The Ballina Town Under 17 team celebrating their league win.

Ballina Town wrap up Under 17 league title in style

Manulla 1 Ballina Town 6

BALLINA Town wrapped up the Mayo Under 17 Premier League crown with a game to spare by hitting second-placed Manulla for six in Carramore.

The home side had to field minus a number of regulars due to Gaelic football commitments but even with a full team they might have found the visitors a tad too strong.

The writing was on the wall for the home side as early as the 10th minute as Ballina were already two goals ahead by then, danger man Jonny Cocozza latching on to a short back pass to take the ball around Manulla ‘keeper Darren Horan and place it to the net before Davog Doherty powered in a header from a well-taken corner.

It illustrated how much the home side were missing the likes of Patrick McLoughlin, Colin Murphy, Conor Beirne and Shay Benson. Their first chance of the half fell to Darron Walsh on the half-hour mark but he failed to connect properly with a deep cross.

Just a minute later Ballina were three goals to the good, Aaron Mullaney with a header at the far post from a cross delivered from the right wing by Mark Brennan.

After Fergal O’Neill went very close to pulling one back six minutes from the break with a scorching shot from distance, Mullaney rubbed salt into the wounds with his second and Ballina’s fourth goal, the opening made by Cocozza’s silken skills.

Credit to Manulla, they came out fighting for the second half, the likes of Conor High, Lee Lyons and Cian Dunne working hard to stem the Ballina flow.

Substitute Killian O’Brien and Colm Quinn fired efforts towards goal but Town ‘keeper David Egan saved with ease, and the Ballina defence of Jason Muldoon, Eric Connolly, James Doherty and Conor McStay was rarely troubled, while midfielder Aaron Mullaney and striker Kieran Gaughan supplemented their team-mates at all available opportunities.

Mullaney completed his hat trick by smashing home a fifth goal for his side on 63 minutes and Ballina ran the bench for the closing half an hour. Manulla substitute Luke McHale scored a consolation for the home side but, fittingly, Cocozza had the final say with a splendid finish to a fine move on a memorable night for the Moysiders.

The win delighted Town joint manager Noelie Gorman. He said: “I think it’s the best youths team we’ve have at the club for the last four or five years. The standard of football we played in the campaign was outstanding – we won the league by nine points.”

And the young lads impressed Noelie with their application throughout the campaign. “They’re a pleasure to work with. They’re all comfortable ball players and confident playing around each other. We had 21 in the squad and any one of them were able to come in off the bench and play.”

Next up for this talented young team is a crack at the Mayo Under 17 Cup, which got off to a great start with a big win over Castlebar Celtic, and then the Under 18 league. 'I thought before we might struggle in the higher age group,' said Noelie, 'but after winning the Under 17 league I think we might be ok.”

Manulla: D. Horan, F. O’Neill, S. Tonra, G. Holian, C. Quinn, C. High, L. Lyons, D. Walsh, J. Harte, N. McHale, C. Dunne.
Subs: J. Hall, L. McHale, K. O’Brien.
Ballina Town: D. Egan, J. Muldoon, E. Connolly, J. Doherty, C. McStay, D. Doherty, A. Mullaney, M. Birrane, J. Cocozza, K. Gaughan, M. Brennan.
Subs: D. Dixon, C. O’Dea, L. Honan, S. Reilly.
Ref: K. Cox (Castlebar).
*Star rating: Jonny Cocozza…silken skills.