St Finbarr's minor footballers beat Mallow to top group
Conor O'Donoghue, St Finbarr's, is up for this ball with Gearoid Daly and Eoghan Murphy, Mallow in their Rebel Óg Premier 1 MFC at Togher. Picture: Dan Linehan
St Finbarr’s made it three from three in the Premier 1 minor football championship following their win at Togher.
With both sides already through to the semi-finals all that was at stake was who would top the table and keep their winning run going.
It now means that Mallow will face Bishopstown in one semi-final in a few weeks.
In the other semi-final it will be the Barrs against the winners of the quarter-final between Ballincollig and Douglas, which is due to take place on September 10-11, details to be confirmed, as the latter are already involved in a hurling quarter-final.
Two second-half goals were the difference in the end, one a superb solo effort from Trevor Howe, running from deep in his own half to find the back of the net.
He was one of several players in top form for the home side, with Ricky Barrett, Cian O’Sullivan, Thomas Egan and Sean Kirby also playing well.
Cian O’Sullivan opened the scoring from a free for the Barrs, before Sean Kirby added a second as the home side started well.
Mallow hit back and two frees from Cathal Mullins had the sides level, 0-2 each, after nine minutes.
Barrett but the Barrs back in front, with Ben O’Shea equalising for Mallow, with their first three points all coming from frees.
With 20 minutes gone, the Barrs got their first goal, when Conor O’Donoghue and Barrett combined to play James Murray in to raise the first green flag of the game.
However Mallow hit back and two minutes later they found the back of the net when their midfielders, Padraig Britton and Jack Roche combined for the latter to score.
They added points, through Ben O’Shea and Hourigan to see the sides level, 1-6 each, with two minutes to half-time.
But last points from Murray and Barrett saw the home side two to the good at the break.
O’Shea hit back for Mallow and he added a second and when Mullins got their third of the second half the sides were level again, 1-9 each.
O’Sullivan and O’Shea exchanged scores to see them still tied after 42 minutes. Then Howe turned the game on its head with a simply magnificent run to score the Barrs second goal, but again Mallow responded.
This time O’Shea found the back of the net to level it again, 2-10 each.
But the Barrs finished strongly with two points from Barrett and a late goal from O’Sullivan to keep their 100% record.
C O’Sullivan 1-4 (0-3 f, 0-1 45), R Barrett 0-5, J Murray, T Howe 1-1 each, S Kirby 0-2.
B O’Shea 1-5 (0-4 f), J Roche 1-0, C Mullins 0-3 (0-2 f), L Buckley, A Hourigan 0-1 each.
J O’Kelly; E Hurley, D O’Kelly, D Burke; T Howe, M Aherne, S Kirby; T Egan, D O’Keeffe; N Crowley, R Barrett, C O’Donoghue; C McCarthy, J Murray, C O’Sullivan.
J Brady for D O’Keeffe, E Malone for N Crowley (both 50).
D Frey; E Murphy, P Murphy, D Kingston; E Walsh, G Daly, T Kiely; P Britton, J Roche; C Mullins, L Buckley, A Murphy; B O’Shea, R McAuliffe, A Hourigan.
E Sheehan for E Murphy (51), A Roche for J Roche, J Quill for A Hourigan (both 56).
Cathal Nolan, Bishopstown.
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