Reilly revels in sealing the double

Kevin Óg Carney

For long spells last Saturday evening, Ballinagh’s attack was more pop gun than howitzer but to paraphrase John 4.23 ‘so cometh the hour, cometh the person’.

Chloe Reilly’s barrelling enthusiasm was evident all day in Crowe Park. Her energy remained undimmed as the clock ticked down on the conclusion of a real dogged duel.

Crosserlough, she says, “came out with all guns blazing” but, ultimately, Ballinagh’s number 13 had their number with her brace of goals shooting down the ‘lough’s brave effort to defy the odds.

“Ah, I was just in the right place at the right time to get the goals,” Reilly reflected.

“Probably nine times out of ten I wouldn’t have gotten in for a goal but we’re all delighted, absolutely over the moon to make it a junior and intermediate double this year.”

The Saffrons’ top scorer showed strength, endurance and skill at Lacken Celtic’s HQ to help get her side over the line and make honest men of the bookies. It was a laboured enough display though by the winners, she admitted:

“It took us a while to get going but a lot of that has to go own to Crosserlough because they made it hard for us as we knew they would ‘cause you’re always sure of getting a good battle, a good sporting game when you come up against them.

“But we were nice and calm in the dressing room at half-time and agreed that we would improve and do what we’ve been doing all year and that the chances would come and it was then a matter of cashing in on them,” explained the daughter of former Ballinagh stalwart and manager Willie Reilly and ex-Ballinagh camog Ann Marie (neé Duffy).

While the local turf accountants reckoned Ballinagh would indeed trim Crosserlough’s sails, was there any concern in Reilly’s mind, pre-match, that the town team would take their opponents for granted?

“No, absolutely not. Winning a county title is always hard. We were confident but not cocky going into the game. There’s a big difference between the two.

“We knew we’d have to work hard and stick to the system that has worked well for us all year and I think, after re-grouping at half-time, we got it right thankfully on both fronts in the second half.”

With Crosserlough on level terms (1-1 to 0-4) at the interval, was match winner Reilly worried by the lack of goalscoring chances created by her side in the first half?

“Not really, cause I knew that we could keep taking our points and that the goal chances would eventually come about ‘cause as the second half went on, we were getting better deliveries into the forwards and were working the ball through the hands around the middle better too.

Part of the aforementioned 2017 Junior Championship-winning Ballinagh troupe, dual star Reilly insisted that the day was all about the collective and not the individual:

“We weren’t at our best but we hung in there and came good in the end. It’s a credit to all the girls ‘cause the panel has worked so hard all year. In the end, we’ve got what we deserve.”