Smith’s heroics secure silverware for Turin

Turin 0-15, St Oliver Plunketts 1-11

By Paul Hughes

Turin held on tight to clinch this year’s Westmeath junior ‘B’ championship honours on their home turf of McCabe Park on Sunday afternoon last, a result that will go some of the way towards easing the blow of their heartbreaking IHC final defeat in October.

Ray Aughey and Darragh Smith shared ten frees while Alan Aughey had three points in a deserved result for the Reds who, despite generating fewer scores than their opponents from open play, generally played the better hurling over the hour.

Despite the adverse conditions – rain on Saturday night and Sunday morning made the going slippy and mucky underfoot – not to mention the proximity to Christmas, both sides served up a tight battle with some fine scores and no shortage of heart.

Turin led by the minimum at the break (0-7 to 0-6), with the Augheys, Ray and Alan, generating all of those scores. John Gorman’s troops looked have the momentum early in the second half before a goal from Plunketts sub Darragh Hughes gave the Mullingar men renewed vigour.

The lead changed hands a number of times before the final whistle but it was the performance of centre-half back Darragh Smith that edged it for Turin. Smith put in a commanding display in both his defensive duties and as a link-up between defence and attack. He also picked off five frees, most of them from long range, the last of which sealed the win in stoppage time.

Plunketts lacked a similar talisman to take the game by the scruff of the neck in the closing stages and, when reflecting on the game, they will rue not only this but also their profligacy in the opening 20 minutes.

In that period, the Robinstown outfit racked up six wides and trailed 0-4 to 0-1. Their only score, a decent effort from play by Daire Cleary, was all they could muster, with Turin’s Ray Aughey converting three frees and tacking on a point from play at the opposite end.

As the rain began to ease off, the men in green and white settled into their groove from there and in a four-minute spell restored parity thanks to Cian Fitzgerald, Thomas Meehan (a free) and the veteran Greg Gavin. Gavin’s point came after he did well to control a low-trajectory long ball from Dylan Carey.

With half time approaching, the sides remained deadlocked with two more scores apiece, with Alan (a nice point on the turn) and Ray Aughey (a free) taking Turin’s tally to six, and Tomas Turks (an excellent score from wide on the right) and Gavin (on the turn) responding for Plunketts.

However, Alan Aughey had the final say of the half with his second point, assisted by Ray Aughey, to ensure the Reds had their noses in front at the short whistle.

Turin emerged in confident fashion after the restart. Chris Sleator followed an early wide from Conor Leech with a good score, and with four minutes gone a high ball from Darragh Smith caused chaos in the square and Plunketts narrowly avoided conceding a scrappy goal.

At the other end, Greg Gavin reduced the arrears with his third point. Then, on 36 minutes, Darragh Hughes took to the field for the visitors and after latching onto a pass from Thomas Meehan, smashed the sliotar to the top corner of the Turin net with his first touch.

The hosts, suddenly two points adrift, didn’t panic and within four minutes were back on level terms (1-7 to 0-10) thanks to a long-range free from Darragh Smith and a third point from Alan Aughey, the latter coming after Smith worked like a terrier to clear his lines and pick him out.

Plunketts posted a wide before Turin regained the lead on 42 minutes thanks to another long-range dead ball effort from Smith. A tit-for-tat pattern emerged when ‘keeper Conor Bracken equalised for Plunketts with a free from distance. Smith then tacked on another free for Turin, this time from far out on the right flank, before a placed ball from Thomas Meehan restored parity once more. The pendulum then swung the visitors’ way with 49 minutes gone when Donnacha Maguire divided the posts after he found space on the right wing.

At the other end, Turin got a sniff at goal through Jack Penrose but the move was closed down, and another goal was on the cards moments later when a perfectly flighted free from Smith found Ray Aughey well placed. His initial shot was charged but he managed to scoop the sliotar over the bar for the equaliser.

Both Aughey and Smith had chances to restore the lead for Turin but shot wide, missed opportunities made all the more worrying when Conor Bracken gave Plunketts the lead again with another long-range free. Donnacha Maguire then went close to doubling that lead but after doing well to get himself into a scoring position, got the angles wrong on his shot.

With a minute of normal time to go, Turin had a chance to wrap up the win when Darragh Smith went short with a scorable free, dropping it dangerously in and around the square.

In the scramble, Oisín L’Estrange had a possible call for a penalty but the loose ball fell to Ray Aughey, whose shot at goal pinged through a forest of Turin legs and rolled towards the line. Luckily for Plunketts, the evergreen Stephen McManus was alert and cleared just in time.

Extra time looked inevitable when on the stroke of 60 minutes, Ray Aughey levelled matters with a free, but a minute into stoppage time, Darragh Smith had another opportunity at a dead ball effort from 50 metres out. This time, Smith made no mistake with the conversion and the Reds led by the minimum.

Plunketts still had time to effect a smash-and-grab finale, and with three minutes of stoppage time gone Bracken was presented with another chance to showcase his long-range prowess from placed balls. However, the puck went agonisingly wide.

The Mullingar men won the subsequent puckout in their own half and as they ventured forward again, Smith made another timely intervention for Turin and the final whistle sounded, much to the delight of the home support.

At full time, Frank Mescall, entering his final week as chairman of Westmeath GAA, presented the trophy to Turin’s joint captains Chris Sleator and Jack Penrose.

Scorers - Turin: R Aughey 0-6 (5f), D Smith 0-5f, A Aughey 0-3, C Sleator 0-1. St Oliver Plunketts: G Gavin 0-3, D Hughes 1-0, T Meehan and C Bracken 0-2f each, D Cleary, C Fitzgerald, T Turks and D Maguire 0-1 each.

Turin: Ronan Leavy; Sean Scally, Damien Keogh, Peter Finch; Jack Dowling, Darragh Smith, John Egan; Conor Leech, Declan McGrath; PJ O’Neill, Oisín L’Estrange, Chris Sleator; Ray Aughey, Alan Aughey, Jack Penrose. Subs used: Andrew Corcoran for Sleator (52), Michael Carey for Penrose (56).

St Oliver Plunketts: Conor Bracken; Stephen McManus, John Fry, Darragh Geraghty; Brian Reidy, Liam Carey, Tomas Turks; Dylan Carey, Donnacha Maguire; Daire Cleary, Thomas Meehan, Nathan Cornally; Darren Carter, Greg Gavin, Cian Fitzgerald. Subs used: Emmet McGarry for D Cleary (36), Darragh Hughes for Fitzgerald (36), Matthew Evans for Geraghty (55).

Referee: Ray Farrelly (Lough Lene Gaels).