Clane 2-21
Naas 1-21
Tony Donohue Trophies U21 A Football Championship final
Shane O’Sullivan’s goal five minutes into the second period of extra time proved to be crucial as Clane landed their first ever U21 Championship title in sensational fashion.
It was a heart-breaking loss for Naas to take after they played their part in a truly sensational game of football that ebbed and flowed from end to end throughout, but Clane had a tiny bit extra in the tank in extra-time as they came out on the right side.
An end to end final couple of minutes to normal time saw Naas swing momentum in their favour as Luke Griffin curled over what looked to be the winner, but Ethan O’Donoghue’s 62nd minute point earned Clane a reprieve and another chance to claim the silverware.
The first half of this game was an enthralling battle which was high on quality which was really befitting of the occasion. Both defences were slightly leaky at times and almost stand-offish at times, but that only served to enhance the spectacle as both sides looked intent on attacking from all angles.
Naas were superb in the opening quarter as they raced into a 0-5 to 0-1 lead and could have had a goal during that spell too, but it was Clane who took command of the second part of first half to wheel their way into the ascendancy.
The game burst into life early on as Shane Ryan opened the scoring, and his second arrived soon after when he cut in from the right following a good ball in from David Shaw. Kyle Devey eventually got Clane up and running when he fired over a close-range effort for his side, who had struck three wides up to that stage and were looking slightly off colour.
That only slightly disrupted Naas’ momentum as the County Town side reeled off another three points in quick succession as Ciaran Doyle struck from a free before somehow lofting the ball between the posts from an audacious angle out on the right wing. A slaloming run and point from Dallan Gallagher increased the lead to four points, and it should have been more when Ryan slipped a pass inside to Doyle who had the goal at his mercy from three metres out, but when he eventually pulled the trigger Brian Corbett was back on the line to save his effort.
Their captain’s intervention seemed to spur on the Lilywhites somewhat, and a fine point from Brian McLoughlin lifted the siege and paved the way for a good spell. The Kildare U20 star then found Ethan O’Donoghue from a line ball and the midfielder bombed over a brilliant effort on the turn from distance, and Clane suddenly looked very confident.
Naas’ last point of the half arrived in the 17th minute when Adam Cronin delivered a long ball into the dangerous Ryan, allowing him to turn and run at goal before hitting the target.
Sean O’Dea’s men went down the other end to score four on the trot and hit the front for the first time in the 21st minute, with three of those points coming in the space of 90 blistering seconds. McLoughlin and O’Donoghue both angled over superb scores, while Devey fisted a point and O’Sullivan stroked over a free to help Clane into a 0-7 to 0-6 lead with 21 minutes played.
Naas had barely enjoyed any possession in the Clane half for around 10 minutes, but they roared back into the lead five minutes before the break when Ryan hit the game’s first goal. It was a simple move as James Burke launched a long ball towards the full-forward, who caught and turned Dan Reilly in one movement before finding the net.
O’Sullivan provided the perfect tonic for Clane at the other end however, brilliantly claiming a high ball from Devey inside the area before rifling a low shot into the bottom corner which Luke Mullins almost kept out. A point from Ciaran Kelly two minutes before the break ensured that Clane took a 1-8 to 1-6 lead into half-time following superbly entertaining 30 minutes of football.
Just like in the first half, Naas virtually owned the opening 15 or so minutes of the second half as they built their way back into a lead by steadily knocking over points, with the majority of them coming from the increasingly influential Doyle. He opened the scoring within a minute of the restart, but that was immediately cancelled out by a pointed free from O’Sullivan. Burke then hit his first of the afternoon following a good burst through the middle, while a pointed free from Doyle restored parity on the scoreboard. A fine point from McLoughlin briefly nudged Clane back into the lead, but Naas took command after that as they scored four of the next five points.
Doyle raised a couple of white flags either side of an exceptional long range strike from substitute Alex Beirne who was having a big impact off the bench, and while James Behan stemmed the flow of Naas scores by hitting a point for Clane, another free from Doyle steered Naas three points ahead.
McLoughlin really came to the fore in the final quarter for Clane as he carried the fight to Naas, and three frees from the centre-forward ensured that the tie remained in the balance despite Beirne and Daragh Kirwan landing scores for Naas at the other end.
The final stages of normal time were frantic as Doyle nudged Naas back ahead before McLoughlin sensationally responded with a point from a line ball. Substitute Luke Griffin looked to have won the game for Naas with a point in the first minute of added time, but once again Clane hit back as O’Donoghue scythed through the middle of the Naas defence to clip over the equaliser.
Both sides missed opportunities to land a winner deep into added time, meaning extra-time was needed as the game finished 1-17 apiece.
It remained just as tight in extra-time as Shane O’Sullivan landed a couple of points for Clane and Griffin and Doyle were on the mark for Naas, who might have had a goal were it not for a smart block from Jack McCrory to deny Alex Beirne.
O’Sullivan sent Clane back into the lead with a point from a free, and his second goal of the game two minutes later left Naas with a huge mountain to climb. Behan ensured Clane of the win with his second score, and despite Naas throwing everything forward in the final minutes they couldn’t claw themselves back into the game and the Lilywhites claimed the title.
Scorers for Clane: S O’Sullivan 2-5(5f), B McLoughlin 0-8(4f, 1SL), E O’Donoghue 0-3, K Devey and J Behan 0-2 each, C Kelly 0-1.
Scorers for Naas: C Doyle 0-10(6f), S Ryan 1-3, L Griffin 0-3(2f) A Beirne 0-2, J Burke, D Kirwan, and D Gallagher 0-1 each.
Clane
Jack McCrory; Dan Reilly, Eimhin Gillman, Colm O’Sullivan; Tadgh Montgomery, Brian Corbett, Chris Byrne; Ethan O’Donoghue, James Behan; Caolan Smith, Brian McLoughlin, Sam McCormack; Kyle Devey, Shane O’Sullivan, Ciaran Kelly.
Subs used: Danny Vaughan for Gillman 40mins, Shane McCormack for Sam McCormack 43mins, Eoghan McGuire for Kelly 48mins, Jack McCreevy for Smith 57mins, Enda O’Connell for C O’Sullivan 70mins.
Naas
Luke Mullins; Brian Stynes, Conor McCarthy, Eamonn Dunne; Cathal Daly, Adam Cronin, Sean Cullen; Eoin Archbold, James Burke; Tom Browne, Dallan Gallagher, David Shaw; Ciaran Doyle, Shane Ryan, Ben Blackburne.
Subs used: Alex Beirne for Blackburne HT, Luke Griffin for Browne 37mins, Daragh Kirwan for Gallagher 44mins, Paddy McDermott for Shaw 58mins, Rian Boran for Archbold 60mins, Drew Costello for Ryan 66mins.
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