Ballinamere saunter to double scores win in third gear as Lusmagh rue missed chances
Molloy Environmental Systems Senior Hurling Championship Group 2 Round 1
SPENDING much of a boiling hot afternoon cruising along in third gear, conserving their energy, Ballinamere sauntered to a double scores win over newly promoted Lusmagh in the Offaly Senior Hurling Championship opener at Lusmagh on Saturday evening.
Molloy Environmental Systems Senior Hurling Championship Group 2 Round 1
Ballinamere 0-24
Lusmagh 0-12
It was certainly nothing special by Ballinamere but they had other gears to tap into, probably could have done so if asked and it represented a satisfactory start for them. On the short list of favourites for the Sean Robbins Cup, Ballinamere have a point to prove after a disappointing 2025 – they were beaten by Kilcormac-Killoughey in the 2024 final. They didn’t prove anything here but the win was all that matter and it was achieved with considerable comfort with the result never in doubt.
Yet the final scoreline is hard on Lusmagh. They ended up with the same wides tally as Ballinamere, 12, but their misses looked a lot wore and were way more damaging. Some of their wides bordered on the criminal and they had ample chances to have asked more serious questions of the favourites. Fate was not kind to them as their county player Ruari Kelly pulled a hamstring at training on Tuesday evening and joined the other players on their casualty list – missing almost a handful of players, Lusmagh just don’t have the resources to cushion this.
They can be proud of the way they played against the wind in the second half and got the deficit down to seven points on four different occasions. A goal would have made it very interesting but they never looked like getting one and Lusmagh visibly wilted in the closing ten minutes as a fitter Ballinamere got the late scores for a comfortable if not entirely convincing win.
New Ballinamere manager Sean Treacy won’t waste too much of the good weather analysing this one as the evidence in real time will have told him all he wanted to know, and probably already knew. Ballinamere are a seriously competitive outfit but they will have to play with much more pace and urgency as the season wears on. They should have other gears to move into but if they don’t, their dreams of a first ever championship won’t be realised.
With so many county players in their squad, Ballinamere command complete respect. Some of them looked a bit tired and stagnant here after a long county season and that was entirely understandable. It couldn’t be any other way though Ciaran Burke and Brian Duignan were two notable exceptions at each end of the field. On this occasion, several of Ballinamere’s “second tier” of players stood up to be counted here and the performances of this cohort is absolutely pivotal to their prospects. Without them doing well, they simply won’t win a championship.
Chris McDonald and Aaron Maher were immense with Ronan Cleary and David Magner also performing. They also welcomed back Kevin McDermott after his year’s sabbatical from senior hurling and he played sufficiently well to suggest that he will be very important to them this year – the Durrow man was hungry, eager to impress, shot two points and with more hurling, he will get sharper in the coming weeks.
As you would expect, Lusmagh came out with all guns blazing with the wind on their backs and tore into Ballinamere. They also sabotaged their victory prospects in this early spell of dominance as they had three wides in just over a minute and a half, five in 9 minutes, seven in 16 and it reached nine by half time. Many of those first quarter misses were very good chances and they effectively condemned Lusmagh to a loss.
Ballinamere were much more clinical and were 0-6 to no score up after 16 minutes. Darren Healy eventually broke the deadlock for Lusmagh in the 18th minute and they improved coming up to half time but a 0-11 to 0-4 lead meant that the points were essentially a done deal for Ballinamere at the break.
Lusmagh manager Brian Mullins will have plenty of positives to reflect on from their second half display. They were much more tenacious and hard working and they ensured that Ballinamere had to wait until the 56th minute to surpass the 20 point barrier, Brian Duignan converting a free to achieve it. At half time, we thought Ballinamere would have been over that much earlier and could have had a look at 30 points. Instead Lusmagh knuckled down and made life difficult for them while Ballinamere seemed content to do just enough to win and not really chase after the game.
Lusmagh continued to hit some poor wides in the second half, though not at the same volume as the first. Points from Paul Kinsella and Darren Healy had it back to seven, 0-16 to 0-9 after 46 minutes and there was a tiny chance there for Lusmagh. Ballinamere, however, were just too strong in defence to allow them back into it and closed it out impressively. They were still seven ahead, 0-19 to 0-11 in the 56th minute but Lusmagh were gone as Ballinamere fired over five of the last six points.
MATCH ANALYSIS
MAN OF THE MATCH
Chris McDonald (Ballinamere): Chris McDonald is the selection, getting the nod just ahead of Aaron Maher. McDonald had a great game at the heart of the Ballinamere defence. He was excellent in the first half, winning and cutting out a lot of ball, and using most of it well. Him and Aaron Maher really stepped up to the plate with Maher showing some wonderful skill in the attack and scoring five points.
County players Ciaran Burke and Brian Duignan performed close to optimum, albeit with more gears to access while Ronan Cleary and David Magner also did very well for the winners.
THE SCORERS
Ballinamere: Brian Duignan 0-10 (5f), Aaron Maher 0-5, Kevin McDermott and Dan Bourke 0-2 each, Mark Troy (f), Chris McDonald, Sam Bourke, David Magner, Mike O’Brien 0-1 each.
Lusmagh: Luke Bowe 0-4 (4f), Darren Healy and James Kelly 0-2 each, Eimhin Kelly (f), Daire Temple, Paul Kinsella, Fionn O’Meara 0-1 each.
THE TEAMS
BALLINAMERE: Mark Troy; Luke Nolan, Ciaran Burke, Ronan Cleary; Ross Ravenhilll, Chri McDonald, Jack Fogarty; Sam Bourke, David Magner; Dan Boiurke, Dan Ravenhill, Mike O’Brien; Kevin McDermott, Brian Duignan, Aaron Maher.
LUSMAGH: Alan Kelly; Rory Quinlan, Eibheann Kelly, Morgan Glynn; Lorcan Troy, Eimhin Kelly, Fionn O’Meara; Daire Temple, Graham Lynch; Eoin Quinlan, Darren Healy, Daire Kelly; Luke Bowe, Paul Kinsella, James Kelly.
Referee – Kieran Dooley, Drumcullen.
REFEREE WATCH
Kieran Dooley had an excellent game and there was something very impressive about the way he conducted the game. He got the vast majority of calls right and was quick to flash yellow cards. He missed a couple of slaps but spotted most of them and punished them with cards. He communicated well with players, explaining his decisions and apologising to Daire Temple in the first half when he missed a late challenge by Brian Duignan. The players and both sideline officials also showed him full respect and that was very nice to see.
MOMENT OF THE MATCH
There was no big moment that defined this match but the three wides Lusmagh hit in 1 minute and 40 seconds at the start gave an early indication of why they would not win this game.
VENUE WATCH
It was a great occasion for Lusmagh to host a game on their return to senior hurling and their ground was in peak condition. They had loads of welcoming stewards and managed it efficiently.
WHAT’S NEXT
Lusmagh travel to Belmont and Ballinamere welcome Tullamore in round 2.
STATISTICS
Wides: Ballinamere – 12 (4 in first half); Lusmagh – 12 (9 in first half).
Yellow cards: Ballinamere – 3 (Ross Ravenhill, Jack Fogarty, Aaron Maher); Lusmagh – 2 (Morgan Glynn and Paul Kinsella).
Black cards: 0
Red cards: 0