Saints march on to intermediate glory

In a rip-roaring game the Ballymena men came from two points down just minutes before half-time to run out winners in the end by five.

Going into the game most pundits had felt the Portglenone would prove too strong for the Saints, but boosted by a semi-final win over Aldergrove just five days earlier the Ballymena men upset the odds to clinch the title and book an Ulster quarter-final place against the Cavan champions Drumgoon on Sunday next.

The early exchanges produced some top class scores from both team, and they were level three times in the opening ten minutes, teenage corner-forward Peter McReynolds hitting two, and Michael McCarry one, for the Saints while Mark Graham (2) and Owen Doherty grabbed the Portglenone scores.

Portglenone, who had a stiff breeze at their backs, then began to get on top and Francis Cassidy and Owen Doherty edged them two points clear by the 21st minute with well worked points but Peter McAleer cut the gap to a single point again when he sent over a fine score from the left corner.

A Mark Graham point restored the two point cushion for Portglenone in the 24th minute when he again burst through and split the uprights, but once more the Saints found a reply, this time from Michael McCarry who struck a great free from 35 metres against the breeze.

There then came a significant moment in the match when Portglenone’s rangy midfielder Niall McKeever - who now plies his trade with the Melbourne Lions in the AFL but was available because his is home on holidays during the off-season in Australia - shot for goal from outside the 20-metre line. The ball bounced awkwardly in front of Ballymena stand-in goalkeeper Brian Martin and he fumbled it, but as McKeever closed down on him Martin recovered well to clear the danger.

Thirty seconds later the ball was in the net at the other end of the field as right-half forward Liam Cassley finished cleverly with the outside of his left foot and though Mark Graham hit back with his fourth point of the half within thirty seconds, Cassley’s goal was to be a telling blow.

All Saints took a firm grip on the game in the minutes after the restart as Michael McCarry, Peter McReynolds and Sean McVeigh all tagged on points to open a four point gap.

It was 14 minutes before Portglenone registered their first score of the second-half with a Gerard McAleese pointed free but Ballymena hit back with two cracking points from Damian Kelly and Sean McCambridge to leave them five ahead and coasting.

Francis Cassidy cut the gap to four again when he converted a free in the 55th minute but it was to be their last score of the game and Paddy Logan, who had a great second-half at midfield for the Saints, landed a great long range free in injury time to seal a well deserved win and spark scenes of celebration from the big Ballymena following.

All Saints: Brian Martin, Dara Walsh, Seamus McAfee, Kevin McAllister, Damian Kelly, Peter McNicholl, Emmet Killough, Sean McVeigh, Paddy Logan, Liam Cassley, Andy Kelly, Michael McCarry, Patrick McAleer, Sean McCambridge, Peter McReynolds.

Portglenone: Brian McCann, Adiran McKeever, Tony Convery, Aiden McKee, Mark McAleese, Paddy Carey, Declan McErlean, Martin McCarry, Niall McKeever, Mark Graham, Francis Cassidy, Owen Doherty, Phelim McCloskey, Dermot McAleese, Gerard McAleese.