Sarsfields and Castlegar draw

Late drama in topsy turvy opening round tie

Sarsfields 2-21

Castegar 1-24

At Gort

GER Farragher held his nerve with the final puck of the game, the Castlegar veteran landing a superb 65 to rescue a deserved draw in an entertaining Galway Senior Hurling Championship Group 3 opener on Saturday.

With 10 minutes of normal time remaining, Castlegar substitute Simon Thomas had put his side six points clear and seemingly in the driving seat for a priceless win in this perceived 'Group of Death'.

To their credit, Brian Hanley’s Sarsfields battled back and eventually edged in front, with goals from substitute Leon Connaire and senior debutant Eanna Cooney - the latter a superbly struck penalty - pivotal to their revival.

Cooney’s rocket into the top corner following a foul on Kevin Cooney pushed Sarsfields one clear in stoppage time. Farragher responded with a long-range free before Sarsfields defender Darragh Donohue strode forward to bisect the posts once more.

Nevertheless, there was one final act left for the ageless Farragher, as he took his tally to seven points and, more importantly, claimed a crucial point for the city club from a 65 that was disputed by Sarsfields.

When these two clubs lock horns in championship, there is rarely any shortage of drama. In sunny Gort, the sides were level eight times in the opening half and referee Noel Quinn could certainly not be accused of being whistle-happy, with frees at a premium throughout.

County forward Darragh Neary was the star turn and Sarsfields struggled to lock him down. He was the driving force behind Tomás Mannion’s side and finished the first half with four excellent points and six by the final whistle in a superb performance.

At the other end, Sarsfields wing-forward Alex Connaire found pockets of space and contributed three points. Sarsfields had eight different scorers but were also guilty of eight wides, although a late Eanna Cooney free saw them lead 0-12 to 0-11 at the break.

The men from Bullaun and New Inn got the opening two scores of the second half through Cooney (free) and Connaire. But over the next 15 minutes, Castlegar took control and outscored their opponents 1-9 to three points.

Castlegar got significant impact from their bench, with 1-4 coming from Cian Corcoran, Jack Coyne and Simon Thomas. Thomas was set up for his 50th-minute goal by brother Greg, who enjoyed an intriguing and physical tussle with John Cooney throughout.

Sarsfields found a response when Leon Connaire finished to the net two minutes later after the threatening Diarmuid Mac Cárthaigh was initially denied by goalkeeper Liam O’Reilly. Eanna Cooney’s emphatic penalty then suddenly had them within touching distance of an unlikely victory.

Darragh Donohue’s late point looked to have completed the turnaround, only for Farragher to have the final say with that pressure 65.

Sarsfields can take encouragement from the character shown to recover from six points down, while Castlegar will rue surrendering that advantage but take considerable heart from their overall performance.

Up next Sarsfields have a huge clash against St. Thomas’ and Castlegar take on Oranmore-Maree where victory would seal passage to the knockouts with a round to spare.

SARSFIELDS: C. Warde; P. McGuirk (0-1), John Cooney, C. O’Regan; D. Donohue (0-1), P. Mac Cárthaigh, Joseph Cooney; D. Morrissey (captain), O. Keane; I. Fox (0-3), D. Murphy (0-1), A. Connaire (0-4); K. Cooney (0-1), D. Mac Cárthaigh (0-3), E. Cooney (1-6, 1-0 penalty, 0-4 frees). Subs: J. Cosgrove (0-1), for Murphy inj., 15 mins; L. Connaire (1-0), for Cosgrove inj., 46 mins.

CASTLEGAR: L. O’Reilly; C. Joyce, M. Connolly (captain), C. Ryan; G. King, S. Neary (0-2), M. Gill; S. Moran, C. Callaghan; D. Higgins (0-1), D. Neary (0-6), D. Carroll (0-1); G. Farragher (0-7, 0-4 frees, 0-1 65, 0-1 sideline cut), G. Thomas (0-2), D. McNulty. Subs: D. Barry, for Connolly inj., 21 mins; C. Corcoran (0-2), for McNulty, half-time; J. Coyne (0-2), for Higgins, 36 mins; S. Thomas (1-1), for Carroll, 48 mins.

REFEREE: Noel Quinn.

HERALD SPORT MAN OF THE MATCH: Darragh Neary (Castlegar).