After round three of the St Canice’s Credit Union Senior Hurling League Mullinavat have only one win which leaves them close to the bottom of group b
Having lost very heavily to Tullaroan the previous week Mullinavat were looking to bounce back and get a performance against O Loughlin Gaels in Hugginstown on Saturday afternoon last. O Loughlin’s themselves were also looking to bounce back after a defeat to Dicksboro.
Mullinavat had made plenty of goal chances in the first half but failed to capatalize on them and there was just one point in it at the interval. After the break Mullinavat had a lucky break when Oisín Knox sent a free towards the O Loughlin goal and unfortunately for Huw Lawlor he dropped the ball into the net. O Loughlins didn’t panic and after fifty minutes Owen Wall had the Gaels moving forward and they ended up winning the game by five points.
Speaking to KCLR after the game, manager Colm O’Byrne said, “We’d be very disappointed with the result but very encouraged by the way we played particularly in terms of tackling, work-rate, physicality, last week against Tullaroan we didn’t bring any of the physicality to the game, we were flat and they were very good and we got what we deserved. This week our goal was to come out and at least not be found wanting in terms of work-rate, I feel we did that and I’m happy with that but very disappointed with the result”
“I don’t think the breeze was a huge factor in the game but I think the hurling we did in the first half we should have been further ahead at half time. I think one of them was a good save the other bounced around the square for a second it probably should have been finished, I’m very encouraged to make goal chances, but I would have loved to get one of them at least, it was great to see Oisín taking his man on at least, Huw Lawlor is a fantastic full back and he looked very solid, but I felt in those moments Oisín Knox really gave him something to think about”
“We had a very hard training session the Monday after the Tullaroan game and to be honest I didn’t say a whole lot the players did all the talking. They said themselves that game against Tullaroan wasn’t the Mullinavat performance, everyone says there big, string, physical, we didn’t hurl either, we came out today to hurl and we did, O Loughlins are a very good team, I think five points flattered them. As we go through the next two weeks our goal would be to perform against Dicksboro and Clara, at the end of the day if we loose both those games we’re still in the championship , but I think we’d be targeting to win one if not two of them”
