Kiltimagh beat the drop and send Bonni' down

Mayo Intermediate Club Championship

Relegation Play-Off

Kiltimagh 0-9
Bonniconlon 0-8

KILTIMAGH will play Intermediate championship football next season after their late, one-point win condemned Bonniconlon to the Junior ranks for 2024.
Bonniconlon led for 54 minutes of this relegation play-off in Swinford on Saturday, but a hungrier and fitter Kiltimagh side drove on late in the game to nick it.
Mick Regan’s team might have won it easier if they converted some of their 14 wides, many recorded from scoreable positions.
The early ones might be due to nerves, but as the game progressed it looked like it wouldn’t be their opponents that would beat the East Mayo side, but themselves.
But Kiltimagh did enough in the end to win their first game of the season.
Bonniconlon were hampered at a key stage in the game — while the sides were level — to lose Niall Egan to a straight red card from referee, Shane Corcoran, after an exchange of views with Kiltimagh players near the side-line.
This happened while Darragh Fox was watching from the dug-out, having been black-carded a few minutes earlier.
The deficit in numbers put pressure on Bonniconlon, and Kiltimagh took full advantage and pressed forward. The last few minutes, especially, were exciting as Kiltimagh went in front by two points, then were dragged back to one, before a Bonniconlon shot came off the upright at the death.
Jonathan Lavelle, Conor Igoe and Darragh Fox had pointed from play for Bonniconlon before Tomás Keegan sent over a free on 11 minutes to open Kiltimagh’s scoring.
Bonniconlon lead by 0-6 to 0-4 at half-time. but Kiltimagh were much better in the second half, their superior fitness coming to the fore.
A Dylan Roche free levelled the game on 54 minutes before Keegan gave the Coillties the lead from a free and Roche got an excellent point from play to put them two up.
A Ronan Neary point brought Bonniconlon back to within one, but their final effort came off the upright to the relief of the Kiltimagh players and supporters.

Read a full report and reaction in Tuesday’s edition of The Mayo News.