Carrick Swan win another championship on the playing fields of south Tipperary

Above: Carrick Swan captain Sean Boland receives the cup from Seamus Walsh, Vice-Chairman of the South Tipperary GAA Board. Also included are South GAA Chairman Nicholas Moroney (left), sponsor Freddie Maunsell and Lisa Doyle. Picture: Michael Boland

Carrick Swan 2-16 Ballylooby/Castlegrace 1-14

Carrick Swan completed a South Tipperary championship double at Clonmel Sportsfield when they added the Junior A football title to the senior hurling crown, proving too strong for Ballylooby/Castlegrace in a competitive final.

Goals in either half from full forward Stephen Hahessy proved the difference in the end. He converted his first from the penalty spot two minutes into added time in the first half to give Swan a 1-9 to 0-7 lead, and his second ten minutes into the second half cut short a Ballylooby/Castlegrace revival that had seen them reduce the Swan lead to a single point, 1-9 to 0-11.

Ballylooby/Castlegrace had the margin down to a single point again, 2-12 to 1-14, ten minutes from time after Ben Carey scored a great goal from a Patrick Doyle assist. But Swan closed out the game over the final minutes with four unanswered points, including a brilliant second two-pointer from Eric O’Halloran.

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Swan always had that slight edge, from their opening point after fourteen seconds when Eric O’Halloran put Aidan Waters through to score on their first attack.

Ballylooby, on the other hand, had an over-reliance on the freetaking of Ben Carey, while the Swan scoring threat had a greater spread.

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Hahessy led the way with 2-2, with big games also from Jamie Holloway, until he was forced off injured late in the game; Callum Walsh and Aidan Waters. Eric O’Halloran brought his hurling brilliance to the football field with an outstanding display, including a brace of two-pointers, with big inputs as well from Scott Hogan, Aaron O’Halloran and Ryan Waters.

Ben Carey was Ballylooby/Castlegrace’s scorer-in-chief with 1-8, all the points from frees including a two-pointer, with Greg Nugent, Jack Owens, Conor Lonergan, Patrick Doyle and Brendan Walsh all impressing.

Swan’s early lead didn’t last long when Ben Carey pointed the equaliser in the second minute and Ballylooby went ahead for the first, and only time, when team captain Brendan Walsh finished a lovely move involving Greg Nugent and Ben Carey.

The Carrick-on-Suir side regained the lead with a superb two-pointer on the roadside from Eric O’Halloran and they were never in arrears again, as they went on to dominate the next twenty minutes.

Ryan Waters, Jamie Holloway and Eric O’Halloran pushed their lead out to 0-6 to 0-2 before Ballylooby hit their third point – Swan goalkeeper Sean Boland appeared to have a Patrick Doyle shot well covered before it seemed to squirm out of his hands and over the bar.

However, Swan came back strongly and hit another three points without reply - from Stephen Hahessy, following a crucial turnover; Holloway after a great move from deep in defence; and Evan Hogan, after the opportunity had been created with superb fielding from Eric O’Halloran to put them six ahead, 0-9 to 0-3.

But Ballylooby/Castlegrace, showing great resilience throughout, had it back to two points within three minutes, through a Ben Carey free after he had been fouled himself; Carey then turning provider for Jack Owens to point; and then a Carey two- point free that looked set to give them great heart going into the break.

Instead, disaster struck at the other end for them, when a flowing Swan move ended with a foul in the square, and Stephen Hahessy converted the penalty with the last kick of the half for an interval scoreline of 1-9 to 0-7.

However, Ballylooby kicked four points in the first nine minutes of the second half to bring it back to a one- point game again, through Jack Owens, two Carey frees, and substitute Zach Keating. But their flow was interrupted when Swan broke clear and a quick move was finished with Hahessy punching to the net for his second goal, leaving it 2-9 to 0-11.

Carey and Holloway swapped points from frees, before a Callum Walsh point for Swan was followed by Conor Lonergan pointing for Ballylooby.

A black card for Eric O’Halloran didn’t appear to affect Swan too much, as Aaron O’Halloran put Stephen Hahessy through for a point, with referee Derek O’Mahoney playing good advantage with at least two fouls in the build-up.

Ballylooby’s Conor Lonergan soon followed O’Halloran to the sideline for a ten-minute break on a black card, as the game heated up entering the final ten minutes. Once again Ballylooby/Castlegrace got back into contention when Carey pointed a free and then was set up by Patrick Doyle for a great goal to leave Swan hanging on to a one-point lead, 2-12 to 1-14.

But they weren’t hanging on for long, building that up to a five-points advantage by full time. Eric O’Halloran marked his return to the field with another superb two-pointer, followed by points from substitute Luke O’Dwyer and Aidan Waters, as Swan players and supporters celebrated a deserved but hard-earned win.

They showed again that the Carrick lads are as adept with the big ball as they are with the hurley and sliothar.

Carrick Swan: Sean Boland, Jack Murphy, Dean Kiely, Scott Hogan, Aaron O’Halloran, Sean Power, Ryan Waters 0-1; Eric O’Halloran 0-5, 2x2pt; Ben Mulcaire, Eoin Hogan, Jamie Holloway 0-3, 1f; Callum Walsh 0-1; Evan Hogan 0-1; Stephen Hahessy 2-2; Aidan Waters 0-2.

Subs: Sean Foley for Evan Hogan, Senan Campbell for Ben Mulcaire, Luke O’Dwyer 0-1 for Ryan Waters, Erin Walsh for Jamie Holloway.

Ballylooby/Castlegrace: Sean Lonergan, Conor Morrissey, Brian O’Donnell, Gearoid Hurley, Shane O’Brien, Chris O’Donnell, Brendan Walsh 0-1; Conor Lonergan 0-1; Patrick Doyle 0-1; Jack Owens 0-2; Ben Carey 1-8, 6f, 1x2pt f; Greg Nugent, Paddy Kenneally, William Dunne, Paddy Morrissey.

Subs: David O’Halloran for William Dunne, Zach Keating 0-1 for Shane O’Brien, Filip Miklaszewski for Jack Owens.

Referee: Derek O’Mahoney (Ardfinnan).