Most gaelic football fans remember Armagh goalkeeper Blaine Hughes for his youthful appearance, but that baby face doesn’t take away from the old head on those young shoulders.
The Carrickruppen club man impressed in his six Championship appearances for Armagh so far, with his quick and varied kickouts a huge springboard for many Armagh attacks.
Armagh were knocked out last weekend, and that means Hughes is back in action for his club.
He hasn’t slotted straight back into the goals, however. One of Carrickruppen’s finest Stephen Havern took his chance in the absence of Hughes gleefully, and Hughes has some work ahead of him to usurp the improving Havern.
Hughes is a credit to himself, however, in the manner that he’ll play in any position he’s told, and as it turned out during the week, that was centre forward.
Carrickruppen were playing against Grange Naomh Colmcille in a Donnelly Group Intermediate 1st Round Championship Game during the week, and it was the 21-year-old Hughes, who was only brought on as a second-half substitute, who tipped the scales in favour of Carrickruppen.
Hughes was brought on as a second-half substitute, to replace Mayo legend Billy Joe Padden, for his side in a tit-for-tat thriller, but his coolness over the dead-ball eventually turned the tide to give his club a one-point victory.
Carrickcruppen have been deprived of their county star for much of the year, due to these county commitments, but after the Orchard county lost to Tyrone last Sunday, Hughes is now back, and he’s back with a bang.
The lead was said to have ebbed and flowed constantly in a hard-fought contest, but Hughes was unflappable over any frees his side won, and some of them, as can be seen in the below video, were truly remarkable.
It might be hard to put him back in goals after that.
Cheers to Armagh GAA for the clips.
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