Charlestown Sarsfields under-21`s suffered an agonising 0-16 to 1-12 defeat to Balla in a pulsating county under-21 B final played under the bright lights of Aghamore on Saturday November 23rd.

                  This was an epic contest play in the true spirit of the game  as both teams slugged it out right from the first whistle with the intensity and tempo unrelenting throughout.

                 The Sarsfields were looking to put back to back titles on the board in a grade they have a long and proud history in and they put up a brave spirited defence of their title but came up just short when referee Charlie Collins sounded his whistle for the final time having played 36 minutes of a frantic and frenetic second half.

                  There was a lot of green and white anguish in evidence but they can console themselves with the fact that they more than contributed to what was a cracking advert for the much maligned under-21 grade which surely deserves a better time slot than the last week in November when limbs and bodies have been on the go for the best part of twelve months and more.

                   The game itself had everything one could wish for terms of drama, excitement, incident and scores galore. Balla opened the scoring with their first attack but the Sarsfields hit back almost immediately as ace attacker Paul Towey displayed his full gamut of talents as he hit three superb points from play to put the Sarsfields in front.  

               Balla responded almost immediately with two of their own before Matt Lenehan and Jack Mahon restored the Sarsfields cushion  to leave them 0-5 to 0-3 with twenty minutes elapsed. The elusive Towey continued to rip it up for the green and white  as he clipped over another marvellous point to leave the Sarsfields in a commanding position as they led 0-7 to 0-4 with Balla struggling to find their range in front of goal as shots drifted wide from very good scoring positions.

                      There was a seismic shift however towards the West Mayo lads in the final ten minutes of the opening half as gradually they started to find their range after an erractic opening quarter. They fired over four of the last five points to   surge into  the lead for the first time in the game bar the opening minute with  Paul Towey  providing the only Sarsfields reply as he continued  his amazing scoring spree hitting his fifth point from play  in a memorable performance to leave the game delicately poised at 0-9 to 0-8 in favour of  Balla side that managed to wrestle control away from the green and white having played second fiddle to the Sarsfields for much of the opening exchanges.  

                          Balla  began the second half in explosive fashion as they took firm grip of the match. They hit four magnificent points all from long range as the Sarsfields struggled to cope with their power play.

                     Those four points saw Balla race into a 0-13 to 0-8 lead with the green and white treading water as the South Mayo lads were lording it in the key middle third battle ground.

              The Sarsfields needed to stem the tide and quickly   as the game looked to be drifting away from them. They got just the lifeline they craved twelve minutes in  when they were awarded what looked a very contentious penalty following an infringement in the Balla small square.

                Jack Mahon was the epitome of coolness for the Sarsfields as he slammed the ball to the net to reboot the green and white challenge with  the game  back in the melting pot once again. Mahon from a free and another beauty from Paul Towey had the Sarsfields level with the momentum firmly back in the green  and white corner.

                   The Balla lads held their composure and nerve however to kick on again as they  hit the next two points to go two in front once again with the score reading 0-15-to 1-10 with five remaining on the timepiece.

            Paddy Goldrick stepped forward to kick a pearl of a score to put the minimum between the sides once again but Balla replied almost immediately with their sixteenth and final point to restore their two point cushion.

                       The game continued to enthrall as both sides put body and bone on the line in the scramble for possession with the Sarsfields continuing  to pour forward in one last desperate search for the goal that might salvage the game. Sadly all they could manage was a late Jack Mahon point from a free as the West  Mayo  lads held firm in the face of all manner of green  and white pressure.

                  The final whistle gave rise to contrasting sets of emotions in both camps with Balla in a state of ecstacy while the Sarsfields were shattered with bodies strewn across the field in a state of despair and desolation. They can take pride at the manner of their performance however which was full of courage, bravery and potential as the bulk of the team are eligible for the same grade next year.

                  The Sarsfields had heroes all over the pitch with the defence defending valiantly and bravely all through as they enjoyed a great battle with a slick and mobile Balla offensive line. Darragh Casey, Eoghan Beirne, Sean Dunleavy, Ben Conway and ConorO`Donoghue can take solace from their performances as they fronted up and did everything they could to keep the scoreline down. Keeper Ciaran Honeyman was also accomplished and steady between the posts and employed a smart kick-out strategy for the most part. Paddy Goldrick and Conor O`Toole had a good joust with their Balla counterparts while in attack Paul Towey was the real shining light hitting six   glorious points from play and threatening danger every time he received the ball. Jack Mahon also enjoyed a good hour hitting 1-4 from play and placed balls as he linked the play well when  in possession. Matt Lenehan was another real hero for the Sarsfields as he turned in terrific performance winning ball under all kinds of pressure and carrying intelligently at all times with some of his link-up play with Towey a joy to behold. His  enforced retirement from injury ten minutes from  time  dealt the Sarsfields  a mortal blow as he was a huge  driving force in the middle third providing  real thrust and drive when in possession.

                   Jack Brennan , Rurai Cullen and sub Martin McCormack also had some good moments with McCormack`s pace proving a real weapon in the Sarsfields second half revival. Cian  Craig also  made a  contribution when introduced on a night when the Sarsfields came oh so close to completing a famous back to back double.

                It wasn`t to be however and credit where its due to a resilient and talented Balla team who had enough in the tank to get over the line and showed admirable character to keep their heads and nerve in those tantalising, dramatic final few minutes.

               Well done to the Sarsfields management team of Martin Mulvaney, Richie Wynn Gareth O`Donnell, Gerard McLoughlin and Peter Vesey not to mention the irrepressible James Breheny  who extracted the maximum  out of a very tight and thin panel and had them  in the best possible shape for their tilt at what always looked a tight game to call on paper. Lady luck evaded them at times in the key moments but they can take pride in the performance of the team as they stayed true to the Sarsfields traditions of free flowing, fast moving play.   

              Special mention to referee Charlie Collins who had a good hour in the middle and applied a lot of common sense in his handling of the game.             That game brought the curtain down on the playing season for 2019 for the Sarsfields but there is much enthuse over for 2020 as this is a team that looks nailed on  for success down the line if they continue to up the commitment levels and have the desire to improve and build on the progress they have made to date.