Winning start for Ballina despite first half setback

Elverys Sports Super League – Round 1

Ballina Town 4

Ballinrobe Town 2

Paul O’Malley in Belleek

A PJ Gilmartin brace sealed three points for Ballina Town against Ballinrobe Town at Belleek Park on Sunday afternoon.

Ballinrobe look much improved on the team went had just one win in the last nine league games of last season and held the lead at the break but Ballina came good in the second 45 to claim victory.

Ballina manager Mick Duffy said at full time that he was impressed with Ballinrobe’s performance and it took a big effort from his team to overcome the deficit.

“That was a difficult game. We were trailing at half time and had to look into ourselves and see if could go and dig deep.”

“We had some great performances from our senior players but also from our younger guys as well. Conor Gorman and Ashton Judge who came on were brilliant. PJ Gilmartin was so clinical upfront when we needed him to be.”

Gilmartin was heavily involved in the opener. Ballina won possession high up the pitch and he let fly with a shot towards goal that Paul Tiernan spilled and Ryan Moran tapped in the rebound.

Ballinrobe made the most of a rapid counter in the 14th minute. Benny Lavelle looked to switch play from right to left but the switching pass lacked conviction and the Robesiders broke. Joe Lydon found Sean Vahey in plenty of space and he was brought down by Conor Quinn in the penalty area and referee Damien McGrath had no hesitation in pointing to the spot.

Oisin Connolly buried the penalty past Emmet Peyton; it was a goal that really rattled Ballina and they struggled to focus after conceding. They tried to venture forward but found their path blocked by the likes of Aaron McDonnell, Oisin Connolly and Peter Finnerty. Ballinrobe made the most of this period of the game and took the go-ahead goal on the half hour mark.

Sean Vahey unleashed a picture-perfect volley, an effort with echoes of James Rodriguez’s famous World Cup 2014 finish, into the top corner past the outstretched Peyton.

With a minute left in the half, Benny Lavelle got on the end of a move started by Conor Gorman on the right flank. He found Moran, who found Lavelle inside and hammered a low shot past Paul Tiernan that smashed against the post. They were already on their feet on the Ballina bench, certain the striker had opened his tally for the season but the half time whistle soon came with Ballinrobe leading 2-1, an eye-opening scoreline that surely sent a few shockwaves around the county.

It was not to last however, despite the best efforts of the visitors. Mick Duffy made an astute substitute, his only one of the game, that helped Ballina get control of proceedings. Oran Canavan put in a massive shift in defensive midfield against giants Peter Finnerty and Oisin Hanlon but the physical battle was better suited to Conor Quinn, who moved up in front of the back four from centre back. Stephen Melvin shifted across to replace Quinn and Canavan made way for young Ashton Judge, who slotted in Melvin’s place at left-back.

The equalizing goal then finally came after some sustained Ballina pressure that led to Aaron McDonnell bringing down Ryan Moran and receiving a yellow card for his troubles. The resulting free was taken superbly by Oisin Tighe and Dylan McKee was the man who drifted into the space to meet the ball with a diving header, levelling matters with 62 minutes played.

Ten minutes later, Ballinrobe finally found themselves on the front foot for the first time in a long time and ended up getting caught out on the counter. Ashton Judge played a high-quality pass down the left flank to PJ Gilmartin, who completed the move with a brilliant finish into the far corner of the net.

Deep into injury time, Gilmartin put the icing on the cake with another counter attack goal. Ballinrobe had committed a lot of bodies forward searching for an equalizer and Gilmartin broke, this time down the right flank and all the way through beyond the challenge of Evan Kinneavey, tidily finishing with his left boot.

Ballina Town: Emmet Peyton, Conor Gorman, Conor Quinn, David O’Mahoney, Stephen Melvin, Oran Canavan, PJ Gilmartin, Dylan McKee, Ryan Moran, Benny Lavelle, Oisin Tighe. Subs: Ashton Judge (for Canavan 56).

Ballinrobe Town: Paul Tiernan, Sean Hughes, Aaron McDonnell, Oisin Connolly, Johnny Lawrence, Gillan Jennings, Peter Finnerty, Oisin Hanlon, Sean Vahey, Joe Lydon, Seamus Langan. Subs: Connor Ryan (for Langan 53), Matthew Walshe (for Lydon 60), Evan Kinneavey and Henry Hughes (for McDonnell and Finnerty 78).

Ref: Damien McGrath.