BALLINHASSIG 1-7
NEWCESTOWN 0-4
JJ HURLEY REPORTS
BALLINHASSIG had too much for a brave Newcestown in this SE Systems Premier Intermediate Camogie Championship clash in Ballincollig last Sunday.
The final round of group games see Newcestown play Charleville in Blarney while Ballinhassig face Watergrasshill in Na Piarsaigh, both taking place this Friday at 6.45pm. The other result in the group saw Watergrasshill and Charleville draw 2-8 apiece.
The top two in each of the three groups will progress to the quarter-finals with two of the best third placed teams qualifying too. Newcestown will guarantee a place in the last eight if they avoid defeat in their tie with Charleville. The latest win for Ballinhassig puts them through to the quarter-finals with a game to spare.
Playing with the aid of the wind in the opening half, Ballinhassig’s six-point lead at the interval proved too much of a gap for the Carbery girls to climb.
While Grace Ryan’s early second-half free put down a marker it never created a momentum of unlocking the Blue’s defence. In truth, Ballinhassig were always in control as Aisling Lombard’s goal on 55 minutes simply emphasised their dominance.
Ballinhassig started the game on the front foot, as Eimear O’Sullivan had a sent over three scores, including two frees, to give her side a 0-3 to 0-0 lead after eight minutes.
With scores hard to come by because of the conditions, as well as the dominance of both sets of defenders, Emma Jordan’s point on ten minutes was an important one.
Newcestown had Siobhan Kelleher to thank for keeping them in the game on 14 minutes as she stopped a goal-bound Lombard effort. Deidre Cooney and O’Sullivan had a point apiece. Ballinhassig led 0-6 to 0-0 at the break.
The second half saw Grace Ryan grasping the early initiative, but the girls from the west couldn’t breach the Ballinhassig rearguard, despite Ryan dropping a few testing frees into the danger area.
Without the services of Cork camogie star Ciara O’Sullivan through injury, Newcestown found it difficult to deal with Millie Lombard and Eimer Casey, as O’Sullivan stretched her side’s advantage to 0-7 to 0-1 on 47 minutes.
Despite the disparity in the scoreline, Newcestown kept looking for a way to get back into the game as Claire Kingston got a score on 53 minutes, but the game was put to bed two minutes later as Aisling Lombard fired home from a brilliant individual run.
Scorers
Ballinhassig: E O’Sullivan 0-5 (4f); A Lombard, E Jordan, D Cooney 0-1 each.
Newcestown: G Ryan 0-3 (2f); C Kingston 0-1.
Ballinhassig: S Leahy; E Casey, A Casey, M Healy; T Healy, A Cottrell, A Cussen; E Daly, M Lombard; E Healy, G Healy, E O’Sullivan; E Jordan, A Lombard, D Coomey.
Subs: E Deasy for E Healy (ht), E Madden for G Healy (48), M O’Sullivan for E Jordan (51).
Newcestown: M Lynch; E Dineen, A O’Sullivan, S Kelleher; R Wilson, E Tarrant, R Hallahan; L Whelan, C Kingston; G Ryan, M Kenneally, B Wilson; R O’Mahony, A Sheehan, K O’Sullivan.
Subs: O O’Mahony for R O’Mahony (ht), C Wilson for A Sheehan (42), E Crowley for M Keneally (50), A Buckley for A O’ Sullivan (52).
Referee: Eddie O’Sullivan (Inniscarra).
