Late Newtownshandrum goal sends relegation playoff with Erin's Own to a replay
Barry Óg Murphy, Erin's Own, tries to block the clearance of Turlough O'Neill, Newtownshandrum. Picture: Jim Coughlan.
Two teams with a decades-long history of top-tier hurling came to Mourneabbey to save their Premier Senior status. Both succeeded, at least for another week or two.
Erin’s Own looked the likely winners after their four-goal blast in the space of eight minutes handed them a wind-assisted 12-point cushion. Newtownshandrum responded with fierce determination. Nine consecutive points had it back to a one-score game by the 46th minute.
The Glounthaune club dug deep and, despite a late Newtown goal, they still lead by five after 58 minutes.
But Newtown were all heart. They never stopped coming. When Turlough O’Neill whipped the loose sliotar to the net in the third of five added minutes, that equaliser extended their top-flight stay.
It could’ve been a done deal. Tim O’Mahony missed a couple of chances for the winning score. They could’ve lost it too. In between, Finn O’Brien’s shot was deemed wide after consultation with the umpires.
As it is, after 38 and 29 years at the top, both sides get another day.
It began with Oran O’Regan pointing from the throw-in and setting up the next for Peter O’Shea.
U21 talent O’Regan was the top performer for the East Cork men. He assisted 1-3 from midfield in an all-action first half before manning the barricades at centre-back for the final quarter. Time and again, he arose from rucks with the sliotar to stabilise his side.
His markers for that final stretch were Newtown’s county men in Cormac O’Brien and O’Mahony. O’Brien tallied 0-3 from his switch to the forwards. He finished at centre-back once O’Mahony cramped up.
After that early start, Newtown settled with three consecutive points into the breeze through David O’Connor, O’Neill, and a Jamie Coughlan free.
Initially, Erin’s Own made little of the wind advantage to sit level at 0-5 apiece after 16 minutes. That was just the set-up.
They spread their puck-outs to the wings for the first 10 minutes, bombarded them onto the square for the next 10, and resumed picking out players in wide positions for the final 10 of the half. The varied approach yielded a goal from each method.
The first long puck-out garnered a Barry Óg Murphy point. Robbie O’Flynn snapped the next missile and was hauled down by Conor Twomey. The county star stepped up to bury the free past a row of defenders on the goalline.
Tom McCarthy foiled another goal chance from a monster puck-out as Newtown seemed to settle with O’Neill and Coughlan points.
By the time they caught their breath again after 25 minutes, they’d shipped 3-2 without a retort. Conor Lenihan picked off a point by the sideline before latching onto O’Regan’s clearance to pull to the net.
Finn O’Brien caught the subsequent puck-out and received the return pass from Lenihan to rattle the bottom corner.
After another Lenihan point, the corner-forward picked up a puck-out by the right flank and dashed inside to tee up Maurice O’Carroll. His shot was saved, but Cian O’Callaghan recycled for O’Flynn to finish. At 4-7 to 0-7, the game seemed in their hands.
Newtown reacted with three substitutions by half-time. At that juncture, the deficit was 11; 4-8 to 0-9. Erin’s Own withdrew booked centre-back Shane Broderick. Newtown stuck with the yellow-carded Twomey on O’Flynn.
They brought ferocity from the resumption, trusting themselves to point their way back into contention. All the same, Tom Dillon twice denied them an earlier green flag, saving from Conor Griffin and Coughlan. Both times, Newtown recycled for a point.
O’Neill accounted for two, one of which also could’ve been a goal. Cormac O’Brien slotted his trio in this spell.
Erin’s Own found their first point of the half in the 48th minute through Finn O’Brien. Once they got in better supply and ran at their markers, two more followed from O’Brien and Lenihan.
But Newtown targetman Michael Lenihan broke the sliotar for Griffin to slam to the net, via the crossbar, for a two-point game; 4-11 to 1-18. O’Shea (0-2) and Conor Lenihan cancelled out that score.
Yet Newtown came with one final push. Stephen Minihane picked off a loose pass to point. Coughlan converted a free. Then, Cormac O’Brien’s huge sideline fell for O’Neill to save the day.
R O’Flynn 2-3 (1-2 f), C Lenihan 1-4, F O’Brien 1-2, P O’Shea 0-4, B Óg Murphy, O O’Regan 0-1 each.
J Coughlan 0-8 (0-7 f), T O’Neill 1-4, C Griffin 1-1, C O’Brien 0-3, S Minihane 0-2, C Twomey, D O’Connor, M Lenihan 0-1 each.
T Dillon; R O’Regan, C Dooley, C O’Connor; C Dunphy, S Broderick, C McDonnell; B Óg Murphy, O O’Regan; M O’Carroll, P O’Shea, F O’Brien; Conor Lenihan, R O’Flynn (c), C O’Callaghan.
J O’Carroll for Broderick (h-t), Cathal Lenihan for O’Callaghan (43), E Murphy for M O’Carroll (47).
J Bowles (c); T McCarthy, C Twomey, P O’Sullivan; B Collins, T O’Mahony, K O’Sullivan; M Ryan, R Troy; T O’Neill, C O’Brien, D O’Connor; C Griffin, J Coughlan, R Geary.
D Ryan for P O’Sullivan (26), S Minihane for Troy (30), M Lenihan for Geary (h-t), E O’Mahony for O’Connor (36 to ft, temporary).
C Walsh (Nemo Rangers).
App?
