The Ballinora U15 squad are the May winners of the Rebel Óg monthly award after their double Cork Féile win.
It’s not too often that any club wins both competitions in Cork so for Ballinora to do so is a magnificent achievement, with a relatively small panel of 24 players.
There was late drama in their Cork football decider when a late goal saw them prevail and break St Michael’s hearts after extra time.
Ben Hegarty scored a goal directly from a free to claim the title on a scoreline of 3-6 to 2-8 with scenes of unbridled joy once the referee blew the final whistle.
He deserves great credit for keeping a cool head, especially after the referee had told him it was the last kick of the game. Ballinora, as a squad, also deserve all the praise they get as they had to play extra time down a man after a late sending-off in normal time had them down to 14.
But they soaked up Michael’s pressure and then Hegarty hit a rocket of a shot off the crossbar to see them win. The hurling decider was against near-neighbours Cloughduv in what was always going to be a keenly fought contest. In the end, Ballinora completed the second leg of a memorable double. Extra time was on the horizon until Cormac Murphy slotted over the winning point to win 0-12 to 1-8. Ballinora’s double win set up two big days for the players, mentors, and the club, as they represented Cork at the national competitions.

In those competitions they want on to make it a national double as well, to make it a great season for these young stars.
Michael O’Mahony, chairman of Rebel Óg, congratulated them on their success, saying it’s a rare year that any club wins a Féile double and to go on to win a national double is extra special.