Bandon leave it late in Peard Cup thriller

Bandon shrugged off Saturday’s heavy defeat at Garryduff to propel themselves into the Peard Cup final at the expense of Cork Harlequins B in dramatic fashion at Bandon Grammar School earlier today. The hosts had infiltrated the Quins circle on a number of occasions with little reward, until Clinton Sweetnam’s 50th minute drag hit the net to put them one up. But Thomas Cotter levelled matters for Quins B just three minutes later, and neither side was able to break the deadlock, forcing extra-time. It looked as if this semi-final would have to be decided by the lottery of strokes until Alastair Smith popped up to hit a golden goal winner with ust 38 seconds remaining. Bandon will now face the winners of next weekend’s re-fixed semi-final between Quins A and C of I B on Stephen’s Day. Despite going out of two cup competitions this weekend, Quins B can take some solace from some solid performances against sides above them in the league table, as they look to extricate themselves from their current slump. Meanwhile, C of I C consolidated their place at the top of Division Two with a 6-1 defeat of Bandon C, while Galway must again wait to resue their promotion challenge after their clash with Belvedere did not go ahead. In Division Three, Alastair Murphy helped himself to five goals as Midleton made up some ground on runaway leader Quins D with an 8-0 dismissal of C of I F.

They move up to second at the expense of UCC B, who plummeted to sixth after surprisingly going down 4-1 at C of I E. The hosts hit the front via a Dermot Judge short corner strike, before Nigel Bateman’s deflection made it 2-0 at the break. College had a strong side out but C of I were far more ruthless in front of goal, with Luke O’Halloran adding a third that will surely have impressed older sister and Irish international Julia, who was on umpiring duty. Lee Gardiner put the result beyond doubt for C of I, before Mark Barry’s tidy deflection gave the students a late consolation. Elsewhere, Quins E caused a surprise when they held Catholic Institute B to a 1-1 draw, just the second time the Limerick lads have dropped points this season. Niall Kelleher struck for the hosts, with Dara Crowe replying for Institute. Derek O’Sullivan’s double helped Belvedere B continue their recent good run, as they held Ashton – for whom Keith Banks hit his third in two games – to a 3-3 draw at Ballincollig. Munster U18 representative Mark Holland and Connell Deevy were also on target for the Ballinlough side, with Mike Quaid hitting Belvedere’s third. Meanwhile, there was late drama at the Mardyke as UCC C attempted to claim their first points of the season against Limerick B. Early goals from Nathan Eacrett and Stephen Park had the visitors two up, but Will Van Bavel finished off a tidy move at the back post before the break to give College hope. The students were on the attack 10 minutes from time when umpire Cormac Moloney signalled for a short corner following a stick chop, but downgraded the offence to a free after Limerick players remonstrated that the foul had taken place outside the circle. College took the free quickly, with Van Bavel again on hand to apply the finishing touch, an equalising score which enraged the visitors, who were apparently still awaiting a short corner. The goal was eventually chalked off to the chagrin of the students, and College fired wide from the short corner before dangerman Nick Scholl showed them how it’s done at the other end minutes later, and Eacrett finished the job with a fourth just before the whistle. Meanwhile, things are tight at the top of the women’s Division Three after Dymphna Hill’s double saw C of I hand leaders Belvedere a surprise 2-0 home defeat. They were now just a point in arrears, as are Fermoy who recorded a 3-1 win over Dungarvan, with Trish Fitzpatrick’s double and an Orla Cotter strike bettering Sharon Duggan’s goal for the visitors. Meanwhile, Quins picked up their first points of the campaign as goals from Susanne Black and Niamh Lane propelled them to a 2-0 win over fellow strugglers Midleton. Tipperary were unable to repeat Saturday’s heroics against UCC in Division Four, going down 2-1 at home to Cobh. Fiona O’Regan and Noelle Walsh sent the seasiders home happy, with Ciara O’Sullivan on the scoresheet for the hosts for the second time this weekend. C of I A and C of I B both advanced in the Combined Div 5/6 Cup, though the former needed extra time to see off Ashton 2-0, and the latter’s clash with Belvedere was decided on strokes after a scoreless stalemate. Dungarvan – 1-0 winners over Bruff – also advanced, while Limerick’s Division Five side got the better of their lower division club counterparts 3-0. In the only game in Division Six, UCC dealt Dungarvan’s title hopes a blow as they came away from west Waterford with a 0-0 draw.