Ballyhalemen on a mission

It was a winter of loss for Ballyhale Shamrocks and Oulart-the-Ballagh in 2011.

The Wexford men had to deal with the sight of another Leinster title in the rear-view mirror, while James ‘Cha’ Fitzpatrick and the local parish had to deal with a matter of much greater importance: life. Or the passing of it.

A single-car collision claimed the lives of two young hurlers — Sean Malone and Martin Duggan — a couple of days before Christmas and put sport into perspective.