On the hillside over the pitch the bullocks had gathered to see what was happening in Heffernan Park. They had heard the roars, cheers and emotion swirling in the Saturday afternoon air and arrived en-masse to see what the craic was.
On the famous patch of grass, named in honour of the late great Ivan Heffernan, the young men in the Ballina jerseys were producing one of the greatest displays in the history of the club. The game was in deepest injury time and the Moysiders were nine points clear as the famous old venue throbbed with excitement.
Mickey Murphy got the ball in his hands for what seemed like the thousandth time in the match, looked up, kicked it into touch and the final whistle unleashed scenes of wild delight. Ballina had won an absolute thriller and it was time to celebrate!
Minutes later, the mighty warriors gathered in the midst of their hundreds of supporters, linked arms and sang ‘The Boys from the County Mayo.’ It was a fitting end to a perfect afternoon!
Heffernan Park had been buzzing from early morning with match prep taking centre-stage and by noon the place was throbbing with excitement. Midleton had been in town since Friday evening and when their team bus nosed its way up Creggs Road on Saturday afternoon the venue was resplendent.
All it needed were two teams on the pitch and terraces packed with passionate, tense, excited supporters to make it a perfect setting.
Just before 2.30 the two teams emerged to great acclaim and when Kieran Lindsay kicked the ball into Midleton territory he set in train a match which will live forever in Ballina sporting lore.
The impressive out-half soon had Ballina in front with a well-struck penalty as the home side began on the front foot. They pounded the Midleton defensive line, but it soon became obvious why the Corkmen were top of the league.
Conor Mason, Shane Clarke, John Keaveney and their powerful pack took the ball forward at every opportunity but there was no way through despite Ballina moving the ball quickly and decisively. Eventually, an offside infringement was punished when Lindsay split the sticks with a well-hit penalty but Midleton hit the front at the end of the first quarter when they won the ball in their own half and attacked at pace for hooker Bryan Moore to eventually touch down in the right corner.
Out-half, Stuart Lee converted from the touchline and the large Midleton following were happy until Lindsay converted another Ballina penalty.
The one-point gap remained as half time approached but Midleton once again capitalised on loose Ballina play and thanks to some blocking in midfield, released Rian Hogan for a try under the posts. That put the lead out to eight, 14-6 and Ballina needed to respond.
They did so decisively just before the break. An excellent fusion of forwards and backs took the ball into the red-zone and when Daniel Molloy powered over and Lindsay converted, the gap was down to one, 14-13.
The second half was a roller-coaster of scores and emotion. Ballina’s tackling from Calum Quinn, Alex Corduff and their colleagues was absolutely ground-shaking and they tore into the opposition. As the half progressed, Lindsay nudged Ballina in front, Lee replied at the other end; Lindsay kicked Ballina clear again but immediately Lee responded to leave Middleton 20-19 clear going down the pipe.
All around the ground, the supporters were roaring themselves hoarse and Ballina responded. They moved the ball into enemy territory – Mickey Murphy picked the ball off the back of a ruck, arrowed it to Lindsay and he split the sticks with a precious drop goal as Heffernan Park rocked to its very foundations.
The closing minutes were almost too much to handle; Midleton came looking for the winning score but Ballina’s defence and discipline was exemplary. Thundering tackles turned the ball over and suddenly there was a sniff of home try. The ball was moved from right to left and back again until it landed in the hands of flying winger Darragh Whyte within inches of the touchline. He grabbed it, danced along the whitewash and as the roars rocked the heavens, the young man wrote his name in local sporting lore by touching down near the posts.
Lindsay kicked the conversion and the gap was out to nine with injury time approaching. That was the end of the affair and minutes later when Mickey Murphy kicked the ball long and hard into touch, the game was over and a famous victory had been achieved.
BALLINA: Chris O’Neill, Darragh Whyte, Calum Quinn, Alex Corduff, Michael Cribben, Kieran Lindsay, Mickey Murphy; Conor Mason, John Keaveney, Shane Clarke, Andrew West, Aiden McNulty, Tim Wallace, Fergal Tully, Neal Moylett
Replacements; Billy McVann, Brian Boland, Henry Hewson, Luke Sweeney, Craig McCormick, Daniel Molloy
MIDLETON: Rob Mitchell, Louis Franham, Daniel Murray, Josh Deady, Rian Hogan, Stuart Lee, Robert Smyth; Kevin Brierly, Bryan Moore, Ger McIntyre, Denis Broderick, Jonathan Gardiner, Charlie Murphy, Aidan Ward, Robert Carey
REF: Grainne Crabtree (Ulster)