Cork Senior A Hurling: Rampant Killeagh headed for knockout stages

Killeagh 4-24

Inniscarra 1-12

Having begun Saturday’s Co-op SuperStores SAHC clash with Inniscarra with no points and a scoring difference of -12, Killeagh are headed for the quarter-finals after a superb display.

With two defeats behind them in Group 3, a big turnaround was needed – the East Cork side needed a win and a 12-point swing against Ballyhea, who faced leaders Glen Rovers – but such was their dominance that the calculators were not needed.

Two goals inside the opening two minutes meant they never trailed, by half-time they were 2-12 to 1-6 in front and a numerical superiority for the entirety of the second half meant they eased to a 21-point win.

Though Killeagh will be underdogs against Blarney in the quarter-finals, there is no shortage of momentum to be harnessed. Dylan McCarthy’s haul of 1-9 is all the more impressive considering he had to retire at the three-quarter mark – his brother Ryan seamlessly took over the free-taking duties – while Shane Smiddy and Andy Walsh were also superb during their time on the field.

Killeagh certainly began with intent. The clock showed just 40 seconds when an excellent Andy Walsh delivery was perfect for David Buckley to fire home a goal. The second minute hadn’t even elapsed when Shane Smiddy claimed a puckout and laid off to Ryan McCarthy, who drilled his shot to the net – 2-0 to 0-0.

Amazingly, another goal was to follow before the game’s first point, however this one belatedly gave Inniscarra a foothold as Marc Nagle – in for the injured Seán O’Donoghue – touched home after a scramble.

With Seán Long impressing at midfield and Ryan McCarthy’s deliveries from the right wing full of menace, Killeagh had pushed on to a 2-5 to 1-1 lead by the 16th minute, when Inniscarra were awarded a penalty. Liam Ryan’s floated delivery was the catalyst, with David O’Keeffe impeded as he sought to make the most of it.

However, Pádraig Holland’s penalty was saved well by Philip O’Neill and Cameron Lynch’s batted follow-up went wide. Then, in the space of two minutes, what might have become a four-point match soon become an 11-point one.

Dylan McCarthy had three – one set up brilliantly by his brother – while Seán Long added another as they moved 2-9 to 1-1 in front. Frees from Joe Enright helped Inniscarra to reduce the gap slightly coming up to half-time, but they were dealt a blow as Seán Sheehan was red-carded for a high challenge.

Killeagh added further punishment as they started the second half like the first – Seán Long setting up Dylan McCarthy for a goal inside 11 seconds of the restart – and with Brendan Delaney operating well as the free man, their grip on the game only grew stronger.

A fourth goal came on 46 minutes as sub Andy Leahy marked his arrival by setting up his brother Colm. The points continued to come after that and Patrick O’Brien was excellent at full-back when Inniscarra did make forays.

Richie Long rounded off the scoring, set up by his brother Seán – the third-such fraternally-assisted score – and O’Neill was on hand to deny Adam Doyle a late Inniscarra goal, just in case the points were needed on the table. They had done enough, though.

Scorers for Killeagh: D McCarthy 1-9 (0-6 f, 0-1 65), R McCarthy 1-5 (0-2 f, 0-1 65), C Leahy 1-2, D Buckley 1-1, S Smiddy 0-3, S Long 0-2, C Leahy, R Long 0-1 each.

Inniscarra: J Enright 0-6 (0-5 f), M Nagle 1-0, C Lynch 0-2, S O’Mahony, F O’Leary, D O’Keeffe, M Murphy 0-1 each.

KILLEAGH: P O’Neill; A Keniry, P O’Brien, D Walsh; R Sinclair, B Delaney, A Walsh; S Long, C Leahy; R McCarthy, R Long, S Smiddy; D Buckley, C Leahy, D McCarthy.

Subs: A Leahy for D McCarthy (30-half-time, temporary), G Leahy for Smiddy (43, injured), A Leahy for D McCarthy (45, injured), S Walsh for A Walsh (50).

INNISCARRA: J O’Keeffe; D Keane, B O’Mahony, J O’Sullivan; J Enright, C O’Leary, S Sheehan; S O’Mahony, L Ryan; A McCarthy, M Nagle, C Lynch; F O’Leary, P Holland, D O’Keeffe.

Subs: M Murphy for Holland, A Doyle for F O’Leary (both half-time), T Lyons for O’Sullivan (33), C Geoghegan or McCarthy (42), F O’Leary for Ryan (50).

Referee: N Fahy (Brian Dillons).