13/03/2022

Boardsmill 3-09 v Killyon 0-16

Venue: Boardsmill, Referee: Owen Ganley

Cail Reilly etched his name into Boardsmill folklore with a last gasp winner against local rivals Killyon in a highly entertaining and close fought game. 

On a fine spring morning with a strong breeze blowing towards Trim it was Killyon who held its advantage in the first half. They started brightest and reeled off three unanswered points before Boardsmill registered their first from the stick of old Bert McLoughlin. Finding it hard to get a grasp of the movement of the Killyon forwards Boardsmill struggled early on and allowed four more scores sail over their crossbar from play. Boardsmill were fortunate with a goal as Bert McLoughlin mishit ground strike bounced awkwardly in front of Killyon’s goalkeeper and somehow found its way into the top corner of the net to leave the sides level. This kicked off a good spell for the Mill men as Ciaran McLoughlin raced onto a pass from Bert to split the posts. Cathal Wall followed suit as he banged his way through a gang of lads to score from forty yards. His introduction for the injured Aidan McGrath had been a real turning point for Boardsmill. Bert McLoughlin soon levelled the game from play before Killyon reeled off four unanswered points to lead at halftime. 

Half time score Boardsmill 1-04    Killyon 0-11

Aided by a significant breeze in the second half it was the home side who made all the early running as halftime sub, Niall Bagnall put his hand up for selection the next day out, with a fantastic individual point. Cathal Wall and Bert McLoughlin added a point each to leave the minimum between the sides. This seemed to awaken Killyon as they scored the next three points to stretch their lead back out to 4 points. With the visitors seemingly on top it was the younger Wall brother who produced a piece of magic. Colm Wall grabbed the ball on the side-line before beating three men with a powerful run, he blasted the ball past the Killyon goalkeeper who was only able to react as the ball had flown past him. Two adult hurling games for Colm and a 100% goalscoring record over the weekend. This should have encouraged Boardsmill to push on, but Killyon showed their stubbornness and rallied to score two more points bringing their total to sixteen for the day. Boardsmill brought the game back to the minimum thanks to a pointed free from Bert McLoughlin and one from play. With time running out it looked to be the men from the Hill of Downs Day. A long lofted free was repelled by Killyon before it broke to Bert McLoughlin on the twenty-one-yard line, in a scramble to get an equalising point Bert resorted to a one-handed tennis stroke that clipped the inside of the post and ran across the goal line.  On hand was Cail Reilly who was playing his first game of hurling EVER, to somehow squeeze the ball over the line. We are still not sure whether it was scored with a diving header or with the use of a hurl but the tens of people in attendance went mad in celebration regardless. In what was a true underdog story Cail copied his Liverpool hero, Bobby Firmino, with an over-the-top goal celebration. For the first time in the game Boardsmill had taken the lead and were relieved to hear Owen Ganley’s full time whistle from the puck out.

Best for Boardsmill were Bertie McLoughlin, Diarmuid Whelan, Eamonn Roche, Bert McLoughlin and Colm Wall.

Boardsmill team and scorers: Stephen Gibbons Snr, Tadhg Cotter, Diarmuid Whelan, Bertie McLoughlin, Sean Newman, Eamonn Roche, James Durkan, Ciaran McLoughlin 0-01, Eric McKay, Aidan McGrath, Bert McLoughlin 1-05(2f), Colm Wall 1-00, Craig Fitzgerald, Eric Cribbin, Mark Flood. 

Subs: Cathal Wall 0-02 for McGrath, Niall Bagnall 0-01 for Fitzgerald, Vinny Guy for Cribbin and Cail Reilly 1-00 for Flood.