Bandon hurlers power into Intermediate A decider with superb display against Midleton

Bandon 3-19 Midleton 1-17 

Bandon produced an exhilarating brand of hurling to book their place in the Co Op Superstores Intermediate A Hurling Championship final against Midleton at Church Road on Saturday.

In a game where the West Cork side started well, a strong closing 10 minutes in the first half ensured Midleton were back on parity at the break. To be fair Bandon found their mojo in the second half and inspired by Jack Cullinane (1-5) and the free-taking of Michael Cahalane (0-8) they soon took over as the Midleton challenge finally petered out.

We had an explosive start to this cracking semi-final when Bandon only took 20 seconds to carve open the Midleton defence. A superb catch and solo from corner-forward Jack Cullinane saw him finish with a superb shot to the corner of the net.

Indeed, Bandon were simply awesome in the opening 10 minutes and a brace of Sean Carey points gave them a six-point lead.

Finally, the Midleton drought ended a minute later when Aaron Mulcahy got them up and running and midway through the half they were beginning to win more possession as they took total control. In a 10-minute period, Bandon failed to score from play but the free-taking of former Cork senior Michael Cahalane kept their noises in front.

Midleton were now playing and moving far better than their opponents and a second Killian Burke point in the 28th minute reduced the deficit to two points.

Another late surge from the Magpies saw them conclude the half with points from Aaron Mulcahy and Paul Haughney that saw the sides go in at the break level at 1-9 to 0-12.

On the restart both teams increased the tempo, and the Midleton full-forward Kian Farmer forced the Bandon keeper Oisin Hennessy produce a superb save just two minutes into the restart.

Kevin Hannon proved to be a masterclass substitution for Bandon when introduced in the 36th minute, as he registered a green flag a minute later. A well-worked three-man move saw Hannon finish with a fabulous strike to the corner of the net.

The West Cork side were now buzzing, and the pressure intensified four minutes later when they found the net again. On this occasion, a thunderous Hannon shot came back off the crossbar and the Bandon stalwart Mark Sugrue was on hand to guide the ball to the empty net.

The Midleton stalwart Luke O’Farrell was sprung from the bench and his introduction saw him finding the net in the 48th minute.

In truth, Bandon were simply awesome coming down the stretch as they consistently found space to nail crucial points.

In the end, Midleton can have few excuses as Bandon will now have a final date with Aghada after a truly professional display against their highly rated opponents.

Scorers for Bandon: M Cahalane 0-9 f, J Cullinane 1-5, K Hannon, M Sugrue 1-0 each, S Carey 0-2, C Long, C Coleman, P Barry 0-1 each.

Midleton: A Mulcahy 0-9 (0-6 f), L O’Farrell 1-0, K Burke 0-2, E McCarthy, P Barrett, C Stack, D Scanlon, P Haughney, D Egan 0-1 each.

O Hennessy; P Calnan, T Twohig, C Twomey; C Lynch, P Murphy, D O’Donovan; M Cahalane, C Calnan; D O’Mahony, M Sugrue, E McSweeney; C Long, S Carey, J Cullinane.

Subs: K Hannon for D O’Mahony (36), D Crowley for S Carey (43), N McCarthy for P Calnan (44), P Barry for M Sugrue (56), C McCarthy for M Cahalane (60).

B Rossiter; C Gunning, L Dineen, S Smyth; K Burke, C Cronin, E McCarthy; D Egan, P Haughney; C Beausang, D Scanlon, A Mulcahy; C Stack, K Farmer, P Barrett.

Subs: A Faye for S Smyth (38), M McSweeney for C Cronin (40), L O’Farrell for D Scanlon (40), E Fraser for A Faye (47), S O’Meara for K Farmer (50), J Hogan for D Egan (52).

Referee: Brendan Barry-Murphy (Aghabullogue).