Ballinrobe march on in Mayo GAA intermediate championship

Ballinrobe's long-range shooting proved key in their 0-23 to 3-8 victory over Ardnaree in the quarterfinal of the Mayo GAA Egan Jewellers Intermediate Football Championship, writes Brian Gillespie.

The visitors to north Mayo overcame a slow start to put a real squeeze on their hosts the longer the game went on.

Having conceded three goals and two points inside the opening quarter, Ballinrobe only let Ardnaree in for another six points for the remainder of the game.

In that same timeframe, they scored 17 points of their own.

Those Ardnaree goals were scored by John Timlin (two) and Ethan Convey, and by half-time the hosts had 3-5 on board - but still they trailed by one as Ballinrobe belatedly found their scoring boots. The south Mayo men finished the half with a 0-15 to 3-5 lead.

For Ballinrobe, Ewan Duffy (two), Cian May (two), Evan O'Brien and Liam Burke all landed two-pointers during the course of the game, while Cian O'Connell and Joe Burke contributed handsomely on the scoreboard too.

Diarmuid Duffy also impressed as a talisman from the half-back line, inspiring his team to a fine victory against an Ardnaree outfit that just seemed to run out of ideas the longer the game went on.

*See Tuesday's print edition of The Connaught Telegraph for a full report