WESTSIDE: 'Can you even call it a championship season? It's one game beyond knock-out'

Another hectic weekend in the club season has cleared the decks for knock-out activity after just three rounds of games. It’s a condensed series, its truncated nature sending so many teams packing after brief involvement.

Clonoulty’s experience highlights a major issue with the present system.

Deprived of a West championship, their sole focus all year was to prepare for a county campaign in Group 4 alongside Kiladangan, J.K. Brackens and Templederry Kenyons.

Then after just two games their championship bid was over.

All that training and preparation since springtime went for nothing when they were beaten by J.K. Brackens in round 2 of the series.

Last weekend’s win over Templederry was just a necessary add-on, merely serving to avoid the relegation race.

There’s much to admire about the relegation and promotion system which has sorted and sifted clubs into their rightful grades over recent years, but having groups of just four teams is hugely problematic.

Can you even call it a championship season?

Effectively it’s just one game beyond knock-out, which serves as a very poor promotion of the sport.

Of course, finding a solution to the problem isn’t easy. Eight-team groups would dramatically increase the number of games but finding space for all those additional fixtures then becomes an issue.

Dual clubs further complicate the scene – and if Messrs. (no pun intended) Donal Og, Martin Breheny and company had their way the club year would be even shorter. It’s a big issue but one that needs to be addressed.

Anyway, there were many headline items from last weekend’s games, such as Borris-Ileigh’s entry to relegation following their defeat by Drom/Inch.

It’s quite a dramatic fall from grace for a team that just five years ago (2019) were Munster champions and came within a whisker of the All-Ireland crown.

They could have no complaint on Saturday last as Seamus Callanan and company were fully deserving of their win in a lively contest played at Holycross.

A strong wind blowing into the road goal saw Borris’ take advantage and build a substantial lead in the first half. A brace of goals from Paddy McCormack and excellent free-taking by Eddie Ryan laid the basis for their progress. Conor Kenny was also very prominent at this point.

The lead was nine points at one stage but Drom had it back to just six at half time.

As the second half unfolded one sensed that Drom were having the better of matters as they gradually chipping away at that lead.

Seamus Callanan was central to it all hitting thirteen points, four from open play. David Collins also played a significant second-half role.

By contrast, Borris’ depended majorly on Eddie Ryan for scores and ultimately it wasn’t enough.

In the end it was two pressure frees from Callanan, which separated the sides. Drom had found the escape hatch with a timely win and Borris’ now find themselves in the uncomfortable position of having to face a relegation play-off. They’ll survive, but it is a huge dip from the highs of 2019.

With Borris-Ileigh on a downward trajectory, Moycarkey/Borris are heading in the opposite direction. Their victory on Sunday last over Mullinahone earns the club a place in the last eight, which is something they haven’t sampled for over three decades.

The early 1980s was their last great era with county titles in ’82 and ’84 as well as a Munster crown in the former year.

This was quite a robust game and really turned on an incident just before half time when Mullinahone lost centre back, Eoin Fennelly, to a red card following a high tackle on Moycarkey’s Jack Hayes.

The South side did really well in the first half into the teeth of a strong wind. The extent of the elements can be gauged from the fact that Rhys Shelly sent a few puck-outs wide as well as hitting two points, one from a free and the other from open play.

Despite that wind Mullinahone had the better of much of the first-half play.

Jack Shelly fed Enda Keane for a well-finished goal midway through the half and with Michael Dunne accurate from play and frees, they led 1-4 to 0-3 after twenty minutes.

However, a hard-grafting Moycarkey did find their groove in the final ten minutes of the half. Jack Hayes was causing the Mullinahone defence some problems with his pace and scoring. He clipped over a pair of points and team mate, Bill Flanagan - a good Moycarkey name -added three more to see the Mid take control and eventually lead at the break by four points.

The sending off, in injury time before the interval, was the turning point and while Mullinahone couldn’t argue with that decision they had a valid reason for complaint earlier when a Moycarkey defender escaped with a yellow card following a blatant strike in the lead-up to the game’s first goal.

The second half was one-way. Moycarkey were physically stronger and worked harder getting numbers into the rucks. They overdid the short passing but, nonetheless, gradually extended their lead. Then Max Hackett hit two goals in the space of four minute and that was that as a contest.

Eanna Ryan hit a well-struck consolation goal for Mullinahone in injury time but the Mid side were comfortable eight-point winners at the end.

For Moycarkey, managed by Eddie Brennan, it’s progress. They’ve had underage success in recent years taking minor and U21 titles so developing that talent to senior level is now a work in progress.

Elsewhere the clash of Cashel K.C. and Eire Og Annacarty in the premier intermediate grade was an attractive fixture on Saturday last at Clonoulty.

The group was quite open in advance though Cashel had the safety net of a preliminary quarter-final following their West win in the grade earlier.

It was a comfort they needed because the best they could manage was a draw to finish third in the group with Eire Og topping the section.

The King Cormac’s were missing a number of players, most notably Cathal Quinn and Paddy Fahy, though Ger Browne came on midway through the second period and scored an important goal in salvaging a draw. It’s one the Annacarty side will feel they let slip.

It was tight in the first half, Eire Og holding a one-point interval lead. With Tom Fox scoring four from play and Darragh Kelly adding three they looked sharp and might have been further ahead but for an Aaron Browne penalty save from Darragh Mooney.

A David McGrath goal for Cashel, set up by Oisin O’Donoghue, kept the King Cormac’s in the hunt and they needed two more majors in the second half to deny Eire Og.

The first was a well-worked effort with Eoghan Connolly powering through from midfield and feeding Devon Ryan for the finish.

Aidan Griffin’s excellence on frees kept Eire Og in control for most of the second period but in the end, they let the lead slip and had to be satisfied with a draw.

The Annacarty lads now head straight to the quarter-finals while Cashel must play a preliminary round in order to advance.

Finally, in my absence in recent weeks I note that the County Board announced the management update for county sides with Liam Cahill continuing at senior level, Brendan Cummins getting a two-year extension at U20 and James Woodlock, it is hoped, continuing at minor.

The obvious move here was to promote James Woodlock to U20 following his spectacular successes at minor, winning two All-Irelands in four years.

His deep knowledge of those players and his ability to motivate them presented an unanswerable case for taking the lads to the next level. Unfortunately, other factors, it seems, took precedence.

Disappointing.