Laois GAA club action returns as St Joseph’s and Ballyroan-Abbey open with wins in Kelly Cup

Laois GAA club football action returned over the weekend as Ballyroan-Abbey took on Clonaslee St Manman's and St Joseph's welcomed Arles-Killeen to Kellyville in the opening games of this year's Kelly Cup.

Ballyroan-Abbey made a perfect start to their Kelly Cup campaign with a comprehensive 18-point win against Clonaslee St Manman’s in Ballyroan on Saturday afternoon.

From start to finish, the result was never in doubt as Ballyroan-Abbey ran riot and showed a ruthlessness in front of goal which was very impressive considering how early it is in the year.

It was always going to be tough for Clonaslee St Manman’s as they travelled with only 15 players, but to give them massive credit for turning up and battling throughout this encounter. 

It was actually the away side who scored first through Paul Mulhall, but things got a lot worse after that as they failed to score a single point for the remainder of the first half. Ballyroan-Abbey would soon click into gear, and it was utter dominance throughout the match. They struck their first goal through Ben McDonald after a brilliant move, and they never looked back after that score. 

The home side were winning everything around the middle as Cathal Doyle put in a brilliant display of fielding, and it led to many scoring opportunities and scores.  Ben McDoanld hit his first point of the day, and his team asserted their dominance through a two-pointer from James McWey to leave it 1-3 to 0-1 after 10 minutes.  They would add three more points from Alan McWey, Ben McDonald and James McWey as the contest was getting away from the away side. 

Clonaslee St Manman’s were given somewhat of a lifeline when James McWey was given a black card for an off the ball tackle, but it did not affect the proceedings as Ben McDonald got a brace while Paudie McDonald added the last score of the half with the scores at 1-9 to 0-1 at half-time.

It was more of the same in the second half as Ballyroan-Abbey kept up their intensity and emptied their bench in the second half, which made them even more dangerous.  Paudie McDonald and Brian Whelan added two quick points before Ballyroan-Abbey hit for their third goal with the brilliant Cathal Doyle finding the net. 

Diarmuid Whelan added two points of his own while substitute Enda McWey got in on the act with another point for the home side. Manus Dunne and Brian Whelan traded points, which turned out to be Ballyroan-Abbey’s last point of the game with seven minutes left.  The away side kept battling and finished with three points in a row through Tom Smith, Cian Callaghan and JJ Kennedy, but there was no stopping Ballyroan-Abbey as they were deserved winners. READ MORE BELOW PICTURE.

FINAL SCORE

Ballyroan-Abbey 3-14

Clonaslee St Manmans 0-5

SCORERS – Ballyroan-Abbey: Ben McDonald 1-4 (0-1 free), Paudie McDonald 1-2, Cathal Doyle 1-0, James McWey (two-pointer), Brian Whelan and Diarmuid Whelan 0-2 each, Alan McWey and Enda McWey 0-1 each. Clonaslee St Manman’s: Paul Mulhall, Manus Dunne, Cian Callaghan, Tom Smith and JJ Kennedy 0-1 each.

BALLYROAN-ABBEY: Adam Jones; Eamonn Fitzpatrick, Gavin Tynan, Colm Walsh; Conor McWey, Aaron Carroll, Patrick Whelan; Cathal Doyle, Conor Brennan; James McWey, Diarmuid Whelan, Alan McWey; Ben McDonald, Paudie McDonald, Brian Whelan. Subs used: Enda McWey, Ruairi Dunne, Danny Brennan, Odhran Delaney, Enda McWey, Evan McEvoy.

CLONASLEE ST MANMAN’S: Darragh Mulhall; JJ Kennedy, Gearld Reilly, Tom Smith; Shay Foynes, Diarmuid Conway, Jack Ownes; Cian Conroy, Darragh Scully; Shane McCann, Manus Dunne, Fionn Ownes; Paul Mulhall, Cian Callaghan, Peter Foynes.

REFEREE: Brendan Hickey (Graiguecullen)

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On Saturday evening, reigning Kelly Cup champions St Joseph’s opened up their Kelly Cup campaign with a comfortable victory over Arles-Killeen in Kellyville.

In truth, St Joseph’s should have scored a lot more as they were very wasteful in front of goal throughout the encounter. However, they will be happy with the win overall.

In a low-scoring first half, it was the home side that got off the mark first with an early free from Oisin Hooney. Arles-Killeen drew level soon after with a brilliant score from Oisin Byrne, who was probably Arles-Killeen’s best player on the night. 

St Joseph’s were now dominating the kickouts and possession, but they couldn’t make it tell on the scoreboard as they missed a lot of scoring chances. They eventually found their range and would hit 1-3 without reply, with Colin Campion landing a brace of points while Brian Daly added a point before the first goal of the game. From the resulting kickout, disaster struck as it went straight to Daly, and he lobbed the keeper to raise a green flag.

Both teams swapped points before half-time, with Sean O’Shea getting a point for Arles-Killeen before Daly pointed a free as St Joseph’s led 1-5 to 0-2 at half-time. 

Arles-Killeen needed a fast start to the second half to have any chance of mounting a comeback, but it never materialised as they ran out of steam in the second half. St Joseph’s emptied their bench, and it made no difference as they stayed in control of the game. 

Byrne eventually scored the first point of the half from a free, but the deteriorating underfoot conditions made it difficult for both teams to play. Daly added another free before St Joseph’s struck for their second goal of the game to finish the game as a contest.

A great team move saw Daly, who could have scored his second goal, square the ball to Cormac Murphy, who made no mistake and found the net. Sean Rowan and Byrne would trade points with ten minutes to go as fatigue set in. St Joseph’s finished the game the stronger and hit the last three points with Sean Brennan, Daly and Matthew Campion all getting points as St Joseph’s sealed a deserved win. READ MORE BELOW PICTURE.

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FINAL SCORE

St Joseph’s 2-10

Arles-Killeen 0-4

SCORERS – St Joseph’s: Brian Daly 1-4 (0-4 frees), Cormac Murphy 1-0, Colin Campion 0-2, Oisin Hooney, Sean Rowan, Sean Brennan and Matthew Campion 0-1 each. Arles-Killeen: Oisin Byrne 0-3 (0-2 frees), Sean O’Shea 0-1

ST JOSEPH’S: Dan Dunne; Ciaran Condron, Adam Campion, Conor Kealy; Tom Dunne, Niall Brennan, Colin Campion; Cormac Murphy, James Kelly; Sam Lynch, Brian Daly, Bobby Rowan; Dylan Doyle, Matthew Campion, Oisin Hooney. Subs: Sean Brennan, Aaron Cooney, Jack Gorman, Charlie Crehan, Jamie Kelly, Sean Rowan

ARLES-KILLEEN: Kevin Lambe; Michael Wall, Joseph Mulhare, Ben Griffin; Cian Knowles, Dermot Julian, Ger McWey; John Mahon, Conor Keightley; Niall O’Rourke, Oisin Byrne, Daire Eyre; Sean O’Shea, Shane Byrne, Keith Hosey.

REFEREE: Eugene Dowdall (Ballylinan)