Mayo county champion helps new Wicklow team reach junior final
Ballinacor produced a powerful second-half display in Roundwood on Saturday evening to overcome Kilmacanogue by ten points and book their place in the Wicklow Junior A final.
Having already lost to the same opponents in the league earlier in the campaign, Ballinacor knew they would have to improve significantly if they were to progress.
“We knew going into it there it would be a hard game,” explained Ballinacor player Joe Mason, who won a Mayo junior football title with Cill Chomáin in 2024: “We’d previously lost to Kilmacanogue earlier in the year in the league, so we knew that it wouldn’t necessarily be easy going into it.”
Getting their defensive match-ups right was also a priority, with Kilmacanogue possessing plenty of scoring threats.
“We knew they had a couple of good shooting forwards, a couple of midfielders that could shoot as well, so we had to get our match-ups right.”
The opening half was closely contested, with Ballinacor creating opportunities but failing to make the most of them. Several efforts dropped short or drifted wide, while James Murphy kept the scoreboard moving with a number of frees to ensure Ballinacor remained in contention at the break.
“We didn’t start too bad,” Mason said. “We could have had a goal earlier in the game, but we missed a few chances which kind of killed us. Missed a good bit, dropped a few short, kept a few wides and stuff, and then thankfully James Murphy kind of kept the scoreboard ticking there with a few frees.”
Whatever was said in the Ballinacor dressing room at half-time had the desired effect.
They emerged for the second half with renewed purpose and quickly began to establish control. The scores were spread around, with a number of players contributing as Ballinacor began to pull clear.
“Then in the second half, we kind of came out flying,” Mason reflected. “We really started well in the second half and proceeded really to kick on there.”
The strength of the Ballinacor bench was also evident, with the substitutes making a significant impact when introduced.
“A good few people got on the scoresheet and stuff like that, so it was good to get the scores spread around. The subs that came in really did well. So it was a massive boost to have lads coming in and flying and stuff like that.”
Kilmacanogue managed to find the net twice in the closing stages, but by then Ballinacor had built a commanding advantage. The late goals still frustrated Mason, particularly the concession of a penalty.
“We conceded a couple of late goals, but the game was kind of over at that stage,” he said. “The lads were fairly annoyed conceding the goals still. The one was a sloppy penalty and we thought we were better than that, better than conceding them goals.”
Ultimately, however, Ballinacor had done more than enough to secure a ten-point victory and a place in the Junior A final.
“It was good to get a game into us and a tough physical game as well,” said Mason.
Attention now turns to the decider, with two big weeks ahead and excitement already building throughout the Ballinacor community.
“We should be well up for the final now. It will be a busy two weeks looking forward to the final and stuff. The buzz around the place is kind of starting already, there are flags and stuff like this around the community.”
And after overcoming a Kilmacanogue side that had already beaten them once this year, Ballinacor can look forward to the final with plenty of confidence and anticipation.
“Yeah, buzzing for the next two weeks, really,” Mason added.
