Taylor pulls the strings for Harps

Easterns Harps 0-12 Ballaghaderreen 0-9: PAUL TAYLOR kicked eight of Eastern Harps' points as the Sligo champions booked their place in the Connacht final with victory over an experienced Ballaghaderreen side at Markievicz Park yesterday.

Harps led for the first time when a Taylor free put them 0-10 to 0-9 ahead in the 57th minute.

The Mayo champions opened the scoring with a Barry Regan free after two minutes before Taylor squared the match from a free after six minutes.

Harps failed to score for 14 minutes as Ballaghaderreen tagged on four points. Regan and Andy Hanley bagged a couple of points apiece to give the Mayo kingpins a 0-7 to 0-4 interval lead

Harps played with a lot more fire and purpose in the second half but Ballaghaderreen still looked the more likely to prevail. Taylor squared the match for the second time after 53 minutes as Harps pressure began to pay off.

Taylor's 57th-minute point from a free put the Sligo champions ahead for the first time and when the former county player added another, also from a free a minute later, the side grew in confidence. Ballaghaderreen were in the game at that stage, but it was becoming obvious only a goal would keep them in the championship.

They laid siege to the Harps goal in the closing minutes and a great chance of a winning goal went abegging when substitute Gavin Conway drilled the ball inches wide in a goalmouth scramble deep in stoppage time.

A number of scoreable chances, a couple from frees, drifted wide of the Harps post late in the second half as the Sligo side held on under sustained pressure.

Easterns Harps will play Galway champions Corofin in the final, also at Markievicz Park.

EASTERNS HARPS: B McHugh; K Cryan, R Donovan, S King; P McGovern, B Phillips, K Gallagher; T Taylor, P Grady; M Doddy, J Rafferty, (0-1), T Cryan (0-1); R Hannon, P Taylor (0-8, six frees), D O'Grady (0-2). Sub: S Dorrian for Hannon 47 mins.

BALLAGHADERREEN: O Flanagan; S Drake, P Rodgers, T Regan; N Tuohy, J McCann, G Conway (0-1); B Kelly (0-1), J Kilcullen; M Solan (0-1), B Solan, A Hanley (0-2); A Moran, B Regan (0-4, two frees), J Dillon. Subs: D Kilcullen for Regan 26 mins, P Kelly for M Solan 30 mins, G Conway for B Solan 47 mins.

Referee: G Kinneavey(Galway).