GAA: Leinster Schools Senior Football ‘A’ Championship
Super sub Gleeson blasts Marist to fine victory
MARIST COLLEGE………………………………………………… 2-11
MAYNOOTH POST-PRIMARY……………………………….. 1-05
Daire Walsh
Substitute Conor Gleeson was the hero for Marist College at NUI Maynooth last Thursday, as his brace of goals propelled the Athlone school towards victory over a fancied Maynooth Post-Primary in the opening round of the Leinster Schools SF ‘A’ competition.
The local side had displayed impressive form during their recent Dublin SF ‘A’ success over St Benildus College (they compete in the capital competition) and looked on course for progression to the next phase when they led by four points (1-5 to 0-4) at half-time. However, Marist produced a stunning second-half performance, and with the likes of Mark Daly and Luke Carty showing top form in a tightly-knit defensive unit, they managed to keep Maynooth scoreless for the entirety of the half.
In an attempt to curb the threat posed by Maynooth’s potent attack, the Retreat Road outfit opted to deploy a sweeper between the full-back and half-back lines. Initially, full-back Daly took on this responsibility, but nominal corner-forward Brian Stack also operated in this position during the opening half on the rain-soaked pitch.
It certainly did have some effect in the early moments of the contest, but Maynooth were able to place themselves in the driving seat nevertheless, as midfield duo Owen Byrne and Brian Travers both raised white flags from acute angles. Tactically, Marist were looking to play long diagonal passes into physically imposing full-forward Conor Marlowe, and he was certainly causing some problems for his direct marker Darren Maguire.
They did come up short from a couple of initial efforts, including a promising goal opportunity for inside forward Niall Neary, before the lively No 13 finally opened Marist’s account from a close-range free nine minutes in. Centre-forward Diarmuid Cullen restored Maynooth’s two-point cushion, but this was quickly cancelled out by a superb long-distance attempt courtesy of the industrious Stack.
Charlie McMickan (who led the Marist attack effortlessly from his position on the ‘40’) added to his team’s tally after Travers and Seamus O Se had split the posts for the Moyglare Road boys, but the Lake County brigade subsequently suffered a hammer blow on the 20-minute mark. In this instance, Maynooth full-forward Shane Monaghan delivered a telling crossfield ball towards Peadar Murray, who turned sharply and delivered a low strike that was deflected beyond the reach of Marist netminder Shane Mannion.
At this stage, it looked like Maynooth might open the floodgates, but the Marist rearguard managed to keep them at bay for the remainder of the period, and with half-forward Terry Byrne adding a fourth point (27th minute), they were still very much in contention after the restart.
Paul Kelly and his selectors had already introduced Mark Curley to the middle of the field before Byrne got his name on the scoresheet, and his presence helped to re-ignite the Marist challenge upon the resumption. A terrific run through the heart of the Maynooth defence by the marauding Carty created the space for Neary to open the second-half scoring. And defender-turned-attacker Robert Curley was agonisingly close to levelling matters when his goal-bound effort on 33 minutes dragged wide of the left-hand upright. This missed opportunity didn’t overly affect Marist, however. And after McMickan finished off a fine move that was started by corner-back Adrian Garvey, Marist fully reined in Maynooth’s superiority with points by the increasingly influential Carty and the hard-working Byrne (36th and 37th minutes).
With momentum very much on their side, Marist were now looking for ways to move into the ascendancy, and when Neary split the posts from a 30-metre placed-ball after 42 minutes, they had assumed the lead for the very first time. A 10th point arrived via McMickan at the very end of the third-quarter, as Marist started to believe that they could claim victory.
Maynooth had struggled to impose themselves on the play after the action resumed, and the prominence of Marist in the middle third was making life extremely difficult for the hosts. They were still very much in the reckoning moving into the final ten minutes, but a crucial alteration by the Marist management in the 52nd minute ultimately swung the pendulum in their favour.
The aforementioned Gleeson was given the nod to replace Robert Curley for the remainder, and just two minutes later, he was on hand to finish coolly to the back of the Maynooth net when custodian Keith Kelly failed to hold a point attempt from a left-hand angle.
Having been held scoreless up to this point in the half, Maynooth were now badly in need of a goal. Try as they might, though, they couldn’t break down a determined Marist defence, and when McMickan expertly-converted a tricky ‘45’ in the first minute of additional time, it was clear that there was only going to be one winner of this contest.
However, Marist were not quite finished yet, and following an incisive pass by Michael Monaghan, Gleeson bagged his second major of the game, as the Westmeath side brought the curtain down on a memorable outing.
Scorers – Marist College: C Gleeson 2-0, C McMickan (1 ‘45’), N Neary (2f) 0-3 each, T Byrne 0-2, A Garvey, L Carty, B Stack 0-1 each. Maynooth Post-Primary: P Murray 1-0, B Travers 0-2, O Byrne, D Cullen, S O Se 0-1 each.
MARIST COLLEGE: Shane Mannion; Frank Farrell, Mark Daly, Adrian Garvey; Robert Curley, Ross Cooper, Luke Carty; Sam Omukoro, Eamon Cunnane; Terry Byrne, Charlie McMickan, Michael Monaghan; Niall Neary, Conor Marlow, Brian Stack.
Subs: Mark Curley for Cunnane (23), Martin Nolan for Cooper (49), Conor Gleeson for R Curley (52), Jack McDonnell for Byrne (59).
MAYNOOTH POST-PRIMARY: Keith Kelly; Ian Doyle, Darren Maguire, Tadhg Forde; Daniel O’Sullivan, Paul Mescal, Derry Bradley; Brian Travers, Owen Byrne; Diarmuid Cullen, Donnacha Healy, Seamus O Se; Jonathan Flattery, Shane Monaghan, Peadar Murray.
Subs: William McDonnell for Cullen (42), Stephen Coyle for Bradley (47, black card), Fergal Stack for Healy (49), Aimhrean Cleary for Doyle (58).
Referee: Kevin Brady (Louth).
In a nutshell
Player of the match
Luke Carty (Marist College)
There were a number of excellent performers for Marist on the day, including attacking pair Charlie McMickan and Niall Neary. However, the display of half-back Luke Carty was vital towards the Athlone school’s success, and his all-action style was encapsulated in an outstanding 36th-minute point during a particularly fruitful spell for his side.
Turning Point
Although an excellent start to the second half was a major catalyst for Marist’s triumph, the 52nd-minute introduction of Conor Gleeson to the field of play ultimately proved to be the winning of the game. He found a way past Maynooth shotstopper Keith Kelly moments after his entrance to the action, and he capped off a memorable cameo with a further three-pointer in stoppage time.
KEY MOMENT
While Maynooth never truly settled into their stride during the second half, they were still within touching distance moving into the final 15 minutes of action. The structure of their team was disrupted on 47 minutes, however, when wing-back Derry Bradley was issued with a black card at the same time Fergal Stack was ready to replace centre-forward Donnacha Healy, and they never truly regained their composure following his departure.