Stuttering Tullamore just grind out win as gallant Ballycommon go down fighting hard
TULLAMORE just barely did enough to grind out the win against a tremendously hard working Ballycommon outfit in a fiercely fought Senior Football Championship derby in Ballycommon on Friday evening.
Tullamore Court Hotel Senior Football Championship Group 1 Round 1
Tullamore 0-12
Ballycommon 2-5
The champions were short of their best, borderline complacent at times, but a lot of this was down to a phenomenal work ethic by Ballycommon who fought for every ball like men possessed, gave no quarter and made Tullamore work so hard for every single ball.
Ballycommon's effort deserved a better reward and a draw may have been a fairer result, though they didn't do enough in an attacking sense, relying on two somewhat fortunate goals to keep them alive in the second half.
In fairness to Tullamore, they showed the right spirit and attitude when Ballycommon got into a winning position during the second half, scoring five of the closing six points to edge a real teak tough tussle.
On a wet and greasy pitch, it was far from a classic and Tullamore's error count in particular was higher than manager Niall Stack will be happy with but it made for compelling viewing. It was physical, hard hitting and brutally honest and with Ballycommon on the verge of a second upset in the championship, no one was leaving the ground early – Shamrocks' surprised Ferbane in the opener on Thursday evening.
Tullamore were clearly the better team in the opening period, owning the ball and kicking three points in eight minutes. It was ten minutes before Ballycommon had their first real attack and shot, a wide from Conor Dunne.
Aaron Leavy put the winners four ahead in the 11th minute and Cormac Egan was just wide with a goal shot seconds later after a searing run forward. A goal probably would have ended it as a contest and Ballycommon got going after this. They began to play more football, instead of trying to stop Tullamore from playing and by the 24th minute they had it back to a point, 0-5 to 0-4.
It remained that way until half time and Ballycommon got a goal just 30 seconds after the resumption, effective sub Ryan Kenny poking the ball into the net after Corey White spilled a delivery under pressure.
Harry Plunkett and Oisin Keenan-Martin got the next two points for Tullamore before Ballycommon got their second goal in the 44th minute – Ryan Kenny got the rebound from a great Corey White penalty save from him after David Dempsey was fouled off the ball by sub Michael Feeney.
With a 2-4 to 0-7 lead, Ballycommon had a great chance but Tullamore threw the kitchen sink at them in the closing quarter. They found it hard to break down an excellent Ballycommon defence but they kept working, feeding the ball forward and three Harry Plunkett points, two of them from frees, had them back on terms with seven minutes left.
Ballycommon were living on scraps but broke forward for Brian Todd to fire them in front with five minutes left. That was their last attack of note and in a frantic closing few minutes, Luke Egan levelled and Harry Plunkett floated over a great free for the winning point in the 61st minute.
MATCH ANALYSIS
MAN OF THE MATCH
Harry Plunkett (Tullamore): On a day when the football was teak tough and work rate was king, Harry Plunkett's accuracy was pivotal to Tullamore's win. He missed just one shot, firing over eight points, six frees and one mark. His winning free was on the limit of his range but he took his time – tempting the referee to blow him for taking too long -, held his nerve and slotted it straight over the bar. He also worked hard at closing down players and while he had periods when he was out of the game, he used the ball effectively.
Two of Tullamore's most experienced players, Paul McConway and Aaron Leavy were also contenders. McConway was ice cool, rock steady at full back while Leavy put in a great shift in a congested midfield battle, getting forward for two points as well. When the gun was to Tullamore's head, two of their brightest young guns, Cormac Egan and John Furlong rose to the challenge. Furlong was played out of position in centre half forward and while one can see the logic of Tullamore trying to strengthen their attack, it yielded a dubious benefit as he was nowhere near as prominent as he would be in the heart of defence – however, he began to get more ball as the second half wore on, driving at Ballycommon and helping Tullamore get on top. Oisin Keenan-Martin, Daire McDaid, despite a few mistakes, and Luke Egan also caught the eye for Tullamore.
You had to admire the way Ballycommon went about their business. They were so highly motivated, so determined and it almost saw them pull off a great win. They went so close because of a great collective work rate. Karl Dunne was super for them at midfield, Chulainn Boland's defensive display as he kept John Furlong out of it for long periods was typical of the way Ballycommon played – not doing anything special but focusing on his primary job. Brian Todd was another who showcased this while David Dempsey got more into the game in the second half. Ultimately Ballycommon's attack didn't do enough or see enough of the ball but they can be very proud of the way they played.
THE SCORERS
Tullamore: Harry Plunkett 0-8 (6f and 1m), Aaron Leavy 0-2, Oisin Keenan-Martin and Luke Egan 0-1 each.
Ballycommon: Ryan Kenny 2-0, Gareth Mann 0-3 (2f), Brian Todd 0-2.
THE TEAMS
TULLAMORE: Corey White; Ciaran Burns, Paul McConway, Daire McDaid; Cormac Egan, Nigel Bracken, Oisin Keenan-Martin; Aaron Leavy, Arron Hensey; Ciaran Egan, John Furlong, Niall Furlong; Sean McCabe, Luke Egan, Harry Plunkett. Subs – Michael Feeney for Burns (HT), Sean Afolabi Joseph for McCabe (39m).
BALLYCOMMON: Paul Scally; Matthew Dempsey, Tom Mealiffe, Paul Conway; David Dempsey, Chulainn Boland, Michael Conneely; Karl Dunne, Robert Conneely; Brian Todd, Gareth Mann, Stephen Conneely; Chris Kenny, Dylan Martin, Conor Dunne. Subs – Ryan Kenny for Robert Conneely (HT), Sean Conway for Martin (45m), TJ Bermingham for Michael Conneely (54m), Killian Owens for Matthew Dempsey (58m), Ian Scally for Chris Kenny (60m).
Referee – Fergal Smyth (Kilclonfert).
REFEREE WATCH
Fergal Smyth adopted a let it run approach and it did lead to some debatable calls. Ballycommon hit hard and a couple of players got away with yellow card offences before he eventually showed one to Michael Conneely in the first half – admitting that he had to clamp down on them as he explained his decision to the player. Overall, he got most decisions right, was fit and aware of what was going on. He was certainly fair, not giving soft frees but this very much balanced out. The penalty decision was correct, even though it was a foul that is not always spotted while he rightly over-ruled one wrong line ball decision given to Ballycommon in the second half, taking his time to discuss it with the linesman. He possibly could have allowed a bit more injury time in the end, showing a black card to Ryan Kenny after the final whistle for something he said to him.
MOMENT OF THE MATCH
Harry Plunkett's winning point was the key moment here.
VENUE WATCH
Heavy rain beforehand dampened spirits a bit at the Ballycommon venue and affected the crowd, though thankfully it cleared off for the game. Ballycommon hosted the fixture very well with plenty of stewards and there were no issues while their pitch held up well.
WHAT'S NEXT
Ballycommon are away to Rhode while Tullamore host Bracknagh in round 2.
STATISTICS
Wides: Tullamore – 10 (4 in first half); Ballycommon – 4 (3 in first half).
Yellow cards: Tullamore – 1 (Corey White); Ballycommon – 1 (Michael Conneely).
Black cards: Tullamore – 0; Ballycommon – 1 (Ryan Kenny).
Red cards: 0