Intermediate Football Championship 2022
August 27: Ferns St. Aidans 1-13, Bannow-Ballymitty 1-6
NEWLY-CROWNED Pettitt’s Senior hurling champions Ferns St. Aidans got their Amber Springs and Ashdown Park Hotels Intermediate football championship campaign off to a winning start, disposing of Bannow-Ballymitty by 1-13 to 1-6 in Saturday’s Group B round one tie in sunny Bellefield.
And any question marks over whether their small-ball exploits would hamper their football credentials were quickly banished in a terrific opening quarter, with the Gorey District side hitting some top-drawer scores on the way to creating a 1-6 to nil advantage after eight minutes.
Ten of the team that created history for the parish in the hurling decider a fortnight earlier started here, with hard-working midfielder Rory Scallan the only player featuring in the same position in both codes.
That figure rose to eleven when Paul Morris was sprung from the bench in the second-half, although their mentors may be concerned by the fact they added only one more point from play after the break, from Morris, as they prepare for this weekend’s difficult assignment against Fethard.
Corey Byrne-Dunbar posted a point after only twelve seconds, and the confidence was coursing through his team-mates’ veins as the scores started flowing.
Ivan Meegan made a typical sojourn up the field from his own goal and when he slightly over-hit his delivery inside, veteran Tomás Hawkins kept the ball inside on the end line before Ryan Nolan volleyed home an improvised goal on three minutes.
The goalscorer dispossessed an opponent before booting over a nice point, and also added another from the left corner soon after.
Scallan’s crossfield pass located Niall Murphy to split the posts from the right wing, with Nolan tapping over a free to make it 1-5 to no score after seven minutes.
And arguably the score of the game arrived a minute later, as Eoin Murphy fed James Lawlor, who showed his acumen with the big ball with a peach of a strike from mid-range.
Niall Harney finally got Bannow-Ballymitty up and running after a rare Meegan miscue from a kick-out, and he added a free off the ground in the second quarter to bring up their tally of 0-2 at the break.
But Ferns’ vibrancy continued, with Chris Turner notching a point his selfless work deserved shortly before another turnover saw Nolan loft another point.
Nolan added his final submission from play, and also converted a free following a late hit on Scallan, to create a 1-10 to 0-2 half-time lead.
Ferns won’t be happy with their second-half display, however, with that Morris point arriving in injury-time as they appeared to lose their shape.
After kicking just two wides in the first-half, that figure increased to seven by the full-time whistle, and they had four miscues in a row before Nolan added his third free on 39 minutes.
Harney responded with two more at the other end, and Cathal Cummins picked off a nice point as Bannow-Ballymitty managed successive scores for the first time in the game.
Nolan brought his personal tally to 1-8 on 48 minutes, but some rare sloppy defending by his colleagues saw them concede a penalty which Harney just tucked beyond Meegan.
That reduced the deficit to 1-12 to 1-5 with ten minutes remaining, and the sides traded a point each in injury-time as Ferns claimed the spoils.
They both feature on the same double-bill in St. Patrick’s Park this Saturday, with the victors taking on Fethard at 2 p.m., and Bannow-Ballymitty tackling a Naomh Éanna side who also lost their opener.
Ferns St. Aidans: Ivan Meegan; Keith Breen, Declan Byrne, Conor Scallan; Niall Murphy (0-1), Pádraig Bolger, James Lawlor (0-1); Rory Scallan, Eoin Murphy; Tommy Dwyer, Patrick Breen (capt.), Chris Turner (0-1); Ryan Nolan (1-8, 0-4 frees), Tomás Hawkins, Corey Byrne-Dunbar (0-1). Subs. - Paul Morris (0-1) for Dwyer (41), Brian O’Neill for Byrne (44), Pádraig Kinsella for Hawkins (46), Adrian Breen for N. Murphy (55).
Bannow-Ballymitty: Philip Murphy; Seán Fleming, Jack Donohue, David White; Lorcan Breen, Kieran Butler, Jon Reville (0-1); Pierce O’Connor, Mark Wallace; Darren Cadogan, Niall Harney (1-4, 1-0 pen., 0-3 frees), Conor Anglim; Ryan Morris, Cathal Cummins (0-1), Joe Devlin. Subs. - John Mernagh for Fleming (24), Richie Walsh for Cadogan (24), Cormac McGee for O’Connor (39). Sin-bin: Jack Donohue (42).
Referee: Niall McDonald (Crossabeg-Ballymurn).
September 3: St. Mogue’s Fethard 1-13, Ferns St. Aidans 0-12
THEY WERE made sweat for long passages, but ultimately a strong fourth quarter saw Fethard maintain their unbeaten start to Group B of the Amber Springs and Ashdown Park Hotels Intermediate football championship with a 1-13 to 0-12 victory in Saturday’s competitive round two tussle at showery St. Patrick’s Park, Enniscorthy.
Despite being short a few players from their round one reversal of Bannow-Ballymitty due to various circumstances, Ferns were excellent in the first-half.
Captain Patrick Breen was the link-man between a well-organised defence and a zippy forward unit where veteran Tomás Hawkins rolled back the years with three fine points from play, all in that first half-hour as Ferns forged a 0-7 to 0-5 advantage at the break.
‘Ducker’ opened his side’s account inside two minutes after Brian O’Neill had made a vital interception of a prior Fethard attack, while Hawkins also found the range from Chris Turner’s assist to double their lead.
There aren’t many teams in this grade that can call upon a forward of such quality as John Tubritt, and he showcased his class with a pair of excellent points, one from each side to level matters by the fifth minute.
Graham O’Grady split the posts from a central position on seven minutes, and Fethard almost broke through for a goal when Ivan Meegan of Ferns was caught dallying on the ball, but a green flag was thwarted at the expense of a free that Tubritt tapped over.
Ferns responded as Patrick Breen converted a free following a foul on Turner, and he also punished an overcarrying offence as his free just about squeaked over the crossbar on 14 minutes.
Meegan and Corey Byrne-Dunbar, who got through a mountain of work in his unfamiliar posting of midfield, combined to set up Breen for the lead point two minutes later, only for Tubritt to respond with a masterly score off the left wing.
However, Jason Maguire produced an excellent catch from the follow-up restart as Ryan Nolan found the range for the first time, while a quick free from Breen allowed Hawkins to pick off his third to create that 0-7 to 0-5 advantage at the change of ends.
Tubritt scored his fourth point from play five minutes into the new half, and in the grand scheme of things, the Fethard goal that followed soon after was the catalyst for victory.
And it came from avoidable circumstances, as Meegan caught an under-hit Tubritt free under the crossbar.
And when he carried the ball out of his area, his attempted handpass to a team-mate was seized upon by Cian Byrne, and the young livewire eventually finished to the empty net.
Nolan fired over a top-drawer point and also won a free that Breen converted, before Pádraig Bolger fed Nolan to do the business again and restore parity at 1-7 to 0-10 after 47 minutes.
