Senior Hurling Championship Quarter Final
Final Score: Trim 1-21 (24) ; Kildalkey 2-16 (22)
📝 Kevin Coleman  📷 Full Album Link

With eight minutes remaining in this entertaining Championship Quarter Final, Trim held a seemingly comfortable eight points cushion over arch rivals Kildalkey. Having been in the ascendancy throughout, this margin was a fair reflection on the overall play but, nevertheless, this is hurling and the final eight minutes, plus what was announced as injury time and the extended time that referee Kevin Brady decided was warranted beyond this time, resulted in two late Kildalkey goals and, left the outcome in some doubt until that glorious final whistle brought matters to a conclusion with a slender two points separating the sides.

Trim were quicker out of the blocks and Kyle Ennis split the Kildalkey posts after only twenty seconds. Another similar effort soon followed before Evan Fitzgerald opened the Kildalkey scoring in the fourth minute. James Murray restored Trim’s two point advantage before Mark Molloy was adjudged to be over aggressive by referee Brady, while in possession, and Paddy Conneely had a simple tap over from the resultant free. Kyle Ennis was on the mark again but Paddy Conneely’s brace left the sides level by the fifteenth minute.

The first green flag of the afternoon was raised by Trim’s Darragh Heffernan, in the seventeenth minute, following a superb save from Trim net minder Eoin O’Reilly, and a fine individual Conor Quigley pointed effort saw the first significant gap developing. Both sides traded the following four scores with Conor Quigley latching on to a James Murray through ball, after a superb intervention by Trim’s corner back Danny Coleman, and James Murray landing an enormous free from eighty metres. A Kildalkey double, courtesy of Evan Fitzgerald and Niall McNally narrowed Trim’s advantage to two points and Trim’s Gary Fleming produced a goal line clearance, before an absolute downpour seemed to play to Trim’s advantage and they saw out the half with three unanswered points courtesy of James Murray (2) and industrious mid fielder Joey Cole.

Half Time: Trim 1-10; Kildalkey 0-08

Again, it was Trim who were quicker into their stride on the resumption and they registered five scores from James Murray (3), David Murtagh and George Douglas to a single Kildalkey effort from Brín Kelly. It was good to see George Douglas on the scoresheet as he was enduring a torrid time from Kildalkey captain David Conneely whose much heavy-handed tackling was completely ignored by referee Brady.  After a mere nine minutes of second half play the scoreboard read a very healthy 1-15 to 0-9 in Trim’s favour and you could not be faulted if you were starting to think about a forthcoming Semi Final against current champions Ratoath.

Indeed, the following passage of play seemed to be moving things in that particular direction with four Trim scores via Conor Quigley, Mark Molloy, James Murray and, perhaps the score of the match, from substitute Daniel Murray.  While Kildalkey matched those scores, and threw in an extra one for good measure, Trim still held a comfortable advantage of eight points but, then, those final closing minutes.
Niall McNally pulled one back for the village team before a complete melee in the Trim goalmouth with different opinions as to whether it was Brian O’Halloran or Conor Kearney who had forced the ball over the Trim goal line. Darragh Heffernan responded with a fine Trim point before, unbelievably, the ball, once again, nestled in the back of the Trim net. This time there was no doubt about Nicky Potterton’s effort but he seemed to have well exceeded the allowed number of steps in the process.

Kyle Ennis completed the Trim scoring with an assurance point deep into injury time but a late Kildalkey score and a last gasp goal line clearance by Trim’s Dimmy Higgins left the final margin to a fragile two points when referee Brady sounded the final whistle much to the relief of the Trim team and supporters.

So, after all, it will be a Trim v Ratoath semi final on Sunday, 5th October with a 3pm throw in and a chance for Trim to avenge last year’s final defeat.

Trim:  Eoin O’Reilly, Gary Fleming, Ben Holden, Danny Coleman, Eoghan Ryan, James Toher, Dimmy Higgins, Joey Cole (0-1), Mark Molloy (0-1), Darragh Heffernan (1-1), Conor Quigley (0-3), David Murtagh (0-1) Kyle Ennis (0-4), James Murray (0-8, 3f, 2’65s), George Douglas (0-1)

Subs : Daniel Murray (0-1), Luca Taheny, Cormac Slattery, Mark Murray, Cathal O’Reilly. Colm McGrath, Darragh McLoughlin, Adam Donoghue, Alex Fox, Daniel Fox, Ian Birmingham, Padraig Walsh