Down but not out
March 01, 2010It all culminated in relegation for the 2007 intermediate champions, who had opened their senior championship campaign in fine style with a superb 1-12 to 1-7 defeat of Crosserlough. But the SFC descended into a saga and an eight-game stretch of draws and defeats eventually dictated that the town side would commence 2010 as an intermediate outfit. With former Ramor full back John Mulvaney at the helm, Ballinagh showed plenty of promise but an inability to finish teams off finally sealed their fate.
Looking back over the hectic events of '09, club PRO Martin Smith feels a sense of underachievement: "Everything was in place but we found ourselves fighting an uphill battle. Having to play all our league matches away from home didn't help either supporters or the team, but at least we'll be back to normal this year. That was a major handicap, especially in terms of revenue, with the times that are in it. But a number of clubs came to our aid and I'd especially like to thank those who gave us the gates when we used their grounds. Only for their generosity and understanding, we would have been in big trouble."
The SFC was one of those campaigns that seemed to just go on and on and on, leading almost inexorably to a seemingly preordained, inevitable denouement. "We had a great win against Crosserlough in the first game and played very well, even though they perhaps underperformed on the day. But we were the better team and deserved the two points. We went into that game in a good frame of mind and got the result we deserved.
"The Cavan Gaels game [3-24 to 1-12] was really one where we never got going. We totally underperformed against probably the best club in Cavan and just didn't show up that evening. We were still in contention going into our last group game against Mullahoran [1-8 apiece] and that was a good tough, hard game. We looked doomed when we trailed by four points with four minutes to go but we rallied and levelled with the last kick of the game."
The draw meant that both sides finished level on three points apiece and a play-off would be required to determine who advanced to the business end of the competition. Unfortunately, Ballinagh only played in fits and starts in the 'replay' and they were suddenly propelled into the frying pan of the relegation dogfight. "We felt very unfortunate to end up in a relegation battle after picking up three points," notes the PRO. "Especially as there were a number of clubs with no points. There were four groups and it seemed like the bottom team in each section should go into relegation semi-finals, but that wasn't how it worked out.
"We played Kingscourt in Ballyhaise the first day and it ended in a draw between two very evenly-matched teams but we threw it away in the replay [0-15 to 1-10]. That performance and result epitomised our season. There were so many occasions where we did enough to win games but just didn't get there in the end.
"Cuchulainns were next up and it was the same old story when we were again caught with a last-minute goal which put us into a relegation play-off final against Crosserlough in Mullahoran."
Amazingly, Ballinagh's SFC campaign was to end where it had started against the Crosserlough men; only this time, with survival at stake, they would be pipped at the post… The original fixture was a thriller under lights played before a fantastic crowd of close to 400 on a frosty, foggy night - 1-10 apiece. Crosserlough won the replay in Breffni Park, 1-9 to 0-9. Game Over.
Ballinagh's reward for playing nine matches in the 2009 Cavan SFC - many of them thrillers - was demotion. Crucially, they had managed only one win in that sequence, drawing three others and losing five times. In 2007, they had also played nine championship matches to land both the Cavan and Ulster intermediate club championships!
On a positive note, Ballinagh retained their Division One status and that gives them a good platform to begin rebuilding from next year, when it will be very much back to basics as they strive to reclaim their senior standing. January was a time for finalising the management team and an essentially new committee is also in place. "The outgoing committee did Trojan work," says Martin. "They were there for a long time and their efforts were extraordinary. No stone was left unturned. We've brought in some fresh faces to liven things up and we know we'll have to work extremely hard to match them. The management team in 2009 of John Mulvaney, Padraig McCabe and Tom Farrell did their best with the team, too, but it just wasn't to be…
"We had a great start to the league, winning our first three matches, but there was a lull then with no games and it was hard to get lads motivated again after that. We also lost three lads who emigrated to Australia for the year in mid-February and that was another big blow to a small club.
"At underage level, we won an U12 Roinn B championship; our U14s got to a Roinn B league final; the U16s had a satisfactory year; and the minors won a shield, beating Belturbet. Our juniors just missed out on a Division Four semi-final. In the U21 championship, we beat Mullahoran well in the first round but lost to the eventual winners Ramor/Munterconnaught by two points [1-10 to 1-8] at the quarter-final stage.
"We had nine senior players on that U21 team, so we have a good young squad there. In general, we competed well over the course of the year and we always try to play a good brand of football at all levels. Every lad who pulls on a Ballinagh jersey always gives 100%.
"It was also a notable year in that, for the first time ever, Ballinagh National School competed in the 'A' section of Cumann na mBunscol and they won their section out and only lost the final by one point. The school is vitally important and great work was done with that team by Josh and Seamus in the school."
Ballinagh may have slipped down to intermediate grade at the end of 2009, but they'll be battling gamely on a number of fronts in 2010. Tweet