Crucially though, Fethard hit back with three points in a row, the first a disputed effort by Tubritt, with Adam Swan and Byrne following to create a three-point gap.
Meegan fired over a ’45, but the experience Fethard have gained from years of competing at Senior level came to the fore in injury-time as they hit three of the last four points to make it two wins from two ahead of this Friday’s key clash with Naomh Éanna.
Richie Waters (free), Byrne and substitute Garrett Foley were the contributors late on, meaning Ferns will be looking to get back to winning ways against Ballyhogue this Saturday evening.
Ferns St. Aidans: Ivan Meegan (0-1 ’45); Brian O’Neill, Keith Breen, Conor Scallan; Pádraig Kinsella, Pádraig Bolger, James Lawlor; Patrick Breen (0-5, 4 frees), Corey Byrne-Dunbar; Ciarán Roberts, Tommy Dwyer, Chris Turner; Jason Maguire, Ryan Nolan (0-3), Tomás Hawkins (0-3). Subs. - Paul Morris for Roberts (37), Adrian Breen for Turner (56).
Fethard: William Doyle; Christopher Molloy, Daniel Mullan, Martin Doyle; Seán Nunan, Adam O’Grady, Adam Swan (0-1); Jake Molloy, Joe Sutton; Morgan Ellis, Bryan Power, Cian Byrne (1-2); John Tubritt (0-7, 1 free, 1 mark), Richie Waters (0-1 free), Graham O’Grady (0-1). Subs. - Eddie Power for M. Doyle (49), Garrett Foley (capt., 0-1) for Ellis (54), Eoin Whelan for Molloy (59).
Referee: Matty Kinnaird (Starlights).
September 10: Ferns St. Aidans 2-13, Ballyhogue 1-7
Ferns St. Aidans got back to winning ways in a competitive Group B, making it two wins from three in the Amber Springs and Ashdown Park Hotels intermediate football championship after a 2-13 to 1-7 victory over Ballyhogue in Saturday’s round three tie in sunny St. Patrick’s Park, Enniscorthy.
Their biggest winning margin to date was borne out of an insatiable workrate up front, and they also pressed Ballyhogue’s kick-outs in the second-half to great effect as they brushed off the concession of a 38th-minute Shane Doyle goal to reassert with composure.
A rather tentative opening saw both sides kick a wide apiece, Dean Doyle for Ballyhogue and Patrick Breen from a free for Ferns, before Niall Murphy annexed a restart along the stand side and fed Corey Byrne-Dunbar to fire over confidently on five minutes.
Ballyhogue’s set-up is designed to frustrate opponents, but perhaps lacks a little pizzazz up front, and they certainly held up their end of the bargain as only one more point was scored from open play before half-time.
Noel Roche converted a free off the ground on nine minutes, with Breen making amends for his earlier miss with a successful free after Eoin Murphy was fouled.
Ryan Nolan was also impeded as Breen made it 0-3 to 0-1 on 14 minutes, and two more placed-ball conversions followed from the captain as the gap slowly grew to 0-5 to 0-1.
Roche punished a foul on Eamon Doyle to peg back one for the ’Hogues, only for Breen to knock over what proved to be his last free shortly before notching one from play after substitute Conor Scallan and Ciarán Roberts forced a turnover.
That made it 0-7 to 0-2 at the interval, but for the third game on the trot, Ferns were slow out of the traps on the restart.
Graham Parker and Shane Doyle both kicked over inspired points from distance, although a quick free from Ryan Nolan at the other end aided county hurler Paul Morris in finding the range.
And after James Lawlor narrowly missed a glorious goal chance, Ballyhogue were further encouraged when a sideline ball was gathered by Shane Doyle, who had drifted inside without being picked up, and he smashed home an excellent goal at the dressing-room end to cut the gap to the minimum after 38 minutes (0-8 to 1-4).
To be fair to the Gorey District side, their response was excellent thereafter, and it was the sort of efficient riposte that could make them serious contenders for this championship.
Byrne-Dunbar benefited from some excellent retrieval work by Ryan Nolan to point, with the latter booting over off his instep after a quick feed from a Breen free.
Ferns’ aerial dominance continued as Morris lofted over shortly before Chris Turner got in on the act after forcing a turnover. Doyle converted a mark to briefly halt the charge, but Byrne-Dunbar quickly added 1-1 to put the game beyond Ballyhogue.
And his goal came about through some of that aforementioned workrate, as substitute Tommy Dwyer stole possession and released the young flyer into the open ground to goal with authority. And another replacement made an impact off the bench too, as Morris and Turner combined to tee up Tomás Hawkins for a close-range finish at the far post to seal the deal.
Both sides are back in St. Patrick’s Park this Saturday, with Ballyhogue in desperate need of a win against improving Bannow-Ballymitty, and Ferns taking on District rivals Naomh Éanna afterwards.
Ferns St. Aidans: Ivan Meegan; Keith Breen, Declan Byrne, Brian O’Neill; Niall Murphy, Pádraig Bolger, James Lawlor; Rory Scallan, Eoin Murphy; Ciarán Roberts, Patrick Breen (capt., 0-6, 5 frees), Chris Turner (0-1); Paul Morris (0-2), Ryan Nolan (0-1), Corey Byrne-Dunbar (1-3). Subs. - Conor Scallan for R. Scallan, inj. (26), Tommy Dwyer for Roberts (49), Pádraig Kinsella for O’Neill (53), Tomás Hawkins (1-0) for Byrne-Dunbar (58).
Ballyhogue: Daire Cloke-Rochford; James Parle, Seán Rochford, Colm Parnell; Eamon Doyle, Graham Parker (0-1), Conor Dawson; Shane Doyle (capt., 1-2, 0-1 mark), Conor Byrne; Liam Rossiter, Peter Kelly, Enda Minogue; Noel Roche (0-4, 3 frees), Liam Doyle, Dean Doyle. Subs. - Eddie Galavan for Kelly (41), David Hennebry for Parker (45), John Kehoe for Byrne (47), Parker for S. Doyle (57).
Referee: James Mullally (Gusserane).
September 17: Naomh Éanna 1-12, Ferns St. Aidans 0-12
An absorbing Gorey District derby was ultimately decided by a late goal from substitute J.J. Twamley, as the teenager propelled Naomh Éanna to a crucial 1-12 to 0-12 victory over Ferns St. Aidans in Saturday’s Amber Springs and Ashdown Park Hotels Intermediate football championship round four Group B tie in St. Patrick’s Park.
In a game that amounted to a chess match for long stretches, with both sides trying to tease the other out and pounce on the counter-attack, Ferns looked to have timed their run to perfection as three points on the bounce saw them edge in front by 0-12 to 0-11 with two minutes of regulation time remaining.
