CUALA JUST B-RILLIANT
Dalkey boys complete Dublin Minor B hurling and football ‘double’
DUBLIN MHC ‘B’ FINAL
CUALA…………………………………………………….. 0-16
BALLINTEER ST JOHN’S………………………………… 0-11
Daire Walsh
A LATE scoring surge paid dividends for Cuala on Sunday morning, when they secured the Dublin Minor Hurling ‘B’ Championship title at the expense of Ballinteer St John’s in a breezy Ballinteer Community School.
This victory comes hot on the heels of their Minor ‘B’ Football triumph against Clontarf a fortnight earlier, and with a total of eight players featuring in the starting line-up for both of these successes, it has been a truly unforgettable year for Cuala at the U18 grade.
The hosts were playing with a strong wind during the opening period of this contest, however, and they broke the deadlock courtesy of a fourth-minute free from centre-forward Sean Casserly.
Cuala levelled matters with a fine score from play by midfielder Darragh Twomey, before Ballinteer regained the lead with a second successful free from Casserly. It was becoming clear that free-taking was going to play an important part for both sides, and even though full-forward Justin Byrne was Cuala’s predominant dead-ball specialist, shotstopper Ryan Di Felice was called upon for some long-range opportunities.
He converted a superb effort from his own ’65’ on 12 minutes, and after Ballinteer’s Patrick O’Reilly was on target at the end of the first-quarter, he added to his personal tally from half-way.
Byrne subsequently edged the Dalkey outfit into the ascendancy with his first point, but it was during this juncture that Ballinteer developed a purple patch. The reliable Casserly contributed 0-3 from placed balls, and with corner-forward Tom Ahern also getting his name on the scoresheet, the Dublin 16 side had created some daylight.
Byrne brought this scoring sequence to an end, but following a sixth point by Casserly, Ballinteer entered the interval with a 0-8 to 0-5 advantage. The half-time break allowed Cuala enough time to re-energise for the second half, though, and despite conceding another pointed free to Casserly, they reduced their arrears thanks to back-to-back scores from Byrne (free) and Tiernan Lane.
Ballinteer restored their three-point cushion with yet another Casserly free, but it was anticipated that Cuala (who include former Dublin stars John Twomey and John Treacy in their management set-up) would increase the pressure as the half wore on.
In fact, the increasingly-influential Byrne converted three frees in succession, ensuring that the teams were inseparable heading into the final-quarter. Cuala aimed to take the initiative at this point, and when substitute Emmet Murphy split the posts nine minutes from time, they took the lead for only the second time in the action.
This was throwing down the gauntlet to Ballinteer, who responded with a point on the run by O’Reilly. With the game now on a knife edge, Conal O’Kelly’s 55th minute strike was originally waved wide, but following consultation with his umpires, referee Jason Buckley awarded a point.
This was precisely the tonic that Cuala required, and with O’Callaghan, Byrne, O’Kelly and Di Felice recording quick-fire scores, they completed the Minor ‘B’ double with five points to spare over Ballinteer – who lost Ahern to a second yellow-card in stoppage-time.
MATCH FILE
Scorers – Cuala: J Byrne 0-7 (7f), R Di Felice 0-3 (3f), C O’Kelly 0-2, D Twomey, T Lane, N O’Callaghan, E Murphy 0-1 each. Ballinteer St John’s: S Casserly 0-8 (8f), P O’Reilly 0-2, T Ahern 0-1.
CUALA: R Di Felice; P McKeown, J Lahert, D Collopy; D Maas, M Treacy, B Coronella; J Hartnett, D Twomey; C O’Kelly, D Ryan, F O Drisceoil; T Lane, J Byrne, N O’Callaghan.
SUBS: C Quinn for O Drisceoil (26), E Murphy for Ryan (46), A Power for O’Callaghan (62), F O Tiernagh for O’Kelly (63).
BALLINTEER ST JOHN’S: J Kennelly; P Hopkins, S O’Reilly, S Mulvaney; C Rafter, E Fitzpatrick, J Waters; P O’Reilly, B Mannion; P O hEithir, S Casserly, J Ball; M Cronin, T Brennan, T Ahern.
SUBS: C Kissane for Ball (43), C Shelly for O hEithir (48), C O’Dwyer for Brennan (58).
MENTORS – Cuala: Finbar Murphy, John Twomey, John Treacy. Ballinteer St John’s: Shane Casserly, Oisin Power, Hugh Carroll, Fionn Clabby.
REFEREE: Jason Buckley (Setanta).
WIDES – Cuala: 12 (6+6). Ballinteer St John’s: 7 (5+2).
CONDITIONS: Dry conditions overall, but also quite breezy at times.
PLAYER OF THE MATCH: Justin Byrne (Cuala).