Balla come up trumps in all-Mayo Connacht schools tie

GAA - CONNACHT PPS C SCHOOLS CHAMPIONSHIP

Balla Secondary School 5-16

Gortnor Abbey, Crossmolina 4-5

In Balla

In truth, this all-Mayo secondary school meeting was over by half-time.

The Gortnor Abbey side, making their way to Balla, could certainly be described as depleted.

With a certain Kobe McDonald in sunnier climes, many Lahardane players absent due to their Under-21 final at the weekend, and the injury to Josh Moyles, there were very few sparks on a bitterly cold Thursday afternoon.

However, that takes nothing away from the battling Balla troops, who effectively put the game to bed with a pair of three-pointers four before the interval.

They were composed, dynamic in attack, first-rate defensively, and were full value for the win.

Luke Williams may have pointed early to open the scoring for the travelling side, but their lead was shattered in one fell swoop when Sean Brohan fed Dara Patten, who strode through the middle of an all-at-sea defence to bury the ball in the net. 

The recurring theme of time and space being afforded to attackers in blue came up time and again.

Oran Murphy, fresh from representing Connacht in schools’ soccer, opened his account alongside Charlie Fallon.

Luke Maloney and Lorcan O’Donnell tried to give the green and gold a foothold, but even early doors, there was a sense that Balla were superior.

Twelve minutes in, Fallon took a quick solo-and-go to catch the defence out and burst through the middle. His low shot was excellent, but so was Donal Keane, who stuck out a leg to keep Gortnor Abbey in touch for the time being.

Little by little, the tally was creeping up for the hosts, with Patten proving difficult to handle.

Still, though, there was a sense that Gortnor Abbey had a chance to make it a contest.

Then came the 60 seconds that swung it. A fine fetch in the middle from a Gortnor Abbey kickout saw Mark Jennings float a beauty of a ball into Fallon, who made no mistake with the net-shaker.

Seconds later, the third major beckoned. The ball was won back on the 20, and in a flash, Patrick McHale raised the green flag.

At the changeover, the gap was eight, but Balla were in no mood to let up. Jennings, Murphy, and McHale kept the white flag rising.

With the final quarter underway, Gortnor Abbey's first score of the half was on the menu. Luke Maloney’s effort was well repelled, but Sean Óg Mc Guinness was on hand to gobble up the chance in the midst of the chaos.

However, McHale was on hand to find the net with a swift response.

The chasm was widened to 19 by corner-forwards Fallon and Murphy. Gortnor Abbey full forward O’Donnell did find the onion bag late on, but it would have taken a comeback greater than Oasis to swing this one.

Still, two more goals from McGuinness, including a clinker which almost took a layer of paint off the crossbar as it went in, did add a nicer touch to the scoreline.

By the end, the gap stood at 14. Balla had secured top spot in the group, while Gortnor Abbey will have to make do with second place, still progressing from the group.