LEINSTER JUN HURLING ‘B’ FINAL
Aidan’s fall short against Choilm
THEY produced a spirited second-half performance last Friday afternoon at Dunganny, but St Aidan’s CBS ultimately came up short against Colaiste Choilm, Tullamore in the Leinster Schools’ Junior Hurling ‘B’ decider.
The Collins Avenue outfit progressed to the provincial series following their impressive extra-time victory over Colaiste Eoin in the Dublin Junior ‘A’ showpiece, but with 26 minutes gone in the Meath venue, they were facing into a 16-point deficit.
Patrick Fahey registered a fine goal for the Offaly school, and even though Aidan’s responded with a 1-1 salvo in the closing moments of the opening period, they still trailed by 12 points (1-13 to 1-1) at the mid-way stage.
However, a strong breeze made life difficult for the north Dublin side, and with the elements to their advantage after the restart, Tom O’Meara’s charges were hoping to cut into their sizeable deficit.
They displayed a keen eye for goal in their county decider – when quick-fire extra-time majors from Lee Gannon, Jordan Leonard and Michael Noonan sealed a 4-12 to 2-12 success – and they raised green flags on two further occasions in the second-half.
There was also a number of strong defensive showings from Aidan’s, but Choilm were always in a commanding position, and they secured their first-ever title at this grade on a scoreline of 1-20 to 3-2.