Masita Dr Eamon O’Sullivan Cup final
St Malachy’s, Castlewellan 4-13 Tarbert Comprehensive (Kerry) 3-19 (after extra-time)
IT was another epic battle for St Malachy’s, Castlewellan in Netwatch Dr Cullen Park Carlow.
For the fourth time in five championship games, the mid-Down school came back from the brink to take a game to extra-time. On Saturday afternoon they were 11 points down in the 43rd minute and managed to take the lead in injury-time.
While their fitness levels had carried them through the three previous 80-minute games, a late goal from John Coolahan finally killed off the Markey Cup champions, but what a season they have had!
Tarbert played against the wind in the first half and Jamie Moloney’s green flag came when he prodded home after Callum Travers had blocked out Shaun Wren’s initial effort. That score had the teams on level terms, 1-5 to 0-8, at the break with Ruairí Madine on fire for the Down school
Madine scored three points from play and in the 12th minute had a superb individual goal controversially brought back for a free in.
After half-time, Tarbert switched David Mulvihill onto Madine and the Kerry side stepped on the gas with Paudie Finucane dominant at midfield and Patrick O’Connor, Coolahan, Wren and Caolam Moriarty sparkling up front.
Coolahan rattled the Castlewellan net for a second Tarbert goal in the 43rd minute and they led by 2-13 to 0-8 having scored 1-8 without reply over those 13 minutes.
Taidgh O’Hanlon started a quite extraordinary comeback with a goal two minutes later. Five minutes further on sub Daire Treanor brought the gap down to six points with a neat finish and suddenly the momentum was with St Malachy’s and the north Kerry school looked dead on their feet.
Ross Green, Corey Trainor, O’Hanlon, Christopher Kelly-McEvoy, James Savage and Eoghan Travers were dictating the game but they still needed to convert that energy into scores.
Travers delivered a third goal to make it 2-14 to 3-8, entering the closing minutes. Then came a fourth Castlewellan goal inside 14 minutes when Savage converted in the 59th minute.
Amazingly. Travers took and pointed a mark to give them the lead. However, Tarbert forced a ‘45′ and their captain Shaun Wren brought the tie to extra-time, 2-15 to 4-9.
The sides couldn’t be separated after the first 10 added minutes, each team scoring three points.
The key score came from John Coolahan when he finished off a move involving Paudie Finucane and sub Darragh Mullane with a bullet to the Castlewellan net in the 76th minute.
Travers blasted over from close range late on but Tarbert held out to bring the Dr O’Sullivan Cup, named after a Kerry man, back to the Kingdom.
Tarbert J Coolahan 2-3, J Moloney 1-0, S Wren 0-8, 5 frees, C Moriarty 0-5, 4 frees, P O’Connor 0-2, T O’Connell 0-1.
St Malachy’s E Travers 1-6, 0-5 frees, D Treanor, T O’Hanlon and J Savage 1-0 each, R Madine 0-3, C Kelly-McEvoy 0-2, 1 free, R Green and C Trainor 0-1 each