DUBLIN JUNIOR ‘A’ HURLING SEMI-FINAL
LOWRY ACE FOR AIDAN’S
Daire Walsh
CORNER-FORWARD Sean Lowry was the hat-trick hero for St Aidan’s CBS on Tuesday afternoon, when the Collins Avenue side booked their place in the Dublin Schools Junior ‘A’ Hurling decider with a comprehensive triumph over Colaiste Eanna.
A devastating opening period display provided Aidan’s with a powerful platform, and even though Ciaran Cashman and Ben Kelly were in fine form for the visitors (the game was played on the Aidan’s home pitch), the northsiders progressed to the competition’s upcoming showpiece in considerable style.
Eanna had produced a valiant showing in the latter stages of their recent group stage defeat at the hands of Colaiste Eoin, and they were hoping to make a bright start to this penultimate round clash against an in-form Aidan’s.
However, following their final loss to defending champions Ardscoil Ris two years ago, Aidan’s are determined to go one better in 2015, and from the first attack of the contest, midfielder Eoin Berry raced through the heart of the Eanna defence to register the opening goal of the game.
This was a major shock to the system for their Ballyroan counterparts, and despite conceding a pointed free to Eanna full-forward Ciaran Cashman, lively corner-forward Eoin Flaherty added a second goal for Aidan’s four minutes in, after Lee Gannon’s long-distance effort had rebounded off the woodwork.
The confidence levels of Aidan’s were high during the early exchanges, and having increased their advantage with a score from centre-back Ciaran Murphy, they found the back of the Eanna net for a third time, just six minutes into the action.
Inside forward Lowry fired clinically beyond the reach of Eanna netminder Jack Lambert after executing a sharp turn on his direct opponent, and this was supplemented by an excellent Flaherty point from the right-wing. Eanna were struggling to cope with the pace and invention of the Aidan’s forward line, and Cashman’s second successful free 11 minutes in was badly-needed from their point of view.
The reliable attacker was also on target eight minutes later, but this was preceded by a second goal from the lethal Lowry. Aidan’s were rampant at this stage, and after fielding superbly on the edge of the square, full-forward Enda O’Donnell created the opening for Lowry’s third goal on 19 minutes.
Even at this early stage, it was starting to look ominous for Eanna, and although Cashman added a brace of scores from placed-ball situations, unanswered points by Gannon (two) and Berry helped Aidan’s to secure a 5-5 to 0-5 interval lead.
Yet, Eanna were in a positive frame of mind upon the resumption, with half-time substitute Abdullah Al Jumaili making a significant impact. It was Kelly who eventually lifted the scoring burden from Cashman’s shoulders, though, as his precise 31st minute strike found the bottom corner of Cathal McGloughlin’s goal.
BOOST
This gave Eanna a much-desired boost, and following swapped scores between Gannon (free) and Kelly, Cashman’s outstanding three-pointer reduced their deficit to nine points. This was still a commanding cushion that Aidan’s had at their disposal, however, and Gannon’s 0-2 salvo allowed them to settle again.
Kelly (who had assumed free-taking duties from Cashman) added to his own personal tally on the stroke of 40 minutes, before three points in succession from O’Donnell (two) and Gannon placed Aidan’s into an insurmountable position heading into the final-quarter.
Eanna dipped into their reserves for fresh impetus late on, but with Gannon adding four points to his impressive haul, Aidan’s continued to dominate the scoreboard. Kelly did grab a consolation major for Eanna in second-half stoppage-time, and the concession of three second-half goals may be a cause of concern for St Aidan’s CBS ahead of their final appearance.
They will face either Colaiste Eoin or Ardscoil Ris (who are hoping to claim a sixth consecutive Junior ‘A’ Hurling title) who do battle in Silver Park this afternoon.
ST AIDAN’S CBS………………………………………… 5-16
COLAISTE EANNA………………………………………. 3-8
Scorers – St Aidan’s CBS: L Gannon 0-10 (7f), S Lowry 3-0, E Berry 1-2, E Flaherty 1-1, E O’Donnell 0-2, C Murphy 0-1. Colaiste Eanna: C Cashman 1-5 (0-4f, 0-1 ’65’), B Kelly 2-3 (0-1f).
ST AIDAN’S CBS: C McGloughlin; B Daly, R Harte, G Sheehan; Cian Murphy, Ciaran Murphy, J Thorpe; E Berry, K Doran; L Gannon, N Power, J Leonard; E Flaherty, E O’Donnell, S Lowry. Subs: C Gleeson for Leonard (h-t), P Maloney for Flaherty (55), E Power for O’Donnell (57), R Fahy for Doran (58).
COLAISTE EANNA: J Lambert; J McGuire, J Dalton, J Kenny; R Hester, T Glynn, W McDonnell; D O’Riordan, E Cashman; D Dunleavy, J O’Donoghue, M Codd; A Kelleher, C Cashman, B Kelly. Subs: A Al jumaili for Codd (h-t), C Corcoran for Kelleher (31), K McGrath for McGuire (49), M Nolan for Lambert (51), S Lambert for O’Donoghue (53), M Lovett for Kenny (53), D Barrett for Hester (58), T Duff for Dunleavy (60).
Referee: Thomas Gleeson (Naomh Fionnbarra).