Persistence pay off a decade on for boss Kent
NATIONAL CUP SOCCER
Daire Walsh
CARRIGALINE UNITED winning manager Jack Kent was in jubilant form after his side made history in a gripping SFAI U16 Cup decider against Dublin’s Cherry Orchard on Sunday.
Following a dramatic 100 plus minutes of action – which saw the lead changing hands on a number of occasions – the Leesiders secured their maiden national title with a 3-1 victory on penalties.
It has been a long time coming for the club and Kent was thrilled to see their persistence paying off.
“To get to a national cup final with this team was some massive achievement for us.
“It’s our first time winning a national cup. We’ve been in finals before. We brought a team to a national cup final this time 10 years ago.
“We lost on penalties against Belvedere, but we put it right today.
“It’s history made today in the club,” Kent said.
“Not too many people come out of Dublin with a national cup back to the Leeside, but we did it today and it really was fabulous for the team.
“I really have to praise my players. We asked them to dig deep and today they dug deep.”
While it was a magnificent squad effort overall, Kent reserved special praise for Adam Costello and Jack Cullen. Costello ended the contest with a hat-trick of goals to his own, whereas Cullen came up trumps in the shootout with three top drawer saves.
“Adam Costello at centre-forward, he’s our talisman.
“Every time Adam gets a chance, he hits the back of the net. How many people have scored a hat-trick in national cup finals, up in Dublin against Cherry Orchard? Massive praise to that man.
“There’s a double man of the match there today. Jack Cullen in goal and Adam Costello up top. Couldn’t have asked for more and they’re fabulous young fellas,” Kent added.