Gaultier ten points better off as Roanmore bow out of quarter-finals
Team captains Rory Furlong (Roanmore) and Dessie Hutchinson (Gaultier) with referee Paddy Smith
Gaultier are through the semi-finals of the county senior football championship and a meeting with The Nire after they proved too strong for Roanmore at Kilmacthomas on Saturday afternoon last.
The Sky Blues will be very disappointed with their showing in this game. In the group stages they were very competitive and along the way pulled off a famous victory when they beat Ballinacourty at Fraher Field and also accounted for Clashmore Kinsalebeg in their opening game, results that saw them advance straight to this stage of the competition without having to play a preliminary quarter final fixture.
Gaultier for their part started with losses to Rathgormack and Kilrossanty but in their two most recent fixates have showed signs that they could be ready to challenge for the championship this year.
The city side started the game brightly, but they failed to score in the second quarter and only added one point in the whole of the second half, and this return at this stage of the championship is only going to end in one outcome.
Paul O’Sullivan played in Shane Mackey for a well taken goal, but the eventual winners hit back with a JJ Hutchinson free to level matters.
Gary Cullinane edged Gaultier back in front with a great individual goal on 11 minutes and followed up with minor scores from Patrick Hurney and JJ Hutchinson to go five in front at the end of the first quarter.
Roanmore hit back with scores from Dean Reidy and Brian Nolan, but would not score again till midway through the second half, something that would cost them somewhat in the end.
Gaultier in the second quarter overall were the better of the two sides and efforts from Eoin McSweeney, JJ Hutchinson from a free and Niall McSweeny went through the uprights to give Gaultier a deserved 1-8 to 1-2 lead at the break.
Over the past few years Josh Sheridan has proven himself to be one of the better goalkeepers in the county, and he proved this once more two minutes after the restart when he denied Dessie Hutchinson from the penalty spot, making an excellent save deflecting the ball out over his own endline for a 45 for the Barony men, which Dessie Hutchinson duly converted.
Gaultier continued to be the better of the two sides in the second quarter in all sections of the field. They held their opponents scoreless in the third quarter while at the other end, Billy O’Keeffe, Dessie and JJ Hutchinson all kicked points to give their side a deserved 10-point advantage.
Roanmore kicked their only score of the second half on 46 minutes when inter county hurler Billy Nolan put over from a free.
Eoin McSweeney fired over his third of the game, and his sides last score of the game moments later, which helped book his sides place in the last four of the competition where they will be fancying their chances of winning a place in the championship decider for the first time since 1996 when they lost out to Rathgormack.
JJ Hutchinson 0-4 (2f), Gary Cullinan 1-0, Eoin McSweeney 0-3, Patrick Fitzgerald, Dessie Hutchinson 0-2 each, Niall McSweeney, Billy O'Keeffe 0-1 each.
Shane Mackey 1-0, Brian Nolan, Dean Reidy, Billy Nolan (f) 0-1 each.
Gavin Buckley; Fergal O'Brien, Sean Byrne, Daniel Kiely; Tommy Martin, Billy O'Keeffe, Callum O'Neill; Mark Fitzgerald, Sean Cullinan; Dessie Hutchinson, Sean Cullinan, Niall McSweeney; Patrick Fitzgerald, Eoin McSweeney, JJ Hutchinson.
Rory Jacob for Daniel Kiely (44), David Jones for Sean Cullinan (55) and Darragh O Keeffe for Gary Cullinan (55).
Josh Sheridan; Conor Ryan, Darragh Power, Ethan Hayes; Frank McGrath, Charlie Chester, Brian Everard; Rory Furlong, Eamonn Power; Brian Nolan, Billy Nolan, Ethan Flynn; Dean Reidy, Paul O Sullivan, Shane Mackey.
Dale Hayes for Eamonn Power (39), Lee Hearne for Dean Reidy (52), Seamus Byrne for Paul O'Sullivan (56).
Paddy Smith (Shamrocks).
