Ballina come out second best in six-try thriller

All Ireland League Division 2C

Ballina 16 Galwegians 29

Oisín McGovern in Ballina

BALLINA remain bottom of the AIL Division 2C table despite a spirited display that gave table toppers Galwegians plenty to think about.

Three missed penalties and two missed conversions hurt the hosts at crucial moments as Galwegians gave instant answers whenever Ballina got over the line.

Some excellent kicking from out-half Cody Chilcott and some heroic turnovers were the hallmarks of Ballina’s game, which started poorly when Mayo man Jack Winters touched down after eleven minutes of relentless Galwegians pressure.

The resulting conversion from Tiernan Neville was the visitors’ very last score of a half where they dominated territory and possession.

Ballina held their own in set pieces and were back in contention when full-back Darragh Whyte knocked over a penalty to leave them trailing 7-3 at the break.

A massive Chilcott penalty cut the gap to a point three minutes into the second half before Galwegians’ Cody Farrell crossed the tryline on the left shortly after.

Ballina’s reply was splendid; a spellbinding run down the wing by Bradley Nealon to touch down and make it 14-11.

Darragh Whyte’s conversion hit the post, meaning this would be as close as the home team would get to their Galway visitors.

Andrew Sherlock added another try for Galwegians – converted by Neville – before Harry Regan crossed the whitewash after an almighty Ballina heave.

It would be the Mayo men’s last scoring action, with Tiernan Neville adding a penalty and Garyn Daniel’s scoring a try to help deliver a 13-point win for Galwegians and Ballina’s eighth loss of their league campaign.

There will be a full match report plus reaction in Tuesday’s print edition of The Mayo News.