Waterford Senior Football Championship Group B
Ballinacourty 2-14
Brickey Rangers 0-04
If ever proof was needed that Waterford might be best served by a reduction of the numbers playing in the senior championship to about eight clubs, it was clear to be seen in this first game of a double header played at Fraher Field on Sunday evening.
Ballinacourty were always in control against Brickey Rangers and never needed to move up the gears to play at the level that they can play at.
The losers in this game hit just four scores over the course of the 60 minutes and when you consider that they had to wait until a minute from time for their first score from open play, it tells much of the story as far as they were concerned.
The side from the village had three points on the scoreboard six minutes. Sean Whelan Barrett opening the scoring on two minutes and Mark Ferncombe followed up with a brace of scores.
Ballinacourty kept a firm grip on the Brickeys throughout their meeting at Fraher Field.
The first goal of the game came on 11 minutes. Mark Ferncombe, who impressed throughout, laid the ball off to Tom Looby who finished past Tommy Lynch to give his side a 1-3 to 0-0 lead.
A brace of Neil Montgomery points followed for Ballinacourty before Carthach Shalloe opened the Brickeys’ account with a 19th minute free.
Montgomery and David Looby added further scores for Ballinacourty inside a minute of each other before Michael O’Halloran became the sixth Ballinacourty player to score six minutes from the break, a score which gave his side a 1-8 to 0-1 lead at the break.
The Brickeys made a raft of changes in the third quarter of this game but none delivered any major impact.
Sean Whelan Barrett and Mark Ferncombe helped extend their sides lead within six minutes of the restart.
However in between those scores, the Brickeys were unlucky not to have raised a green flag as Conor McGrath shot off the foot of the Ballinacourty upright following a good build-up.
Carthach Shalloe hit his and his side’s second score of the game on 45 minutes but it was followed with an effort from David Looby with his sides first from a placed ball.
Shalloe again from a free and Looby from a similar situation, swapped scores on forty eight and fifty one minutes to keep Ballinacourty well in front.
Sean Whelan Barrett hit his third of the game six minutes from time, which was quickly followed with a score from Patrick Hurney while Conor McGrath hit his side’s only score from open play on 59 minutes.
With the penultimate attack in the game Tommy Lynch did brilliant to get down low to deflect a Mark Ferncombe effort out for a 45.
David Looby worked the resulting kick into the inside Courty line with a quickly taken kick and with the last shot of the game Neil Montgomery finished past Tommy Lynch for a second Ballinacourty goal.
