Borris-Ileigh GAA Club Match Report
Borris-Ileigh vs Kiladangan (Hibernian Inn North Senior Semi Final)
16th July 2023
Borris-Ileigh starting lineup
Jack Bourke
Colm Boyle Liam Ryan Seamus Burke
Brendan Maher Dan McCormack (2pts) Sean McCormack
Shane Kenny Tomas Ryan
Jerry Kelly Eddie Ryan (8pts (5fs)(165’)) James “JD” Devaney
Kevin Maher (1pt) Conor Kenny (1pt) Jack Hogan
Paddy McCormack for Sean McCormack
Ray McCormack for Jack Hogan
Borris-Ileigh travelled to Dolla for a North semi final showdown with Kiladangan on Sunday, 16th of July. Both teams hadn’t met in championship since a double showing in the divisional and county deciders in 2019, Kiladangan winning the North contest and Borris the county. Borris came into this game on the back of an impressive victory over Kilruane whilst Kiladangan dispatched Roscrea. Borris were forced into a change when Jack Bourke deputised for Jody Harkin who was out due to injury, the men in maroon however bolstered by the return of Ray McCormack to the squad. The game began at a quick pace with both teams looking sharp but it was Borris who showed efficient shooting with three early points. Conor Kenny opened the team’s account with a left sideline side shot, Borris needing to remain diligent in the back line when Kiladangan generated a goal opportunity that required quick reflexes from the aforementioned Jack Bourke who cleared his lines well. Eddie Ryan then resumed his scoring exploits from a week before with a point from play as Borris looked confident in Kiladangan’s half, Kevin Maher following suit soon after as Borris led 3-1 after 5 minutes. The game then went into a period of shared errors with both placed ball and open play shots either dropping short or going wide as both teams had to deal with treacherous weather in the form of torrential rain and windy conditions. The game was going through a lull whilst still having an air of tempers flaring as both sides were getting into physical altercations and a busy referee and linesmen, this boiled over when a push by a Kiladangan player despite his team’s free out caused a big melee which resulted in a delay of minutes before both a Borris man and a Kiladangan player were shown their marching orders. The fracas appeared to impact Borris more as they restarted with a heightened intensity which led to good workrate in the forward line, the result being Eddie’s first free of the game. Kiladangan led 5-4 after 30 minutes but Borris finished the half the stronger when Eddie scored his second from play which was the team’s first proper attacking play since the early 3 point period, Eddie finished the half with free number 2 as Borris led 6-5 at half time, the scoreline outlining a game heavily dictated by weather and more a focus on physical battles as opposed the hurling.
Borris started the second half well and thanks to two Eddie placed balls, one a 65 and the other free number 3, Borris led 8-7 after 38 minutes. The game continued the trend of the first half though with both defences on top and a lack of threatening delivery by both teams, the result being a 9-9 stalemate after 47 minutes with Eddie slotting free 4. Dan McCormack then found space in the middle of the park to hit back to back monstrous efforts which took Borris from a point down to a point up and looking like they had the advantage leading into the last 10 minutes. Another turning point then occurred when Kiladangan received their second red of the game, a contest now of 14 men for Borris vs 13 of Kiladangan. The red card appeared to spur on Kiladangan however as they repositioned key players including Alan and Paul Flynn and started to utilise possession more effectively and despite succumbing to Eddie’s 5th free and a 12-12 game in the 56th minute, the remaining minutes would belong to the opposition as they found space in their forward line which led to scoring opportunities for Billy Seymour who duly obliged as Kiladangan scored the last 6 points of the game to go from 12-10 down to 16-12 up as mere moments remained. Borris did generate a goal scoring opportunity when Eddie Ryan reacted quickest to a dropping ball near the square but Kiladangan to their credit threw multiple men at the ball to snuff out the chance, Borris’ last chance and Kiladangan prevailing as the final whistle blew at 16 points to 12 points in favour of last year’s beaten finalists.
Borris will take some positives from this game and that being the fact that they led 12-10 after 54 minutes against last year’s north and county finalists, the performances of young players including Colm Boyle and Eddie Ryan alongside senior players including Brendan Maher and Dan McCormack are promising signs. The backline stood up to the challenge of Kiladangan whilst the entire team knocked their opponents off their free flowing style of game for large portions, the second red card proving a turning point and a galvanising effect for Kiladangan. Borris now have two weeks to prepare for an opening game of the FBD County Championship against Clonoulty. Stay tuned to the club’s social media accounts for fixture details.
