Date Published: 30-May-2011

Bearna 2-10

Naomh Anna, Leitir Mór 0-11

Alan Dooley

LAST year’s beaten semi-finalists Bearna had to dig deep to earn a place in the last sixteen of the senior football championship and, more importantly, secure their senior status after a compelling battle with Naomh Anna, Leitir Mór which swung in the victors’ favour thanks to late goals from Ray Conneely and Kieran Hanley.

The five-point margin of defeat was undoubtedly harsh on a Leitir Mór side who started in whirlwind fashion and were ahead for 50 minutes of the contest until Conneely slotted home from close range to give Bearna a lead they would not relinquish. Hanley added the coup de grace deep into stoppage time.

Having wasted a mountain of possession in their opening round defeat by Moycullen, Bearna looked to be suffering a hangover from that loss in the opening quarter as Leitir Mór carved them apart to lead by five after only seven minutes of play. Playing into a stiff breeze, the omens were far from encouraging for Michael Lydon’s men but they showed admirable character to claw their way back into the contest by the interval.

Ray Conneely was the attacking fulcrum around which all their best moves revolved and although, like the majority of his team mates, he got off to a slow start, when the crucial scores were needed the full forward rose to the challenge and ended as the game’s top scorer with 1-3 from play.

Early on, though, Leitir Mór’s Patrick Mark Ó Fátharta looked as if he would be the most influential forward on show as he led the Bearna defence a merry dance and kicked two points, the first a wonderfully dispatched free from long distance in the opening minute. Ferdia Breathnach, Pádraig Bairéad, and Ciarán Ó Conghaile were also on target for the fired up Connemara men.

Unfortunately, in a manner similar to their defeat to Milltown, an inability to maintain that level of performance throughout the contest proved costly, as Bearna steadily got a stranglehold of the midfield sector and began to cut off the supply chain to the full forward line. Patrick Mark Ó Fátharta kicked another free after Ferdia Breathnach was impeded to restore the five point lead after Conneely’s riposte before striking a post with a ’45 shortly after.

Bearna were by now working the ball forward with increasing frequency and were denied a goal on 21 minutes when Paddy Kennedy got in behind the cover but saw his well struck shot expertly saved by Eoin Ó Conghaile. From the resultant ’45 though, the ball was worked into a position for the impressive Donal Feeney to point with his left peg.

Five minutes later Bearna added arguably the score of the game with a length of the field passing move that mixed patience with precision and ended with Kennedy splitting the posts to reduce the deficit to three. DD Flaherty then added his first of the game from a free before Kieran Hanley, from very close range, somehow contrived to drive an effort for a point wide when a goal seemed inevitable.

Leitir Mór ended the half on a positive note as Cormac Ó Confhaola set up Aonghus Ó Fátharta for a good score to make it 0-7 to 0-4 and another brisk start to a half saw them add two quick points from Ciarán Ó Conghaile and Cormac Ó Confhaola. Three wides in the same spell, however, meant their lead was not as healthy as it could have been.

For more, read this week’s Connacht Sentinel.