Uibh Laoire Advance to Knock-Out Stages as Jones Brothers Shine

Uibh Laoire stride into knock-out stages as Jones brothers shine

Uibh Laoire are safely through to the knock-out stages of the McCarthy Insurance PIFC after seeing off Bantry Blues in a high-scoring, free-flowing clash in Ballingeary on Saturday afternoon.

Last year’s runners-up didn’t just win. They imposed themselves. With two group victories now in the bag after beating Glanmire, they have a semi-final spot in their sights if they can finish the job in their final group outing. Bantry, by contrast, are staring at the relegation play-offs, still pointless after an opening defeat to Rockchapel.

At the heart of it all was Cork forward Chris Óg Jones. He led the line with authority and accuracy, finishing with a superb 1-8 and dictating the pace of Uibh Laoire’s attack. His brother Ian and the lively Cathal Vaughan backed him up, both tormenting a Bantry defence that never quite got to grips with their movement.

Bantry were already up against it before the ball was thrown in. The absence of Cork man Dara Sheedy through injury stripped them of a key figure, and it showed in the big moments.

Yet the West Cork side exploded out of the blocks. The game was only 40 seconds old when they struck the first blow. Billy Sheehan’s shot was beaten away by Joe Creedon, but Arthur Coakley reacted quickest, pouncing on the rebound and rifling to the net. Moments later, Jack Sheedy – brother of the sidelined Dara – swung over a point and Uibh Laoire were 1-1 to 0-0 down before they had settled.

They settled quickly.

With three minutes gone, Sean O’Leary sliced open the Bantry defence and slipped in Ian Jones, who finished low for Uibh Laoire’s opening goal. That sparked their forwards into life. Points from Chris Óg and Vaughan followed, and by the fifth minute it was already 1-2 apiece.

The tempo stayed frantic. A minute later, Sam Pickering burst through and laid off to Chris Óg, who buried Uibh Laoire’s second goal. Bantry hit back through Sheedy, but Pickering answered with a clever two-point score at the other end.

The scores kept coming. Kevin Casey and Ruairí Deane clipped over for Bantry to leave it 2-4 to 1-5 after 15 minutes. Two more from the unerring Chris Óg stretched Uibh Laoire’s advantage, only for Sheehan and Coakley to respond again for Bantry.

The momentum swung once more approaching the break. With 24 minutes gone, Mark Óg O’Sullivan drove forward, played a neat one-two with Sean O’Leary and crashed in Bantry’s second goal. Suddenly they were back in front, 2-7 to 2-6. Chris Óg levelled with a point, Ian Jones nudged Uibh Laoire ahead again, but Coakley had the final say of the half, splitting the posts to send the sides in level at 2-8 each.

If the first half belonged to chaos, the second belonged to control – and Uibh Laoire seized it.

J Sweeney opened the scoring after the restart, before Pickering struck his second two-pointer, a dagger that pushed Uibh Laoire into clear daylight. Bantry tried to hang on. Coakley and Conor Cronin hit back with points, and by the 37th minute it was still a live contest at 2-12 to 2-10 in Uibh Laoire’s favour.

Then came the turning point.

Two minutes later, Vaughan drove at the Bantry rearguard and let fly. His effort took a deflection off a defender and flew in for Uibh Laoire’s third goal. The scoreboard jumped to 3-12 to 2-10. From there, the gap felt wider than six points. Bantry were chasing shadows.

They did carve out two big chances to drag themselves back into it. Both fell to Coakleys. Arthur’s opportunity was the clearer of the two, but he dragged it narrowly wide, and Kevin’s effort also flashed past the post. Those misses drained Bantry’s belief.

Uibh Laoire, by contrast, stayed ruthless. Two more points from the outstanding Chris Óg pushed the margin out again, while Arthur Coakley and Paddy Cronin kept Bantry ticking over with scores of their own.

Ian Jones then made it 3-16 to 2-12, stamping Uibh Laoire’s authority on the contest once and for all. Fittingly, it was Chris Óg who had the final word, knocking over the last two points to close out a 1-8 personal tally and seal his side’s passage to the knock-out stages.

For Uibh Laoire, it’s momentum, confidence, and a shot at a semi-final place. For Bantry, it’s a scramble for survival and the hard reality of a relegation play-off looming into view.

Scorers

• Uibh Laoire: C Óg Jones 1-8, C Vaughan 1-3, I Jones 1-2, S Pickering 0-4 (two 2-pointers), J Sweeney 0-1.
• Bantry Blues: A Coakley 1-4 (0-2f), M Óg O’Sullivan 1-0, J Sheedy 0-2, O O’Neill, K Casey, R Deane (f), B Sheehan, P Cronin, C Cronin 0-1 each.

Teams

• Uibh Laoire: J Creedon; C Galvin, D O’Donovan, D O’Riordan; K Manning, C O’Riordan, S O’Leary; T Roberts, C O’Leary; J Sweeney, C Vaughan, S Pickering; S O’Riordan, I Jones, C Óg Jones. Subs: B Cronin for K Manning (42), B Murphy for C O’Riordan (50), B O’Riordan for J Sweeney (56).
• Bantry Blues: B Clancy; C O’Brien, R O’Mahony, T Cronin; D McCarthy, M Óg O’Sullivan, C Cronin; J O’Neill, K Casey; B Sheehan, R Deane, S O’Leary; A Coakley, J Sheedy, O O’Neill. Subs: P Cronin for O O’Neill (h-t), K Coakley for D McCarthy (39), E O’Shea for B Sheehan (50).

Referee: Jerry Kelleher (St John’s, Millstreet).