County star comes off bench to rescue Joe Ward hopefuls. IF O'Raghallaigh's wanted to make a statement by advancing to the quarter-finals as Group B winners ahead of their Drogheda rivals Oliver Plunkett's, then they had to beat Roche Emmets by at least six points last Thursday night in Stabannon.

In the end, six points was the exact margin of victory, but the statement that Colin Kelly's side sent out was perhaps even more emphatic as they brushed aside a Roche side who made a big improvement on their previous outing against Plunkett's.

By the finish, an early burst of 1-3 inside the first 13 minutes proved crucial for O'Raghallaigh's, while a similar scoring spree just after the interval made absolutely certain of the win and top spot in a competitive section.

It wouldn't be accurate to suggest they were pushed all the way by Emmets, but they were made to work harder for their win than their neighbours.

Granted, by the 44th minute the Hoops showed in front by 11 points, 2-11 to 0-6, but Roche regained some pride in the final quarter and, with a little more luck in front of goal, may well have made the final five minutes more than a tad uncomfortable for Kelly.

The former Louth star's blood pressure certainly wasn't tested in the first period as his side stormed into a six-point lead before Roche even opened their account.

Ruairi Moore got them off the mark, converting his own free and he set up their first goal four minutes later, picking out Craig McEnteggart with a fine delivery from the right wing.

McEnteggart still had plenty to do to turn his marker, but his strength carried him through the challenge and Aidan McCoy had no chance when he pulled the trigger.

A couple of fine points from Damien Boyle followed in the next five minutes, before Roche eventually awoke from their slumber.

Gerry Murphy opened their account with a good effort and Kevin Callaghan followed it with a 13-metre free, but both efforts were cancelled out almost instantly as Ben Rogan and Barry Flanagan, from a free, restored O'Raghallaigh's six-point advantage.

Roche largely relied on free-kicks to keep them in some kind of touch, but they had reduced the deficit to just two points by half-time as O'Hare converted two from distance and Callaghan added to his tally from closer to the target.

There was still time for O'Hare to plunder another from open play as O'Raghallaigh's were a little relieved to hear Tommy Byrne's half-time whistle.

If the manager's job is to refocus minds at the interval, then Kelly certainly seemed to earn his keep on this occasion.

Roche made two substitutions at the break, but it was O'Raghallaigh's who were rejuvenated and a goal and three points in the space of four minutes put them back in firm control.

Flanagan converted a free for their first score in over 13 minutes, but they only had to wait 10 seconds for the next as Chris Smith steered over a fine effort from in front of the stand over the bar at the scoreboard end.

Moore then took over, latching onto a Ben Rogan pass to drill the ball past McCoy and he added a free 90 seconds later to make it 2-8 to 0-6 to O'Raghallaigh's.

It got worse for Roche as the stocky number-12 added two more points from play and when McEnteggart pointed in the 44th minute it was curtains for Roche.

Rogan even had a goal disallowed for over-carrying just prior to McEnteggart's point.

When the North Road men eventually took their foot off the gas, Roche showed they still had the stomach to fight back, but points from Martin Craven, Kevin Callaghan and a goal from Gerry Murphy still never really looked like being enough.

Barry Flanagan rounded off O'Raghallaigh's shift with a free, before Aaron Callan pointed a consolation for Roche.

Pearse Craven and Damien Sheils' side should still have enough in their armoury to avoid the embarrassment of relegation, while their conquerors will have their eyes on a much bigger prize over the coming weeks. O'RAGHALLAIGH'S: J Flanagan; Kevin McCormack, Johnny Clerkin, Graham Murray; James Moonan, Ciaran Brassil, Stephen Smith; Robery Mulroy, Chris Smith 0-1; Andrew Rogan, Damien Boyle 0-2, Ruairi Moore 1-4 (0-2f); Ben Rogan 01, Barry Flanagan 0-3f, Craig McEnteggart 1-1. Subs: Daimhin Finnegan for B Rogan (60+). ROCHE EMMETS: Aidan McCoy; Duane Callan, Brian McGuinness, Dermot Craven; Sean Kirk, Harry O'Connell, David Quigley; Martin Carroll, Darren McConnon; Paudie Callaghan, Dan O'Connell, Barry O'Hare 03 ( 0-2f); Gerry Murphy 1-1, Kevin Callaghan 0-3 (0-2f), Martin Craven 0-1. Subs: Enda Murphy for P Callaghan (ht), Aaron Callan 0-1 for B McGuinness (ht). REFEREE: Tommy Byrne.

- John SAVAGE at Stabannon