Byrne brothers on fire as Ratoath claim Div 4 glory

Ratoath were crowned A FL Division 4 champions

Ratoath 4-10

Ballinlough 2-13

Tom Gannon reports

Ratoath secured the A FL Div 4 league title after they played out a six-goal thriller with Ballinlough on Tuesday evening in Bective. The Div 4 trophy was on metaphorical see-saw all evening. Momentum shifted countless times throughout the contest which for the neutral observer made for tremendous viewing.

A crucial two-minute period came midway through the second half where Ronan Byrne rattled off two goals in quick succession. Ronan and his brother Padraig were the standout players for Ratoath with the former scoring 2-4. Ballinlough’s defence struggled to handle the pace and agility of the two brothers when they had the ball in hand.

Ratoath’s ability to push up on the Ballinlough kickouts and successfully turn over possession had a huge influence on the game. Five of Ratoath’s 10 second-half scores came directly from Ballinlough kickouts.

Harry Ryan can feel aggrieved to be on the losing side as his deadball accuracy was outstanding and he racked up a lovely tally of 0-8.

Right from the get-go the two netminders knew they may be in for a busy night. In the very first attack, Alan Gibney was forced to make a great save from Cian Smyth’s shot. At the other end of the field, Niall Davis had to replicate Gibney’s heroics as he pulled off a great save from Darren O’Higgens’ attempt.

Oisin Cunningham got the scoring underway for Ratoath with a free after Ronan Byrne was fouled. Ballinlough responded very well though and racked up four points without response including two frees from Harry Ryan either side of points from Brandon Brunton and Benji Smith.

A late change to the Ratoath side, Brian O’Connor then provided the crowd an early opportunity to gasp with amazement. O’Connor played a 1-2 with Cunningham before slotting one over from the tightest of angles.

A few moments later Ratoath reclaimed the lead when Gerrard set up Padraig Byrne who found the back of the Ballinlough net with a fantastic finish. That lead didn’t last long though. Daire Shine’s attempt for a point dropped just short but Mark McCullen was first to react and he fisted to the back of the Ratoath net with 10 minutes left in the half.

The sides remained evenly matched for the closing exchanges of the opening 30 minutes scoring two points apiece which left Ballinlough with a 1-6 to 1-4 lead at the break.

The men in red came out with intent in the second half and Seanie Geraghty got the scoring underway before a minute had even elapsed. Ratoath responded and reduced the gap back to one thanks to points from Ronan Byrne and Cunningham.

Ratoath then hit the front again when Cian Smyth found the back of the net for Ratoath’s second goal. Byrne then hit a lovely score to put Ratoath ahead by three.

Harry Ryan then hit another two frees in quick succession to bring the margin back to the minimum. However, Ratoath were about to have a glorious two-minute spell. After bursting through the defence, goalscorer Padraig Byrne was dragged down for a penalty. His brother Ronan polished off the spot kick before Ronan burst through the defence himself in the very next play for his second goal in as many minutes and Ratoath’s fourth.

That goal put Ratoath seven points to the good with just over 10 minutes left. The eventual winners would not score again until injury time though as Ballinlough rattled off 1-3 without reply to make it a one-point game. The goal came courtesy of Darren O’Higgins while Seanie Geraghty added to his tally and Ryan sent over another two frees.

As the clock ticked down, Ratoath could no longer rest on their laurels and three points without response courtesy of Byrne, Cunningham and substitute Stephen McCabe. Harry Ryan and Ballinlough could only manage one more point and Ratoath held on to claim the title.

SCORERS

Ratoath – Ronan Byrne 2-4; Oisin Cunningham 0-3 two frees; Padraig Byrne 1-0; Cian Smyth 1-0; Brian O’Connor 0-1; Andrew Gerrard 0-1; Stephen McCabe 0-1.

Ballinlough – Harry Ryan 0-8 eight frees; Darren O’Higgins 1-0; Mark McCullen 1-0; Seanie Geraghty 0-2; Benji Smith 0-1; Daire Shine 0-1; Brandon Brunton 0-1.

TEAMS

Ratoath – Niall Davis; Luke Newe, Daragh McGill, Callum Brady; Sean Kerins, Gareth Rooney, Paddy White; Brian O’Connor, Oisin Kelly; Padraic Byrne, Ronan Bynre, John Walsh; Oisin Cunningham, Cian Smyth, Andrew Gerrard. Subs – Darragh Kelly for O’Connor 35m, Hugh Keogh for Gerrard 41m, Stephen McCabe for Cian Smyth 51m, Aaron O’Neill for White 62m.

Ballinlough – Alan Gibney; Conor Fleming, Robbie Farrell, Louise Finnegan; Darragh Caffery, Seanie Geraghty, Josh Lynch; Oisin McDermott, Mark McCullen; Benji Smyth, Daire Shine, Harry Ryan; Darren O’Higgens, Jack Smith, Brandon Brunton. Subs Kit Og Lynch for Jack Smith 35m, Lorcan Maguire for Josh Lynch 53m, Hugh Briody for Finnegan 61m.

Referee – Cormac Reilly