Ratoath saunter to victory over Gaels

Ratoath were very comfortable winners Blackhall Gaels on Saturday evening in Trim

Ratoath 4-24

Blackhall Gaels 0-10

TOM GANNON

Champions Ratoath took some time to settle into this contest but when they did, they were very impressive in their victory over Blackhall Gaels in the SHC on Saturday evening in Trim.

As a unit, Ratoath gelled very well together but there were several standout performances. The full forward line of Daithi McGowan, Cian Rogers and Bryan McMahon were absolutely phenomenal. Daithi McGowan was on fire. He won his ball every time and either scored or created an opportunity. The midfield pairing of Jack McGowan and Ciaran O'Hanrahan dominated the middle third while Darragh Kelly headed up a strong Ratoath defence.

The opening exchanges was not by any means vintage hurling but the underdogs Blackhall Gaels did make a bright start to the contest and after four minutes, Paul Kelly had a goal opportunity, but Colm O'Riordan did well to pull off a good stop in the Ratoath net.

Dermot Carty kicked off the proceedings with a well-struck free before Cian Rogers hit three of Ratoath's opening four scores, against the run of play, which gave them a lead of 0-4 to 0-1 after 14 minutes.

It wasn't until the 16th minute, when Cian Rogers found the back of the Blackhall Gaels net, that Ratoath started to settle into the contest and take a stranglehold.

After receiving a heavy but fair tackle from Tim Fitzpatrick, Stephen Morris managed to get a shot away and pull one back for Blackhall Gaels before Ratoath corner forwards Daithi McGowan and McMahon both chipped in with nice scores.

McMahon and Daithi McGowan started to cause a lot of hassle for the Blackhall Gaels defence, and the pair provided Ratoath's last three scores of the half as Andy Dermody's side started to pull away from the opposition. At the interval, Ratoath led 1-9 to 0-4.

Just as he did in the first-half, Dermot Carty kicked off the proceedings in the second half with a free, but Ratoath immediately responded with a Daithi McGowan point before Rob Hayes set up Domhnall Rogers for Ratoath's second goal.

Over the course of the next ten minutes, Ratoath outscored the opposition by 0-6 to 0-3 with the highlight being Gavin McGowan's superb score in the 37th minute, which was set up after his brother Daithi McGowan made a wonderful catch from an O'Riordan puck out. After 45 minutes, Ratoath led 2-16 to 0-8.

The final quarter was one-way traffic as the champions pressed home their advantage. After a bit of a scramble, Cian Rogers struck the sliotar first time and hit the back of the net for his second goal. Five minutes later, Bryan McMahon gave Ratoath their fourth goal.

Gavin McGowan contributed two points on the spin, as did Ciaran O'Hanrahan before Dermot Carty traded points with substitute Sean Murphy. Shortly after, Mark Reilly's final whistle confirmed a very comfortable victory for Ratoath.

Ratoath - Colm O'Riordan; Liam Corbett, Cormac Butler, Tim Fitzpatrick; Cian Kelly (0-1), Darragh Kelly, Domhnall Rogers (1-0); Ciaran O'Hanrahan (0-2), Jack McGowan (0-1); Podge O'Hanrahan (0-4 two free, one '65') Gavin McGowan (0-3), Rob Hayes; Daithi McGowan (0-4), Cian Rogers (2-4), Bryan McMahon(1-4). Subs - Cathal Byrne for Podge O'Hanrahan, Sean Murphy (0-1) for Domhnall Rogers, Oisin Cashman for Cian Rogers, all 55m.

Blackhall Gaels - David Farrell; Hugh Smith, Conor Delaney, Jack Gallagher; Tom Murphy, Shane Whitty (0-1 one free), Mark Nicholson; Dan Carty, Stephen Morris (0-2); Tom Delaney, Dermot Carty (0-5 four frees), Darren Maguire (0-1); Paul Kelly (0-1), Niall Mangan, Liam Jennings.

Referee - Mark Reilly (Kilmessan)