Gormley uPVC Senior Football Championship Semi-Final
Ballybay 5-8 Latton 0-13 16/9/12
Ballybay qualified for their first SFC Final in 25 years – and avenged last year’s heart-breaking semi-final defeat in the process – when they crushed Latton in Sunday’s last-four clash at St. Tiernach’s Park. An amazing start which saw Ballybay hit 2-2 in the first four minutes and 3-4 in the opening quarter set up a one-sided game and although defending champions Latton rallied to kick six of the first seven points after the restart, the league leaders’ goal-scoring touch returned to put the result beyond doubt.
Latton are renowned for being difficult to score goals against, but Colin and Hugh Malone, Paul Finlay, Christopher McGuinness and Brian McCabe all found the net for Ballybay, who had nine scorers in total. McGuinness, Finlay, Drew and Ryan Wylie, Tommy O’Neill and Colin Malone were to the fore for Ballybay, while Owen Duffy and Shane and Owen Coyle tried their best to inspire Latton.
Paul Finlay tapped over a close-range free for a foul on Ryan Wylie to kick off Ballybay’s dream start and he quickly added a point from play after taking a pass from Fergal McArdle. The Pearse Brothers moved five clear when a point-attempt from Thomas Kerr dropped on the edge of the square, where Hugh Malone punched it to the net. Finlay then burst onto a pass from Colin Malone to blast home Ballybay’s second goal and although Shane Coyle got Latton off the mark with a point from play, it was only a momentary respite from the Ballybay onslaught.
Shane McQuillan linked up with Christopher McGuinness to kick a point, before McGuinness caught a long pass from Finlay and raced past his man to send it across the face of goal for Colin Malone to fist home from close range. A quickly-taken sideline kick from Colin Malone set up Kerr to open up a 12-point gap, but a rare Latton attack involving Owen Duffy, Patrick Shannon and Owen Coyle created a point for Shane Coyle.
Hugh McElroy converted a 30-metre free for a foul on Owen Duffy, but Ballybay’s counter-attacking prowess was shown when Brent Wylie intercepted a Kieran Duffy pass intended for an unmarked Shane Coyle and they broke forward at pace for McGuinness to kick his first point. A well-taken point by Owen Duffy, following a short free from Hugh McElroy, gave Latton the last score of the first half, but they still changed ends trailing by 3-5 to 0-4.
Owen Duffy raced through on a trademark run to kick the first point of the second half and Bernard O’Brien soon added a point, but Latton failed to take a chance to get back into the game when Seán Gorman saved from Shannon, who had been put through by good approach play by Kieran Duffy and Shane Coyle. Hugh McElroy tapped over a 13-metre free for a foul on Edmund Lennon to continue Latton’s encouraging start to the half, but a great score from Christopher McGuinness kept Ballybay well clear.
Latton’s hopes of an unlikely comeback were raised when Shane Coyle converted a brace of 20-metre frees for fouls on Owen Duffy and Thomas Connolly, who added a good point from play to cut their deficit to five. Ballybay responded, however, with a fisted point from Tommy O’Neill and they struck a killer blow when a lightning-quick counter involving McQuillan and Drew and Brent Wylie ended with McGuinness scything through the Latton defence and sending a clinical finish beyond Seán Farmer. Ballybay were in dreamland just over ten minutes from time when a clever pass from O’Neill put Brian McCabe through for a powerful shot to the net for their fifth major.
Shane Coyle tapped over a 13-metre free for a foul on O’Brien and Shannon kicked a point from play, but Shane McGuinness landed a point with his first touch after being introduced for Ballybay. The last score went to Latton when an Owen Duffy effort went over via the crossbar, but that took nothing away from a stunning win for Ballybay, who will now be full of confidence for the meeting with Clontibret next month; the Pearse Brothers’ first county final since 1987.
Ballybay: S Gorman; R Wylie, D Wylie, E Rutledge; B McCabe (1-0), B Wylie, M McArdle; S McQuillan (0-1), T O’Neill (0-1); P Finlay (Capt., 1-2, 0-1f), T Kerr (0-1), F McArdle; H Malone (1-0), C McGuinness (1-2), C Malone (1-0).
Subs: C McAviney for O’Neill (inj., 51 mins), S McGuinness (0-1) for H Malone (53), D Ward for C Malone (55), F Smyth for McCabe (57).
Latton: S Farmer; P Fitzpatrick, E Lennon, S McElroy; S Fitzpatrick, K Duffy, O Coyle; O Lennon (Capt.), A Farmer; P Shannon (0-1), O Duffy (0-3), T Connolly (0-1); S Coyle (0-5, 2f), H McElroy (0-2f), B O’Brien (0-1).
Sub: J Kingston for P Fitzpatrick (38), D McElroy for Connolly, K Conlon for Shannon (both 54).
Referee: X Coyle (Tyholland).
By michael Sun 16th Sep
