Ross O'Sullivan strikes late as Na Piarsaigh edge out Carrigtwohill
Carrigtowhill's Sean Walsh in pursuit of Cian Horgan of Na Piarsagh. Picture: Noel Sweeney
A stunning late goal from Ross O’Sullivan in the 63rd minute was good enough to seal a vital win for Na Piarsaigh in a thrilling Co-Op Superstores Senior A Hurling Championship tie at Caherlag on Friday.
Na Piarsaigh went into the game on the back of an impressive win over Courcey Rovers but Carrigtwohill were under pressure after suffering a heavy 19-point defeat to Blarney.
In a bright opening three minutes for both sides Carrigtwohill took the lead following a placed ball from Sean Walsh that was followed by a second white flag from the gifted forward. It got worse for Na Piarsaigh in the eighth minute when Cian O’Riordan was hauled down on route to goal with Walsh executing the resultant penalty.
Trailing 1-3 to 0-0 after 10 minutes the Farranree side eventually ended their drought when Ross O’Sullivan split the posts. Na Piarsaigh were under pressure in defence but they got a stay of execution with their opening green flag midway through the half. A surging run by Luke Sheehan saw the ball fall into the path of Padraig Guest who doubled on it as the ball smashed into the corner of the net.
Game on with the deficit reduced to three points 1-5 to 1-2 as Na Piarsaigh were battling hard to get back in a game with some crucial hooking and blocking. O’Sullivan, despite getting fouled struck over a vital point, with nine minutes remaining to the interval as the intensity increased.
Sean Walsh was the sole scorer for Carrigtwohill up to the 25th minute with a 1-6 tally. The Walsh scoring spree halted in the closing minutes when Jamie McCarthy, Liam O’Sullivan and James Mulcahy notched a point each.
In fairness, Na Piarsaigh’s battling qualities continued and a late Daire Connery point brought the minimum between the teams at the break 1-9 to 1-8.
On the restar,t Na Piarsaigh turnovers cost them dearly as a goalkeeping error allowed Liam Gosnell in for a soft goal that gave the east Cork side the perfect start. The response was instant but Guest missed a golden goal opportunity seven minutes later.
The striking of Connery came to the fore for Na Piarsaigh with two wonderful long-range points and when Shane Forde drilled a massive point over midway through the half it edged them ahead by the minimum. Luke Sheehan was also contributing on the scoreboard.
The closing minutes were frantic and when Na Piarsaigh took a three-point lead with seven minutes left they looked to be in the driving seat only for their opponents to bring the game back on parity. Then came the stunning O’Sullivan goal deep into added time that had Na Piarsaigh supporters in rapture after an epic encounter.
P Guest 1-3 (0-2 f) R O’Sullivan 1-2, D Connery 0-4 (0-2 f, 0-1 65) L Sheehan 0-4, D Lee 0-2, S Forde 0-2, C Hannifin, K Moynihan 0-1 each.
S Walsh 1-10 (1-0 pen, 0-6 f), L Gosnell 1-2, J McCarthy, L O’Sullivan, J Mulcahy, S Brennan 0-1 each.
L Donovan; P Murphy, G Joyce,A Dennehy; K Moynihan, C Buckley D Connery; C Hannifin, K Buckley; L Sheehan, D Lee, O Galvin; R O’Sullivan, S Forde, P Guest.
C Hogan for O Galvin (inj 18), P O’Rourke for K Buckley (h-t), E Sheehan for S Forde (56).
T Hogan; A Rooney, A Walsh-Barry, S Burke; B Twomey P Hogan, D Murnane; J Oke; J Horgan; B Twomey; C O’Riordan, S Walsh, J McCarthy; J Mulcahy, L O’Sullivan, L Gosnell.
S Brennan for C O’Riordan (49).
Ciaran O’Regan (Ballyhea).
App?
