GAELIC FOOTBALL – TOM QUINLAN SHIELD: SKERRIES CC 7-9 ST MAC DARA’S 2-10
EARLY BLITZ WORKS A TREAT FOR SUPER SKERRIES
Quick-fire goals pave the way for northsiders in Shield final against St Mac Dara’s in DCU
Daire Walsh
AN early scoring blitz proved key for Skerries CC at the DCU Sportsgrounds on Tuesday morning, as the northside school defeated St Mac Dara’s CC in the Tom Quinlan Shield decider.
Skerries were aiming to build on their semi-final victory against Portmarnock CS, and with just over two minutes gone, a fast-paced move was finished to the net by corner-forward Ronan Mulcahy. This was an early confidence boost, and subsequent goals by the attacking duo of Luke Whelan and Charlie Clear ensured that the Townspark boys were nine points to the good inside the opening five minutes.
REGISTERED
Whelan also registered a point from play, before Mac Dara’s finally interrupted this scoring sequence with a close-range Michael Lawlor free in the ninth minute. There was no let-up from Skerries in the first-quarter, though, and a placed-ball effort by midfielder Ethan Dunne was supplemented by a 1-2 salvo from Whelan. They created further daylight with unanswered points courtesy of Whelan, Dunne (free) and Tomas Hegarty, but as the half drew to a close, Mac Dara’s began to show what they are capable of.
A brace of goals from half-forward Adam Danaher gave the Wellington Lane boys a glimmer of hope, but two more points from the reliable Dunne made sure that Skerries brought a 4-8 to 2-1 lead into the interval.
They reinforced their superiority with a scrambled three-pointer from Clear three minutes after the restart, but to their credit, Mac Dara’s (who are coached by former Dublin and Clare footballer Pat Burke) persevered with their challenge. Substitute Sean Kirwan split the posts from an acute angle, and five points on the trot from inspirational inside forward Lawlor substantially reduced their deficit.
RESPONDED
Yet, this was as close as the the Templeogue school managed to get to Skerries, who responded with a sixth goal by wing-back Liam Cullen in the 44th-minute. Lawlor’s seventh point of the action followed, but this was eventually cancelled out by Whelan’s first score of the second-half.
Shane Scully and Lawlor were on target for a gallant Mac Dara’s in the closing moments, but another Clear goal in stoppage-time (which completed his hat-trick) secured this first year football crown for Skerries on a scoreline of 7-9 to 2-10.
Scorers – Skerries CC: L Whelan 2-4, C Clear 3-0, E Dunne 0-4 (3f), L Cullen, R Mulcahy 1-0 each, T Hegarty 0-1. St Mac Dara’s CC: M Lawlor 0-8 (5f), A Danaher 2-0, S Scully, S Kirwan 0-1 each.
SKERRIES CC: B Carroll; K Harford, E Gielty, O Bourke; J Ericsson, E O’Connor Flanagan, L Cullen; E Dunne, T Hegarty; C Kelly, T Grehan, A Rock; C Clear, L Whelan, R Mulcahy. Sub: J Kenny.
ST MAC DARA’S CC: R Synnott; R Hurley, L Bentley, A Farrell; L McCarthy, C Farrell, S McDonnell; S Scully, L Lynch; A Danaher, I Lynch, C Carolan; P McNally, C Sweeney, M Lawlor. Subs: C Farrell, L Darcy, C Cheetham, D O’Conor, T Keegan, A O’Loughlin, S Kirwan, J Murray, R O’Donoghue, S Moody, D Macken, L Devlin, C Keogh, M Kealy, C Dunphy, L Devlin.
Referee: D Sweeney (St Oliver Plunkett’s/Eoghan Ruadh).