Jimmies take top-spot tussle
Ramsgrange men back on form after surprise defeat
ST. JAMES’ took top spot in Group B of The Courtyard Ferns Intermediate hurling championship after defeating Buffers Alley in McCauley Park, Bellefield on Saturday.
As expected before the throwin, Buffers Alley did take the second automatic place in the quarter-finals, with the Monamolin-based club comfortably keeping their noses well in front in the score difference tie-break between themselves, Craanford and Blackwater, after all three finished on level points in their mini-league.
It means this will be the last game for both of these sides for over a month as they go into preparation mode for the teams that advance from the preliminary quarter-finals.
It will be interesting to see how both emerge, but it’s St. James’ who go into it looking the stronger.
The Ramsgrange men just have that anomaly against Taghmon-Camross blotting their copybook, a scarcely believable result given their supreme form in seeing off a bunch of quality opponents in this group.
They were impressive in this game and have every right to feel confident heading into the last eight. They got scoring contributions from across their attack, which is paramount if they want to go all the way in this championship.
Incredibly, despite boasting nine different scorers, they were still pipped by the Alley who had ten, meaning a staggering 19 of the 30 players that started this game got on the scoresheet.
It was 0-6 each after just 13 minutes, with nine different lads opening their personal accounts.
Jack Redmond put his team a point ahead in the 15th minute but that would be their final lead of the evening, with St. James’ moving in front when Shane Murphy rattled the net after great work in the build-up by Kevin O’Grady and Tomás Barron.
The Gorey District side did fight their way back to level pegging by the 26th minute but would fire six wides in a row before the interval, meaning Kevin O’Grady’s goal, two seconds before the 30 minutes were up, gave St. James’ a 2-8 to 0-11 half-time advantage.
The break came at the right time for a misfiring Buffers Alley, but St. James’ still moved 2-12 to 0-13 ahead after 37 minutes on the back of points from Barron, Ciarán McPhillips, Murphy and Kevin O’Grady.
Buffers Alley struggled to put runs of scores together in the second period but did grab three straight through Shane Grannell, Bobby Kenny and Owen Dempsey to make it a two-point game.
However, every time Buffers Alley got within sniffing distance of their opponents, St. James’ put the foot on the accelerator again, moving five ahead on the back of a Matt O’Hanlon brace and a Murphy score from play (2-15 to 0-16).
From there St. James’ kept their noses ahead. Buffers Alley did get themselves within three late on when Shamey O’Hagan rattled the net from Bobby Kenny’s assist, but it would prove to be their final score as points from Murphy, O’Hanlon and Barron cemented top spot for the victors.
St. James’: Graeme Molloy; Paul Barron, Jason Barron, Darragh McPhillips, Ciarán McPhillips (0-2), Matthew O’Hanlon (0-3, 1 free), Colum Fitzgerald; Ben McPhillips, Tomás Barron (0-2); Aidan Shannon (0-2), Kevin O’Grady (1-2), Paul Walsh (0-1); Shane Murphy (capt., 1-7, 0-1 free), Michael O’Grady (0-1), Tommy Walsh (0-1).
Buffers Alley: Darren O’Brien (0-1 free): Brian O’Meara, Seán Murphy, Jack Twomey; Bobby Kenny (0-2), Shamey O’Hagan (1-0), John Lee Meyler (0-1); Brian Doran (0-1), Cormac Walsh (capt.); Jack Redmond (0-1), Shane Grannell (0-2), Michael Butler; Liam Walsh (0-2), Pat Kenny (0-1), Owen Dempsey (0-7, 4 frees, 2 ’65s). Sub. - Owen McNulty for Twomey (26).
Referee: David O’Leary (Rathnure).