result.
The locals made a bright start to this intriguing league clash and an early point after two minutes from the busy former Mayo minor player Conor Jennings delighted the home faithful. His teammate Evan O’Brien then guided over a free on eight minutes, with Knockmore’s opening point arriving a minute later as Conal Dempsey struck over a free.
Aiden Orme was the playmaker for Knockmore throughout this clash and the deadly centre-forward almost pocketed an 11th minute goal, however, Luke Jennings pulled off a terrific parried save with Orme blasting the rebound wide.
Orme made amends for that miss though, when he finished off a great free-flowing move on 13 minutes with a point that levelled the tie.
Ballinrobe’s Darren McDonnell then struck over a fine free from off the ground, and one sensed that this was going to become a real dingdong battle.
Despite crafting scoring opportunities, Knockmore kicked some bad wides during the opening quarter and this really let Ballinrobe off the hook.
The South Mayo men were more economical in front of goal and singles from Evan O’Brien, a free, and a tidy effort form the lively Ewan Duffy, helped muster a 0-5 to 0-2 lead for Peter Ford’s troops after 26 minutes. Knockmore ended the half on a positive note courtesy of a free from their rangy midfielder Shane McHale, but it was the Maroon and Yellow who led at the break 0-5 to 0-3.
The Knockmore half-time pep-talk seemed to have worked wonders as they blitzed their hosts during the opening three minutes of the new half, with a point from Shane McHale buttressed with a three-pointer from Aiden Orme. That opening goal of the evening was the result of Ballinrobe conceding a costly turnover and in the blink of an eye possession was whisked through to Orme and the latter’s smashing finish was always destined for the bottom corner of Luke Jennings’ net.
The Saffron and Blue’s joy was short-lived however, as one minute later the Robesiders also found the back of the net. An attempted close-range point from Ewan Duffy at the Town End goal hung in the air and appeared to be drifting wide, however, the tenacious Duffy sprinted like a cheetah and collected the loose ball to fire home a quite amazing goal.
That score reinvigorated Ballinrobe’s challenge and points from Liam Burke and James Marrey turned the game on its head, with the hosts now leading 1-7 to 1-4.
Keith Rutledge and Dempsey, a free, both pointed for the Knockmore cause, but Ballinrobe were motoring along nicely and efforts from McDonnell, a sweetly struck ’45, and O’Brien, a free, regained the hosts a three-point cushion.
By the 48th minute, Knockmore had kicked eighteen wides, but Orme brightened the night of the away supporters when he guided over an absolute peach of a point from an acute angle on 41 minutes, with Dempsey quickly following suite with a neat effort on 42 minutes.
The effervescent Duffy drew one of the loudest cheers of the evening from the home faithful on 44 minutes, when he outrageously and magnificently plucked from the sky a scud missile delivery from Luke Jennings, and despite the former being subsequently fouled in possession in the same move, McDonnell was on hand to guide over the resultant free.
Ballinrobe were beginning to win some key possession and lucky breaks, and from the 46th up to the 57th minute they outgunned their opponents 0-4 to 0-2 courtesy of singles from John Enda Flannelly, Liam Burke, two, and O’Brien, with yet another, with Shane McHale and Fergal Keane’s replies crucially keeping Knockmore on the coattails of their opponents.
A brave Knockmore poured forward in search of a match-saving major and they were given a gilt-edged opportunity to get right back into the tie when they were awarded a spot-kick on 59 minutes, after a Ballinrobe player committed a foot-block. Orme was given the dead-ball responsibility and he made no mistake to set up a grandstand finish at the South Mayo venue.
Trailing by the bare minimum, the North Mayo side fought tigerishly for every possession and on 60 minutes they were awarded a free, from which Orme bisected the posts to level this gripping spring encounter.
Knockmore had a chance to sneak the victory two minutes into stoppage-time, but Dempsey’s long-range free drifted wide, much to the relief of the home supporters.
Scorers – Ballinrobe: Ewan Duffy 1-1, Evan O’Brien 0-4f, Liam Burke and Darren McDonnell (2f, 1 ’45) 0-3 each, James Marrey, John Enda Flannelly and Conor Jennings 0-1 each.
Knockmore: Aiden Orme 2-3 (1-0pen, 0-1f), Shane McHale (1f) and Conal Dempsey (2f) 0-3 each, Keith Rutledge and Fergal Keane 0-1 each.
Ballinrobe: Luke Jennings; Sean Biggins, Oran O’Malley, Eugene McCormack; Sean Flannery, Peter Butler, James Marrey; John Enda Flannelly, Evan O’Brien; Ryan Corcoran, Ewan Duffy, Liam Burke; Adam Flannery, Darren McDonnell, Conor Jennings. Sub: Eoghan Corcoran (for C Jennings 50).
Knockmore: Ryan McDonnell; David McHale, Marcus Parke, Ciaran King; Nathan Armstrong, Conor Flynn, Dara Staunton; Shane McHale, Tadhg Staunton; Oran Timlin, Aiden Orme, Declan Melvin; Conal Dempsey, Keith Rutledge, Fergal Keane. Subs: Ronan Melvin (for D Staunton 45), Nathan Hardy (for Armstrong 46), Keith Coleman (for D Melvin 56), Michael Lowther (for Rutledge 59).
REF: Garryowen McMahon (Davitts)
