Mallow win with late points in crucial Junior A Football Game
August 14, 2026
On a sombre evening in the Mourneabbey grounds, and an evening when football pales into insignificance compared to events happening around us, Killavullen were defeated by Mallow, after Eoin Kelleher from that club kicked some great scores late in the game to secure a vital win for Mallow, and leaves Killavullen’s football championship credentials for 2026 in a precarious position.
Killavullen opening the scoring with an impressive point, on the run from Kian Lane before Mallow equalised with a converted Eoin Kelleher free. Seamus Fox was at the end of a great team move, in which Finn Killion was instrumental as well as Eoin Birchill and the centre across the square was punched in the air by Seamus, and the ball went over the crossbar, with a possible goal, going a begging. Our near neighbours from the town took the lead shortly thereafter when Mark Kelleher, their full forward scored a goal after a neat exchange of hand passes, opened up our defence, and gave Michael in our goals no chance. When Michael O Rourke scored from open play, and then with a booming two-point score, there was a chasm developed between the teams on the score sheet, but not, generally in open play.
Trevor Kiely scored a neat point, that illustrated the difference between the teams at this stage, Mallow were economical with the ball, and rarely wasted possession in their attacking quarter, whereas Killavullen were profligate. We desperately needed a score, and Eoin Birchill supplied the necessary from a dead ball situation, and we gathered another point back, when Eddie Cotter scored a nice point, with a telling run. Paddy Murphy from Mallow was next to score before our Finn went off on a mazy run, and despite the close attentions of two pursuers from Mallow, he managed to direct the ball over the bar. Mallow extended their lead again with another converted free, before we got a lifeline approaching half time, when Eddie Cotter finished to the net, after receiving a pass at close quarters from Colm O Mahony who had an advantage from a free. That despite being spendthrift in the opening period, left only an arrears of two points at the interval, and considering that Mallow had played with the wind, seemed to place Killavullen in a good place to take the spoils in the half that was to follow.
After the break, both sides were guilty of passing up some scoring chances, and Killavullen, kicked two hapless kicks into the goal keeper’s hands, when the mature thing to do, would be to work the ball into a more favourable scoring position. We also had two poor wides in this period, before Eoin Birchill drew us level with a free kick, from outside the arc and thus two points. Mallow did not panic though and crucially were gaining more possession and a foothold in midfield, and were rewarded with an Eoin Kelleher point and another score from Aaron Murphy who was a bundle of energy on the night and kept powering forward relentlessly. We sprung Padraig Looney and Mark Nagle from the bench to try to stop the Mallow waves of momentum and Niall Feaheny, so often the willing runner, and off-loader in the full forward line dragged us somehow into the lead, with a great goal, that gave the considerably talented Josh Murphy in the Mallow net, no chance.
Mickey O Connor also came on the field of play before Michael O Rourlke drew Mallow level with another point. Owen Magner replaced Eddie Cotter. We were lucky to see a Mallow attack and chance for a possible point come back off the post up high and fall into our square, but Tomas Fennell reacted best and cleared the danger. Colm O Mahony caught a great high ball in the centre of the field, and with his clever off load to Liam Cronin, we created an overlap, that resulted in a neat score from Niall Feaheny. It was to be our final score, and fully 6 minutes on the clock, and in Eoin Kelleher, Mallow had a forward who knew where the posts were, when it mattered and he scored a neat wrap around point to equalise for his team. Mallow took a telling lead from the boot of the same player and stretched that out to two, with time in the red. Eoin Birchill send a booming high side line ball in towards the Mallow goals and it finished up, in the net, having struck no one, but the referee, was consistent all night, and adjudged that a Killavullen forward was in the square, before the ball. In Gaelic football, a square ball is a rule infringement where an attacking player enters the small rectangular area in front of the goal before the ball arrives. Mallow got a reprieve and then another one, when Padraig Looney forced a good save from Josh Murphy, Padraig’s powerfully struck shot was parried by good reflexes from the netminder, and the follow up volley from Mark Nagle went agonisingly wide. The final point, in the fourth minute of injury time came from Eoin Kelleher again, to leave Mallow winning by three points, on a final score of 1-14 to 2-08.
Killavullen will be disappointed by their general shooting and shot selection and the number of times they coughed up possession, whilst in good positions high up the field, and now leaves them needing a result against Charleville, the reigning North Cork Champions, in the next game, on the 11th of September if they want to be playing football, after that day.
The team and scorers were;
- Michael Walsh
- Tomas Fennell
- Conor Griffin
- Fionn Magner
- Sean Palamer
- Pa Angland
- Liam Cronin
- Ronan Barry
- Colm O Mahony
- Kian Lane (0-01)
- Finn Killion (0-01)
- Eoin Birchill(0-03F)
- Seamus Fox (0-01)
- Niall Feaheny (1-01)
- Eddie Cotter (1-01)
Substitutes used
- Padraig Looney for Kian Lane
- Mark Nagle for Seamus Fox
- Mickey O Connor for Colm O Mahony
- Owen Magner for Eddie Cotter