Path to the County Final - The Barrs ( Round 1 )
October 08, 2014
Classy Miskella leads Collig's new wave
Ballincollig 1-9 St Finbarr’s 1-8
THE whole season hinged on Ballincollig’s first round win over St Finbarr’s. It’s not that they wouldn’t have had the quality to come through the backdoor, but having only scored a point in the first half and shot wides, they were in real trouble at half-time in Páirc Uà Rinn.
Their response defined the campaign since. The move of Liam Jennings out the field from full-back, along with a more prominent showing from Sean Kiely, saw Ballincollig begin to win the midfield battle, which was key. Pa Kelly might have got on less ball than he would in later rounds, but he kept Michael Shields fully occupied and away from the action.
Without doubt, the biggest influence was John Miskella. The 36-year-old rolled back the years to give a masterful display as a third midfielder and must have covered every inch of the pitch.
Of course Ballincollig were fortunate the Barrs dropped their powerful forward Jason Sexton, but their grit and belief to fight back reflected their development into a far more formidable outfit this year.
The game came to life in the second half, yet when the Barrs led 1-4 to 0-2 after 37 minutes the outlook remained bleak. Points from George Durrant, Niall Allen, who forced a great save in the first half, and Miskella left only two between the sides with 20 minutes to go.
It was 1-7 to 0-7 with 10 minutes left, and the key score came when O’Sullivan and Jennings combined to set-up Ian Coughlan for their goal, his first touch after coming on.
Young guns Cian Dorgan and Cian Kiely then delivered the winning points for Michael O’Brien’s side.
Scorers for Ballincollig: I Coughlan 1-0, C Dorgan 0-3 (0-2 f), C O’Sullivan, G Durrant, N Allen, J Miskella, C Kiely, P Kelly 0-1 each.
St Finbarr’s: P Wiley 1-0, E McGreevey 0-5 (0-4 f), C Lyons, I Power, K Hodgins 0-1 each.
BALLINCOLLIG: D Lordan (c); C Moore, L Jennings, N Galvin; L Prendergast, S O’Donoghue, C Kiely; S Kiely, C O’Sullivan; G Durrant, P Kelly, N Allen; J Kelly, C Dorgan, J Miskella.
Subs: I Coughlan for J Kelly, R Noonan for J Miskella (inj).
St FINBARR’S: D Murphy; A O’Connor, J Burns, R O’Dwyer; G O’Connor, M Shields, J Goggin; E Keane, I Maguire; E McGreevey, C Lyons, E Dennehy; R O’Mahony, P Wiley, K Hodgins.
Subs: I Power for E Dennehy, D Quinn for A O’Connor.
Part 1 of 4 of the "Éamonn Murphy ( Deputy Editor Cork Examiner & Ballincollig PRO ) looks back at Ballincollig's path to their first senior football decider" series. Photo By Eddie O'Hare ( Cork Examiner )
Ballincollig 1-9 St Finbarr’s 1-8
THE whole season hinged on Ballincollig’s first round win over St Finbarr’s. It’s not that they wouldn’t have had the quality to come through the backdoor, but having only scored a point in the first half and shot wides, they were in real trouble at half-time in Páirc Uà Rinn.
Their response defined the campaign since. The move of Liam Jennings out the field from full-back, along with a more prominent showing from Sean Kiely, saw Ballincollig begin to win the midfield battle, which was key. Pa Kelly might have got on less ball than he would in later rounds, but he kept Michael Shields fully occupied and away from the action.
Without doubt, the biggest influence was John Miskella. The 36-year-old rolled back the years to give a masterful display as a third midfielder and must have covered every inch of the pitch.
Of course Ballincollig were fortunate the Barrs dropped their powerful forward Jason Sexton, but their grit and belief to fight back reflected their development into a far more formidable outfit this year.
The game came to life in the second half, yet when the Barrs led 1-4 to 0-2 after 37 minutes the outlook remained bleak. Points from George Durrant, Niall Allen, who forced a great save in the first half, and Miskella left only two between the sides with 20 minutes to go.
It was 1-7 to 0-7 with 10 minutes left, and the key score came when O’Sullivan and Jennings combined to set-up Ian Coughlan for their goal, his first touch after coming on.
Young guns Cian Dorgan and Cian Kiely then delivered the winning points for Michael O’Brien’s side.
Scorers for Ballincollig: I Coughlan 1-0, C Dorgan 0-3 (0-2 f), C O’Sullivan, G Durrant, N Allen, J Miskella, C Kiely, P Kelly 0-1 each.
St Finbarr’s: P Wiley 1-0, E McGreevey 0-5 (0-4 f), C Lyons, I Power, K Hodgins 0-1 each.
BALLINCOLLIG: D Lordan (c); C Moore, L Jennings, N Galvin; L Prendergast, S O’Donoghue, C Kiely; S Kiely, C O’Sullivan; G Durrant, P Kelly, N Allen; J Kelly, C Dorgan, J Miskella.
Subs: I Coughlan for J Kelly, R Noonan for J Miskella (inj).
St FINBARR’S: D Murphy; A O’Connor, J Burns, R O’Dwyer; G O’Connor, M Shields, J Goggin; E Keane, I Maguire; E McGreevey, C Lyons, E Dennehy; R O’Mahony, P Wiley, K Hodgins.
Subs: I Power for E Dennehy, D Quinn for A O’Connor.
Part 1 of 4 of the "Éamonn Murphy ( Deputy Editor Cork Examiner & Ballincollig PRO ) looks back at Ballincollig's path to their first senior football decider" series. Photo By Eddie O'Hare ( Cork Examiner )