Brace of goals by Dublin defender David Byrne inspire Olaf’s to championship win against Plunkett’s

Dublin SFC2 Group 1

Daire Walsh

Dublin senior footballer David Byrne struck a brace of goals at Páirc Uí Bhriain on Saturday evening as Naomh Olaf got their Dublin SFC2 Group One campaign off to a flying start against St Oliver Plunkett’s/Eoghan Ruadh.

Fresh from another season of inter-county fare with the Sky Blues, Byrne was a prominent figure throughout for the Sandyford side.

Eoin Foley (1-6) and Luke Murphy (0-4) also notched impressive scoring tallies on a day when Olaf’s issued a clear message of intent for this year’s second-tier competition.

A recent arrival from Ballymun Kickhams, former Dublin underage star Ted Furman registered 1-3 on his championship bow for Plunkett’s.

Seven-time Celtic Cross winner Bernard Brogan also added 1-1 off the bench but, despite the best efforts of current inter-county footballer Seán Bugler, the Navan Road men were second best to the hosts on the night.

Relegated from the Senior 1 championship at the end of 2021, Plunkett’s hit the ground running on Saturday via a point from Furman with just 20 seconds gone on the clock.

Donning the number six jersey and a bandage on his knee, Byrne began the contest in the inside forward line for the home team.

He drifted out the field as the action progressed, but was on hand to flick home Mark Doyle’s audacious crossfield delivery for a second-minute goal. Despite this setback, Plunkett’s responded with points from Furman and Darragh Brogan.

The visitors had a number of missed opportunities subsequent to this short scoring burst, however, and the more economical Olaf’s attack punished them inside the second quarter.

Thanks to four points without reply in as many minutes courtesy of Foley (two), Oisin Hills and Murphy, the southsiders took a firm stranglehold on the proceedings.

Furman and marauding corner-back Conor Tyrell found the range for Plunkett’s either side of another Murphy point, but Olaf’s enjoyed an explosive end to the opening period.

Byrne was showcasing a predatory instinct in front of the posts and he palmed to the net for a second goal on 29 minutes.

There was enough time left on the clock for Dan Levelle and Murphy to add further Olaf’s points and ultimately propel their side towards a 2-7 to 0-5 interval buffer.

Having already introduced Cillian Hayes in the first half, the Plunkett’s management added Tye Adamson and Bernard Brogan to the mix on the restart.

Brogan made an immediate impact, setting up Furman for a simple finish to the net a mere 18 seconds after the resumption.

This looked set to add fresh life to the game, but the clinical Foley cancelled out this score in lightning quick time.

After an attempt at a point had rattled the woodwork, the club dual star gathered the loose ball and fired emphatically beyond the reach of Gavin Broughan.

This opened the floodgates once again with Foley (three), Murphy and Glenn Soraghan (two) contributing unanswered points.

Plunkett’s were now left with an uphill task, but following excellent build-up work from Irnel Popa, Bernard Brogan registered the fifth goal of the game.

Yet this was only a temporary speed bump for Olaf’s, who went on to add points from Cian De Burca, Colin Doyle and Soraghan.

Substitutes Brogan and Niall Walsh raised white flags for Plunkett’s inside the final quarter, before a final score from Foley rounded off a commanding Naomh Olaf win.

This was a poignant victory for Olaf’s manager Michael Brides, who was previously an Oliver Plunkett’s stalwart.

Although he is a former Cavan footballer, Brides featured for the Navan Road side in their Dublin SFC final defeats to Kilmacud Crokes and St Brigid’s in 2008 and 2011 respectively.

Bernard Brogan and Gareth ‘Nesty’ Smith (who has also represented Cavan at inter-county level) are survivors from this era and will be hoping to get Plunkett’s back on track in their remaining group games against Naomh Mearnog and St Pat’s, Donabate.

From an Olaf’s perspective, they will be aiming to build on what was an accomplished opening-round display.

Match file

Scorers – Naomh Olaf: E Foley 1-6 (0-2f); D Byrne 2-0; L Murphy 0-4; G Soraghan 0-3 (1f); O Hills, C Doyle, D Levelle, C De Burca 0-1 each.
St Oliver Plunkett’s/Eoghan Ruadh: T Furman 1-3; B Brogan 1-1 (0-1f); C Tyrell, D Brogan, N Walsh 0-1 each.

NAOMH OLAF: R O’Donovan; S Mulvaney, L Doran, C Waters; C McInerney, M Doyle, O Hills; C Doyle, J Feehan; D Levelle, L Murphy, C De Burca; G Soraghan, D Byrne, E Foley. Subs: C Brady for Mulvaney (45), D Byrne for Levelle (51), F McLoughlin for McInerney (56), S O’Driscoll for Waters, S Whyte for Murphy (both 59).

ST OLIVER PLUNKETT’S/EOGHAN RUADH: G Broughan; C Tyrell, J O’Donoghue, A Mulligan; T Cullen, D Lally, S Bugler; C Bresnan, B O’Sullivan; D Brogan, I Popa, S Dunne; G Ryan, G Smith, T Furman. Subs: C Hayes for Lally (22), T Adamson for D Brogan, B Brogan for Ryan (both h-t), N Walsh for Smith (44), M Popa for Furman (52).

MENTORS – Naomh Olaf: Michael Brides, Joe Nolan, John O’Brien, Alan O’Sullivan, Cathal Soraghan, Paul Sullivan. St Oliver Plunkett’s/Eoghan Ruadh: Terry O’Brien, Ken O’Doherty, Sean Sweeney, Niall Young.

Referee: Ciaran Reilly (Na Fianna).

WIDES – Naomh Olaf: 3 (2+1). St Oliver Plunkett’s/Eoghan Ruadh: 13 (6+7).

CONDITIONS: Dry and bright.

PLAYER OF THE MATCH: Eoin Foley (Naomh Olaf).