Courtwood run riot as four second half goals sink Ballyroan Abbey

Courtwood 5-16 

Ballyroan Abbey 0-15 

COURTWOOD produced a dramatic turnaround from their opening-round performance to storm into the quarter-finals of the Laois Shopping Centre SFC with a big win over Ballyroan Abbey in Laois Hire O’Moore Park on Saturday evening.

There was little to separate the teams during the opening quarter, but once Courtwood found their rhythm, they took complete control, with five goals ultimately putting a heavy gloss on the final margin.

It was a very different Courtwood to the side that had struggled to get past neighbours O’Dempsey’s in Round 1, while Ballyroan Abbey were unable to reproduce the form that saw them account for Rosenallis in their opening game.

Ballyroan Abbey had won that encounter with 19 points, including a remarkable 10 from Diarmuid Whelan, but he had to be substituted through injury inside the opening 10 minutes on Saturday, which was a significant blow to Martin Murphy’s side.

Courtwood could have made the perfect start when Ryan Little’s early goal effort came back off the post, but Ballyroan Abbey opened the scoring when James McWey converted a free from outside the arc.

Little soon levelled proceedings before Enda McWey edged Ballyroan Abbey ahead with their second two-pointer, and Alan Kinsella then got his name on the scoresheet for Courtwood.

The loss of Whelan was followed by a strong spell from Courtwood, who began to build some momentum. Matthew Byron converted a 45, Cian Doyle produced a fine score off the outside of his boot, Kinsella landed a free and Little added another from a mark after being picked out by Rob Tyrrell.

Despite their opponents’ dominance, Ballyroan Abbey remained within touching distance and eventually drew level after 22 minutes when James McWey converted a two-point free.

That was as good as it got for Ballyroan Abbey. Courtwood immediately responded with 1-2 in the space of two minutes. Kinsella was heavily involved in the build-up to their opening goal before Cian Doyle finished the move, with Little and Doyle then adding points to put Courtwood firmly in command.

McWey pulled one back from a free, but Courtwood finished the half strongly with three unanswered points to establish a 1-11 to 0-7 lead at the interval. Doyle and Byron, with a two-point free, got the scores as Courtwood began to look increasingly comfortable.

Ballyroan Abbey did manage to make a positive start to the second half, with McWey converting another free before Cathal Doyle reduced the gap to five.

However, any hopes of a repeat of last year’s meeting between these sides quickly disappeared when Courtwood struck for their second goal. Cian Doyle was again the scorer, completing an excellent individual display, while Byron followed up with another two-point free to bring his personal tally to five.

Conaire Gee registered a score for Ballyroan Abbey, but Courtwood were now threatening every time they went forward. Their third goal effectively ended the contest. Sean O’Flynn drove forward and created the opening before finding Little, who calmly finished to the net.

McWey continued to add frees for Ballyroan Abbey, but Courtwood simply had too much firepower at the other end. Little turned provider for their fourth goal, squaring the ball for Dylan Keane to finish, before Ballyroan Abbey briefly rallied with four consecutive points from Odhran Delaney, two McWey frees and Davin McEvoy.

There was still time for Courtwood to put further distance between the sides. Byron converted a 45, Keane added a point to his earlier goal and Little completed a superb personal contribution with his second goal of the evening from the final attack, finishing with 2-4.

It was a comprehensive response from the 2025 county finalists, who will now advance directly to the quarter-finals.

For Ballyroan Abbey, the focus turns to Round 3, where a win would see them join Courtwood in the quarter-finals SCORERS:

Courtwood: Ryan Little 2-4 (0-1 mark), Cian Doyle 2-3, Matthew Byron 0-6 (2 tpf, 0-2 45s), Dylan Keane 1-1, Alan Kinsella 0-2 (0-1f).

Ballyroan Abbey: James McWey 0-9 (1 tpf, 1 tp, 0-4fs), Enda McWey 0-2 (tp), Odhran Delaney, Davin McWey, Conaire Gee and Cathal Doyle 0-1 each.

COURTWOOD: Matthew Byron; Darragh McEvoy, Dan Boland, Adam O'Halloran; Jake Doyle, Sean O'Flynn, Eddie Boland; Mark O'Halloran, Rob Tyrrell; Paul O'Flynn, Alan Kinsella, Tadhg Slattery; Cian Doyle, Ryan Little, Niall Donoher.

Subs: Danny Luttrell for P O’Flynn (13m, inj), Dylan Keane for McEvoy (47m), Ciaran Boland for Slattery (56m).

BALLYROAN ABBEY: Robbie Eyres; Ned Fitzpatrick, Patrick Whelan, Colm Walsh; Charlie Whelan, Conor Brennan, Conaire Gee; Cathal Doyle, Shaun Murphy; Davin McEvoy, Diarmuid Whelan, Aaron McEvoy; James McWey, Killian Byrne, Enda McWey.

Subs: Odhran Delaney for Whelan (9m, inj), Adam Jones for Eyres (31m, inj), Stephen Thompson for Walsh (55m).

Referee: Colin Bailey (Mountrath)