Killavullen bow out of Junior A Hurling championship
October 05, 2025
Killavullen bid to retain their maiden Avondhu North Cork Junior A hurling championship, won in dramatic circumstances in Kildorrery against Harbour Rovers in 2024 was ended earlier today in Mallow, in front of a bumper crowd of partisan supporters from both clubs, and a healthy sprinkling of neutrals present as well, in the cauldron, that championship hurling is.
Killavullen were forced into all sorts of positional and personnel changes due to a plethora of injuries and that tally of sidelined players was not helped by the robustness of this game either.
Dromina opened the scoring from Conor Shanahan, no not the drifter from Killavullen but the centre back from Dromina who had a fine game. Brian Buckley, from Dromina was next to score in the eight minute, and he recently back from Australia and our chances of retaining the Sean O Brien cup was dealt a mortal blow in the same 8th minute when Jack Morrissey, scored a goal, from the edge of the square with a bullet like shot. We were awarded a close in free, when Colm O Mahony was hauled down, in the square but only a 21 metre free resulted, that Liam Cronin converted. Dromina replied with a free of their own, taken by Jack Morrissey. Eddie Cotter seized on a breaking ball in and around midfield, and sent it over the bar but Dromina replied with another close in free. We were awarded a penalty when Colm O Mahony, the recipient of some very heavy challenges, and who tellingly did not finish the game, was upended in the square. If it was a penalty once, it is always a penalty but only one was given on the day, and we failed to score from it, when the goal keeper from Dromina, Daniel O Connell, saved it to his left, though it was probably struck at a height that would help. We needed that score, and it had the galvanizing effect of firing up, an already highly charged Dromina side, and they reeled off the next five points, in a row to open-up a telling margin. Johnny Murphy got the first of those five points immediately after our penalty miss, in the 16th minute, and their next score, came from Diarmuid Buckley in the same minute. We were rocked but some positional changes, notably bringing a clearly injured and less mobile than normal Liam Cronin, from full forward to his customary centre back position helped. He may have not been able to move as freely as he liked, but his innate positional sense helped steady us, that and determined play from Brian Cotter and Eoin Birchill. We were missing the dynamism of Jamie Magner in midfield though and his loss was acute.
Dromina were to score their 7th point from a free in the 19th minute and scored again from Brian Buckley in the 20th - it was 1-08 to 0-02 at this stage and our cause was looking forlorn. Dromina got another point from their full forward in the 24th minute and we sprung Charlie Lillis, from the bench to arrest the slide. We got a close in free, scored by Colm in the 28th minute and that was the final score in a chastising opening half, 1-09 to 0-03 at the break, and we had a wide tally of 10 as against four for Dromina.
Action was needed, and Padraig Looney and Darragh O Grady were introduced for Ronan Barry and Seamus O Mahony. We got the opening score of the second period, in the second minute from a free, from Colm O Mahony after Owen Magner was fouled, and we added to that tally, with a long range effort from Liam Cronin, who was majestic in the second period. Colm scored again from a free, and the tactic of running at Dromina was telling, the pace of some of the Killavullen forwards was drawing fouls from our opponents, and on another day, not all of their players would have seen the full sixty minutes. Dromina got a point back though, from Johnny Murphy, from his centre forward berth in the 7th minute, and he repeated the feat on the 14th minute. Some of the challenges, and feats of athleticism had to be witnessed to be belied in that bear pit that was the midfield area at this juncture in the game. It was a case of proper exhilaration, with every ball contested robustly, and fiercely, and every call from referee and line judge scrutinised. Dromina tacked on another point, from Davy Jones in the 15th minute.
We got a rallying score, when a mazy run, from Padraig Looney resulted in his shot at goals being blocked without being cleared and Owen Magner was loitering with intent and pushed the ball over the line. Dromina answered that back though, with another converted free and another point, with their outlet man, Johhny Murphy. He kept getting into space between the lines and punished us with another converted point. Sean Palmer was introduced for Colm O Mahony who had shipped one challenge too many and had to be withdrawn. Liam Cronin led the fightback though, scoring a free, after Eddie Cotter received a particularly poor challenge, that only drew a yellow card. It was worst than that though, but it rousted Killavullen into a grand stand finish. Time after time Killavullen were now first to the breaking ball, and Liam scored another free after this time Brian Cotter was fouled in the 24th minute. Liam scored again for us, in the 26th minute. We were awarded a free, after Mikey O Connor was fouled in close to goals, and Owen Magner slipped the ball over the ball. Dromina replied with a free in the from their own defence, that their goalkeeper sent over the bar. We kept forcing the play and Niall Feaheny forced a 65 that Liam again converted. We got the final score of the game, from another free, in the 3rd minute of injury time, but that was to be it, and we exited the championship after a gallant effort. Dromina advance and we wish them well.
Liam Fox, Sydney, Eoin Buckley, Sydney, Paul O Sullivan, our hero from 2024, Vancouver, Michael Cagney, injured, Jamie Magner injured, Padraig Looney injured, though he defied good medical opinion to come on, Colm O Mahony, injured, Liam Cronin – injured though he played magnificently today, and the reasons for a defeat are laid bare. That we got to semi-final and gave such an account of ourselves, was a testament to the heart of the team. It will roar back again, but hopefully, it will be migration into the club rather emigration away, will be a factor.
The referee was, on tough day, to be one was Denis Motherway. The final will now be contested between Dromina and Kilshannig, to be played in Churchtown on the 18th of October at 3.30PM. Ciaran O Regan will be the referee for the final.
The team and those who scored were;
Charlie Cremin
Fionn Magner
Eoin Birchill
Niall Feaheny
Patrick O Grady
Brian Cotter
Seamus Fox
Ronan Barry
Eddie Cotter (0-01)
Colm O Mahony (0-03F
Kevin Fox
Mikey O Connor
Owen Magner (1-01, 0-01F)
Liam Cronin(0-07, 0-05F, 0-01 x 65)
Seamus O Mahony
Substitutes
Charlie Lillis for Kevin Fox
Darragh O Grady for Seamus O Mahony
Padraig Looney for Ronan Barry
Sean Palmer for Colm O Mahony –(injured)
