Bandon 0-25

Aghada 2-18

NOEL HORGAN REPORTS

VICTORY over Aghada in the county intermediate A championship final was a welcome boost for the Bandon hurlers, who haven’t enjoyed the best of fortune in recent seasons.

Relegated from the senior A ranks in 2021 and the premier intermediate grade in ’23, their bid to get moving in the right direction was foiled by Aghabullogue in last year’s intermediate A decider.

It says a lot for their resolve and resilience that they advanced to the final again, making no mistake this time in a contest they looked likely to win for most of the hour.

Never headed at any stage, they seemed set to see the game out comfortably enough when they led by eight points, 0-25 to 0-17, inside the last five minutes of regulation time.

As things transpired, they were clinging on for dear life after Aghada, aided by a couple of goals from substitute Jude Devoy and Pearse O’Neill, cut the gap to the minimum before the finish.

While relief was Bandon’s overriding emotion on hearing the last whistle, it would have been rough justice had they been denied the laurels in view of how well they performed overall.

Bandon celebrate their victory over Aghada. (Photo: George Hatchell)

Manager Joe Burke agreed the pressure was on after Bandon conceded two goals in quick succession near the end, but he was delighted with the way the players held their composure.

‘You have to give credit to these fellas – it would have been very easy for them to drop the heads and we’d lose the game by a point or two,’ Burke said.

‘They played very well for most of the match, and I’d put that down to the way they were coached by Niall O’Halloran. He’s a brilliant coach, ably assisted by Chris Bonnar and a couple of more lads, and that’s one of the main reasons we came through today,’ stated the Bandon boss.

Following an early exchange of points between Bandon’s Charlie Long and Aghada’s John Looney, the Carbery side eased into an 0-5 to 0-1 lead with eight minutes gone.

It could have been more had not Mark Sugrue been denied an early goal by Aghada goalkeeper John Walsh, but they held the whip-hand for the rest of the first half, not least because of the control exerted by Peter Murphy in the half-back line.

With Aghada opting to operate with corner-forward Ronan Murphy as a third midfielder, a role he filled to good effect, the unattended Peter Murphy mopped up an amount of ball, limiting the service to John Looney and Jamie O’Hanlon, both of whom shaped up promisingly in the losers’ inside line of attack at times.

As with Aghada, Bandon also went with a third midfielder from the outset, a tactic that yielded rich dividends in view of how influential Charlie Long was in the role.

Conor Calnan was particularly impactful around the middle in the first half when Bandon clearly looked the better-balanced outfit.

A point from Calnan triggered off a sequence – completed by scores from substitute Darren Crowley, Eoghan McSweeney and Charlie Long – that allowed Bandon to move seven clear before Samuel O’Driscoll replied for Aghada shortly before the interval.

Turning over 0-14 to 0-8 in front, Bandon had the advantage trimmed to four points before team skipper Michael Cahalane, displaying commendable accuracy, converted three frees to steady the ship at the three-quarter stage.

That left them leading by 0-19 to 0-12, and after Aghada cut the deficit to five, Cahalane made his mark again.

Plucking a puck-out by goalkeeper Olan Hennessy from the clouds, his slick pass allowed Conor Calnan to place John Cullinane for a point. Cahalane quickly added a beauty himself from distance before Charlie Long made it 0-23 to 0-15 in the 54th minute.

Man-of-the-match Conor Calnan was a star player for Bandon. (Photo: George Hatchell)

It was obvious Aghada would need a goal to have any chance of pulling the game out of the fire. That seemed a tall order, given the steadiness of the Bandon rearguard, in which Peter Murphy, Cathal Lynch, who made a number of important block-downs over the hour, and Dylan O’Donovan were especially defiant.

Then, against all the odds, the Imokilly side bagged a brace of goals to make it a nervy last few minutes for Bandon.

Not only did Joe Burke’s men hold out, they had a chance to embellish their victory with a goal, but impressive Aghada goalkeeper John Walsh proved equal to a Michael Cahalane shot from close-range in the dying seconds. Burke said he wasn’t surprised that Aghada pushed Bandon all the way.

‘We beat them by three points in the group stage. To be honest, we could have lost that game just as easily,’ he said.

‘We were saying after it there was a possibility we’d be meeting them again in this championship. We knew we’d be in for a tough battle today, but it’s just great it came together for us. We’re delighted.’

OUR STAR: Peter Murphy and Charlie Long stood out for Bandon, but Conor Calnan was immense at midfield. There could be little argument with his selection as man-of-the-match.

Scorers

Bandon: C Calnan, J Cullinane, C Long 0-4 each; M Cahalane 0-4 (3f); D Crowley 0-3; M Sugrue, E McSweeney 0-2 each; D O’Donovan, K Hannon 0-1 each.

Aghada: W Leahy 0-8 (6f, 1 65); J Devoy 1-1; P O’Neill 1-0; C Terry, R Murphy, J Looney 0-2 each; S O’Driscoll, M McCarthy, T Hartnett 0-1 each.

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

Subs: D Crowley for O’Mahony (25), S Carey for Sugrue (43), P Barry for Hannon (59).

Aghada: J Walsh; A Kerins, J McDonnell, K O’Shea; F O’Connell, M Russell, F O’Connor; W Leahy, T Hartnett; R O’Connell, C Terry, S O’Driscoll; R Murphy, J Looney, J O’Hanlon.

Subs: J Devoy for O’Driscoll (43), P O’Neill for R O’Connell (45), N Devoy for Terry (45), M McCarthy for F O’Connell (48), A Stafford for Kearns (58).

Referee: C Walsh (Nemo Rangers).