But Gorey remained patient, with David O’Brien making room for himself to swing over a nice leveller, before Twamley put the seal on the contest with a goal from his first involvement.
Victory sees Naomh Éanna sit in second place in a water-tight group, one point better off in third than Ferns, who need at least a draw against Clongeen this Sunday to secure their passage into the last eight.
Naomh Éanna got up and running when rampaging wing-back Brian Cushe set up Cian Molloy for their opener on two minutes, and Paul Murphy added another in the next attack.
Cushe’s willing runs into an ocean of space in the first-half, after Ferns had committed bodies forward, proved a key component to Naomh Éanna’s play, although it must be noted that Ferns shut that avenue off in the second-half after re-calibrating at the break.
Paul Morris responded with Ferns’ ice-breaker on three minutes, and he gave his immediate marker a torrid time early on as he swung over his second soon after.
But Gorey’s system started to click into gear, and they deservedly developed a 0-5 to 0-2 lead by the 18th minute, with Ferns kicking all five of their wides in between.
Molloy struck over a free to make it 0-3 to 0-2 on six minutes, while some good work by Pádraig Doyle teed up Cian Browne to point off the left.
Another efficient counter-attack allowed the speedy Jack Doran to hit their fifth point, with Ferns responding when Niall Murphy was fouled and Patrick Breen converted the resultant free.
Breen was also successful after Ryan Nolan was held, although Naomh Éanna opened up a two-point advantage by half-time when substitute Cian Ó Tuama’s effort just squeaked over the bar.
Breen supplied two more frees on the restart either side of Rían Fitzpatrick registering from play, while David O’Brien opened his own account from a placed ball to make it 0-8 to 0-6 after 37 minutes.
Breen (free) and Molloy swapped points before Nolan booted over spectacularly after almost creating an opening for Ian Byrne earlier in the move, and Corey Byrne-Dunbar fired over a half-goal chance when the follow-up restart went awry.
O’Brien added two more frees as Naomh Éanna edged 0-11 to 0-9 in front again, but Ferns hit back to go ahead for the first time.
A tackle from Conor Scallan preceded Breen scoring his sole effort from play, while a key interception from James Lawlor led to Morris kicking the equaliser with five minutes to go.
And when Chris Turner’s shot was deflected out for a ’45, Ivan Meegan held his nerve for the lead point, only for Twamley to have the final say with a postage-stamp finish after a late turnover.
Ferns St. Aidans: Ivan Meegan (0-1 ’45); Keith Breen, Declan Byrne, Conor Scallan; Brian O’Neill, Pádraig Bolger, James Lawlor; Niall Murphy, Eoin Murphy; Tommy Dwyer, Patrick Breen (capt., 0-6, 5 frees), Chris Turner; Paul Morris (0-3), Ryan Nolan (0-1), Corey Byrne-Dunbar (0-1). Subs. - James Tonks for E. Murphy, inj. (9), Tomás Hawkins for Dwyer (HT), Ian Byrne for O’Neill (46), Pádraig Kinsella for K. Breen (50). Sin-bin: Ivan Meegan (60+3).
Naomh Éanna: Rory Tubritt; Conor Kelly, Tom Stafford (capt.), Seamus O’Donnell; Pádraig Doyle, Charlie McGuckin, Brian Cushe; Rían Fitzpatrick (0-1), Cathal Stokes; Aodhán Doyle, Jack Doran (0-1), Cian Browne (0-1); Cian Molloy (0-3, 1 free), Paul Murphy (0-1), David O’Brien (0-4, 3 frees). Subs. - Cian Ó Tuama (0-1) for Stafford (16), Dylan Cooke-Leonard for Molloy (47), Luke Darley for A. Doyle (52), J.J. Twamley (1-0) for Browne (59).
Referee: James Owens (Kilrush).
September 25: Clongeen 0-10, Ferns St. Aidans 0-8
Clongeen produced a strong finish to notch the win they needed to ensure their progress into the quarter-finals of the Amber Springs and Ashdown Park Hotels Intermediate football championship, with the New Ross District side edging Ferns St. Aidans by 0-10 to 0-8 in Sunday’s conclusion to Group B in Oylegate.
They now have a last eight clash with Ross District rivals Rathgarogue-Cushinstown to prepare for, and after Naomh Éanna did them a favour by beating Ballyhogue on the same afternoon, the losers have the daunting task of taking on unbeaten Horeswood.
Clongeen got up and running inside 90 seconds when Darryl Murphy was fed in the right corner and he swung over confidently, only for Ferns to hit back to develop a 0-3 to 0-1 lead by the end of the first quarter.
A patient move saw James Lawlor eventually inject a bit of pace into proceedings on the way to aiding Ian Byrne to register on his first start of the campaign, while Corey Byrne-Dunbar got on the end of another pattern of play to fire over their second.
A late hit on Keith Breen allowed Ivan Meegan to thud over the resultant free, but Murphy went on an enterprising run from the right wing into a more central position before firing over excellently.
Pádraig Bolger played a key role in Ferns’ next two scores, intercepting in the lead-up to Lawlor swinging over from the stand side, and producing a selfless block as Paul Morris teed up Byrne-Dunbar to make it 0-5 to 0-2.
Emmet Kent picked off a response for Clongeen after latching onto a breaking ball, but after Adam Ryan was wide from a free, Byrne-Dunbar won the follow-up kick-out as Morris hit the first of his three points.
His second arrived shortly before half-time after some good work by Niall Murphy, with Shane Kilkenny venturing forward to peg one back for Clongeen to cut the gap to 0-7 to 0-4 at the change of ends.
But not for the first time in an inconsistent season, Ferns were very slow out of the traps on the restart, and would only score once more in the entire second-half as Clongeen systematically wore them down with a rigid system.
It took the Geeners all of 23 seconds to register in the new half when Murphy punished a sloppy handpass, with two Ferns wides following before Murphy assisted Jamesie Rochford to make it 0-7 to 0-6 after 41 minutes.
Kent provided the leveller when he pounced on a stray kick-out and split the posts with confidence, and after a brief Ferns goal chance went a begging, Clongeen edged ahead for the second time on 44 minutes through Kilkenny.
Ferns responded almost immediately when Ian Byrne off-loaded to Morris, but they were set for more frustration as Clongeen gradually turned the screw.
Ryan held his nerve from a free to open up a slender 0-9 to 0-8 lead with twelve minutes remaining, and with news filtering through of a close game unfolding in Bellefield, the nerves were palpable in the Ferns camp.
Meanwhile, Jamesie Rochford doubled his side’s advantage when punting over five minutes from time, and they hung on for a precious win to ultimately leap-frog their opponents in the final standings.
After two wins and a draw from five games, the reigning Intermediate ‘A’ football champions appear to be in decent stead entering that aforementioned clash with Rathgarogue-Cushinstown, while Ferns chose an inopportune moment to register their lowest tally of the group stages.
