Match Report AHL2: Castleknock vs. Crumlin
20 Apr 2015

Crumlin 2-19 v Castleknock 2-14

Castleknock took on one of the traditional aristocrats of Dublin hurling last Saturday in a sunkissed Pearse Park when they travelled to play Crumlin in AHL2. This was always going to be a real indicator of where we are as a hurling force and it proved to be the case.

We started at an excellent pace and with the aid of a stiff breeze quickly set to rattling up the scores. Colm Breslin was causing all sorts of trouble for the home team with his lively runs and excellent touches. Darragh Madden made his first start and finished a surging Shane Boland run to the net to put the visitors in a commanding position at the quarter hour mark. The Crumlin line reacted swiftly and the outstanding Conor Murphy began roving and made a remarkable contribution to keep his side in touch with some top drawer scores from distance. The Crumlin attack was always going to be a dangerous force but Castleknock’s full-back line, and Paul Bourke in particular, curbed this threat impressively. Kieran Duggan was impressive at half-forward and Niall O’Callaghan’s flawless free-taking combined with another Madden major kept the scoreboard ticking over. At half-time the new arrivals in division 2 lead by 6.

As expected Crumlin came hard out in the second half and quickly began attacking the Castleknock lead. Dublin senior Kevin Byrne took hold of proceedings in his own half-back line and dictated a lot of the play. Conor Prunty and Daragh McCormack performed admirable in the Castleknock half-line and it was ding-dong for the whole second half. Two somewhat fortuitous goals put Crumlin ahead for the first time entering the last ten minutes but some of their shooting had been very impressive all through. Their experience began to tell and they ran out deserved winners with 5 points to spare. Whilst Castleknock can have no complaints about the result, this was a game that could easily have gone the other way. This was the first loss of 2015 and was undoubtedly a disappointment to players, management and supportes. Far more important however is the experience and learning gained from playing a really top class outfit, in sparkling form, in their own back yard.

Despite the loss, this was another indicator of our progress as a team and indeed as a hurling club. If we can learn from the experience it may prove more valuable in the long run than the 2 league points that were on offer.

We don’t have time to mourn the result as we take on the mighty Ballyboden St. Endas netx Saturday night in our first taste of championship action this year. The game throws in at 6 in Somerton Park. The support in Pearse Park was fantastic and gave great impetus to the team. We’d love to see a big home crowd for our championship debut of 2015.