Star man Oke's defiance of injury drove underdogs Carrigtwohill 

Carrigtwohill suffered a major blow when star midfielder Justin Oke was ruled out in August. So, you can imagine the disbelief when Oke turned up ready to go for the Na Piarsaigh fixture.

Carrigtwohill's Justin Oke. Picture; Eddie O'Hare

Overcoming adversity is nothing new for Carrigtwohill.

Just under a fortnight ago they sealed the most dramatic of Cork senior A hurling championship quarter-final wins over Na Piarsaigh in a thrilling penalty shootout in Páirc Uí Rinn.

Although they were underdogs due to key injuries, there was no shortage of motivation.

The loss of Seán Walsh to ACL surgery earlier in the year left them without their top scorer.

They suffered another major blow when star midfielder Justin Oke was ruled out in August.

So, you can imagine the disbelief when Oke turned up ready to go for the Na Piarsaigh fixture.

With his knee tightly strapped, he made a profound impact upon his half-time introduction.

It provided such a boost, says team captain Aaron Walsh Barry.

“I only found out when we met that Friday evening from Justin he was available, he arrived on with his gear. He obviously got the go-ahead, he would go through a wall, that man.

“You look at him and you say I have to pull my weight here now to help this man. This man is carrying a heavy injury and he is going out to battle the same as me. I have to give what he is giving. I’m 100 percent and he is not.

“You look to the line then and you see Seán. He obviously didn’t get a minute in championship and we all want to play championship, that is why we train. You look at your buddy and he’s not on the field and all he wants to do is be on the field. That gives you another lift and you drive on.” 

In 2021 Carrigtwohill were relegated from the top tier by Charleville in a heartbreaking 3-2 penalty shootout.

Five years on, having refused to back down in normal time and extra time, a 3-2 sudden-death worked in their favour.

In their group finale, and with their season on the line, they showed gritty resolve as well.

“We were up seven but Ballinhassig came at us in the end and we drew with them. Probably lucky to get out with a draw to be honest and with the way the other results went, we got out of the group.

“We obviously backed ourselves in the dying minutes against Ballinhassig and got the scores we needed. I suppose that was in the lads’ minds against Na Piarsaigh. We got the goal to get to extra time. They came at us again in extra time and they got another goal and we had to get back level and force penalties.” 

Next opponents are Blarney, who after surviving a Castlelyons scare on day one, safely navigated their way to take one of the automatic semi-final spots with maximum points.

Carrigtwohill, with one loss, one win, and a draw, finished second in their section and into the last eight.

With that hurdle surmounted they return to the penultimate round, which is the very same stage they were eliminated 12 months ago by eventual champions Bride Rovers.

The question now is whether that extra ultra-competitive battle with Na Piarsaigh will benefit the east Cork side.

As an All-Ireland Rebel underage hurling medallist and anchor of Carrigtwohill’s last line of defence, Walsh Barry is hopeful they can make it count.

“I’m not sure if the quarter-final will help us, we never played a quarter-final at this grade. It was straight to the semi-final (2023 and 2025) and the four week break. So we don’t know.

“It was a great game obviously against Na Piarsaigh, so close. Hopefully that will stand to us.”