Clongeen best in local derby
Wednesday August 25 2010
NEAR NEIGHBOURS Clongeen and Bannow-Ballymitty provided plenty of entertainment for their followers at O'Kennedy Park, New Ross, on Saturday last in a closely-contested WFC Senior football 'B' championship quarter-final.
Except for a brief period at the start of the final quarter, Clongeen remained ahead but they were made fight every inch of the way by determined opponents.
The winners got the ideal start when Collie Byrne caught the ball from the throw-in and soloed straight through unchallenged to plant it in the net from twelve metres.
Paddy Colfer added six points before the break, and this was matched by the opposition, as Ben Brosnan accounted for four and Michael Barry and Niall Harney scored one each to make it 1-6 to 0-6 at the changeover.
Colfer added his seventh point straight from the second-half throw-in, but then Gordon Rossiter started a Bannow-Ballymitty revival with a brace of excellent points. Substitute Gary Morton found the range soon after his arrival, and another replacement, Jamie Staunton, set up Ben Brosnan to make it 1-8 to 0-10 after Gary O'Grady had replied for Clongeen.
Defender Garry Murphy kicked the point that momentarily levelled the game. But almost immediately Clongeen scored their second goal when Garry O'Brien spotted the unmarked Gary O'Grady with a quickly-taken free which caught the opposing defence off guard, and the corner-forward gave Seán Cummins no chance with a rasping kick to the corner of the net.
Paddy Colfer and Ben Brosnan exchanged two more points apiece before the end.
