Shamrocks 7-9, Grenagh 3-3
Shamrocks got off to a good start in the league after a fantastic second half performance against Grenagh on Saturday afternoon. Due to ongoing work at Grenagh’s pitch, the match was played on Shanballys bottom pitch which has taken on a lot of water in the last 2 weeks or so; the top half of the pitch near the clubhouse is particularly heavy. However, both teams turned in a whole hearted display in the conditions which is typical of this age group anyway.
Grenagh played down the hill in the first half and settled faster and led 1-3 to 0-1 after 15 minutes. However, from there until the half time break, Shamrocks began to dominate from defence out and the inside forward line, in particular Shane Flavin started to get the ball in the right places. Shane stuck away 2 goals and a point while David O’Sullivan, ever dangerous throughout, slotted over some frees. The halftime score read Shamrocks 3-5, Grenagh 3-3.
Shamrocks turned to play with the hill in the second half and after a close opening 5/6 minutes, really got on top of Grenagh throughout the field. Led by James Lynam in defence who was outstanding, the other backs rose to the occasion and gaps seemed to open up in the Grenagh defence. Again Flavin was on the end of two moves to blast to the net while Seán Andrews really made a difference after bring introduced, scoring 1-2. Dylan O’Flaherty, emergency goalkeeper on the day, did very well and his handling was excellent.
A few positional switches were made in the last 10 minutes to find out more about the players should the need arise later in the season. The one thing this team does is that they play at 100% until the final whistle – a good attribute that every team needs.
Team: Dylan O’Flaherty, Evan Seymour, Cathal Murphy, Daniel O’Mahony, James Lynam, Shane Downey, Stephen Fox, Cillian Hayes, David O’Sullivan, David Fox, Keith O’Donoghue, Shane Flavin, Killian O’Mahony. Sub used – Seán Andrews