Ferns St. Aidans: Ivan Meegan (0-1 free); Keith Breen, Declan Byrne, Conor Scallan; Niall Murphy, Pádraig Bolger, James Lawlor (0-1); Patrick Breen (capt.), Chris Turner; Tommy Dwyer, Paul Morris (0-3), Ciarán Roberts; Tomás Hawkins, Ian Byrne (0-1), Corey Byrne-Dunbar (0-2). Subs. - Brian O’Neill for Dwyer (51), Pádraig Kinsella for Hawkins (59).
Clongeen: Ricky Rochford; Donal Whelan, Enda Murphy, Jamie Keating (capt.); Paudie Cahill, Michael Dundon, Shane Kilkenny (0-2); Páraic Cullen, Emmet Kent (0-2); Ger Foxe, Jamesie Rochford (0-2), Marty Reville; Darryl Murphy (0-3), Adam Ryan (0-1 free), Leon Stafford. Subs. - Robbie Rochford for Stafford (48), Nigel Kehoe for Reville (50), Peter Anthony Wall for Ryan (55), Cian Murphy-Kehoe for Kilkenny (59).
Referee: Stephen Burke (Volunteers).
October 2, quarter-final: Horeswood 3-8, Ferns St. Aidans 2-8
If Horeswood manage to emerge from the New Ross District minefield that awaits and make an immediate return to top-flight football, they will surely thank Ferns St. Aidans for the type of tough assignment they presented in Sunday’s quarter-final of the Amber Springs and Ashdown Park Hotels Intermediate championship in Chadwicks Wexford Park.
The unlucky 2020 runners-up make no secret of their preference for hurling, and yet they had the opportunity to dump one of the big guns when they moved into a 2-8 to 2-5 lead with a well-worked goal at the start of the third quarter.
A shot dropped short by Conor Foley served as an invitation for Ferns netminder Ivan Meegan to set off on one of his regular downfield sorties on the left flank.
And when his pass was touched away from the advancing Barry Hearn by Chris Turner, an overlap was created and the double-seeking Senior hurling champions made the most of it.
Turner delivered inside to earlier goalscorer Ryan Nolan and although his shot was saved by John Bradley, the rebound was tucked away soccer-style by Corey Byrne-Dunbar.
No doubt Ferns will look back and think, “if only we had been able to hold on to that lead for a while”.
Instead, there was an instant response from Horeswood, with P.J. Banville popping the final pass inside for substitute Ryan Harris to arrive like a train and ram home the equalising goal scarcely 70 seconds later (3-5 to 2-8).
Ferns squandered a couple of chances to regain the lead, with a shot dropped short before the last of their eight wides arrived, and their rivals finally got the points that mattered between the 53rd and 59th minutes to leave them a relieved bunch at the finish.
An element of good fortune surrounded their lead score, as Jamie Myler ballooned the ball into the air but the situation was retrieved via a catch and composed finish from captain Declan Murphy.
A sloppy Ferns pass was then punished, with young Cathal Parker finishing an attack involving Conor Foley and Seán Nolan, before P.J. Banville closed the scoring from a free after a foul on the latter.
It wasn’t vintage Horeswood by any means, and they won’t need to be reminded of that, even though their start was perfect as Seán Nolan palmed in a goal from a popped Declan Murphy pass after a mere 86 seconds.
Wing-back Joe O’Sullivan followed with a point, but Ferns made the most of their chances for the remainder of a half that ended with the sides deadlocked on 1-4 each.
Horeswood hit six wides to just one in response before the break and, unusually for a forward line of generally high calibre, none of the starting sextet scored from play in that spell (number 10 Nolan started at midfield).
John Bradley had to make a good close-range save to foil Ian Byrne before the first Ferns point arrived from a Patrick Breen free, and they provided dogged opposition for the rest of the contest.
Horeswood fluffed a goal chance after a Seán Nolan interception, with P.J. Banville unable to get a hand on a Cathal Parker pass, but the veteran did open his account from a free earned by Jack Kehoe in the twelfth minute (1-2 to 0-1). Ryan Nolan beat Gavin Murphy to an Ian Byrne delivery but had a shot smothered before Niall Murphy hared down the right flank and picked off a neat point.
Banville and Breen swapped points from frees before Nolan narrowed the gap to 1-3 to 0-4, and the former county footballer was also the man responsible for giving Ferns the lead for the first time in the 26th minute.
His goal came out of nothing and was a cracking finish, as Corey Byrne-Dunbar and Ian Byrne combined before Nolan cracked a powerful drive beyond John Bradley.
Horeswood had already lost David Larkin to injury, and they were fortunate when Nolan chose to hit another shot early in additional time and Shane O’Hanlon raised a hand and made a crucial block.
A late Jamie Myler free ensured parity at the break (1-4 each), but Corey Byrne-Dunbar edged Ferns back in front on the restart before they conceded a second goal after a mere 77 seconds.
Declan Murphy appeared to have run out of road on a solo run, but he managed to create some space and spotted P.J. Banville unmarked in front of the posts.
There was only ever going to be one outcome from that scenario, and Horeswood were back in front by 2-4 to 1-5.
Banville added a point from play, but Ferns impressed over the next twelve minutes as 1-3 without reply left them with the chance of causing an upset.
Paul Morris cleverly pulled first-time over the bar after spilling the ball, and he then slipped a pass to Ryan Nolan for a point before the latter kicked the leveller.
Nolan had earlier drilled a low shot across goal and wide, but when Corey Byrne-Dunbar finished the rebound to his next effort, Horeswood had it all to do.
They produced the goods when the pressure was on to their credit, and now the next target is to repeat their 1-11 to 1-10 first round win over Rathgarogue-Cushinstown in the first of Saturday’s semi-finals in New Ross. While they will be favourites, it will take a much better overall display than this one to get that difficult job done.
Ferns St. Aidans: Ivan Meegan; Conor Scallan, Declan Byrne, Keith Breen; Niall Murphy (0-1), James Tonks, James Lawlor; Pádraig Bolger, Eoin Murphy; Patrick Breen (capt., 0-2 frees), Paul Morris (0-1), Chris Turner; Corey Byrne-Dunbar (1-1), Ian Byrne, Ryan Nolan (1-3). Subs. – Brian O’Neill for Lawlor, inj. (41), Rory Scallan for E. Murphy (56).
Horeswood: John Bradley; Gavin Murphy, Shane O’Hanlon, Jason Murphy; Joe O’Sullivan (0-1), Barry Hearn, Conor Foley; Seán Nolan (1-0), Jack Kehoe; Jamie Myler (0-1 free), Declan Murphy (capt., 0-1), David Larkin; Cathal Parker (0-1), P.J. Banville (1-4, 0-3 frees), Adam Harris. Subs. – Colin Nolan for Larkin, inj. (21), Ryan Harris (1-0) for G. Murphy (35), Darragh Flannelly for Myler (55).
