Na Magha hearts broken deep into added time

Banagher 3-13 ... Na Magha 1-18

Darragh Cartin was the hero for Banagher as he landed a dramatic winning free deep into added time to edge his side into the junior championship final, breaking Na Magha hearts at Owenbeg on Saturday afternoon.

It was a thrilling contest that swung one way and then the other, with last year’s beaten senior finalists Banagher seemingly in control after a devastating nine-minute burst in the first half. But Na Magha, led superbly by Deaglan Foley, mounted a stirring comeback and pushed their opponents all the way, only to come up agonisingly short by a single point.

The Derry city side will reflect on a game that got away from them. For long spells, they looked the better team and created the more dangerous opportunities. But they will rue missed goal chances and the concession of three first-half goals that ultimately left them with too much to do.

Na Magha made a bright start and led 0-5 to 0-2 after 16 minutes, with Michael Lynch registering a brace and Ryan McAdams adding a fifth when a goal chance presented itself. However, their momentum was completely derailed in a nine-minute spell in which Banagher struck 3-4 without reply.

IN PICTURES: Banagher edge into Junior Championship Final

Liam Eoin Campbell was instrumental during that blitz, landing three points, while his dropping free led to the opening goal when Callum O’Kane reacted quickest to fire home. That sparked a devastating purple patch. Ryan McGrath struck the second goal moments later with a clinical pull on the sliotar, and a long-range effort caused chaos in the Na Magha goalmouth before Oisin McCloskey bundled the ball over the line for Banagher’s third.

Suddenly, Banagher led by 11 and looked to be cruising. Na Magha, however, refused to lie down. Four quickfire points from the impressive Foley before half-time gave them renewed hope, and at the interval the scoreboard read 3-8 to 0-10 in Banagher’s favour.

Despite playing into the wind in the second half, Na Magha started the brighter. They got the perfect boost when Aidan Cutliffe found the net almost immediately after the restart. When Lynch followed up with a point, the gap was down to three and belief surged through the Na Magha ranks.

Banagher, though, found vital responses at crucial times. Cartin, who had struggled with his accuracy from placed balls in the first half, rediscovered his rhythm and kept the scoreboard ticking. He also came close to a goal himself, only to be denied by a sharp save from Alan Grant in the Na Magha goal.

Na Magha continued to push. Foley was outstanding, constantly driving his team forward and popping over pressure points. As the clock ticked into the final minutes, points from Lynch (free), Foley (free), and McAdams brought them within touching distance.

Then came what looked like the moment of the match: a brilliant, soaring point from Foley in injury time that brought the sides level and seemed to complete a remarkable comeback.

But there was still time for one final twist. A mistimed Na Magha challenge gave Banagher a free just inside the 45, and Cartin, with the game on the line, stepped up and nervelessly slotted it between the posts.

The final whistle followed moments later, and while celebrations for Banagher it was heartbreak for Na Magha, who had left everything on the pitch. Banagher now move on to the junior final. For Na Magha, it’s another step forward in their development — and though the pain of defeat will linger, they proved once again that they are a team on the rise.

Scorers

Banagher: R McGrath 1-2, C O’Kane 1-1, D Cartin 0-4 (3f, 1’65), O McCloskey 1-0, L E Campbell 0-3 (2f), C Lynch 0-2. S Murphy 0-1. sl).

Na Magha: D Foley 0-10 (7f), M Lynch 0-4 (1f), A Cutliff 1-0, R McAdams 0-2, P Nelis and T Rankin 0-1 each.

Teams

Banagher: Darrell McDermott; Senan Lockhart, Darragh McCloskey, Cathal O’Kane; Gabriel Farren, Brian Og McGilligan, Shane Murphy; Stefan McCloskey, Cathair McGilligan; Liam Eoin Campbell, Callum O’Kane, Ciaran Lynch; Darragh Cartin, Oisin McCloskey, Ryan McGrath.

Subs: Fiontan McGilligan for Campbell and Reece Armstrong for Lynch (both HT), Kian Biggs for Armstrong (52).

Na Magha: Alan Grant; Lorcan Doherty, Odhran Clenaghan, Aaron Campbell; Oisin Glass, Deaglan Foley, Mark McCloskey; Padhraig Nelis, Ruaidhri McLaughlin; Michael Lynch, Bliadhan Glass, Aidan Cutliff; Fergal Cutliff, Tim Rankin, Ryan McAdams.

Subs: Breandan Quigley for F Cutliff (HT), Diarmuid Shiels for Doherty (40), F Cutliff for McCloskey (54).

Referee: Ciaran O’Kane.