We welcomed Inniscarra to our home grounds last Wednesday evening (15th July) for our third challenge game in as many weeks. Following a defeat (to Glen Rovers) and a draw (with Erins Own) in the other games, we got the complete set of possible results by securing a win in this game. Results are, of course, of secondary importance in these games. It might be argued indeed that the performance in the other two games was better. Certainly in the previous games, the scoring levels were higher and the spread of scorers was broader.
As the scoreline suggests, this was not a great game of hurling with scores, particularly from play, being at a premium throughout. The game was structured again, over three 20 minute periods. Conor Buckley, who had opened the scoring with a point from a free, scored a point, this time from play, with the last puck of the half to leave us leading by four points to three. Donncha Murnane scored a good point from play while Cormac Dervin accounted for the other point. He won a great ball and headed for goal but his slightly scuffed shot went over instead of under. This was the closest we went to scoring a goal during the game.
The second 20 minute period had even fewer highlights than the first. Indeed, the opening 15 minutes saw only one score from a free being registered to the Inniscarra side. White’s Cross first point was also a pointed free from Conor Buckley. Eventually, Conor’s brother Kevin scored the first and only point from play of a dour period which referee Chris Broderick brought to a close shortly after with White’ Cross leading 0-06 to 0-05.
Conor Buckley opened the scoring for White’s Cross with two points from frees in the third period. The final three, or winning, scores would have pleased the selection team in that they all came from play and were scored by some of the younger forwards. Seán O’Neill and Cathal O’Flynn were both lively and industrious when they came and were rewarded for their endeavour by getting their names on the scoresheet – with O’Neill getting one and O’Flynn getting the other two. These were the crucial three scores in the victory on the scoreline above.