Birr get campaign up and running with victory over Kinnitty

BIRR 1-15

KINNITTY 1-8

BIRR got their Offaly senior hurling championship campaign up and running with a deserved seven point win over Kinnitty in a game played in Crinkill on Friday evening.

A strong first half when they played against the wind helped Birr to a four point interval lead and when they scored 1-2 inside the first four minutes of the second half, they were well on their way to their first victory of the campaign.

Kinnitty did come more into the game in the final quarter and a goal with 12 minutes left did give them a glimmer of hope but they were unable to build on that and Birr saw out the game to win by a seven point margin.

Over the hour Birr were the better team. They played some lovely hurling in the first half and in the early stages of the second half when they stamped their authority on the game but they lost their shape a bit in the final quarter when the game became very scrappy and disjointed and both sides made a lot of mistakes.

Birr lined out without star forward Eoghan Cahill, which probably makes the victory all the more noteworthy. They were very sharp and lively in the first half. They moved the ball well, they hassled and harried their opponents at every turn, turning the ball over frequently and they could have been even further ahead at half time but saw one shot just clear the crossbar and another come crashing back off it.

They continued in that vein after the break with the wind behind them and built up a 10 point lead after 38 minutes. Eight different players found the target from play for them and they were moving very well. But they seemed to lose their way a bit after that and only managed two points in the final 22 minutes as the standard of the game dropped.

Kinnitty can take some credit for disrupting Birr more in the final 20 minutes. They had introduced some experience into their side at the interval when Colm Coughlan and Odhran Kealey came on as subs and that began to pay dividends. They began to win a lot more ball around the middle, where Birr had been dominant in the first half, and they put much more pressure on Birr.

However they found scores hard to come by. Only two of their nine scores came from play and while they did apply more pressure, the Birr defence did a very good job in tying them up and restricting their scoring opportunites.

In that Birr defence Oisin Murphy, Eoin Hayes, Brian Watkins and Bary Harding all impressed while Joe Ryan had a good hour in the middle of the field. Sean Ryan was very lively in attack and was a real focal point for Birr, while Lochlann Quinn shot seven points in the first half and Brendan Murphy and Morgan Watkins also made a good impression.

Brian Coughlan, Danny Flanagan and Conor Hardiman all worked hard in the Kinnitty defence, James Hardiman had a good stint at midfield where Colm Coughlan made an impression after the break while in attack James Dempsey and Shane Kinsella worked hard throughout but their efforts didn't always result in scores.

Birr opened the scoring inside the first minute when Lochlann Quinn shot a nice point. He added another from a free before Bryan Donnelly scored Kinnitty's first point after six minutes, their only point from play over the hour. Morgan Watkins replied immediately from the puck out and Lochlann Quinn pointed two frees, which were cancelled out by two Kinnitty frees from James Hardiman and James Dempsey to leave it 0-5 to 0-3 midway through the half.

Birr went very close to a goal after 16 minutes when a long free from Sean Thompson broke into the path of Luke Nolan but he drilled his shot just over the crossbar. That was the last score from play in the half as Lochlann Quinn added three more frees for Birr and James Desmpsey pointed two for Kinnitty but Birr did miss another goal chance when Luke Nolan put Sean Ryan through but his shot crashed off the crossbar and Kinnitty managed to clear the danger.

Leading by 0-9 to 0-5 at half time, Birr came out the traps quickly after the break with Sean Ryan and Colm Mulrooney adding quick points to stretch the gap. Then came Birr's goal in the fourth minute. Brendan Murphy did well to win possession under pressure and Luke Nolan passed the ball on to Sean Ryan. He flicked it nicely passed his marker to give him a yard of space and he closed in on goals before shooting to the roof of the net and give Birr a nine point lead.

Kinnitty almost replied with a goal of their own after seven minutes but after James Desmpsey was initially blocked, Sean Thompson pulled off a great save but Kinnitty did earn a free which James Dempsey pointed. Morgan Watkins and Brian Watkins added quickfire points to stretch the Birr lead to 10 points but they lost their way a bit after that.

