Unconvincing Barrs do enough to squeeze past Carbery Rangers
Carbery Rangers' Peader O'Rourke being challenged by Billy Hennessy of St Finbarr's. Pic: Denis Boyle
Unconvincing by the Barrs. And yet still business was taken care of to ensure knockout involvement with a round of group action still to run.
Scoreless from the 13th minute of the opening half to the eighth minute of the second period, during which time the Togher side went from five in front to two behind, Ian Maguire, Ethan Twomey, and Steven Sherlock stepped forward in the final quarter to haul the team across the line for an utterly unglamorous win.
The result carries implications for all four teams in Group 2.
The Barrs and Carrigaline, both with maximum points from two games, advance to the knockout stages. They will meet in Round 3 to determine who finishes top of the group and puts themselves in the frame for direct passage to the semis.
Eliminated Carbery Rangers and Clonakilty, meanwhile, are now chasing points in their final round clash to avoid being dragged into a relegation play-off.
Carbery Rangers fumed at the final whistle. Players and management felt John O’Rourke was fouled as he went through for a winning goal in the third and final minute of injury time.
A two-pointer would also have kept them alive in the group, but the orange flag did not seem to be a consideration.
Ahead by 0-8 to 1-3 on 38 minutes, the Rosscarbery outfit managed only three points from there to the finish.
A pair of Steven Sherlock frees, after a pair of fouls on Ian Maguire, brought an end to the Barrs’ 27-minute scoreless spell.
Ciaran Doolan grabbed the Paul Shanahan restart after the second of these conversions, the play ending with Ethan Twomey’s third point.
Shanahan’s successful ‘45 on 44 minutes was the last time the teams stood level. Twomey’s fourth nudged the blues back in front. 1-7 to 0-9.
Cillian Myers Murray’s 49th-minute white flag saw him become the first Barrs player outside of Sherlock and Twomey to find the target.
It was that sort of afternoon for the annual contenders, who lined out minus the injured Brian Hayes.
A strange first half. A litany of early misses on either side.
The Barrs' wide count stood at three by the seventh minute. Then a blue burst. Ethan Twomey’s second and Sherlock’s opening white flag sandwiched a green flag by the latter. His early 1-1 was assisted by Ian Maguire. The favourites 1-3 to 0-1 in front inside 13 minutes.
The Barrs would not score across the remainder of the half. Their total stayed static at 1-3. There was a pair of poor Sherlock wides that really should have moved the dial. But beyond that, it was Carbery Rangers in charge from open play, if not on the scoreboard.
Perhaps a degree of complacency crept into the Barrs' play when moving five ahead so early. Certainly, a carelessness and casualness crept into their forward play.
One couldn’t accuse Rosscarbery of carelessness. Their failing was more wastefulness. Eight first-half wides. There was also a Timmy Cullinane goal shot well saved by Darragh Newman. The resultant 45 was off target from Carbery Rangers ‘keeper Shanahan.
Cullinane was the liveliest threat in the Carbery Rangers attack. His was a constant duel with Sam Ryan in the corner. Cullinane’s sole first-half point from play was his team’s first in 12 minutes and first of five on the trot from the West Cork men.
John O’Rourke added a brace, with Jack Kevane and Peadar O’Rourke also on target for a 1-3 to 0-6 stalemate at the break.
The Barrs, without ever hitting any acceptable heights of theirs, found enough of a scoring improvement in the second period to squeeze out a second championship win.
S Sherlock (1-4, 0-2 frees); E Twomey (0-4); I Maguire, C Myers Murray (0-1 each).
J O’Rourke (0-3, 0-1 free); T Cullinane (0-1 free), P O’Rourke, C Twomey (0-2 each); P Shanahan (0-1 45), J Kevane (0-1).
D Newman; B Hennessy, A O’Connor, S Ryan; B O’Connell, J Burns, E Dennehy; I Maguire, E Twomey; C Doolan, C Dennehy, W Buckley; R Barrett, C Myers Murray, S Sherlock.
F Crowley for E Dennehy (6 mins, inj); L Hannigan for C Dennehy (40); E McGreevy for Myers Murray (50).
P Shanahan; Jerry O’Riordan, C Daly, T O’Rourke; S Linehan, J Kevane, James O’Riordan; B Hodnett, J O’Brien; K Scannell, J O’Rourke, P O’Rourke; T Cullinane, C Twomey, P Hodnett.
M Hodnett for P Hodnett (44); P Crowley for Scannell (50); J Fitzpatrick for O’Brien (52); J Hodnett for Kevane (56); B Shanahan for T O’Rourke (58).
P O’Driscoll (Bride Rovers).
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