LEINSTER SH ‘B’ FINAL: CASTLECOMER 3-19 ST BENILDUS 1-2
Benildus battle hard but fall foul of Castlecomer
Daire Walsh
ST BENILDUS College suffered a heavy defeat to Castlecomer CS in the Leinster Senior ‘B’ Hurling Championship decider at the Kildare GAA Centre of Excellence in Hawkfield last Friday.
The Kilmacud side had progressed the provincial stage as a consequence of their county final triumph over St Aidan’s CBS at Abbotstown last November. On that occasion, powerhouse displays by Ciaran Foley and Aaron O’Toole propelled them towards a comprehensive 2-17 to 1-8 success at the expense of Aidan’s.
After a lengthy period away from competitive action, Benildus faced a Castlecomer outfit who recently secured the ‘Rest of Leinster’ title with a narrow win against Colaiste Choilm of Tullamore. The Dublin champions received a blow on 12 minutes, when Jack Morrissey rattled the net off a close-range effort.
They were struggled to get change out of a formidable Castlecomer half-back line – where skipper James Brennan was in superb form.
Bryan Keogh Smyth managed to bag a goal of his own for Benildus, but they still found themselves staring down the barrel of a 1-10 to 1-1 interval deficit.
While a grandstand comeback wasn’t out of the question, Castlecomer put paid to Benildus’ chances courtesy of Ciaran Cooney’s 39th-minute goal. Morrissey subsequently added another green flag strike and with Jack Buggy ending the contest on 11 points, ‘Comer advanced to the All-Ireland semi-finals in commanding style.
In addition to Smyth’s three-pointer, O’Toole and Cian Deignan also claimed points for Benildus. Even though it was a disappointing way for their season to finish, they can still reflect positively on their return to the top table of Dublin schools hurling.