Our Junior A footballers began their Roca Sports East Cork Junior A Football Championship campaign with a five point defeat to Carrigtwohill in Ballinacurra on Sunday.

Before turning to the action, Ballinacurra GAA deserve great credit for the excellent condition of their grounds. Despite the recent spell of hot weather, the pitch was in superb order. The club also provided printed match programmes for spectators, a thoughtful touch that was particularly appreciated by the Aghada support.

Our lads were forced to play into a strong breeze during the opening half but made an excellent start to the contest. John Walsh registered the opening score before brothers Eoin and James Motherway struck two superb points from play.

Carrigtwohill opened their account with a pointed free after five minutes, but Aghada responded quickly through Walsh, who kicked his second point from play.

With the wind at their backs, Carrigtwohill gradually began to take control. A point from play and a two-point free brought them level before James Motherway restored Aghada’s advantage from a free, awarded following an infringement well spotted by referee Pa Beausang.

Carrigtwohill then enjoyed their strongest spell of the half. Making full use of the breeze, they added a two-point free and a succession of scores from play to establish a commanding lead.

By the time the half-time whistle sounded, Aghada trailed by 0-12 to 0-5. However, with the elements now in their favour, there remained plenty of hope that they could work their way back into the game.

Cian Moore was introduced at the interval, but it was Carrigtwohill who struck first in the second half, extending their advantage to eight points after 38 minutes.

Aghada needed a response, and the young side produced an excellent scoring burst.

Walsh began the comeback with his third point from play before Conal Rooney landed a magnificent two-pointer. James Hurley then produced arguably the score of the game, firing over another outstanding two-pointer from play.

Hurley followed that with a further point before James Motherway added his third score of the afternoon. Suddenly, with approximately 10 minutes remaining, Aghada had reduced the deficit to the minimum at 0-13 to 0-12.  Substitutes Sam McAllister, Tom Walsh, Evan Crowley, Cian Moore and Darragh O’Conchubhair all tried extremely hard and injected fresh energy into proceedings as our lads chased down the Carrigtwohill lead. 

At that stage, Aghada appeared to have all the momentum and were in a strong position to complete a memorable comeback. Carrigtwohill’s greater experience proved crucial, however, as they regained their composure and kicked the final four points of the game, all from play, to secure a 0-17 to 0-12 victory.

Our Junior A team and management will take plenty of encouragement from their performance over the opening 50 minutes, although they will be disappointed that the game slipped away during the closing stages. This is an extremely young Aghada team, and the quality and skill displayed during the second-half fightback offer very positive signs for the future.

Andrew Murphy was outstanding at half back. The young Aghada man, who has only recently completed his Leaving Certificate, competed excellently for breaking ball and played a major role in driving Aghada forward. His departure with a muscle injury midway through the second half was a significant blow, and Aghada lost some of their momentum following his withdrawal. Aghada will certainly be hoping he is fit and ready for the next round! The Aghada defence performed well throughout. Conor Geary was as tenacious as ever and produced some excellent defensive work, while Tomás Condon led the unit impressively from centre-back. Hugh Mulcahy, Ben Stafford and Éanna Crowley battled well and ensured our opponents got no easy scores while Ronan Devoy compted well in the middle of the field and broke a lot of ball. Jordan Halpin was industrious throughout in the half-forward line, while Finn Crowley was involved in the creation of a number of Aghada’s best first-half scores. Goalkeeper Cian O’Shea also performed well, particularly during the opening half, when the strong breeze made Aghada’s kick-outs especially challenging.

Our Junior A team will now turn their attention to two difficult remaining group games against Lisgoold and Midleton over the coming weeks.

Cian O’Shea, Ben Stafford, Hugh Mulcahy, Conor Geary, Éanna Crowley, Tomás Condon, Andrew Murphy, Ronan Devoy, John Walsh, Jordan Halpin, Eoin Motherway, James Hurley, Finn Crowley, Conal Rooney, James Motherway, Cian Moore, Sam McAllister, Tom Walsh, Cian Crowley and Darragh O’Conchubhair.

Aghada Scorers:
James Hurley (0-3), John Walsh (0-3), James Motherway (0-3), Conal Rooney (0-2), Eoin Motherway (0-1).