Adult Hurling Match Reports

 

 

 

Ballinteer St. johns hurling team revisited the site of the crime last weekend, when they faced Naomh Mearnóg away first time since their infamous defeat to them in a relegation playoff in their final game of the season last year.

 

In a fiercely contested battle between two evenly matched sides, the game’s fate was ultimately sealed by a controversial red card early in the second half.

 

Ballinteer got a foothold on the game from the off, with scores coming from captain Tom Aherne, James Gilligan and Rob Aherne in quick concession to take control of things.

 

Mearnóg responded well, taking their scores, posing as a real threat upfront, making life difficult for Cody Graham and Jack Gilligan who held their own in the spine of the BSJ defense.

 

In what was a relatively even, end to end first half,  BSJ entered the break leading 12 points to 9.

 

Playing into a tough wind in the second half, scoring proved a lot tougher for the visitors. Running good lines and smartly optimizing the space on a wide field, BSJ looked comfortable in possession and created a raft of opportunities 

 

Scores from Fionn O Riordan and Liam O'Sullivan early in the second half had Ballinteer in full control,  but it wasn't long before things went south for BSJ when a red card was shown following a second booking for cynical challenges.

 

Capitalizing on the spare man, Mearnóg clawed their way back into the game taking on and succeeding in scores from center field. 

 

The final nail in the coffin came about when a last minute long range free was fired in to the danger zone and crept it's way to the back of the net in a sickening last minute defeat for Ballinteer St Johns.

 

Final score: Naomh Mearnóg 1-15 to 0-14 Ballinteer St. Johns

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stormy conditions forced the Junior A hurlers to take a rain check a fortnight ago when they were set to face Kilmacud Crokes in the opening game of their 2025 league campaign.

 

However, last weekend, in their unofficial first game of the season, BSJ's Junior As welcomed Clontarf's, Whitehall Colmcille's to Marlay Park on Sunday where they salvaged a convincing 2-17 to 2-8 victory for the lads in tangerine.

 

Ballinteer drew first blood with scores coming from Patrick Bowden, Cian Barry and Pádraic Ó hEithir on free's to get things underway.

 

Whitehall fought back with scores, capitalizing on scrambles for possession in the home defense as the backline struggled to settle themselves for the opening 15 mins.

 

Calm and composed, Ballinteer took control of the game later in the first half, with Rian Coote and Brian Quinn cutting out puckout options for Whitehall, breaking the ball down for Andrew Aherne, and Jack Linehan to clean up in the midfield area.

 

Late in the half, a misread in the half back line saw goalkeeper, Paddy Buckley picking the sliotar out of the home net. But it wasn't long unanswered as BSJ's Jack Linehan soon struck one past the keeper on the opposite end.

 

Further scores from Danny Fanning, Pat Steele and Patrick Bowden, accompanied by a stonewall performance in defense by fullback Ronan Collins, swatting danger out of harm's way, Ballinteer entered the break with a handsome 9-point lead.

 

The second half got underway with the downhill in favor of the home side.

 

Ballinteer continued to pursue the visiting defense, tirelessly posting the sliotar between the uprights plus an additional goal from full forward Eoghan O'Connor, mounting the pressure for the Dublin 3 outlift.

 

Further scores for Pádraig O hEithir, Patrick Bowden and Cian Barry kept the scoreboard ticking over, however energy levels fell, standards dropped, and careless wides and countless mishits crept in among the home players.

 

Whitehall switched into gear, and with fresh legs off the bench, they came at the home defense all guns blazing, forcing fouls and taking their scores.

 

In a moment of madness, corner back Rory Merriman in quick succession through cynical fouls was shown a red card, leaving his team with 14 men following back-to-back bookings.

 

Calling on a forward to fill in the hole in the backline, Ballinteer defended with their lives for the final 10 minutes and ultimately secured a 9-point victory with a final scoreline that read 2-17 to 2-8.

 

Two points secured for Ballinteer St. johns junior A team as they look ahead to March 30th where they face Thomas Davis away in their next league game.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Rory Merriman

 

Off the back of a victory in their opening fixture of their 2025 division 8 league campaign against Setanta last week, Ballinteer's Junior B's travelled out west last weekend where they succumbed to Round Towers in a last puck of the game defeat.

 

Ballinteer's John Fallon and Lughaidh Lynch stepped up to the plate on frees in the absence of Conor Murphy as Luke Ennis filled in between the post in place of the reliable Michael Hayden.

 

Ballinteer led from the off, scores coming from Jack Keating and Lughaidh Lynch in midfield, who bagged a personal tally of four points from play for the day.

 

Similar to a game of tennis, the sliotar was back on fourth, up and down the field, alternating possession with vital clearances out of the danger zones coming from Oisín Chambers and Ray Mac Reamoinn who were pivotal to the side on the day as full back stalwarts for BSJ.

 

Fast approaching the break, a subsequent yellow card turned red for Round Towers left them with 14 men as the entered half time trailing with a man down.

 

Failing to capitalize on the spare man in the second half, points from Sean Murphy and excellent defending from resolute defencer Dylan Fluck, it was a last-minute goal conceded via a 21-yard-free that lost it for Ballinteer St. Johns on a day and performance they will likely want to put behind them.

 

Final score reading: Round Towers 3-8 to 1-13 Ballinteer St Johns

 

Next up for the Ballinteer St. johns Junior B team is home to St. Perigrines in Marley park, Sunday March 30th.