TOM QUINLAN SHIELD SEMI-FINAL
St Mac Dara’s set up final meeting with Skerries
Daire Walsh
AS A result of their comprehensive 5-10 to 2-5 victory over Drimnagh Castle CBS on Friday afternoon, St Mac Dara’s Community College will meet Skerries CC in the 2017 Tom Quinlan Shield decider.
Coached by Kilmacud Crokes footballer Pat Burke (who has featured for both Dublin and Clare at inter-county level), Mac Dara’s used a first-half wind advantage to good effect against Drimnagh. While goalkeeper Ross Synnott was kept on his toes throughout, early scores from Podge McNally, Adam Danaher and Cillian Carolan created daylight between themselves and their Long Mile Road counterparts.
A determined Drimnagh persevered with their challenge, but thanks to a brace of quickfire goals from the lively Shane Scully, Mac Dara’s developed a nine-point interval lead.
Drimnagh (who overcame Clonkeen College at the quarter-final stage) forced their way back into contention after the restart, though, and strong defensive work by Robin Hurley, Luke Bentley and Aaron Farrell aided Mac Dara’s during a difficult second-half spell.
However, Mac Dara’s maintained their composure as the game developed, and thanks to scoring contributions from Conor Dunphy, Liam Lynch and Luke Devlin, they ultimately finished with 14 points to spare. This sets up an intriguing final meeting with Skerries, who registered a resounding semi-final triumph against Portmarnock CS (7-8 to 1-4).