A SUPERB final-quarter display from Ballymacnab saw them come from five points down to defeat Dromintee by the minimum of margins in Group D, winning 0-11 to 0-10.
Oisin McGivern was the hero on the day, landing the final two points in the dying minutes.
Dromintee, who finished with 12 men, were in the ascendancy for most of the game, but the ‘Nab came good in the final quarter as Finnen Maguire, Kieran Hughes (2), Ryan Watters and McGivern (2) all fired over in the last 15 minutes.
The ‘Nab were relegated from Division 1B in the league and missing star names such as the Grugan brothers – Rory and Jack – and Ryan Kennedy, so opening their championship account with a win will be a big boost.
“The boys really went to well in the second half, we made a few changes and we’re very happy with the win,” said manager Ronan Murphy.
“It’s been a tough year, but we really redeemed ourselves today with a good performance.
“We have a lot of men missing at the moment, but we just have to move on with what we have and the boys who were out there today were very good and put their shoulder to the wheel and it’s great to get the win.”
On the loss of the aforementioned players, Murphy added, “Rory’s obviously a huge loss, as is Jack and Ryan too but these things happen. You just have to move on and the boys who are on the field have to step up and they did that in the second half, so we’re really delighted.
“We have a different proposition coming now in the Harps next week, so we’ll just have to regroup and get everybody ready again, get over the bumps and bruises and just refocus for Friday night.”
Four points on the trot through Ronan Quinn, Jack McArdle (2) and Ciaran Tiernan had put Dromintee 0-7 to 0-3 ahead at half-time and they pushed on after the break when Ryan Hughes Jnr split the uprights.
The ‘Nab pulled a few scores back but Dromintee could have been out of sight when a well-worked move saw Cathal O’Neill played through one-on-one, but an excellent Conor McGivern save offered Ballymacnab hope.
From there, they pushed on and two from Kieran Hughes and another from Watters left one the difference.
Up stepped McGivern to swing over the final two points of the game to see Ballymacnab win by one.
Four goals evenly split by the half-time break from Joe McElroy and James McCoy (two each) saw Armagh Harps begin their championship campaign with a bang away to Division 1B league champions Mullaghbawn.
All-Ireland winner McElroy netted early on, while McCoy also raised a green flag in the first half as the Harps carried a 2-6 to 0-3 lead into the break. The pair added further goals after the interval and that allowed Pascal Canavan’s men to comfortably win, 4-12 to 0-11.
IN Group A, Cullyhanna made an amazing return to the senior championship with a huge 2-16 to 0-8 triumph against Killeavy.
Both sides fielded without a number of key men, but that mattered little on the night.
Ross McQuillan’s early major put the home side four up at the break, 1-8 to 0-7, and a red card at the start of the second half to Callum O’Hare dented Killeavy’s revival hopes.
The visiting side scored just once after the turnaround, while Aidan Nugent put the icing on the cake with a goal in the final few minutes.
Silverbridge picked up a six-point victory away to Culloville, 0-14 to 3-11, with three second-half goals the difference.
Danny Hughes’ side actually led by the minimum at half-time, but the ‘Bridge pushed on in the second half.
Sean Rock rippled the net twice in that second period, once at either end of the half, while Tiernan Murphy tucked home a penalty kick. Rock was the top scorer on the night as he finished with a personal tally of 2-1.
IN Group B, Granemore opened their championship account with a convincing nine-point (1-15 to 0-9) victory away to Sarsfields.
Having trailed by two points at the half-time break, Granemore dominated the second half.
A goal straight after the turnaround from Brendan Boylan gave them some breathing space and although Sarsfields had a couple of goal chances themselves, they couldn’t breach the Granemore rearguard.
The High Moss men led 0-8 to 0-6 at the interval but Granemore burst out of the traps after the turnaround with scores from Cathal O’Hare and Jason O’Neill before Boylan hit the net as his side pushed on to a comfortable win.
A GOAL in the dying seconds of the game saw Madden kick-start their Group C charge with a 2-8 to 0-12 win away to Maghery.
The home side held a slender one-point lead late on thanks to a Ben Crealey point before Madden netted with the final piece of action.
It was Madden’s second three-pointer of the day, and both arrived after the half-time turnaround.
Ciaran Rafferty’s major gave his side the lead for the very first time, while Aron McKenna punched home the late goal that helped the Raparees earn an opening win.
Clann Eireann were 10-point winners when they made the short trip to St Peter’s on Saturday evening and the back-to-back Division 1A league winners held their opposition scoreless in the second half.
These sides met at the same stage of the competition last season, at the exact same venue when 15 points separated them and while the margin wasn’t as big this time around, Clann Eireann still proved too hot to handle.
GROUP A
Round one Cullyhanna 2-16 Killeavy 0-8; Culloville 0-14 Silverbridge 3-11
Round two
Saturday, August 24 Killeavy v Culloville (8pm)
Sunday, August 25 Cullyhanna v Silverbridge (4.30pm)
GROUP B
Round one Clan Na Gael 2-13 Crossmaglen 3-5; Sarsfields 0-9 Granemore 1-15
Round two
Saturday, August 24 Granemore v Clan Na Gael (5.30pm);
Sunday, August 25 Sarsfields v Crossmaglen (1.15pm)
GROUP C
Round one Maghery 0-12 Madden 2-8; St Peter’s 0-3 Clann Eireann 0-13
Round two
Saturday, August 24 Maghery v Clann Eireann (7pm);
Sunday, August 25 Madden v St Peter’s (2.45pm)
GROUP D
Round one Ballymacnab 0-11 Dromintee 0-10; Mullaghbawn 0-11 Armagh Harps 4-12
Round two
Friday, August 23 (7pm) Ballymacnab v Armagh Harps; Dromintee v Mullaghbawn