Referee: Fintan O’Reilly (Kilmore).
NEWLY-CROWNED Pettitt’s Senior hurling champions Ferns St. Aidans got their Amber Springs and Ashdown Park Hotels Intermediate football championship campaign off to a winning start, disposing of Bannow-Ballymitty by 1-13 to 1-6 in Saturday’s Group B round one tie in sunny Bellefield.
And any question marks over whether their small-ball exploits would hamper their football credentials were quickly banished in a terrific opening quarter, with the Gorey District side hitting some top-drawer scores on the way to creating a 1-6 to nil advantage after eight minutes.
Ten of the team that created history for the parish in the hurling decider a fortnight earlier started here, with hard-working midfielder Rory Scallan the only player featuring in the same position in both codes.
That figure rose to eleven when Paul Morris was sprung from the bench in the second-half, although their mentors may be concerned by the fact they added only one more point from play after the break, from Morris, as they prepare for this weekend’s difficult assignment against Fethard.
Corey Byrne-Dunbar posted a point after only twelve seconds, and the confidence was coursing through his team-mates’ veins as the scores started flowing.
Ivan Meegan made a typical sojourn up the field from his own goal and when he slightly over-hit his delivery inside, veteran Tomás Hawkins kept the ball inside on the end line before Ryan Nolan volleyed home an improvised goal on three minutes.
The goalscorer dispossessed an opponent before booting over a nice point, and also added another from the left corner soon after.
Scallan’s crossfield pass located Niall Murphy to split the posts from the right wing, with Nolan tapping over a free to make it 1-5 to no score after seven minutes.
And arguably the score of the game arrived a minute later, as Eoin Murphy fed James Lawlor, who showed his acumen with the big ball with a peach of a strike from mid-range.
Niall Harney finally got Bannow-Ballymitty up and running after a rare Meegan miscue from a kick-out, and he added a free off the ground in the second quarter to bring up their tally of 0-2 at the break.
But Ferns’ vibrancy continued, with Chris Turner notching a point his selfless work deserved shortly before another turnover saw Nolan loft another point.
Nolan added his final submission from play, and also converted a free following a late hit on Scallan, to create a 1-10 to 0-2 half-time lead.
Ferns won’t be happy with their second-half display, however, with that Morris point arriving in injury-time as they appeared to lose their shape.
After kicking just two wides in the first-half, that figure increased to seven by the full-time whistle, and they had four miscues in a row before Nolan added his third free on 39 minutes.
Harney responded with two more at the other end, and Cathal Cummins picked off a nice point as Bannow-Ballymitty managed successive scores for the first time in the game.
Nolan brought his personal tally to 1-8 on 48 minutes, but some rare sloppy defending by his colleagues saw them concede a penalty which Harney just tucked beyond Meegan.
That reduced the deficit to 1-12 to 1-5 with ten minutes remaining, and the sides traded a point each in injury-time as Ferns claimed the spoils.
They both feature on the same double-bill in St. Patrick’s Park this Saturday, with the victors taking on Fethard at 2 p.m., and Bannow-Ballymitty tackling a Naomh Éanna side who also lost their opener.
Ferns St. Aidans: Ivan Meegan; Keith Breen, Declan Byrne, Conor Scallan; Niall Murphy (0-1), Pádraig Bolger, James Lawlor (0-1); Rory Scallan, Eoin Murphy; Tommy Dwyer, Patrick Breen (capt.), Chris Turner (0-1); Ryan Nolan (1-8, 0-4 frees), Tomás Hawkins, Corey Byrne-Dunbar (0-1). Subs. - Paul Morris (0-1) for Dwyer (41), Brian O’Neill for Byrne (44), Pádraig Kinsella for Hawkins (46), Adrian Breen for N. Murphy (55).
Bannow-Ballymitty: Philip Murphy; Seán Fleming, Jack Donohue, David White; Lorcan Breen, Kieran Butler, Jon Reville (0-1); Pierce O’Connor, Mark Wallace; Darren Cadogan, Niall Harney (1-4, 1-0 pen., 0-3 frees), Conor Anglim; Ryan Morris, Cathal Cummins (0-1), Joe Devlin. Subs. - John Mernagh for Fleming (24), Richie Walsh for Cadogan (24), Cormac McGee for O’Connor (39). Sin-bin: Jack Donohue (42).
Referee: Niall McDonald (Crossabeg-Ballymurn).
September 3: St. Mogue’s Fethard 1-13, Ferns St. Aidans 0-12
THEY WERE made sweat for long passages, but ultimately a strong fourth quarter saw Fethard maintain their unbeaten start to Group B of the Amber Springs and Ashdown Park Hotels Intermediate football championship with a 1-13 to 0-12 victory in Saturday’s competitive round two tussle at showery St. Patrick’s Park, Enniscorthy.
Despite being short a few players from their round one reversal of Bannow-Ballymitty due to various circumstances, Ferns were excellent in the first-half.
Captain Patrick Breen was the link-man between a well-organised defence and a zippy forward unit where veteran Tomás Hawkins rolled back the years with three fine points from play, all in that first half-hour as Ferns forged a 0-7 to 0-5 advantage at the break.
‘Ducker’ opened his side’s account inside two minutes after Brian O’Neill had made a vital interception of a prior Fethard attack, while Hawkins also found the range from Chris Turner’s assist to double their lead.
There aren’t many teams in this grade that can call upon a forward of such quality as John Tubritt, and he showcased his class with a pair of excellent points, one from each side to level matters by the fifth minute.
Graham O’Grady split the posts from a central position on seven minutes, and Fethard almost broke through for a goal when Ivan Meegan of Ferns was caught dallying on the ball, but a green flag was thwarted at the expense of a free that Tubritt tapped over.
Ferns responded as Patrick Breen converted a free following a foul on Turner, and he also punished an overcarrying offence as his free just about squeaked over the crossbar on 14 minutes.
Meegan and Corey Byrne-Dunbar, who got through a mountain of work in his unfamiliar posting of midfield, combined to set up Breen for the lead point two minutes later, only for Tubritt to respond with a masterly score off the left wing.
However, Jason Maguire produced an excellent catch from the follow-up restart as Ryan Nolan found the range for the first time, while a quick free from Breen allowed Hawkins to pick off his third to create that 0-7 to 0-5 advantage at the change of ends.
Tubritt scored his fourth point from play five minutes into the new half, and in the grand scheme of things, the Fethard goal that followed soon after was the catalyst for victory.
And it came from avoidable circumstances, as Meegan caught an under-hit Tubritt free under the crossbar.
And when he carried the ball out of his area, his attempted handpass to a team-mate was seized upon by Cian Byrne, and the young livewire eventually finished to the empty net.
Nolan fired over a top-drawer point and also won a free that Breen converted, before Pádraig Bolger fed Nolan to do the business again and restore parity at 1-7 to 0-10 after 47 minutes.
