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Action from the St Brendan’s v Dingle game in the Super Valu Senior County Championship in Austin Stack Park Saturday evening. Photo by Oscar Brophy.
St Brendan’s 0-9
Dingle 2-9
St Brendan’s were knocked out of the Super Valu Senior Football County Championship last night.
Two goals, one coming right at the finish of the first and the other at the beginning of the second halves were the difference on the scoreboard, but the gulf in quality between the sides was apparent throughout.
St Brendan’s can bemoan losing so many players through a mixture of emigration and injury this year. You would suspect if they could have drawn upon those players they could have really put it up to this Dingle side that contained no fewer then four Kerry minors and one of the form forwards in the country right now, Paul Geaney.
It really was a dour affair. Interest in the game began to fade among the 800 or so who watched on as the Brendan’s wilted after Dingle scored their second goal. It made almost the entire second half a procession of missed chances and poor quality football.
Brendan’s had the benefit of a slight breeze in Austin Stack Park for the first half and they started well going tit for tat with Dingle. After 12 minutes the sides were level with three apiece, the best score coming from John Mitchels’ Alan O’Donoghue who worked tirelessly throughout.
When Churchill’s Micheal Brennan scored a point on 17 minutes this put the Saints one point ahead, but when they lost that lead they never regained it.
Kieran Hurley shoots for a score against Dingle in the Super Valu Senior County Championship in Austin Stack Park on Saturday evening. Photo by Oscar Brophy.
The game was marked by an incredible amount of wides from Dingle – 10 in the first half alone. Paul Geaney must have left his shooting boots in Pairc Ui Chaoimh because he was the main culprit.
He even spurned a couple of goal chances that would have put the game beyond his opponents early on.
The first hammer blow for Brendan’s arrived at the end of the first half when Ardfert’s Fionan Horgan pulled down Mark Evans and a penalty was correctly given. Mark Evans converted the spot-kick and the sides went in for the second half 1-6 to 0-6 to Dingle.
David Culloty looks for options against Dingle in the Super Valu Senior County Championship in Austin Stack Park on Saturday evening. Photo by Oscar Brophy.
At the beginning of the second half the ever industrious Kerry Minor, Matthew Flaherty got the key score of the game when he finished to the net latching onto a long pass from Brendan Kelliher. This put the men from the west six points ahead.
St Brendan’s quite simply did not have the quality to claw that back.
What followed for the remainder of the half is better forgotten – the game being marked by scrappy football and bad wides.
All is not lost for Brendan’s though, they were not expected to get this far and they can rue missing many of their best players. If they can come back on board next year, Aidan Daly’s charges stand a good chance of going a step further again.
St Brendan’s: Paudie Baily, Fionan Horgan, Rory Horgan, Michael Brennan, David Griffin, Sean Moloney, Liam Poff, John Dowling, Kevin Shanahan, Liam O’Sullivan, Brendan Poff, Alan O’Donoghue, Kieran Hurley, Ivan Parker.
Scorers: Kieran Hurley (0-3), Alan O’Donoghue (0-2), Michael Brennan (0-1), David Griffin (0-1), Brian Costello (0-1), John Dowling (0-1).
Substitutes: Brian Costello (Liam Poff), David Culloty (Ivan Parker), Paul McMahon (Kevin Shanahan)
Dingle: Gavin Curran, Conor O’Sullivan, Sean Brosnan, Thomas O’Sullivan, Marc O’Connor, Matthew Flaherty, Brendan Kelliher, Darragh O’Sullivan, Barry O’Sullivan, Gavin Curran, Micheal Geaney, Jack O’Sullivan, Marc Evans, Liam Devane, Paul Geaney.
Scorers: Paul Geaney (1-3), Mathew O’Flaherty (1-1), Mark Evans (0-3), Conor Geaney (0-1), Brendan Kelliher (0-1)
Substitutes: Conor Geaney (Mark Evans), Ryan Begley (Gavin Curran), Brian Devane (Liam Devane), Adrian Devane (Conor O’Sullivan)
