Huge crowd watch Ballintubber topple Belmullet

SFC, Group 3, Round 2

Ballintubber 0-13

Belmullet 0-10

A huge crowd packed into Ray Prendergast Park in Clogher to see Ballintubber turn in an impressive display against Belmullet on Sunday afternoon. The former county champions hit the front early and stayed there all the way to the finish despite the Erris men's best efforts.

Ryan O'Donoghue kicked six points from frees for the guests but Ballintubber's swarming defensive cover prevented the inter-county star getting time and space in open play. 

At the other end, the Ballintubber forwards made hay early in the game with Ciaran Gavin and Stephen O'Malley kicking three points apiece in the opening 20 minutes. The home side were winning more than their share of the ball around the middle with Jason Gibbons, John Kerrigan and their colleagues putting big pressure on the Belmullet kick-out.

The visitors looked to make an impression when they had ball in hand but found it hard to break the line and make incisions through a packed zone in front of the Ballintubber posts. Leo Howard and Marty Boylan were the most prominent for the chasers but they were restricted to two converted frees from O'Donoghue and a point from play from Ryan McIntyre in the opening 30 minutes.

At the other end, Jack Prendergast and Michael Plunkett joined impressive duo Gavin and O'Malley on the scoreboard. Plunkett was making his first Ballintubber appearance for some time and showed flashes of why he made a big impression for club and county before picking up a long-term injury.

Belmullet closed the gap to four early in the new half when Ronan Murray and Colin Barrett split the sticks but when a revival seemed imminent, the Ballintubber men stepped forward again as Belmullet fell foul of referee Paul Lydon. O'Malley and Diarmuid O'Connor knocked over two points apiece from frees and the dismissal of Belmullet midfielder Fionan Ryan for a second bookable offence left the guests a man down and six points adrift.

It seemed all over at that stage but Belmullet played their best football in the closing stages, driving forward and moving the ball swiftly. O'Donoghue kicked two frees from distance and Kieran Conway sent a goal shot just over the bar. However, even when the gap stood at three points in injury time there was a sense that Ballintubber wouldn't be beaten and that was indeed the case as they recorded their second win in succession and moved to the top of the group.