Crucially though, Fethard hit back with three points in a row, the first a disputed effort by Tubritt, with Adam Swan and Byrne following to create a three-point gap.
Meegan fired over a ’45, but the experience Fethard have gained from years of competing at Senior level came to the fore in injury-time as they hit three of the last four points to make it two wins from two ahead of this Friday’s key clash with Naomh Éanna.
Richie Waters (free), Byrne and substitute Garrett Foley were the contributors late on, meaning Ferns will be looking to get back to winning ways against Ballyhogue this Saturday evening.
Ferns St. Aidans: Ivan Meegan (0-1 ’45); Brian O’Neill, Keith Breen, Conor Scallan; Pádraig Kinsella, Pádraig Bolger, James Lawlor; Patrick Breen (0-5, 4 frees), Corey Byrne-Dunbar; Ciarán Roberts, Tommy Dwyer, Chris Turner; Jason Maguire, Ryan Nolan (0-3), Tomás Hawkins (0-3). Subs. - Paul Morris for Roberts (37), Adrian Breen for Turner (56).
Fethard: William Doyle; Christopher Molloy, Daniel Mullan, Martin Doyle; Seán Nunan, Adam O’Grady, Adam Swan (0-1); Jake Molloy, Joe Sutton; Morgan Ellis, Bryan Power, Cian Byrne (1-2); John Tubritt (0-7, 1 free, 1 mark), Richie Waters (0-1 free), Graham O’Grady (0-1). Subs. - Eddie Power for M. Doyle (49), Garrett Foley (capt., 0-1) for Ellis (54), Eoin Whelan for Molloy (59).
Referee: Matty Kinnaird (Starlights).
September 10: Ferns St. Aidans 2-13, Ballyhogue 1-7
Ferns St. Aidans got back to winning ways in a competitive Group B, making it two wins from three in the Amber Springs and Ashdown Park Hotels intermediate football championship after a 2-13 to 1-7 victory over Ballyhogue in Saturday’s round three tie in sunny St. Patrick’s Park, Enniscorthy.
Their biggest winning margin to date was borne out of an insatiable workrate up front, and they also pressed Ballyhogue’s kick-outs in the second-half to great effect as they brushed off the concession of a 38th-minute Shane Doyle goal to reassert with composure.
A rather tentative opening saw both sides kick a wide apiece, Dean Doyle for Ballyhogue and Patrick Breen from a free for Ferns, before Niall Murphy annexed a restart along the stand side and fed Corey Byrne-Dunbar to fire over confidently on five minutes.
Ballyhogue’s set-up is designed to frustrate opponents, but perhaps lacks a little pizzazz up front, and they certainly held up their end of the bargain as only one more point was scored from open play before half-time.
Noel Roche converted a free off the ground on nine minutes, with Breen making amends for his earlier miss with a successful free after Eoin Murphy was fouled.
Ryan Nolan was also impeded as Breen made it 0-3 to 0-1 on 14 minutes, and two more placed-ball conversions followed from the captain as the gap slowly grew to 0-5 to 0-1.
Roche punished a foul on Eamon Doyle to peg back one for the ’Hogues, only for Breen to knock over what proved to be his last free shortly before notching one from play after substitute Conor Scallan and Ciarán Roberts forced a turnover.
That made it 0-7 to 0-2 at the interval, but for the third game on the trot, Ferns were slow out of the traps on the restart.
Graham Parker and Shane Doyle both kicked over inspired points from distance, although a quick free from Ryan Nolan at the other end aided county hurler Paul Morris in finding the range.
And after James Lawlor narrowly missed a glorious goal chance, Ballyhogue were further encouraged when a sideline ball was gathered by Shane Doyle, who had drifted inside without being picked up, and he smashed home an excellent goal at the dressing-room end to cut the gap to the minimum after 38 minutes (0-8 to 1-4).
To be fair to the Gorey District side, their response was excellent thereafter, and it was the sort of efficient riposte that could make them serious contenders for this championship.
Byrne-Dunbar benefited from some excellent retrieval work by Ryan Nolan to point, with the latter booting over off his instep after a quick feed from a Breen free.
Ferns’ aerial dominance continued as Morris lofted over shortly before Chris Turner got in on the act after forcing a turnover. Doyle converted a mark to briefly halt the charge, but Byrne-Dunbar quickly added 1-1 to put the game beyond Ballyhogue.
And his goal came about through some of that aforementioned workrate, as substitute Tommy Dwyer stole possession and released the young flyer into the open ground to goal with authority. And another replacement made an impact off the bench too, as Morris and Turner combined to tee up Tomás Hawkins for a close-range finish at the far post to seal the deal.
Both sides are back in St. Patrick’s Park this Saturday, with Ballyhogue in desperate need of a win against improving Bannow-Ballymitty, and Ferns taking on District rivals Naomh Éanna afterwards.
Ferns St. Aidans: Ivan Meegan; Keith Breen, Declan Byrne, Brian O’Neill; Niall Murphy, Pádraig Bolger, James Lawlor; Rory Scallan, Eoin Murphy; Ciarán Roberts, Patrick Breen (capt., 0-6, 5 frees), Chris Turner (0-1); Paul Morris (0-2), Ryan Nolan (0-1), Corey Byrne-Dunbar (1-3). Subs. - Conor Scallan for R. Scallan, inj. (26), Tommy Dwyer for Roberts (49), Pádraig Kinsella for O’Neill (53), Tomás Hawkins (1-0) for Byrne-Dunbar (58).
Ballyhogue: Daire Cloke-Rochford; James Parle, Seán Rochford, Colm Parnell; Eamon Doyle, Graham Parker (0-1), Conor Dawson; Shane Doyle (capt., 1-2, 0-1 mark), Conor Byrne; Liam Rossiter, Peter Kelly, Enda Minogue; Noel Roche (0-4, 3 frees), Liam Doyle, Dean Doyle. Subs. - Eddie Galavan for Kelly (41), David Hennebry for Parker (45), John Kehoe for Byrne (47), Parker for S. Doyle (57).
Referee: James Mullally (Gusserane).
September 17: Naomh Éanna 1-12, Ferns St. Aidans 0-12
An absorbing Gorey District derby was ultimately decided by a late goal from substitute J.J. Twamley, as the teenager propelled Naomh Éanna to a crucial 1-12 to 0-12 victory over Ferns St. Aidans in Saturday’s Amber Springs and Ashdown Park Hotels Intermediate football championship round four Group B tie in St. Patrick’s Park.
In a game that amounted to a chess match for long stretches, with both sides trying to tease the other out and pounce on the counter-attack, Ferns looked to have timed their run to perfection as three points on the bounce saw them edge in front by 0-12 to 0-11 with two minutes of regulation time remaining.
But Gorey remained patient, with David O’Brien making room for himself to swing over a nice leveller, before Twamley put the seal on the contest with a goal from his first involvement.
