Barryroe GAA

Ahiohill , 19:00PM

Ibane Gaels 1-15 Diarmuid Ó Mathúnas 1-13

A mere 72 hours after winning the County U21B Football Final the U21 Hurlers were in action against a determined Diarmuid Ó Mathúnas side in a windswept Ahiohill on Tuesday evening.

Ibane started brightly and quickly had a score on the board from the stick of Mark Crowley. Poor discipline was to cost both teams dearly as Jack Murphy and Gavin O'Leary were in unforgiving form and every indiscretion was punished, the sides retiring at the break on 0-08 apiece, a combined total of three scores from open play.

The Gaels began the second half like they did the first registering the opening point as they now played into the 'home' goal. Two pointed frees followed from the stick of Jack Murphy as Ibane pushed the lead out to three, 0-11 to 0-08, 12mins of the second half elapsed. Back came the men from Ó Mathúnas as they fired over two points in quick sucecssion from open play, the lead now a solitary point at the midway point in the second half. Step forward Darragh Donovan, sprung from the bench in the 46min, he had an immediate impact gathering a breaking ball on the Ó Mathúnas 45 and rifling the ball over the bar to settle Ibane nerves and break the Ó Mathúnas resurgence. Donovan was again in the thick of it a few minutes later as he released an unmarked Matthew Lawton down the left, David Cronin in the Ó Mathúnas goal doing well to smother what seemed a certain major, the resulting 65 put to the left and wide. But Ibane smelled blood and they moved in for the kill in the 57min as the lively Dan O'Driscoll gathered possession on the 20, turned and buried the ball in the Ó Mathúnas net, 1-14 to 0-12. But this Ó Mathúnas side refused to lie down and with the clock ticking into injury time a 70m free went all the ways to the Ibane net, anxious moments for the Ibane faithful. Darragh Donovan was again in the right place at the right time as he finished off a good team move down the right, and shortly afterwards the referee brought the curtain down on this entertaining clash, final score 1-15 to 1-13.

Ibane will now take on the winners of Clonakilty/Bandon who play their semi final next week in Timoleague. 

Team: C.Madden, C.O'Regan, J.Sheehan, G.Crowley, D.Kiely, J.Whelton, J.Dullea, P.Maloney, C.O'Donovan, M.Crowley (0-01), E.Lawton (0-02), J.Murphy (0-08f, 0-01), J.Cahalane, D.O'Driscoll (1-01), T.Kearney

Subs used: M.Lawton, D.Donovan (0-02)