After failing to pick up a win in their first three league games of the year, all against the sides that finished 4th, 5th and 6th in Division 3A of the Allianz Hurling League, Roscommon completed a most remarkable turnaround to comfortably see off Armagh and secure promotion and the Allianz Hurling League Division 3A title.
The Rossies have been utterly rejuvenated since Seamus Qualter's appointment following their heavy home defeat to Louth, and they played some excellent hurling this afternoon in Meath, building up a five-point lead in the opening ten minutes and retaining control of the game from then until the end, notwithstanding a spell before half-time where goalkeeper Enda Lawless had to come to their rescue with a number of sensational stops.
Two outstanding points from Mickey Joe Egan were followed by a goal from Conor Mulry in the tenth minute, the sliotar whipped inside Fintan Woods’ near post after a good long ball from Eamon Flanagan found the Four Roads player.
Roscommon had the aid of the breeze in the opening half and looked sharp up front throughout, but they were more vulnerable at the back than they would have liked, and needed Lawless to come up with some outstanding saves to keep them in the game, with Armagh’s Tomás Galvin hugely unlucky not to find the net on a couple of occasions after he tested the Meelick-Eyrecourt man.
In a repeat of events at the Hyde three weeks ago, inaccuracy from dead balls also plagued the Orchard men, and while five of their six first-half points came from Fionntán Donnelly frees, with Donnelly also registering their only point from play, they could easily have been a lot closer than 1-9 to 0-6 at the break.
For their part, Roscommon left a couple of goals behind them too, Woods doing well to deny both Mulry and Adam Donnelly, while Egan fired over the bar from 20 metres out when it seemed as if he was aiming for the top corner.
A six-point deficit left Armagh well in contention with a strong breeze set to blow at their backs in the second half, but they continued to struggle up front, while Roscommon always seemed to have an answer every time Armagh registered a score.
Eoin Fitzgerald had a very good game before he was carried off with a late injury, while teenager Paddy Fallon continued his own exceptional form, shooting four of his seven points from play, as well as playing a key part in the team’s second goal, rifled to the roof of the net by Mickey Joe Egan after Fallon seized an errant puckout 50 metres out and quickly whipped the ball in to his colleague.
Tiarnán Nevin and Cormac Jennings tacked on late points for Armagh as they chased the game through ten minutes of injury time, but they needed goals and Lawless, Mark Ward and Conor Cosgrove all came up with excellent blocks and hooks at various stages to ensure that never came to pass.
Roscommon: Enda Lawless; Darragh Mullen, Mark Ward, Thomas Fleming; Darragh Finn, Conor Cosgrove, Eamon Flanagan; Eoin Fitzgerald (0-002), Eamon Mulry; Mickey Joe Egan (1-05, 0-01 free), Adam Donnelly (0-02), Brendan Mulry; Paddy Fallon (0-07, 4f), Naos Connaughton (0-01), Conor Mulry (1-00).
Subs: Pádraic Brennan for Fleming (42), Joe Brennan for Mulry (53), Seán Dowd for Connaughton (55), Jack Dowling for Fitzgerald (66), Jack Naughton for Fallon (70+8).
Armagh: Fintan Woods; Barry Shortt (0-01 free), Stefan McPartland, Odhrán McCann; Paudie Lappin, Tiarnán Nevin (0-01), Niall Lennon; Odhrán Curry, Peadar McBride; Cormac Jennings (0-01), Danny Magee, Fiontán Donnelly (0-09, 08f); Connor Reneghan, Tomás Galvin (0-01), Shea Harvey.
Subs: Oisín O’Hare for McCann (55), Eoin McGuinness for Magee (55), Paddy Garvey for Donnelly (69), Tiarnan O’Hare (0-02 frees) for Harvey (70), Tam McKavanagh for Jennings (70+5).
Referee: James Connors (Donegal)
