Annaghdown 0-12
Barna 1-6
(After Extra Time)
Pearce Stadium
4 July, 2009
Seventy minutes is a long time in football. Much like the whether in the west of Ireland, things can change very dramatically in a very short period of time. On Saturday evening, much like the weather, Barna’s fortunes took a turn for the worst when it looked as though they were on the verge of a Happy 4th of July.
An early goal from Kieran Hanley in the first minute of the game was the perfect start for Barna team and the early momentum had a positive effect thought-out the pitch. The midfield of Brian Conneely and John Clifford controlled a lot of the football in the first half. Up front, Kieran Hanley and Rob Creedon were trying hard to twist their way towards the Annaghdown goal with good vision and running. In defence, Eoin McDonagh had another commanding game for Barna. Eoin’s ability to read the game, even in worsening whether conditions, was impressive to watch.
For any neutral at the game, it was possible to look at this game in a negative light. Annaghdown’s inability to score for the first 20 minutes verses Barna’s struggles to find a score in the last 28 minutes. In additions to these less then impressive scoring records, there were a lot of high tackles and late challenges in the first half that perhaps could have been dealt with and cut out early in the first half. However, that said, the game was played with a good competitive spirit with good gamesmanship shown by both sets of players.
While the result of this important Championship game and the manner in how it unfolded may be hard to take for the Barna team, there is no doubting the progress that has been made so far in 2009. Impressive league performances, young players getting experience against the very best teams in the county and indeed beating them with some fine performances. The fact that this great form had continued right up until twenty minutes short of a place in the championship quarter finals is cruel. Sport is cruel, but Barna’s players will gain experience from such pivotal events that all athletes must endure and come out the side better players.
ANNAGHDOWN: P O’Neill, F Doherty, S Collier, P Burke, B Qualter (0-1), A Fitzpatrick, A Pender (0-1), W fallon, N Coleman (0-3), J Farragher (0-1), D Burke (0-1, frees), PJ Fahy, M Coleman (0-1), B Dooley (0-1), F Burke (0-3, 0-2 frees).
Subs: B Newell for P Burke (36 mins), M O’Neill for A Pender (76 mins, inj).
BARNA: M Mannion, J O’Toole, E McDonagh, J Gannon, C Thornton, A Grehan, P Kennedy, J Clifford, P Fitzmorris (0-1), E Forde, R Conneely (0-2 frees), DD Flaherty (0-2, 0-1 frees), R Creedon (0-1 free), C Hanley (1-0), B Conneely.
Subs: J Fahy for J O’Toole (47 mins), R Carroll for K Hanley (47 mins), R Curran for P Kennedy (54 mins), R Geraghty for P Fitzmorris (57 mins), K Hanley for R Creedon (61 mins), P Kennedy for E Forde (61 mins), P Fitzmorris for DD Flaherty (61 mins), DD Flaherty for P Kennedy (74 mins).
REFEREE: G Moore.