Ballina returned to senior rugby on Saturday when near neighbours Sligo came to town for a Connacht Senior League clash.
It proved to be an enthralling and entertaining afternoon by the Moy and when the final whistle sounded, the home side were 35-24 ahead on the scoreboard.
Many wondered how the Ballina men would fare against a club who have been performing very well in senior ranks in recent years, but they needn’t have fretted – the men from Heffernan Park acquitted themselves quite well.
Of course there are many aspects that the coaching team will have to improve on in the coming weeks before the start of the All Ireland League, but it was a heartening display on the first day of the season.
The Ballina men began with great energy and pace and this paid dividends after just a few minutes when Sligo’s McMorrow was sin-binned following quick thinking from Mickey Murphy at a set-piece.
This gave Ballina added impetus to drive forward and they did so with great gusto. Conor Mason and Fergal Tully led the charge and with Kieran Lindsay, Alex Corduff and Calum Quinn catching the eye in midfield, Ballina had a great base to work from.
The first score of the game arrived after 14 minutes when Daniel Molloy broke from the back of a maul and powered over for Lindsay to add the conversion and give the hosts’ a deserved 7-0 lead.
Sligo were soon on the front foot looking for parity but were met with fine defensive play from Henry Hewson, Gary Kavanagh and rampaging hooker, Luke Sweeney. The guests looked to fine space out wide but David Bruker and Cian Mullarkey had things under control on the wings.
However, after 27 minutes the waves of pressure told and eventually winger Mullin found a yard of space to exploit and crash over in the corner. The conversion drifted wide and Ballina were still in front, 7-5.
Murphy, Lindsay, Tully, Corduff and Mason made yards to bring Ballina into the red-zone again and Chris O’Neill burst over the line but the ref called him back for a double movement.
That failed to dampen the Ballina ardour and when Lindsay found Tully on his shoulder in midfield the captain ran fully 50 yards into the Sligo ’22. That set a perfect launch-pad for the home strike runners and a few phases later Mason crashed over and Lindsay added the conversion for 14-5 interval lead.
The second half began at breakneck pace with Sligo determined to get back into contention. That pressure led to Hewson being sin-binned after 46 minutes and Sligo went in search of scores.
They got one a few minutes later when a crossfield kick from Grey sent Mullin in for his second try and when Grey kicked the conversion the gap was down to two, 14-12.
Ballina were under pressure in the scrum at this stage but overcame this by moving the ball quickly which once again paid dividends in the 60th minute when fine play from Quinn, Darren Holmes, Shane Clarke and John Keaveney gained a foothold in the opposition ’22.
Then, a brilliant off-load from Murphy sent Lindsay racing through under the posts and when he added the extras the lead had increased to 21-12.
That situation became even more comfortable a few second later when Molloy’s hard work gained possession for Ballina in their own half. Tully raced through midfield and took play into the ’22. He found Murphy on his shoulder and the scrum half raced in for a well-deserved score. Lindsay added the conversion and the scoreboard read 28-12.
Sligo refused to throw in the towel and looked for an avenue back into contention at every opportunity. They were rewarded in the 66th minute when Godard got over the line after some missed tackles in midfield.
Lindsay left the field at that stage and Quinn moved into out-half with Niall Keane, Darragh Whyte and Craig McCormick also taking to the pitch. Whyte’s return from a long-term injury was particularly pleasing and he almost squeezed over the corner in the 70th minute, only to be held up just short.
However, the Sligo try-line was crossed again in the 74th minute when Craig McCormick showed great style and pace to race over and when Whyte added the extras the lead was out to 35-17.
Once again, Sligo looked for a revival and their hopes were boosted near the end when Carter got over in the corner and Grey added a superb conversion from the touchline.
There were still three minutes left to play and Ballina showed great spirit and conditioning to drive down the field once more and amazingly have two tries ruled out for forward passes in the closing seconds.
It was good to see the home side finish so strongly after an intriguing opening-day battle with the Sligo men. However, the home boys are well aware that they have many aspects to improve on as they set sail on a season that promises great adventures.
BALLINA: C O’Neill, C Mullarkey, C Quinn, A Corduff, D Brunker, K Lindsay, M Murphy; C Mason, L Sweeney, G Kavanagh, D Holmes, H Hewson, J Keaveney, F Tully, D Molloy Replacements; S Clarke, C Healy, D Whyte, C McCormick, N Keane
SLIGO: Godard, Carter, Butler, Fifita, Mullin, Grey, Feehily; McGuinness, O’Boyle, Mitchell, McMorrow, Boyle, O’Dowd-Hill, Davey, Havea
Replacements; Gormley, Adams, Neilson, Sexton, O’Hehir