Kilworth overpower Aghabullogue to lift Division 4 silverware

Kilworth: 2-25 

Aghabullogue: 1-19

Kilworth produced a strong second-half showing to see off Aghabullogue in the RedFM Division 4 Hurling League final at Páirc Tadhg Mac Cárthaigh in Riverstown on Saturday evening.

The Avondhu side ultimately had the better balance and more scoring power, heading into championship in the coming weeks in fine fettle. 

Noel Gowen’s outfit led by two at the short whistle, but the concession of a goal that briefly put them two points behind proved the spark they needed as they pushed on to win by nine.

They dominated the final quarter, stringing six scores together at one stage, and overpowered last year’s IAHC winners. 

Losing influential player Liam Óg Hegarty at half-time to injury made their second-half display even more impressive, and they were notably efficient throughout. 

While it was a strong collective performance, Liam Whelan and Jeremy Saich made big impacts off the bench.

Aghabullogue were a bit off colour and lost Cillian Timmons and Matthew Bradley to injuries, with neighbours Éire Óg next up in the opening round of their championship.

Played on an immaculate surface, it was nip and tuck early on, the sides sharing the first six points. Eoin McGrath was influential for Kilworth during this spell, while Bradley was doing likewise for his side. 

Three unanswered Kilworth points gave them a bit of breathing space — two from Liam Óg Hegarty, one from a free, and an Eoin Carey effort.

Kilworth were dictating the tempo, landing two of the next four white flags, with the impressive Odhran O’Connell pointing for Aghabullogue to leave it 0-8 to 0-5 after 16 minutes. 

The sides swapped points before Kilworth were awarded a penalty with 12 minutes to the break. Noel McNamara was fouled, but Hegarty couldn’t keep his shot down; it went over for a point.

Kilworth managed the closing stages of the half very well, captain Eoin Carey busy in midfield. They led 0-13 to 0-10, though a Bradley free left just two in it at half-time. 

On the resumption, a tidy Shane Tarrant point cut the deficit to the minimum. Aghabullogue then hit the front when Dano Dineen did brilliantly in the build-up to set up James Lane for a rasping goal after 33 minutes. The sides swapped the next four points as Aghabullogue led 1-14 to 0-15.

A fine point from sub Liam Whelan left Kilworth one adrift as the game appeared on a knife-edge — or so it seemed. From the 42nd minute onwards, Kilworth took over. Following Whelan’s score, they put five points together to lead 0-21 to 1-14.

A Bradley free cut the gap before Kilworth goaled after 45 minutes, Michael Sheehan setting up Will Condon for an unstoppable finish. 

Bradley added two quick points, one from a free, but Kilworth effectively put the game to bed with a second goal 11 minutes from time when James Sheehan netted to make it 2-21 to 1-17.

Kilworth hit four of the last six points as they lifted the silverware.

Scorers for Kilworth: W Condon 1-3, L Óg Hegarty 0-5 (0-2 f, 0-1 pen), J Sheehan 1-2, M Sheehan 0-4 (0-2 f), N McNamara, L Whelan 0-3 each, J Saich 0-2, E McGrath, B Sheehan, E Carey 0-1 each.

Aghabullogue: M Bradley 0-8 (0-5 f), J Lane 1-3, Odhran O’Connell 0-3, S Tarrant 0-2, D Dineen, Oisín O’Connell, J Corkery 0-1 each.

KILWORTH: K Heggtveit; A O’Hara, K Lane, M Gowen; E McGrath, L Carey, D Twomey; E Carey (c), L Coffey; M Sheehan, L Óg Hegarty, J Sheehan; N McNamara, W Condon, B Sheehan. 

Subs: J Saich for L Carey (9, inj), L Whelan for L Óg Hegarty (h-t, inj), O McCarthy for W Condon (51), P Riordan for L Coffey (59).

AGHABULLOGUE: I Barry Murphy; D Quinlan, C Timmons, B O’Sullivan; C Gillespie, P Ring (c), P O’Sullivan; D Dineen, C Furey; Oisín O’Connell, M Bradley, J Lane; S Tarrant, J Corkery, Odhran O’Connell. 

Subs: M Dennehy for C Timmons (24, inj), TJ Buckley for B O’Sullivan, L Casey for C Furey (both h-t), C O’Connell for D Quinlan (52), J Buckley for Oisín O’Connell (54), K Barry-Murphy for M Bradley (61, inj).

Referee: Colm Lyons (Nemo Rangers).