Heartbreak for Blues as Clon win at the death.

Bantry Blues U16F County Finalists

Bantry Blues U16 football county championship bid ended in heartbreak on Sunday last in Drimoleague when Clonakilty took the lead minutes from the end to steal the title.

From the throw in Seánie O’Leary won possession and kicked a perfect pass into Darren Cronin who settled any Bantry nerves with a well taken point. Moments later a high ball into the square was finished to the net by Daniel Murphy and Blues looked to have made the ideal start. Clonakilty got to grips in the possession stakes but could not get off the mark, kicking a number of wides. However lady luck smiled on the boys in green and red when an uncharacteristic mistake by goalkeeping ace Michael Casey allowed them in for a goal. A point from Anthony Hanley got Blues back on track, followed by a converted free taken from the hand by Tim Foley from the 45. Clonakilty edged back into the contest with the next two points. Drama was to follow when they were awarded a penalty but in trying to keep the shot away from Michael Casey, the kicker missed the target altogether. The on-song Darren Cronin extended Bantry’s lead with another point and when Daniel Murphy directed a high ball into the penalty area over the bar, Blues looked good value for their half time lead of 1-05 to 1-02.

Clonakilty were on the attack from the restart but were again guilty of some wayward shooting. When a ball dropped into the goals Michael Casey looked to have matters under control when he caught it, but one of the umpires deemed the ball to have crossed the line and raised the green flag. After the referee consulted with him the goal stood and the teams were level. Clon's freetaker kicked them in front by the minimum but Bantry dug in and high fielding Seánie O’Leary ran at the Clonakilty defence and kicked a great point to put his team on par again. Shane McCarthy popped over a point for Blues to edge ahead only for Clon to level matters again. The contest was very even at this stage with captain Tim Cronin leading the defence in curtailing Clonakilty but scores were hard to come by for both teams. Darren Cronin backed himself and kicked a glorious point and Bantry were back in the lead. However as Clonakilty came in search of the equaliser they found the target and with time almost up they went ahead by a point. Blues could not get the score they needed to force the draw and when the final whistle sounded it was hard for players and supporters to believe that this game had slipped away. Final score Bantry Blues 1-08, Clonakilty 2-06.

Bantry players gave everything in this game with Tim Cronin, Eoin Lynch and Kieran Hanley to the fore in defence. Midfielders Seánie O’Leary and Tim Foley never stopped battling and Darren Cronin was the best forward with three great points from play. Arthur Coakley and his selectors along with the entire squad put a huge effort in all year to get to this stage and that work must be acknowledged.

Team: Michael Casey, Paddy O’Shea, Eoin Lynch, Philip Downey, Brian Murphy, Tim Cronin (Capt), Kieran Hanley,  Seánie O’Leary (0-1), Tim Foley (0-1F), Anthony Hanley (0-1), Mark Keohane, Killian O’Sullivan, Darren Cronin (0-3), Shane McCarthy (0-1), Daniel Murphy (1-01).  Subs used: Arthur Coakley, Ben O’Shea. Subs: Owen O’Flynn, Cathal McCarthy, John Lavin, Liam Downey, Stephen Hanley, Sean Hodnett, Aaron Barry, Michael Healy, Nicholas O’Sullivan, Shane Keevers.

The U14 footballers play Ahán Gaels in Enniskeane on Sunday next in a league semi final, time TBC. Please support.

U16 Footballers into County Final After One Point Win

Sean Carthy being Presented with Momento by Underage Chairman Eamon McCarthy.

Bantry’s U16 footballers are through to the county final after overcoming Glanmire by the narrowest of margins in Castletown-Kinneigh on Saturday last. Despite conceding two goals in the first half due to defensive errors they were still level at half time at 0-9 to 2-03. After the break both teams both teams really went for it but great blocking and defensive work by the Bantry’s backs led by Tim Cronin and Eoin Lynch kept Glanmire at bay. However the concession of a third goal put Blues behind but Seán O’Leary and Tim Foley drove the team on to get back on level terms with a few minutes to go. With the game on a knife edge Tim Foley landed a sideline ball into the square. Substitute Cathal McCarthy won it and passed to Anthony Hanley who scored the point to win the game for Bantry. Final score: Bantry Blues 0-16, Glanmire 3-06.

This hard fought win was a result of great defensive work throughout the game by Bantry along with good displays in the forwards by Mark Keohane and Daniel Murphy and the freetaking of Tim Foley. The scorers were Tim Foley (0-10), Daniel Murphy (0-2) and Shane McCarthy, Mark Keohane, Darren Cronin and Anthony Hanley with a point apiece. The team will now play Clonakilty in the final on Sunday, October 14^th in Drimoleague.

In U13 football, Blues beat O Donovan Rossa to qualify for a West Cork semi final but lost to Sam Maguire’s by 0-16 to 2-03. The Bantry lads tried hard throughout and came within three points of their opponents in the second half but Dunmanway finished strongly. In goals John Enderson was superb as was Sean O’Regan. Blues scorers were Shane Murray (1-0), Matthew Barry (1-01), Shane Mc Sweeney (0-1) and Billy Foley (0-1). Dylan Carthy was unlucky to have to go off injured in his last game before his family heads to the U.S. He has been with this group since he was U8 and will be a big loss.

The U12 hurlers had two games last week. On Tuesday evening they played Sam Maguire’s in Dunmanway and were unlucky to lose by a point in a very close game. On Saturday morning they played their last hurling game of the year against Gabriel Og and finished the season with a good win. Among those who played in both games were James O’Shea, Billy Foley, Greg Cotter, Oisin Bennett, Conor O’Shea, James Buckley, Mike Hanley, David O’Sullivan, Tim O’Driscoll, Shane Crowley, Tom Flynn, Charlie Lavin, James Crowley, Mike Cronin, Keelan O’Sullivan, Luke O’Shaughnessy, Cillian O’Crulai, Patrick Barry.

A large crowd gathered at the club house on Friday evening last to show their appreciation for Sean Carthy who leaves for the U.S. in the next few weeks. Sean has done a huge amount of work in terms of coaching for Blues underage teams, work in Bantry schools and with Carbery development squads. His unique style and well prepared sessions brought benefit to every team he was involved with and he will be missed by all in Bantry Blues. Underage chairman Eamon McCarthy presented Sean with a clock inscribed with the words “Sean, A Gifted Coach To All Ages. Thank You From Gorma Beanntraí”. Sean’s son Dylan played in both the U14 football and hurling West Cork finals this year and will also be a loss to the club. All in Bantry Blues wish Sean, his wife Bina and Dylan the very best of luck with their move.