Corn Uí Mhuirí: All eyes on under pressure St Brendan's

Eoin Moriarty of Tralee CBS and Ben Kelliher of St Brendan's in action at Austin Stack Park. Pic: Domnick Walsh © Eye Focus LTD.

All eyes on Group 4 of the Corn Uí Mhuirí. All eyes on St Brendan’s College, Killarney - and not for the usual reasons.

The annual challengers - and beaten finalists as recently as last February - endured an unusual start to this year’s edition. 

A four-point defeat to the students from Clonakilty has the Sem on the back foot very early in their latest hunt for Munster schools' silverware.

It’s a hunt; if results were to fall a certain way this Wednesday, that would be over before it ever truly began.

The 0-15 to 0-11 defeat to Clon has made victory an imperative during today’s second round of group action. The Sem are again crossing the border to face Cork opposition.

Themselves and Coláiste Choilm Ballincollig are penciled in for a 2.30pm start on the Bishopstown 4G. When they met 12 months ago, the students from Killarney were clinical off limited chances, while the students from Cork were wasteful off a multitude of openings. 

It finished 3-4 to 0-4 in favour of the Sem.

More relevant, though, are their respective Round 1 results. 

The Sem’s aforementioned defeat, coupled with Ballincollig’s opening day win over Skibbereen Community School, has momentum resting with Coláiste Choilm and pressure packed onto the bus travelling the Macroom bypass.

The scenario is as follows: If Ballincollig were to record a second group victory, and Clonakilty do likewise in the West Cork derby at Rosscarbery, the Sem would be eliminated with a round to spare. Of course, do we even need to add that the school of 24 titles will exhaust every last avenue of effort before succumbing to such an outcome.

Cian Mulcahy, Dylan O'Meara, and Seán Kiely were all absent three weeks ago because of injury. 

The former pair were involved in last season’s final defeat to Mercy Mounthawk. Kiely, meanwhile, kicked three from play in the Dunloe Cup (Kerry U17A) final win of last March.

For Ballincollig, they’ll know there’s the opportunity of securing early progression and potentially blowing the competition wide open. They had their own notable absentee first day out, with Danny Miskella - who scored 0-8 in Ballincollig’s Cork Premier minor final success - not featuring because of a knock.

In Group 3, another title favourite, Tralee CBS, can collect an early quarter-final ticket with a second with at the expense of newcomers Cashel CS. The Tipp students, mind, scored an impressive stalemate first day out against three-in-a-row chasing Mounthawk.

Turning to Group 1, last season’s Munster U17B champions Clonmel High School produced one of the standout day one victories when having 14 points to spare over St Flannan’s. 

Finn Napier and Killian Smith will be bidding to repeat their goal heroics against a Rochestown side that drew with Pobalscoil Inbhear Scéine. The same as Tralee, a second Clonmel win would send them into the last eight.

And lastly to Group 2 where another early bird quarter final place will be snapped up if there is a winner at Banteer between Presentation Milltown and Hamilton High School Bandon. 

Both claimed maximum points first day out.

IS Killorglin and Patrician Academy Mallow are attempting to stave off early elimination in the other Group 2 outing.

Group 1: St Francis College Rochestown v High School Clonmel, UL 4G (12.30pm); Pobalscoil Inbhear Scéine v St Flannan’s College Ennis, Banteer 4G (12 noon).

Group 2: Patrician Academy Mallow v Intermediate School Killorglin, Bishopstown 4G (11.30am); Presentation Secondary School Milltown v Hamilton High School Bandon, Banteer 4G (1.30pm).

Group 3: Cashel Community School v Tralee CBS, UL 4G (1pm); St Patrick’s Secondary School Castleisland v Mercy Mounthawk Tralee, Currans (12.30pm).

Group 4: Clonakilty Community College v Skibbereen Community School, Rosscarbery (1.30pm); Coláiste Choilm Ballincollig v St Brendan’s College, Killarney, Bishopstown 4G (2.30pm).