U21 FOOTBALL: An Ghaeltacht 5-17; Austin Stacks 4-10. Match Photographs below
On an ideal evening for football we travelled to Gallarus on this Friday (12th Sept) for the quarter final of the Co. Club Championship and after one of the highest scoring games in memory we came up short against a very good An Ghaeltacht side. The home side went into an early two points lead before Shane Crowley placed Darragh O’Brien for our first point. Then in the space of six minutes (10th to 16th) the game produced four consecutive goals, The first two went to the West Kerry boys followed in quick succession by two for our lads. The first was simply brilliant. Alan Duggan won the kick-out, passed to Michael O’Donnell who linked with the impressive Niall Carroll Cane and he found David O’Sullivan who placed Shane Crowley for a great goal. Our next came three minutes later with Niall and Alan Duggan involved again and Eamon McAllen, on this occasion, finishing to the net.
It was now point for point by both sides with Darragh O’Brien pointing our two from a free and from play. After being seven points down after 12 minutes we were now just one adrift after 20 minutes. And it got better a minute later when our third goal by Darragh O’Brien put us in the lead for the first time.
But Gaeltacht powered through in the closing ten minutes to outscore us by 1-3 to 0-1 with Darragh on target for us from a well-taken 45. This left us adrift by three at half time after playing against a stiffish breeze (3-7 to 3-4).
The second half was just over a minute old when Tom McLoughlin, from his wing-back position, launched a perfect pass to David O’Sullivan and he placed Darragh O’Brien who now brought his tally to 1-5 with a well-taken point. Two more points followed from Eamon McAllen and Conor Jordan and then came one the best goals of the nine when Alan Duggan and Michael O’Donnell found Greg Horan who blasted to the net. We were now one ahead (4-8 to 3-10) but like the first half Gaeltacht continued with their level of intensity and in the remaining twenty minutes took complete control adding a further 2-7 to 0-2 for us with Darragh O’Brien on target from another 45 and one from play by Greg Horan.
The scoreline does not really do justice to our display which rivaled our opponents for most of the game and on another day could have yielded a different result. One would have to trawl through the record books to find a team with a scoreline of 4-10 on the loosing side (Kerry’s win over Offaly in the 1980 semi final comes to mind 4-15 to 4-10).
Team: Patrick Fitzgibbon, Paul Galvin, Alan Crean, Niall Carroll Cane, Tom McLoughlin, Conor Jordan (0-1), Ciarán O’Connell, Alan Duggan, Greg Horan (1-2), Shane Crowley (1-0), Michael O’Donnell, James Galvin, David O’Sullivan, Darragh O’Brien (Capt) (1-6 – 1 free; 2 forty fives), Eamon McAllen (1-1). Subs used: Kyle Fitzgibbon (23m), Breandán Caball (47m), Seán Fitzmaurice (52m).
“The Hurlers on the Ditch” taking the evening sun in Gallerus, waiting for the game to begin.
Ciaran O’Connell on a solo.
Goal #1 for the Rockies – a bullet from Shane Crowley.
aerial possession won by Mike O’Donnell.
Greg Horan on a forward move, assisted by Alan Duggan.
Goal #2 scored by Eamonn McAllen.
Austin Stacks third goal in the first half, scored by Darragh O’Brien.
Tom McLoughlin closely marks his opponent.
Sean Fitzmaurice gets the ball away.
all photographs courtesy of Adrienne Mc Loughlin.