Ballincollig's Podsie O'Mahony: Player development is the priority in the league

A DISAPPOINTING second-half performance saw Podsie O’Mahony’s Ballincollig lose to Carbery Rangers in the McCarthy Insurance Group Division 1 Football League on Easter Saturday.

Playing well and leading 0-6 to 0-5 at the interval of last Saturday’s Division 1 encounter, Ballincollig failed to match their first-half intensity during a frantic second period.

Outscored 0-6 to 0-1 in a torrid third quarter, an out-of-sorts Ballincollig and their manager had no complaints with their 0-11 to 0-8 league defeat.

“We got off to a very poor start but showed a bit of honesty in the second quarter of the first half,” Podsie O’Mahony commented.

“We left a few scores behind us. The breeze was strong. Look, Carbery Rangers came out in the second half and just showed a lot more aggression.

They took their scores well and they had us under pressure. We didn’t perform in the second half really.” 

Despite Sean Dore, Dara Dorgan and Darragh O’Mahony’s best efforts, the Village were unable to contain a rampant Carbery during that aforementioned period.

Up until then, Ballincollig’s short kick-out strategy and patiently working the ball up the field was working well. Six first-half scores was a decent return from an approach the Village hopes will stand to their senior team come championship.

“It is horses for courses really and I wouldn’t be making excuses as the better team won, comfortably,” O’Mahony admitted.

REALITY

“The reality is we are missing 10 of our squad so it is very hard to try and do anything. We have a lot of young fellas with us right now.

“There are three Leaving Cert students involved and it is very hard on those guys. Brian Keating played only his second game of football in three years. There is another few coming back from injuries.

From our point of view, it is very much a work in progress every week, just disappointed with the result." 

Consistency is the key word for the Ballincollig manager between now and the opening round of the Premier SFC. He is not alone.

“I think every club is in the same boat. Last year we were playing league with three-quarters of our junior panel. At this level, you have to have numbers. That is just the way it is. Your county panellists are not with you. It is difficult.

“Things worked out for us in the first half but we still left scores behind us. The bottom line is that it didn’t work in the second half. We will just have to go back to the drawing board again.

“Last year, we lost our first six league games. Then we beat Kiskeam, the Barrs and Castlehaven to stay up. We have one win out of three now but are hopeful of staying up again.”