Premier Intermediate Hurling league – Aghada 1-23 v Dungourney 2-11; Rostellan, 22/7/2018

So after a week of championship defeats for the club, there was some light at the end of the tunnel when our Premier Intermediate hurlers gave a fine performance on route to picking up two league points against Dungourney on Sunday evening last. Playing with the wind and boosted by the return of Will Leahy from a long term injury, Aghada were quickly into their stride, with Leahy in sublime form at full forward. Aghada led 4 points to no score, before being rocked somewhat by Dungourney’s first score which was a goal from a penalty. Leahy, who would finish the half with 5 points from play, quickly got the scoreboard going for Aghada again. That would start a run of 10 points for Aghada before the break, 9 from play, all fine scores, 2 from long range from Billy Hennessy at wingback. In response the Duns’s hit 3 points from play, and at halftime Aghada had a deserved lead on a 14pts to 1-3 scoreline.

Dungourney turned to play with the wind in the second half, but never really looked like making significant inroads into the deficit. The sides quickly exchanged 2 points each, before wing forward Charlie Terry quickly fired over two great scores – the 1st from the left sideline on 7 minutes and his second from the opposite sideline a minute later. Next up was the score that put the game beyond doubt. Ronan Kennedy was fouled going through on goals and Cian Fleming buried the resulting penalty. 1-18 to 1-5 with 11 minutes on the second half clock, only one outcome from there. From the 13th to the 25th minute, Aghada outscored their opponents 5 points to 4. With Aghada then making a number of changes, Dungourney finished the stronger hitting 1-3 in the last 5 minutes to take some of the bad look off the final score. Overall, albeit with a bit of rustiness on view, it was an impressive team performance with some fine hurling and well taken scores.

Aghada Team and Scorers – Trevor O’Keeffe, David Rice, Jake O’Donoghue, Timmy Hartnett, Billy Hennessy(0-2), Stephen O’Keeffe, Jordan Tynan, Aiden O’Connell, Kalen O’Donoghue(0-2), Pearse O’Neill(0-2), Ronan Kennedy(0-2), Charlie Terry(0-2), Kevin O’Hanlon, Will Leahy(0-7), Cian Fleming(1-6, 1-2 f’s). Subs Used – Brian Morrissey, Daniel Creedon, Aaron Stafford, Mark McCarthy, Aaron Berry, Marcus Leahy and Richard Condon.