What was once a rectangular enclosure, measuring approximately 40 metres east to west and 20 metres north to south, is now completely inaccessible beneath a dense tangle of thorn bushes. The site still appears on the 1923 Ordnance Survey six-inch map, a testament to its former prominence in the local landscape.

Despite the overgrowth, the monument’s impressive earthworks remain visible from the outside. The interior sits noticeably higher than the surrounding terrain, defined by a low earthen bank that rises about 30 centimetres on the inside but presents a more substantial face of 2.45 metres to the exterior. This bank is accompanied by a significant external fosse, or defensive ditch, with a base width of 4.6 metres and a depth of 2.15 metres. A single causewayed entrance, just 1.4 metres wide, breaks through the defences at the eastern end of the north side.

Today, much of the fosse remains waterlogged, preserving this medieval defensive feature whilst simultaneously making investigation challenging. These moated sites were typically constructed between the 13th and 14th centuries, often serving as fortified farmsteads for Anglo-Norman settlers or prosperous Irish families. The Ballinruane example, with its substantial earthworks and strategic hillside position, would have provided both security and status to its medieval inhabitants, though now it stands as a wild and overgrown reminder of Ireland’s layered history.