Victory sees Naomh Éanna sit in second place in a water-tight group, one point better off in third than Ferns, who need at least a draw against Clongeen this Sunday to secure their passage into the last eight.
Naomh Éanna got up and running when rampaging wing-back Brian Cushe set up Cian Molloy for their opener on two minutes, and Paul Murphy added another in the next attack.
Cushe’s willing runs into an ocean of space in the first-half, after Ferns had committed bodies forward, proved a key component to Naomh Éanna’s play, although it must be noted that Ferns shut that avenue off in the second-half after re-calibrating at the break.
Paul Morris responded with Ferns’ ice-breaker on three minutes, and he gave his immediate marker a torrid time early on as he swung over his second soon after.
But Gorey’s system started to click into gear, and they deservedly developed a 0-5 to 0-2 lead by the 18th minute, with Ferns kicking all five of their wides in between.
Molloy struck over a free to make it 0-3 to 0-2 on six minutes, while some good work by Pádraig Doyle teed up Cian Browne to point off the left.
Another efficient counter-attack allowed the speedy Jack Doran to hit their fifth point, with Ferns responding when Niall Murphy was fouled and Patrick Breen converted the resultant free.
Breen was also successful after Ryan Nolan was held, although Naomh Éanna opened up a two-point advantage by half-time when substitute Cian Ó Tuama’s effort just squeaked over the bar.
Breen supplied two more frees on the restart either side of Rían Fitzpatrick registering from play, while David O’Brien opened his own account from a placed ball to make it 0-8 to 0-6 after 37 minutes.
Breen (free) and Molloy swapped points before Nolan booted over spectacularly after almost creating an opening for Ian Byrne earlier in the move, and Corey Byrne-Dunbar fired over a half-goal chance when the follow-up restart went awry.
O’Brien added two more frees as Naomh Éanna edged 0-11 to 0-9 in front again, but Ferns hit back to go ahead for the first time.
A tackle from Conor Scallan preceded Breen scoring his sole effort from play, while a key interception from James Lawlor led to Morris kicking the equaliser with five minutes to go.
And when Chris Turner’s shot was deflected out for a ’45, Ivan Meegan held his nerve for the lead point, only for Twamley to have the final say with a postage-stamp finish after a late turnover.
Ferns St. Aidans: Ivan Meegan (0-1 ’45); Keith Breen, Declan Byrne, Conor Scallan; Brian O’Neill, Pádraig Bolger, James Lawlor; Niall Murphy, Eoin Murphy; Tommy Dwyer, Patrick Breen (capt., 0-6, 5 frees), Chris Turner; Paul Morris (0-3), Ryan Nolan (0-1), Corey Byrne-Dunbar (0-1). Subs. - James Tonks for E. Murphy, inj. (9), Tomás Hawkins for Dwyer (HT), Ian Byrne for O’Neill (46), Pádraig Kinsella for K. Breen (50). Sin-bin: Ivan Meegan (60+3).
Naomh Éanna: Rory Tubritt; Conor Kelly, Tom Stafford (capt.), Seamus O’Donnell; Pádraig Doyle, Charlie McGuckin, Brian Cushe; Rían Fitzpatrick (0-1), Cathal Stokes; Aodhán Doyle, Jack Doran (0-1), Cian Browne (0-1); Cian Molloy (0-3, 1 free), Paul Murphy (0-1), David O’Brien (0-4, 3 frees). Subs. - Cian Ó Tuama (0-1) for Stafford (16), Dylan Cooke-Leonard for Molloy (47), Luke Darley for A. Doyle (52), J.J. Twamley (1-0) for Browne (59).
Referee: James Owens (Kilrush).
September 25: Clongeen 0-10, Ferns St. Aidans 0-8
Clongeen produced a strong finish to notch the win they needed to ensure their progress into the quarter-finals of the Amber Springs and Ashdown Park Hotels Intermediate football championship, with the New Ross District side edging Ferns St. Aidans by 0-10 to 0-8 in Sunday’s conclusion to Group B in Oylegate.
They now have a last eight clash with Ross District rivals Rathgarogue-Cushinstown to prepare for, and after Naomh Éanna did them a favour by beating Ballyhogue on the same afternoon, the losers have the daunting task of taking on unbeaten Horeswood.
Clongeen got up and running inside 90 seconds when Darryl Murphy was fed in the right corner and he swung over confidently, only for Ferns to hit back to develop a 0-3 to 0-1 lead by the end of the first quarter.
A patient move saw James Lawlor eventually inject a bit of pace into proceedings on the way to aiding Ian Byrne to register on his first start of the campaign, while Corey Byrne-Dunbar got on the end of another pattern of play to fire over their second.
A late hit on Keith Breen allowed Ivan Meegan to thud over the resultant free, but Murphy went on an enterprising run from the right wing into a more central position before firing over excellently.
Pádraig Bolger played a key role in Ferns’ next two scores, intercepting in the lead-up to Lawlor swinging over from the stand side, and producing a selfless block as Paul Morris teed up Byrne-Dunbar to make it 0-5 to 0-2.
Emmet Kent picked off a response for Clongeen after latching onto a breaking ball, but after Adam Ryan was wide from a free, Byrne-Dunbar won the follow-up kick-out as Morris hit the first of his three points.
His second arrived shortly before half-time after some good work by Niall Murphy, with Shane Kilkenny venturing forward to peg one back for Clongeen to cut the gap to 0-7 to 0-4 at the change of ends.
But not for the first time in an inconsistent season, Ferns were very slow out of the traps on the restart, and would only score once more in the entire second-half as Clongeen systematically wore them down with a rigid system.
It took the Geeners all of 23 seconds to register in the new half when Murphy punished a sloppy handpass, with two Ferns wides following before Murphy assisted Jamesie Rochford to make it 0-7 to 0-6 after 41 minutes.
Kent provided the leveller when he pounced on a stray kick-out and split the posts with confidence, and after a brief Ferns goal chance went a begging, Clongeen edged ahead for the second time on 44 minutes through Kilkenny.
Ferns responded almost immediately when Ian Byrne off-loaded to Morris, but they were set for more frustration as Clongeen gradually turned the screw.
Ryan held his nerve from a free to open up a slender 0-9 to 0-8 lead with twelve minutes remaining, and with news filtering through of a close game unfolding in Bellefield, the nerves were palpable in the Ferns camp.
Meanwhile, Jamesie Rochford doubled his side’s advantage when punting over five minutes from time, and they hung on for a precious win to ultimately leap-frog their opponents in the final standings.
After two wins and a draw from five games, the reigning Intermediate ‘A’ football champions appear to be in decent stead entering that aforementioned clash with Rathgarogue-Cushinstown, while Ferns chose an inopportune moment to register their lowest tally of the group stages.
