Oulart-the-Ballagh 0-17 Shelmaliers 0-10: A final quarter surge helped reigning champions Oulart-the-Ballagh to a comfortab le enough seven point victory over Shelmaliers in their Wexford SHC semi-final at Wexford Park yesterday.

Shelmaliers bid to complete the double, they face a senior football semi-final on Sunday next, faded after a promising opening 40 minutes, but they had little answer once the reigning champions stepped up the tempo in the closing quarter.

The sides were still deadlocked 0-3 each at the end of the opening quarter. Deteriorating ground conditions made it difficult for players, but through the accuracy of Conor Byrne from frees, Ciarán Shaughnessy and Joe Kelly, the challengers edged into a 0-8 to 0-4 lead approaching the interval, but a Des Mythen point reduced the deficit to three points at the break.

After Nicky Kirwan pointed a 65, two quick points from Byrne saw the Shels lead 0-10 to 0-6 after 34 minutes, but with Kirwan, Rory Jacob, David Redmond and Darren Nolan all picking off points it was Oulart who went on to control the closing quarter.

OULART-THE-BALLAGH: B O'Connor; P Roche, K Rossiter, B Kehoe; L Prendergast, D Stamp, S Murphy (0-1, free); D Redmond (0-1), M Jacob (0-2); D Nolan (0-3), G Sinnott (0-1), D Mythen (0-2); R Jacob (0-2), C O'Leary (0-1), N Kirwan (0-4, 0-2 frees, 0-1 65). Subs: P Sutton for O'Leary; P Murphy for Kirwan; D Morton for Prendergast.
SHELMALIERS: D Murphy; A O'Brien, A Murphy, S Donohue; C Walsh, C Lawlor, A Cash; E Doyle, S Corrigan; B Malone (0-1), C O'Shaughnessy (0-1), J Kelly (0-1); T Barron, S Banville, C Byrne (0-7, 0-6 frees). Subs: J Redmond for Lawlor; A Griffith for Cash; E Nolan for Barron.
Referee: J Carton (Monageer-Boolavogue).