Corn Uí Mhuirí: PA Mallow composed and clinical in defeating returning IS Killorglin

Mallow's Cathal Mullins playing against Coláiste Na Sceilgein last season's Corn UÍ MhuirÍ quarter-final.

Corn Ui Mhuiri Rd 1: PA Mallow 3-13 Intermediate School Killorglin 2-5

It was an 11-point victory in the end for Patrician Academy Mallow but it was only in the second-half that they were able to pull away from a returning Intermediate School Killorglin whose young side were playing the school’s first Corn Uí Mhuirí game in three years. 

Mallow started with six of the side who reached last season’s semi-finals and were the sharper of the two outfits on the day despite a lot of hard work from their Kerry opponents.

The game went scoreless in the opening nine minutes although Mallow looked the more organised. Some heroic Killorglin defending prevented the Mallow lads from running away with it in the first quarter. Both of Mallow’s first two scores came from their goalkeeper Den Joe O’Riordan converting 45s. Fionn Kennedy and Tomas Joy pointed subsequently for Killorglin. They conceded a 26th minute goal when Dylan O’Connell finished off a good Mallow and had them five points to the good at 1-4 to 0-2 at half-time.

Cian Cooney scored Mallow’s second goal three minutes after the restart but they conceded one at the other end when the hard working Charlie Griffin buried ISK’s first goal from a tight angle to make it 2-5 to 1-4 to the Cork school after 36 minutes. The match was starting to peter out as a contest around the 40-minute mark before Mallow put some distance between the sides on the three-quarter mark, John Murphy scoring their third goal to make it 3-8 to 1-5.

Fionn Kennedy punished some defensive sloppiness from Mallow, getting a consolation second goal for Killorglin in the 53rd minute but it was their final score of the game as Mallow finished with five unanswered points. One of those a third 45 converted by keeper Cathal Mullins who finished with five points from play for the victors.

Mallow will be happy to have gotten off to a winning start but will be well aware that a lot of tougher assignments await in the month of November as they face De La Salle Macroom and Mitchelstown CBS in their other Group games.

Scorers for PA Mallow: C Mullins (0-5), J Murphy (1-1), D O’Connell and C Cooney (1-0 each), DJ O’Riordan (0-3, 3’45’s), C Corbett (0-2), C Ruby (0-2). 

Scorers for ISK: F Kennedy (1-1), C Griffin (1-0), T Joy and A O’Neill (2f) (0-2 each).

PA MALLOW: DJ O’Riordan (Kilshannig); A Murphy (Mallow), P Murphy (do), E Murphy (do); C Cooney (Clyda Rovers), G Daly (Mallow), P Britton (do); E Sheahan (do), J Roche (do); C Ruby (Kilshannig), M Murphy (do), J Murphy; (Mallow) C Mullins (do), D O’Connell (Kilshannig), C Corbett (Clyda Rovers). 

Subs: M O’Riordan (Kilshannig) for E Murphy (45), C Murphy (Mallow) for J Roche (53), N Feaheny (Killavullen) for M Murphy (56), J Quill (Mallow) for C Ruby, D O’Connell (do) for P Murphy (both 59).

IS KILLORGLIN: C Campion (Listry); C Birmingham (Laune Rangers), D Butler (Fossa), G McCarthy (Cromane); D Flynn (Laune Rangers), S Griffin (Milltown/Castlemaine), Kissane (Beaufort); J Jones (Laune Rangers), J Horgan (do); C Evans (do), A O’Neill (do), F Kennedy (Beaufort); T Joy (Laune Rangers), C Griffin (Milltown/Castlemaine), O O’Sullivan (Laune Rangers). 

Subs: P O’Donnell (Laune Rangers) for E Kissane (42), J Gabbett (Beaufort) for C Birmingham (45), C Murphy (Laune Rangers) for D Flynn, T Cronin (Currow) for J Horgan (both 58). 

REFEREE: J Harnett (Boherbue).