Padraig Pearses 3-23 Portumna 2-14
Darren Kelly, Connacht Tribune
Dismiss Pádraig Pearses at your peril. That was the strong message coming out of Ballinasloe on Saturday as the men in black erased previous defeats to the former All-Ire-land champions with arguably their best performance in a decade to qualify for the knockout stages.
Two Cillian Fahey goals, along with an early second half strike from Luke Mitchell, set the Gurteen-Ballymacward outfit up for a 12-point victory giving them their second win and a free shot at a semi-final spot against Ahascragh-Fohenagh in two weeks.
Portumna, runners-up in 2024, cut a frustrated team even if their pride ensured no white flag was raised. They tested opposing keeper Harry Mitchell and his defence until the final whistle and now meet Mullagh for championship survival.
Pádraig Pearses made the perfect start, racing into a 1-5 to 0-2 lead inside the opening 10 minutes. Fahey, Jonah Donnellan (2), Emmett Ward and Jack Barrett grabbed the points while their goal came in the sixth minute as Donnellan and Mitchell set up Fahey to hit the net.
Adam Fogarty and Ronan O’Meara got the Portumna scores and it wasn’t until the final quarter before this game fully got away from them. Martin Tuohy, Fogarty and a Joe Canning free brought the difference down to three on the quarter-hour.
Fahey and Ward, either side of another O’Meara score, made it 1-7 to 0-6 on 21 minutes. But within 60 seconds, they were all square. Canning started at full forward before moving out for a point. The goal came from muscle memory.
Declan McLaughlin pounced to force a superb stop by Harry Mitchell, but O’Meara was in position to expertly connect on the rebound and find the net.
It was 1-7 apiece but Pearses responded with Colm Raftery forcing Ivan Canning into a stop. They added the next four points through Cillian and Diarmuid Fahey, Donnellan and Barrett. And they were 1-14 to 1-9 up at half-time.
Dean Reilly and Cillian Fahey (2) added points, with Tuohy and Jamie Hogan converting for Portumna. And after the break, Donnellan and McLaughlin quickly traded white flags.
A crucial score was Pádraig Pearses’ second green flag on 32 minutes. It was end-to-end in the early stages but then Reilly calmly crossed to the unmarked Luke Mitchell and he finished to the net making it 2-15 to 1-10.
Sean Treacy’s side reacted with McLaughlin and Joe Canning troubling the umpires but their opponents were now in auto pilot as Reilly, Luke Mitchell (2) and Donnellan, with his fifth from play, had them 2-19 to 1-12 clear on 40 minutes.
Portumna dug deep again getting 1-1 within two minutes, starting with O’Meara’s point out left. But Tuohy’s deliberate drive down the middle saw McLaughlin perfectly placed to strike for goal and six separated them again.
Unfortunately for Portumna, they only managed one more score from Fogarty. McLaughlin was denied by Harry Mitchell twice while Joe Canning hit the woodwork.
Cillian Fahey and Oran Burke pointed before the for-mer got the third goal on 53 minutes thanks to Mark Hennelly and Colm Raftery. The talisman concluded with two more points and only an Owen Treacy shoulder denied him a hat-trick.
Harry and Luke Mitchell, Ronan Carr, Enda Cunniffe, Barrett, Colm Raftery, Donnellan, Cillian Fahey and Reilly were Pearses’ best players. Hogan, Treacy, Tuohy, O’Meara and McLoughlin stood out for Portumna.
Pádraig Pearses: H Mitchell; R Carr, E Cunniffe, M Hennelly; J Barrett (0-2), O Flannery, C Raftery; Conor Fahey, L Mitchell (1-2); J Donnellan (0-5), E Ward (0-2), K Beckett; Cillian Fahey (2-8, 0-8f), D Reilly (0-2), D Fahy (0-1). Subs: O Burke (0-1) for Beckett (47), T Flannery for Ward (51), C O’Neill for Conor Fahey (5 7), M Donnellan for Raftery (60).
Portumna: I Canning; J Hogan (0-1), C Murray, C Burke; O Treacy, S Tuohy, Adam Canning; S Heagney, M Tuohy (0-2); Andrew Canning, R O’Meara (1-3), D McLaughlin (1-2); A Fogarty (0-3), J Canning (0-3, 0-2f), C Keane. Subs: T Horan for Burke (15), C Goode for Tuohy (HT), D O’Meara for Andrew Canning (38), J Madden for Keane (38), K Lawless for Adam Canning (51).
Referee: Shane Briscoe (Mullagh)