Ballintubber and Corofin set for Castlebar showdown

MAYO champions Ballintubber will have home advantage when they take on Corofin in the Connaught Club senior football championship final on Sunday week.

Substitute Jamsie Finnerty was the toast of Ballintubber when he scored the first of his two goals with literally his first touch after he was brought on with 16 minutes remaining in this semi-final at Carrick-On Shannon where the visitors were never troubled by Aughawillan. The final score in Ballintubber's favour was 3-11 to 1-8. 

The Galway champions crushed Clann Na Gael of Roscommon in the other semi-final played at Dr. Hyde Park in Roscommon which finished 4-22 to 0-7.

The Leitrim champions were undoubtedly their own worst enemies and they will look back in horror at the number of passes from their own players which ended up in the hands of the Ballintubber men who dominated possession in the first half with a strong wind but failed to reflect that dominance on the scoreboard.

Cillian O’Connor had found his range with two early frees but two of the best scores of the game came from the Aughawillian midfield partnership of brothers Gary and Mark Plunkett respectively who had the game tied at 0-2 apiece after 15 minutes of what was really a slow burner which took a while to gather momentum.

However that was as good as it got for the home side who found themselves three down at the break 0-8 to 0-5.

If anything Ballintubber played much better into the wind in the second half with Jason Gibbons having a towering man of the match performance at midfield and they had moved 0-11 to 0-5 clear when the they scored the first of their three goals on 44 minutes.

Jamsie Finnerty was hardly on the pitch when the ball broke kindly into his path after good work from Alan Plunkett, Diarmuid O’Connor and Cillian O‘Connor and he finished soccer-style into an empty net after ball came off a defender.

A minute later Finnerty was on hand again when a high press by the Ballintubber forced yet another turnover of the ball and on hand to finish yet again was the Ballintubber ace as the gap now stretched to 2-11 to 0-7 with 12 minutes remaining.

Aughawillan were to be hit by a third goal as possession was once again needlessly coughed up and on this occasions it was Alan Plunkett who fried home from 15 yards.

There was some consolation for Aughawillan when a high ball into the heart of Ballintubber’s defence broke for Ciaran Gilheany who finished from close range but the outcome do this contest was never in doubt as Ballintubber now contemplate the huge challenge that Corofin will present as they bid to win their first ever Connaught title at the expense of the reigning provincial and All-Ireland champions.

Ballintubber: B. Walsh, G. Loftus, C. Hallinan, B. Murphy, D. Coleman, M. Plunkett, M. Kelly, J. Gibbons, D. O’Connor, C. Gavin, A. Dillon, A. Plunkett (1-3), B. Walsh (0-1), C. O’Connor (0-6, 6f), S. O’Malley.

Subs used: J. Finnerty (2-0) for O'Malley (42), J. Geraghty for Loftus (42), P. O’Connor for C. O’Connor (55), J. Kerrigan for D. Coleman, (56), N. Geraghty for A. Dillon (56)

Aughawillan: C. Maguire, D. McGovern, F. McTague, M. Quinn, S. Quinn, R. McTague, B. Prior, G. Plunkett (0-5, 2f), M. Plunkett (0-1), S. Gilheany, P. Dolan (0-1), M. Quinn, N. Beirne, N. Plunkett, C. Gilheany (1-1).

Subs used: S. Flanagan for S. Gilheany (33), G McGovern for N. Beirne (57), C. Prior for S. Quinn (55). F. Quinn for T. McTague (inj).

Referee: J. Molloy (Galway).