Joyce steals the show as Killererin shade the issue
Date Published: 29-Aug-2012
Killererin 0-12Ml. Breathnach 0-10
FRANK FARRAGHER AT PEARSE STADIUM
THE fare might have been more artisan than aristocratic but a royal infusion of class by one Padraic Joyce once more ensured that Killererin came out on the right side of another desperately tight senior championship encounter.
Galway will miss Joyce when he departs from the inter-county but not half as much as Killererin will. Last weekend Joyce interrupted his holidays to line out and despite a heavily bandaged right knee, he kicked seven invaluable points . . . just enough to see off the challenge of a very brave and flying fit Micheál Breathnach’s side.
The men from Inverin country gave this quarter-final replay their best shot, and for extended segments of the first 20 minutes, they looked to be on the verge of over-running the Barnaderg fortress but, critically, they failed to tag on scores after putting together some flowing passages of play.
Breathnach’s had their noses in front for most of that first half as they played into the town end goal and by the time referee Shane Hehir sounded the interval whistle, the sides had an even split of the ten points scored.
The very lively Breathnach’s full forward, Peadar Ó Cionnaith, hit four of their points equally divided between play and frees, with Sean Denvir kicking their first point of the match in the 8th minute but Killererin continued to bounce back off the ropes with points from Padraic Joyce (2), Damien Flaherty, Jonathan Keane and Shane Hughes.
Joyce’s two points, the only on-target strikes for Killererin in the first quarter, were reminiscent of his second half display against Meath in the 2001 All-Ireland final – as the defenders waited for him to turn to his trusted left peg, he duly stroked the ball over the bar with his right.
Despite struggling at times to cope with the overall energy, fitness and mobility of Micheál Breathnach, twice in the second quarter, Killererin created goal chances with Nicky Joyce being denied by the post and then the alertness of wing back, Cian Ó Griallais, who cleared off the line.
Too often though for their own good, the losers either blasted wide from good positions or dropped balls short into the grateful arms of Killererin goalkeeper Alan Fahy.
Those might have been routine stops for Fahy but he really earned his keep in the opening minute of the second half when he saved brilliantly from the incoming Peadar Óg Ó Griofa in a ‘one-to-one’ situation that probably was the defining moment of the match.
There is no better team in the county to capitalise on another side’s wastefulness than Killererin and over the following eight minutes, Stephen Flaherty’s side edged into a 0-8 to 0-5 lead thanks to two Padraic Joyce points followed by a Nicky Joyce free.
Many in the modest crowd of a few hundred people thought ‘that was that’ but the Connemara side showed buckets of heart and courage to fight back with points from Tomás Ó Conghaile and Peadar Ó Griofa, but try as they might they could never get their noses in front again.
Just when another Killererin crisis seemed about to loom, Padraic Joyce curled over a classic point from the right corner under the shadow of the stand before tapping over a free that left the North Galway men 10-7 again.
Breathnach’s though staged a second major fightback with Sean Denvir and Peadar Ó Griofa landing inspirational points to leave just one between the sides with eight minutes left on the clock.
For more, read this week's Connacht Tribune.