Ferns St. Aidans: Ivan Meegan (0-1 free); Keith Breen, Declan Byrne, Conor Scallan; Niall Murphy, Pádraig Bolger, James Lawlor (0-1); Patrick Breen (capt.), Chris Turner; Tommy Dwyer, Paul Morris (0-3), Ciarán Roberts; Tomás Hawkins, Ian Byrne (0-1), Corey Byrne-Dunbar (0-2). Subs. - Brian O’Neill for Dwyer (51), Pádraig Kinsella for Hawkins (59).
Clongeen: Ricky Rochford; Donal Whelan, Enda Murphy, Jamie Keating (capt.); Paudie Cahill, Michael Dundon, Shane Kilkenny (0-2); Páraic Cullen, Emmet Kent (0-2); Ger Foxe, Jamesie Rochford (0-2), Marty Reville; Darryl Murphy (0-3), Adam Ryan (0-1 free), Leon Stafford. Subs. - Robbie Rochford for Stafford (48), Nigel Kehoe for Reville (50), Peter Anthony Wall for Ryan (55), Cian Murphy-Kehoe for Kilkenny (59).
Referee: Stephen Burke (Volunteers).
October 2, quarter-final: Horeswood 3-8, Ferns St. Aidans 2-8
If Horeswood manage to emerge from the New Ross District minefield that awaits and make an immediate return to top-flight football, they will surely thank Ferns St. Aidans for the type of tough assignment they presented in Sunday’s quarter-final of the Amber Springs and Ashdown Park Hotels Intermediate championship in Chadwicks Wexford Park.
The unlucky 2020 runners-up make no secret of their preference for hurling, and yet they had the opportunity to dump one of the big guns when they moved into a 2-8 to 2-5 lead with a well-worked goal at the start of the third quarter.
A shot dropped short by Conor Foley served as an invitation for Ferns netminder Ivan Meegan to set off on one of his regular downfield sorties on the left flank.
And when his pass was touched away from the advancing Barry Hearn by Chris Turner, an overlap was created and the double-seeking Senior hurling champions made the most of it.
Turner delivered inside to earlier goalscorer Ryan Nolan and although his shot was saved by John Bradley, the rebound was tucked away soccer-style by Corey Byrne-Dunbar.
No doubt Ferns will look back and think, “if only we had been able to hold on to that lead for a while”.
Instead, there was an instant response from Horeswood, with P.J. Banville popping the final pass inside for substitute Ryan Harris to arrive like a train and ram home the equalising goal scarcely 70 seconds later (3-5 to 2-8).
Ferns squandered a couple of chances to regain the lead, with a shot dropped short before the last of their eight wides arrived, and their rivals finally got the points that mattered between the 53rd and 59th minutes to leave them a relieved bunch at the finish.
An element of good fortune surrounded their lead score, as Jamie Myler ballooned the ball into the air but the situation was retrieved via a catch and composed finish from captain Declan Murphy.
A sloppy Ferns pass was then punished, with young Cathal Parker finishing an attack involving Conor Foley and Seán Nolan, before P.J. Banville closed the scoring from a free after a foul on the latter.
It wasn’t vintage Horeswood by any means, and they won’t need to be reminded of that, even though their start was perfect as Seán Nolan palmed in a goal from a popped Declan Murphy pass after a mere 86 seconds.
Wing-back Joe O’Sullivan followed with a point, but Ferns made the most of their chances for the remainder of a half that ended with the sides deadlocked on 1-4 each.
Horeswood hit six wides to just one in response before the break and, unusually for a forward line of generally high calibre, none of the starting sextet scored from play in that spell (number 10 Nolan started at midfield).
John Bradley had to make a good close-range save to foil Ian Byrne before the first Ferns point arrived from a Patrick Breen free, and they provided dogged opposition for the rest of the contest.
Horeswood fluffed a goal chance after a Seán Nolan interception, with P.J. Banville unable to get a hand on a Cathal Parker pass, but the veteran did open his account from a free earned by Jack Kehoe in the twelfth minute (1-2 to 0-1). Ryan Nolan beat Gavin Murphy to an Ian Byrne delivery but had a shot smothered before Niall Murphy hared down the right flank and picked off a neat point.
Banville and Breen swapped points from frees before Nolan narrowed the gap to 1-3 to 0-4, and the former county footballer was also the man responsible for giving Ferns the lead for the first time in the 26th minute.
His goal came out of nothing and was a cracking finish, as Corey Byrne-Dunbar and Ian Byrne combined before Nolan cracked a powerful drive beyond John Bradley.
Horeswood had already lost David Larkin to injury, and they were fortunate when Nolan chose to hit another shot early in additional time and Shane O’Hanlon raised a hand and made a crucial block.
A late Jamie Myler free ensured parity at the break (1-4 each), but Corey Byrne-Dunbar edged Ferns back in front on the restart before they conceded a second goal after a mere 77 seconds.
Declan Murphy appeared to have run out of road on a solo run, but he managed to create some space and spotted P.J. Banville unmarked in front of the posts.
There was only ever going to be one outcome from that scenario, and Horeswood were back in front by 2-4 to 1-5.
Banville added a point from play, but Ferns impressed over the next twelve minutes as 1-3 without reply left them with the chance of causing an upset.
Paul Morris cleverly pulled first-time over the bar after spilling the ball, and he then slipped a pass to Ryan Nolan for a point before the latter kicked the leveller.
Nolan had earlier drilled a low shot across goal and wide, but when Corey Byrne-Dunbar finished the rebound to his next effort, Horeswood had it all to do.
They produced the goods when the pressure was on to their credit, and now the next target is to repeat their 1-11 to 1-10 first round win over Rathgarogue-Cushinstown in the first of Saturday’s semi-finals in New Ross. While they will be favourites, it will take a much better overall display than this one to get that difficult job done.
Ferns St. Aidans: Ivan Meegan; Conor Scallan, Declan Byrne, Keith Breen; Niall Murphy (0-1), James Tonks, James Lawlor; Pádraig Bolger, Eoin Murphy; Patrick Breen (capt., 0-2 frees), Paul Morris (0-1), Chris Turner; Corey Byrne-Dunbar (1-1), Ian Byrne, Ryan Nolan (1-3). Subs. – Brian O’Neill for Lawlor, inj. (41), Rory Scallan for E. Murphy (56).
Horeswood: John Bradley; Gavin Murphy, Shane O’Hanlon, Jason Murphy; Joe O’Sullivan (0-1), Barry Hearn, Conor Foley; Seán Nolan (1-0), Jack Kehoe; Jamie Myler (0-1 free), Declan Murphy (capt., 0-1), David Larkin; Cathal Parker (0-1), P.J. Banville (1-4, 0-3 frees), Adam Harris. Subs. – Colin Nolan for Larkin, inj. (21), Ryan Harris (1-0) for G. Murphy (35), Darragh Flannelly for Myler (55).
Referee: Fintan O’Reilly (Kilmore).
