Ballyhegan v Collegeland – Saturday 17 – BOX-IT Athletic Grounds – 3.45pm
There is a good old-fashioned rivalry in the Junior Championship final with Ballyhegan taking on Collegeland. Whoever takes home the Sean Quinn Cup will have the bragging rights for the next while.
Ballyhegan have been the favourites for the crown from the start of the campaign. They cruised to the Division 3A title, losing just one game throughout the entire duration of the league.
They carried that form into the championship and saw off other top contenders Middletown in the semi-final. They have a number of talented youngsters coming through their ranks and performing at senior level.
Cormac Murphy, Ryan McQuade, Aodhan and Ruairi McGrane have all impressed. Of course they have All-Ireland winner Peter McGrane at the back as well, who bombs forward at every opportunity.
The star of the show against Middletown was James McCormack up front. He shot the lights out and has been doing so for the last number of years, so how Collegeland shut him down will be interesting.
Bench press
Jack Rafferty offers a target man at full forward while Kevin McCann is a scoring threat as well. The likes of Paul McQuade, Ryan Rafferty and Mark Hughes are all strong options off the bench.
For Collegeland, they won the Junior Championship just two years back, however their team has changed since then. They’ve lost a few key players in those 24 months, but are back in the final on merit.
They proved much too strong for Thomas Davis the last day out to comfortably book their place in the final. They will have no fear of going toe-to-toe with their rivals Ballyhegan on Saturday afternoon.
Shane Donnelly is a powerful force on the edge of the square for them while Jason Kelly is a consistent threat up top. Steafan McKenna was the main man the last day out, kicking 0-4 but putting in a serious shift up and down the park.
Cathair McGeary and Tom Murphy form a strong centerfield pairing, although McGeary picked up a knock two weeks ago. Niall Brady between the sticks has a strong kickout and is a deadly striker from the ground.
How Collegeland shut down the threat of McCormack could decide the game. Conor Donnelly will likely be the one tasked with that job, with Ruairi McGeary offering covering support as well.