Mullinavat 1-23; Barrow Rangers 1-15.
John Power at Mullinavat GAA Grounds.
Mullinavat secured their place in the quarterfinals of the JJ Kavanagh Junior A Hurling Championship with a deserved eight-point victory over Barrow Rangers in an absorbing Round Two encounter played in glorious sunshine at Mullinavat on Saturday afternoon. While the final margin suggested a comfortable success for the home side, the contest was anything but straightforward for long periods. A fiercely competitive opening half saw little between the teams, with Mullinavat taking a slender 1-9 to 1-8 advantage into the dressing rooms. However, a dominant second-half performance, built on relentless work rate, disciplined defending and clinical finishing, saw the hosts pull away impressively to book a last-eight meeting with Glenmore.
Barrow Rangers, who now face Carrickshock in the Junior A relegation final, made the brighter start and opened the scoring through Philip Drennan inside the opening minute. Martin Davis quickly restored parity for Mullinavat before the visitors enjoyed an early purple patch. Tom Brennan, who proved Barrow Rangers’ most influential attacker throughout, converted two frees before Brian Kelly struck an excellent point from distance to move the visitors three points clear at 0-4 to 0-1.
Mullinavat responded in determined fashion. CJ Fitzpatrick opened their account from a placed ball before Jack Walsh and Fiachra Knox both split the posts to bring the sides level once more as the game developed into a keenly contested affair.
The opening goal arrived approaching the end of the first quarter and went the way of the visitors. Following good approach play orchestrated by Brennan, Martin Bambrick finished smartly to the Mullinavat net, giving the Paulstown side a 1-4 to 0-4 advantage. Fitzpatrick reduced the deficit with another free, but Brennan continued to punish every indiscretion, adding a point from play before converting another free to leave Barrow Rangers four points in front midway through the half.
Mullinavat needed inspiration and it arrived in spectacular, if somewhat fortunate, fashion. Eoin Dempsey first clipped over an excellent point before Martin Davis attempted a sideline cut that travelled all the way to the net, catching both defenders and goalkeeper by surprise. The remarkable score levelled the contest at 1-6 apiece and breathed fresh life into the home challenge. With momentum now swinging in their favour, Mullinavat finished the opening half strongly. Donnacha Walsh edged them ahead before Fiachra Knox and David Maher also found the target, while Barrow Rangers replied with two scores to leave just the minimum separating the sides at the interval, Mullinavat leading 1-9 to 1-8.
Barrow Rangers emerged with renewed purpose after the restart as Brennan converted an early free before adding another excellent score from play to put his side back in front at 1-10 to 1-9.
That, however, proved to be the visitors’ final spell of dominance. Mullinavat gradually tightened their grip around the middle third, their defence became increasingly difficult to break down, and their greater movement and accuracy in attack began to tell. Six unanswered points transformed the complexion of the contest. Fitzpatrick opened the scoring burst with another well-struck free before Darragh Davis added a fine effort from play. Eoin Dempsey, growing in influence with every passing minute, landed two excellent points, while Conor Power and Martin Davis also raised white flags to leave the hosts firmly in control.
Although Brennan briefly halted the Mullinavat momentum with two more points, one from play and another from a 65, the home side never looked in danger of surrendering their advantage. Instead, they finished with another sustained scoring spell that underlined the quality of their second-half display. Dempsey added two further points to cap an outstanding individual performance, Fitzpatrick maintained his flawless accuracy with two more scores from placed balls, while Conor Power and substitute Conor Duggan completed the scoring as Mullinavat eased over the finish line.
The victory was founded on an excellent team display after the interval. Having matched Barrow Rangers score for score in a closely fought first half, Mullinavat raised both the intensity and tempo following the restart. Their defence restricted the visitors to just seven second-half points, while the attack repeatedly punished every opportunity that came their way.
Eoin Dempsey was among the standout performers, contributing several excellent scores from play and covering huge ground throughout. CJ Fitzpatrick’s dependable free-taking kept the scoreboard moving at crucial stages, while Martin Davis’s extraordinary sideline-cut goal proved a pivotal moment in shifting momentum towards the home side. Strong displays across the field from Darragh Davis, Conor Power, Fiachra Knox and Donnacha Walsh reflected the collective nature of Mullinavat’s success.
For Barrow Rangers, Tom Brennan carried the greatest attacking threat and finished with an impressive personal tally from both play and placed balls. Martin Bambrick’s first-half goal kept his side in contention, but they found scores increasingly difficult to come by as Mullinavat tightened their grip during the closing stages.
Mullinavat can now look forward with confidence to a quarter-final meeting against Glenmore, encouraged by a second-half performance that combined resilience, patience and attacking quality. Should they reproduce that level in the knockout stages, they will fancy their chances of extending their championship campaign well into the closing weeks of the season.
Scorers: MULLINAVAT CJ Fitzpatrick (0-6, 5 frees), Martin Davis (1-2), Eoin Dempsey (0-5), Conor Power (0-3), Fiachra Knox (0-2), Darragh Davis, Conor Duggan, Jack Walsh, Donnacha Walsh, David Maher (0-1 each). BARROW RANGERS Tom Brennan (0-10, 5 frees, 1 “65”), Martin Bambrick (1-0), Brian Kelly (0-2), Martin Bambrick, Conor Blake, Gary Hill (0-1).
Teams: MULLINAVAT: James O’Keeffe, Michael Walsh, Simon Aylward, Ian Mansfield, Darragh Davis, Padraic Gahan, David Maher, Donnacha Walsh, Conor Duggan, Eoin Dempsey, Fiachra Knox, CJ Fitzpatrick, Conor Power, Jack Walsh, Martin Davis. Substitutes: Stephen O’Shea for Darragh Davis, Michael Cattfor Martin Davis.
BARROW RANGERS: Ciaran Doyle, Shane Flavin, Conor Dermody, James Hogan, Martin Drea, Ciaran Breen, PJ McHugh, Conor Blake, Brian Kelly, Tom Brennan, Conor Brennan, Jason Holden, Eoin O’Neill, Philip Drennan, Martin Bamrick. Substitute: Gary Hill for Philip Drennan.
Referee: Jamie Carroll (Mooncoin)
