Cork Premier SFC: Ballincollig back on track after six-point win over Carrigaline
TUSSLE: Ballincollig veteran Liam Jennings tackles Brian Coakley of Carrigaline in their Cork Premier SFC tie at Pairc Ui Rinn
Ballincollig are back on track. Trounced first evening out by champions Nemo, last year’s beaten semi-finalists revived their knockout aspirations with victory in what was a must-win Cork PSFC fixture for both themselves and Carrigaline.
A first win notched, Podsie O’Mahony’s men will need another to progress to the quarter-finals. The opportunity to garner such will come in next month’s mid-Cork derby against neighbours Éire Óg.
For Carrigaline, this second defeat means their championship is as good as cooked.
Their receding chances of reaching the quarter-finals now rest on Éire Óg recording a shock victory over Nemo in the second of Sunday’s Group B double-header at Páirc Uí Rinn.
The difference in the scoreline and in the tale of the hour was the goals taken by Ballincollig and the goal openings not taken by Carrigaline.
After being level on five occasions in the opening 21 minutes, Cian Dorgan’s opening green flag put the first chink of space between the pair.
The gap was three when they registered a game-deciding second major on 56 minutes. Half back Cian Kiely ghosted forward to get himself on the end of a flowing move that involved quick hands from Dorgan and sub Sean O’Neill.
For Carrigaline, there will be regret over the chances they failed to capitalise upon. Callum Barrett thundered the crossbar in the opening half, while on 36 minutes, and the deficit facing them four points, Kevin O’Reilly blazed wide a glorious chance.
The inside forward did redeem himself with three points in-a-row to pare the margin to two, 1-9 to 0-10, on 45 minutes. No closer, though, did they come.
Ballincollig were markedly improved on their 11-point hammering at the hands of Nemo. Says you, that wouldn’t have been at all hard.
Having managed just 0-6 in total first time out, Ballincollig had matched that tally by the 23rd minute of a lively first half. And it was the lively Harry Ahearne who kicked their sixth of the afternoon, the midfielder bursting through the centre to land his third point of the contest.
Ahearne's contribution was all the more impressive considering he wasn’t even selected first time out, his promotion to the starting team one of four changes made by management for this crunch Round 2 fixture.
Ballincollig’s 1-6 first half total was supplied by just two players, corner forward Cian Dorgan accounting for the remaining 1-3. His goal arrived on 27 minutes, finishing a tidy passage of play that included sub Darren Murphy and Rob Noonan.
With the sides having been level on five occasions, an unanswered Ballincollig 1-2 propelled Podsie O’Mahony’s charges four in front.
A Brian Coakley mark on the half hour - his third of the half - brought an end to a 12-minute barren spell for Carrigaline and left them just three adrift at the break.
But for the crossbar, they’d have been level. As mentioned, Callum Barrett’s goal attempt around the 21st minute mark hit the underside of the crossbar and came back out into the danger area.
O’Reilly’s second-half goal opportunity was more clear-cut and so their subsequent frustration at again failing to find the net was more pronounced.
Having had only two first-half scorers, the Ballincollig scoresheet was more populous in the second period.
Cian Kiely got forward for 1-1, with the impressive Darragh O’Mahony and Liam O’Connell kicking important scores.
With two wides in total, the winners were the more clinical. Their campaign has lift off.
C Dorgan (1-4, 0-1 free); C Kiely (1-1); H Ahearne (0-3); D O’Mahony (0-2); L O’Connell, R Noonan (0-1 each).
K O’Reilly (0-4, 0-1 mark); B Coakley (0-1 mark, 0-1 free), E Desmond (0-3 each); N Coakley, J McCarthy (0-1 each).
J Gibbons; F Downs, N Galvin, C Moore; J O’Connor, L Jennings, C Kiely; H Ahearne, S Dore; M Oldham, L O’Connell, P O’Neill; R Noonan, D O’Mahony, C Dorgan.
S O’Donoghue for Downs (17, inj); D Murphy for Galvin (24, inj); S O’Neill for Oldham (44); T O’Connell for Noonan (55).
C Dungan; N Quirke, I Sheerin, C O’Herlihy; D King, C Barry, J McCarthy; Kieran Kavanagh, Kevin Kavanagh; C Barrett, N Coakley, E Desmond; O Barry, B Coakley, K O’Reilly.
N O’Keeffe for Barry (42); E Ryle for Barrett, P Mellett for Kieran Kavanagh (both 47); J Kelly fo Desmond, K McCarthy for King (both 54).
J Bermingham.
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