Ballygiblin come back from seven down to seal semi-final spot
REVIVAL: Blackrock players John O'Sullivan and Robert Cregan looking to stop Killian Roche, Ballygiblin during their Cork IAHC quarter-final. Picture Dan Linehan
Ballygiblin set up a showdown with Lisgoold in the semi-finals of the Co-op Superstores Intermediate A Hurling Championship by overturning a seven point half-time deficit and defeating Blackrock 1-21 to 1-12 at Mourneabbey.
It was an epic encounter between two far away rivals, who were meeting for the second time in successive seasons at the same stage in the competition.
Ballygiblin came out on top this time, thanks to a dramatic comeback that started with Sean O’Sullivan’s goal at the start of the second half.
Darragh Flynn and Joseph O’Sullivan also hit 0-8 apiece on a day that looked like it was over before it began as Blackrock had a near perfect first half.
It started with a Robert Cregan goal inside the first minute and things got better when Eoin O’Farrell converted a free, while Darragh Flynn raised Ballygiblin’s first white flag.
The Rockies pushed on and raced into a 1-6 to 0-2 lead, with a range of scorers helping their cause. Their goalkeeper, Ross Browne, started this by putting over a free from his own 65 and this was followed by points from Luke O’Donovan, John O’Sullivan, and another free by the Blackrock shot-stopper.
Ballygiblin looked lost, with Darragh Flynn and Joseph O’Sullivan the only two players to find the target at that point inside the first ten minutes.
It looked like they were putting some form of run together when Shane Beston and Joseph O’Sullivan split the posts, and then the referee ruled that Colin O’Leary was impeded during a goalscoring opportunity. A penalty was given and Browne hit the back of the net, making it 2-6 to 0-6.
Ballygiblin only scored three times during the time left to play in the first half, while John O’Sullivan, Sean Healy, Cregan, and Conor Coakley converted to make it 2-10 to 0-9 in favour of Blackrock at the break.
The comeback was fast, and it started with Sean O’Sullivan’s goal and continued with a 0-6 run by Ballygiblin.
Darragh Flynn got three during that, and Cathail O’Mahony got one after coming off the bench. Joseph O’Sullivan continued his 100% record with frees by putting over a brace of frees.
O’Farrell also missed a free during his period, and he got fourth score from a placed ball within seconds of that miss. Regardless of his effort, the general feeling was that Ballygiblin had all the momentum.
What helped that was the dismissal of Cregan, who received a straight red card in the 34th minute.
Two more scores from O’Flynn extended Ballygiblin’s lead and O’Mahony got another, making it 1-17 to 2-12.
Blackrock changed tactics late on and their attempts at dropping the sliotar onto the square were in vain over the nature of the Ballygiblin defence.
This advance created space for players like Joseph O’Sullivan to run into and he used to get his second score from play. He also put over a 65 and the club’s passage to the semi-finals was ensured with late white flags raised by Darragh Flynn and Sean O’Sullivan.
D Flynn 0-8; J O’Sullivan 0-8 (5f, 1 65), S O’Sullivan 1-1, S Beston and C O’Mahony 0-2.
R Browne 1-2 (2f, 1p); R Creegan 1-1; E O’Farrell 0-4 (2f), J O’Sullivan 0-2, C Coakley, L O’Donovan, S Healy all 0-1.
A O’Brien; K Roche, F Herlihy, J Mullins, K O’Gorman, M Keane, L Lewis, R Donnegan, J O’Sullivan, K Duggan, D Flynn, D Sheehan, S Beston, S O’Sullivan, D Barry.
C O’Mahony for Barry (HT); E Flynn for Sheehan (40), C O’Sullivan for Donnegan (45), S O’Doherty for Mullins (55), B Coffey for O’Gorman (60).
R Browne; J Ryan, G Norberg, R Laide, L O’Donovan, S Healy, E Cantwell, D Cormack, L O’Sullivan, E O’Farrell, I O’Keeffe, J O’Sullivan, R Cregan, C O’Leary, T Grainger.
C Coakley for Cantwell (28); J Walsh for O’Leary (45), E Coughlan for Grainger (45).
Simon Stokes (Tullylease)
