Where do you start with this one - at the end there was a huge gulf on the scoreboard, but there were many twists and tales that led to that conclusion.
In the first few minutes it looked like Ballaghaderreen were going to run away with this one, with their full forward line twisting and turning the Breaffy full back line inside and out and then some more again.
But they lost David Drake to a injury early doors and then Cian Hanley was shown two yellow cards inside two minutes and the momentum swung in Breaffy’s favour and they didn’t let that momentum change slip away from their hands and they drove home the advantage to run out big winners in MacHale Park.
The game burst into life with goals, goals and more goals on the agenda before the water break. Conor O’Shea got the scoreboard moving with a well taken point inside the opening 40 seconds.
From the resulting kick-out Ballagh’ worked the ball down the field Andy Moran lost his man like only he can after being played in by a wondrous hand-pass from Hanley and slipped the ball past Robert Hennelly for the first goal of the day.
Colm Flynn kicked the first of a number of fine scores to cut the gap to a single point, before Cian Hanley hit good score from range. Breaffy went down the field and it looked like Ben Murphy had scored after being played in by Aidan O’Shea - but the goal was ruled out for a square ball.
However the resulting short kick-out was messed up and O’Shea got the ball and fired hit home to the net. There was no hold up in the goals and four minutes later Andy Moran found Thomas Carmody and the ball was put to the back of the net for Ballagh’s second goal.
Moran then slotted over a point and Ryan Lynch put one over the bar before a Colm Flynn free ended the scoring before the water break and everyone stopped to take a breath with the score at 2-3 to 1-3
The pace and goals kept coming after the resumption with Kuba Callaghan toe-poking home his sides third goal of the day on 19 minutes and looked like Ballagh’ were on course for the semi-finals.
But the game took another major twist before the break - Flynn and Hennelly kicked frees for Breaffy - then Cian Hanley got two yellow cards in the space of two minutes and his side were down to 14, but they responded well with Moran kicking the next point before scores from Conor O’Shea and Hennelly cut the gap back to three points as half-time approached.
Ballagh’ looked to have weathered the storm when Callaghan kicked a free just before the short whistle to send his side in leading 3-5 to 1-7 at the break.
The second half saw Breaffy take control of the middle third and get to grips with the Ballaghaderreen froward unit much better and they out scored their opponents 3-9 to 0-1 over the final half-hour.
Callaghan edged Ballagh’ further ahead after the break, but the game was turning in Breaffy’s favour Flynn kicked a point than Robbie Fadden arched one over the bar and Mattie Ruane toe-poked the ball home after Aidan O’Shea did brilliantly to win the ball and let it off to Ruane. That left it all square at the second half water break.
From there on Breaffy were in total ascendency with further goals coming from Darie Morrin and Conor O’She and points along with a brace of points from James Minogue seeing them home and into the semi-final next weekend.
Scorers
Breaffy: C O’Shea (1-4, 1m ), C Flynn (0-4 ), A O’Shea (1-0 ), D Morrin (1-0 ), M Ruane (1-0 ), J Minogue (0-2 ), R Hennelly (0-2 ) R Fadden (0-1 ), B Murphy (0-1 ), G Dunne (0-1 ), P Burke (0-1 )
Ballaghaderreen: A Moran (1-2 ), K Callaghan (1-2 ), T Camody (1-0 ) C Hanley (0-1 ), R Lynch (0-1 )
Breaffy: R Hennelly; C Kelly, M Dervan, R Martyn; D Morrin, S O’Shea, K Mulchrone; M Ruane, C O’Shea; R Fadden, J Minogue, P McDermott; M Hall, A O’Shea, C Flynn. Subs: B Murphy for P McDermott (BS ), K McDermott for C Kelly, B McHale for Hall, P Burke for R Martyn, T Reilly for P McDermott, G Dunne for T Reilly.
Ballaghaderreen: P Sharkey; A Lynch, D Drake, S Cunniffe; L O’Grady, D McBrien, O Jordan; D Kelly, R Lynch; B Kelly, K Callaghan, C Hanley; T Carmody, A Moran, C Doohan. Subs: C O’Donnell for Drake; S Akram for Kelly, D Forrest McBrien; S McHugh for Jordan; G Conway for Callaghan.