James Dempsey pointed another Kinnitty free but Emmet Nolan quickly replied for Birr. Then Kinnitty found the net after 48 minutes when a high ball from Colm Coughlan broke into the path of James Dempsey and he ran through and goaled. Joe Ryan pointed for Birr a minute later which proved to be their last score of the game but Kinnitty had another goal chance after 21 minutes when awarded a 20m free but James Dempsey's shot was well saved by the Birr defenders on the line. He did opt to point another 20m free with five minutes left and Kinnitty pushed hard after that but there were no further scores. However Kinnitty were reduced to 14 men just on the hour when Patrick Delaney was red carded.

MATCH ANALYSIS

THE TEAMS

BIRR: Sean Thompson; Oisin Murphy, Eoin Hayes, Campbell Boyd; Brian Watkins, Barry Harding, Rory Carty; Jimmy Irwin, Joe Ryan; Colm Mulrooney, Brendan Murphy, Luke Nolan; Lochlann Quinn, Sean Ryan, Morgan Watkins. Subs. Emmet Nolan (for Jimmy Irwin, 43 mins), Padraic Watkins (for Luke Nolan, 47 mins), Niall Lyons (for Lochlann Quinn, 58 mins).

KINNITTY: Niall Corrigan; Willie Molloy, Christopher Leonard, Brian Coughlan; Patrick Delaney, Danny Flanagan, Conor Hardiman; James Hardiman, Conor Heaney; Jason Armstrong, Shane Kinsella, Bryan Donnelly; Eoghan Callaghan, James Dempsey, Aodhan Kealey. Subs. Colm Coughlan (for Bryan Donnelly, half time), Odhran Kealey (for Jason Armstrong, half time).

REFEREE: Kieran Dooley (Drumcullen)

MAN OF THE MATCH

The evergreen Sean Ryan had a fine game for Birr. He was the focal point for many of their attacks, racing to the corners to gather long passes and being a livewire around the goalmouth the whole way through. He scored 1-1 and saw another shot crash off the crossbar and he proved a handful for the Kinnitty defence throughout.

MOMENT OF THE MATCH

Birr's goal four minutes into the second half was a well worked score and was finished in style by Sean Ryan. It also provided Birr with a nine point cushion and that enabled them to see out the game when the game got scrappy in the final quarter.

REFEREE WATCH

Kieran Dooley handled the game very well. He was firm and decisive throughout and maintained good control. He applied the advantage rule well, often calling play back when no advantage accrued, and was consistent in his rulings.

TALKING POINT

It's 15 years since Birr last won the Sean Robbins Cup and they would love to bridge that gap. They have a good mixture of experienced players and some younger players coming through and they looked sharp and lively in the first half of this game. The game became more ragged and scrappy in the second half but if Birr can build on the understanding and workrate they showed in the first half, they could be a handful for teams later on. And it should be pointed out, they also did this without their best player Eoghan Cahill.

WHAT’S NEXT

Birr meet Tullamore in Banagher in round 2 on Friday July 21st while Kinnitty take on Kilcormac/Killoughey in Tullamore on Thursday July 20th.

VENUE WATCH

Crinkill hosted the game very well. The pitch looked in great condition, there were plenty of stewards on duty to handle parking and there was a shop available with teas and coffee available.

STATISTICS

Wides; Birr 9 (2 in first half) Kinnitty 7 (2 in first half)

Yellow Cards: Birr 1 (Brian Watkins) Kinnitty 1 (Colm Coughlan).

Red Cards: Birr 0 Kinnitty 1 (Patrick Delaney)

THE SCORERS

Birr; Lochlann Quinn (0-7, 0-6 frees), Sean Ryan (1-1), Morgan Watkins (0-2), Luke Nolan, Colm Mulrooney, Brian Watkins, Emmet Nolan, Joe Ryan (0-1 each).

Kinnitty; James Dempsey (1-6, 0-6 frees), Bryan Donnelly (0-1), James Hardiman (0-1, free).