Mayo SFC Final

Westport 1-9 Ballina 1-6

By Colm Gannon in Hastings Insurance MacHale Park

For the first time ever Westport are the Mayo senior football champions after they edged out Ballina by three points after a hard fought encounter in Hastings Insurance MacHale Park.

Westport hit the front inside the opening minute when Killian Kilkelly pointed a close range free after Kevin Keane was fouled.

The north Mayo men responded not long after with a long range sky scraping effort from joint captain Mikey Murray, who was a late addition to the starting line-up.

Evan Regan edged his side in four for the first time with a well taken point on the run from 45 meters out, but the lead lasted less than two minutes and Keane got his first score of the day with a snapshot from 35m out.

There then followed a ten minute period of play without a score from either side despite the intensity and effort levels not dropping.

That run was stopped by Kilkelly’s second point of the day, he swept one over from play after Kevin Keane found him with a pop pass on the run.

Evan Regan then stepped up to the plate once more for Ballina, driving over a fantastic effort on the break across the 45m line despite the attentions of two Westport defenders.

Westport edged back in front five minutes from the break when Kilkelly popped over another free for his side's fourth point. Sam Callinan levelled the game up two minutes later finishing off a strong run down the left hand side with a classy finish to leave it all square at four points each.

Conor McStay then edged his side in front as half time approached and all looked to be going well, but they were hit with a major blow when Evan Regan was shown a black card for a hand trip just before the half-time whistle.

Despite having the man advantage at the start of the second half Westport were only able to add on a single point to their tally through Kilkelly’s fourth point of the day while Regan was off the field.

Kilkelly was about to have another major impact in the game, Luke Tunney got in for a shot on goal that was blocked by James Doherty. The Ballina defender slipped as he blocked it and to stop the rebound falling to a Westport man breaking through he fisted it clear as he lay on the deck and the referee awarded a penalty.

Kilkelly stepped up and drove it low to the right hand side and it went just under David Clarke’s arm to put Westport three up with up with 15 minutes to go.

Ballina weren’t going to throw in the town and five minutes later, Doherty found himself along the Westport endline and he fired the ball across the face of goal and after a few bounces off legs it flew into the back of the net off Padraig O’Hora to level the game up.

However Westport broke for home with three points on the spin over the next five minutes. Paddy O’Malley bombed over a long range free, not long after Niall McManamon reacted quickest after a Alan Kennedy effort came back off the post.

Kennedy then drove over a free to put Westport three clear and looking good, the same man then added the finishing touch with a fine point from play as the game moved into injury time.

Ballina kept hunting, but could’t force the goal they needed to get back into it with Evan Regan's late free cutting it back to three points, but it was too little, too late at that stage.

Westport: Paddy O’Malley (0-1, 1f); Luke Tunney, Rory Brickenden, Niall McManamon (0-1); Liam Shevlin, Brian McDermott, Paul Lambert; Lee Keegan, Brian O’Malley; Conal Dawson, Fionn McDonagh, Oisin McLaughlin; Kevin Keane (0-1), Mark Moran, Killian Kilkelly (1-4, 3f). Subs: Pat Lambert for Dawson, Alan Kennedy (0-2, 1f) for Keane, Shane Scott for Shevlin, Ronan Geraghty for Kilkelly

Ballina Stephenites: David Clarke; Rory Tighe, David Tighe, James Doherty; Ciaran Boland, Padraig O’Hora (1-0), Keith Tighe; Sam Callinan (0-1), Frank Irwin; Dylan Thornton, Conor McStay (0-1), Jack Irwin; Mikey Murray (0-1), Evan Regan (0-3, 1f) , Mark Birrane. Subs: Luke Doherty for Thornton, Niall Feeney for Birrane, Brendan Collins for Boland, Ciaran Sweeney for Murray, Rory Morrin for J Irwin.

Ref: P Lydon