McGarrity pulls strings as Monk send Meteors off course
Ronan McGarrity hit 15 points in Tourmakeady Hall on Saturday evening as Merry Monk got the better of Mayo Meteors.
Team Merry Monk won the county bragging rights as a blistering second quarter sent them on their way to a 17-point win over Mayo Meteors in Tourmakeady Hall last Saturday evening. The game was originally to be held in the Meteors home venue of De La Salle Hall in Castlebar but was moved as a result of water damage to the county town venue.
Merry Monk essentially had a full squad to choose from, with Ronan McGarrity a welcome addition back and he was the star man for his side. Captain Ronan O’Malley also impressed along with Peter Papik while the rising stars of Mark Cunningham and Conor Burke also performed well.
Despite the impressive display, it took a while for Merry Monk to get into their groove. The opening quarter was a slack affair but the likes of Conor Bermingham, Paul Freeman and Colm Hegarty opened up a 15-11 lead for the Meteors.
It was the second quarter that laid the platform for their victory. Cunningham, Paddy Walsh, McGarrity and David Marry all hit three-pointers as Merry Monk scored 14 points without reply, and a total of 31, to open up a 42-28 lead.
Meteors enjoyed their best quarter of the game in third with a game high of 23 but that still wasn’t enough as Merry Monk extended their lead to 18 with a 27-point haul. O’Malley and Burke both hit a pair of threes for Merry Monk while Ronan McGarrity also chipped in a with a three of his own as the game looked effectively over.
Merry Monk got their defensive game back on track and kept Meteors to only 15 points in the final quarter, as the Ballina side could have gone scoreless in the final quarter and still won it out. But Cunningham, O’Malley and Papik kept the board ticking for Merry Monk to ease to victory.
Merry Monk will enjoy home comforts with a number of fixtures to be played in the Ballina Sports Centre over the coming weeks, starting this Sunday at 2pm when the U20s play Ballincollig in the National League.
Mayo Meteors: Alex Evans (3), James McManamon, Colm Hegarty (12), Dan Nyland (5), Conor Bermingham (7), Sean Quinn, Matthew O’Malley, Geda Milius, Jack Diffily, Paul Freeman (26), Ciaran Horkan, Hermann Heyl (13).
Team Merry Monk: Mark Cunningham (18), Conor Burke (6), Theo Daly, Eoin Noone, Peter Papik (14), Ronan O’Malley (18), Ronan McGarrity (15), Paddy Walsh (3), Rory Upton (2), David Marry (7).
