Any pre-match jitters we had about being without Jack, Tomás and Conor O’Sullivan from our starting forward sextet, were emphatically cast aside today as we delivered a performance brimming with attacking verve, spearheaded by the clinical finishing of Darragh and Conor, with Darragh bagging a hat trick and Conor adding a brace for good measure.

The absence of the aforementioned trio meant that Con Barrett came in at 12, Donagh Buckley made a welcome return at full back releasing Ben Hanafin to wing forward with Padraig Griffin restored to the “40” from our starting XV from our game vs Ballymac. 

The opening exchanges were cagey with Rathmore keeping plenty of bodies in defence but once we began to dominate the middle third, the scores and in particular the goals, began to flow.

A lot of this stemmed from wing backs Daniel Bowler and Gearóid Dillane whose vision and accuracy were consistently on the money.

With the scores tied at 0-02 apiece, Darragh from a free and Padraig from play registering our scores, Gearóid picked out Conor with a peach of a ball and he confidently took on his marker and found the net to give us the lead; almost immediately, Gearóid Savage cleverly intercepted the restart and playing the ball inside to Darragh, we had goal number 2 as Darragh rounded his opponent and coolly slotted low into the net. 

The madcap nature of the game continued when Alan Dineen, arguably Rathmore’s best player, slalomed through our defence and his low drive found the bottom corner of the net. 

We then struck two killer blows which effectively killed off  the game - first Conor took a ball down that looked to be going wide and from nothing created and executed another fine goal - Darragh, not to be outdone, then ghosted past his marker for goal number 4, all 5 goals coming in a SEVEN minute spell!

The half time score of 4-04 to 1-05 was reflective of our dominance and clinical execution by both Conor and Darragh.

The second half was a continuation of the first with Darragh leading the way, and completing his hat trick by the 5th minute shooting low to the right off his left as he left his marker trailing in his wake.

Thereafter, we continued to dominate and took some fine scores, a Tom Hoare two pointer from a free and well deserved goal for the hardworking Padraig Griffin who was played through by Ben Hanafin to register our sixth green flag, being the highlights. 

With the game drawing to a conclusion and a comfortable lead established, it was the perfect opportunity to run the bench, allowing valuable minutes for players eager to make their mark.

We saw TJ Heaphy, Keelan Crowe, Ben O’Brien, Breandán Meehan enter the fray and the returning Diarmuid O’Sullivan came on and notched a point for good measure.

The victory wasn't just about the goals, though. The entire team put in a massive shift, with all sectors in control - we were defensively solid, Tom, BJ & Con all won good balls in the middle third with our forwards relentless for the entire 60 mins. 

The goals, while brilliant, were the culmination of tireless work, relentless energy, and astute footballing intelligence from players like Padraig, Ben, and Gazza. It's easy for the spotlight to shine on the goalscorers, but their magic wouldn't have been possible without the crucial contributions of their colleagues. 

However, it was the clinical edge provided by Darragh and Conor that ultimately turned a potentially tricky fixture into a comfortable win. Their tally of 5-05 between them was a stark reminder that even when facing adversity, true attacking talent will always find a way to shine. This performance will undoubtedly give the squad a huge boost of confidence as they look ahead to our penultimate game - a mouth watering fixture in two weeks time in Connolly Park in a game that could, potentially, decide the destination of this year’s league title. 

Team: Rob O’Connor, Darragh McElligott ( 0-01), Donagh Buckley, Jake Foley ( 0-01), Gearóid Dillane (0-03), Ryan Carroll, Daniel Bowler, Tom Hoare ( 0-02), Barry John Keane,Ben Hanafin,Padraig Griffin ( 1-01), Con Barrett, Conor Hayes ( 2-02), Gearóid Savage ( 0-01), Darragh O’Connor ( 3-03). 

Subs used: TJ Heaphy, Breandán Meehan, Keelan Crowe, Ben O’Brien, Diarmuid O’Sullivan ( 0-01).