Cloyne survive late, late scare before seeing off Mallow
TACKING THEM ON: Cloyne's Conor Cahill scored five points in victory. Pic: David Keane.
They made hard work of it in the end, but Cloyne deservedly marched on to the quarterfinals of the Co-Op Superstores Cork SAHC after they defeated Mallow by two points in Grenagh on Saturday evening. They will play Blarney in that quarter-final tie, while Mallow now find themselves in a relegation playoff against Inniscarra.
Mallow did everything they could to rescue this game. They trailed by 2-19 to 1-16 with five minutes to go and it was hard to see them finding their way out of hell. Paul Lyons’ third point of the evening in the first minute of added time reeked of consolation. They needed a goal, and Ashley Walsh had already denied them one with a superb save from Daniel Sheehan midway through the second half.
However, Denis Hayes then fetched a long delivery from the skies and finished it to the net and, suddenly, there was doubt everywhere. Everywhere that is except in the mind of Cloyne centre-back, Stephen Beausang. When Mallow did get the ball past Walsh again, he was there to pick up the pieces and ensure Cloyne’s progress to the final six.
Both teams needed the win here, for entirely different reasons, and neither of them were going to die wondering as they went toe-to-toe from the off. Cloyne played up the hill and into the wind, but that didn’t prevent them from looking the sharper outfit. A couple of points from Conor Cahill and one each from Brian Walsh and Éanna Motherway helped them into an early 0-4 to 0-2 lead, Paul Lyons and Daniel Sheehan with the Mallow scores.
Two Mark Tobin points then brought Mallow level, but Cloyne were soon two ahead again as Brian O’Shea tapped over a free and Keith Dennehy found his range. Two more from O’Shea and Cahill were then cancelled out by Tobin and Darragh Moynihan points for Mallow to leave it 0-8 to 0-6 at the end of the opening quarter.
Dennehy then found Mikey Cahill with a smart pass, Cahill buried to it to the net and when Conor Cahill hit his fourth of the half, Cloyne looked to be in complete control. Mallow rallied however, Sheehan fed Tobin who finished smartly to the net before further points from Tobin and Lyons made it 1-9 to 1-8.
It was now Cloyne’s return to respond and respond they did. Noel Cahill went on a mazy run through the Mallow defence before popping it off to Keith Dennehy who crashed the ball to the net. Points from Walsh and Motherway then sandwiched a Tobin free to leave Cloyne leading by 2-11 to 1-9 at the break.
They managed the game professionally on the resumption, outscoring Mallow by 0-6 to 0-3 in the third quarter. O’Shea and Cahill hit four between them and Conor Hallihan tapped over two points while Mallow were becoming more reliant on Tobin for scores.
Two more Tobin points and one each from Pa Healy and Sheehan did bring them to within four, but successive points from Mikey and Noel Cahill seemed to finish the job for Cloyne.
They got there in the end, despite the late drama, and they move on to the knockout stages in fine fettle.
B O’Shea (frees) and C Cahill (0-5 each), M Cahill (0-1 free) and K Dennehy (1-1 each), B Walsh, J Hallihan and E Motherway (0-2 each), N Cahill (0-1).
M Tobin (1-9, 0-5 frees), P Lyons and D Sheehan (0-3 each), D Hayes (1-0), D Moynihan and P Healy (0-1 each).
A Walsh; A Sherlock, Eoin Motherway, T O’Regan; Éanna Motherway, S Beausang, D Byrne; C Cahill, B Minihane; N Cahill, J Hallihan, B O’Shea (c); K Dennehy, B Walsh, M Cahill.
C O’Sulliavn for O’Shea (inj, 49), C Mullins for N Cahill (inj, 61), E Treacy for Éanna Motherway (62).
P Buckley; S Copps, B Kingston, J Healy; D Moynihan, N O’Riordan, P Healy; S Buckley, P Lyons; R Mills, F O’Neill, R Sheehan; M Tobin, D Hayes, D Sheehan.
S O’Callaghan for R Sheeahn (inj, 27), D Sheehan for Buckley (38), S Leneghan for O’Neill (46), B Murphy for Mills (60).
Alan O’Connor (Ballygarvan).
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