This article is from page 87 of the 2009-02-10 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 87 JPG
A HISTORIC first ever Dr Harty Cup final place awaited the winners but neither side were willing to yield as St Caimin’s came from behind to snatch a draw in Meelick on Satur- Cr MA
The stakes were high but the inten- sity never wilted and really it could have gone either way in what was a tension-filled final twenty minutes.
That nervousness probably con- tributed to the majority of the scores coming from frees, with Sixmilebri- dge’s Patrick Sheehan unerring free- taking matched by Ard Scoil Ris’ Kevin Downes and Declan Hannon. In all, the Shannon school only man- aged three scores from play while Ard Scoil only fared slightly better with six but it didn’t take from the entertainment as both sides went all out in their quest to forge history.
To add even more bite to the occa- sion, club players from the county found themselves in the unique po- sition of having to play against their club-mates with Cratloe split by St Caimin’s representatives of Enda Boyce, Sean Hynan, Padraic Collins and Joe Conroy on one side while Ard Scoil Ris had Conor Ryan and Cathal McInerney in their ranks. Equally Ard Scoil Ris’ 14 year old substitute Jamie Shanahan, had to contend with Sixmilebridge team- mates Noel Purcell, Kevin Lynch, Patrick Sheehan, Alan Mulready and Timmy Crowe.
That rivalry was empitomised by the respective captains Sean Hynan
and Conor Ryan, who were in direct opposition from the throw-in. Supporters had barely found a po- sition on the hill before St Caimin’s stormed into a early lead, grabbing 1-2 in less than three minutes. A Patrick Sheehan free either side of Alan Mulready’s second minute goal blazed a trail for the Shannon side, with goal-poacher Mulready getting on the end of a breaking ball from fellow Bridgeman Timmy Crowe to UUM romeeemiam It took Ard Scoil Ris five minutes to open their account but once Kevin Downes converted a free after Niall Kennedy had been fouled, it was the start of a fruitful period for the Lim- erick side, who had the experience of two extremely difficult ties with St Flannan’s in the previous fortnight. Six points out of the next seven spearheaded their recovery by the 23rd minute, with Downes the chief marksman with three placed balls. Now on the backfoot, Caimin’s retreated further and Ard Scoil Ris took the opportunity to strike a de- cisive blow. It came after Brendan O’Connor’s shot was blocked by cor- ner-back Colm McCaul and as goal- keeper Tommy Griffin attempted to scramble the ball clear, O’Connor stepped forward again to strike to the net. St Caimin’s reply was swift and almost as effective but Sheehan’s 20 metre free was saved by goalkeeper PJ Hall and on the rebound, Timmy Crowe had to be content with a point to cut the deficit to two at 1-7 to 1-5. That response was shortlived how- ever as Downes converted two more
frees before the break to extend Ard Scoil Ris’ to three.
It would get worse before it would get better for St Caimin’s as Ard Scoil’s Shane Dowling made it I- 10 to 1-06 by the 38th minute, after Sheehan and Declan Hannon had ex- changed frees.
However, they dug in superbly and upping their challenge a gear over the next seventeen minutes, they held their opponents scoreless on their way to cancelling out the lead with four unanswered Sheehan placed balls by the 55th minute.
The final score came after Padraic Collins blocked goalkeeper PJ Hall’s clearance and the ball broke to Tim- my Crowe whose shot for goal was somehow defected for a ’65 by Meel- ick’s Eanna Mulvihill
The tension was almost palpable now as Kevin Downes hit two frees wide and they needed some inspira- tion to reignite their challenge. That spur came from wing-back Cathal McInerney who played a one-two with fellow Cratloe player Conor Ryan before hitting a monster point from half-way.
From the puck-out, Kevin Downes, now operating deeper, gathered and hit it back over goalkeeper Tommy Griffin’s head and now two points clear entering the final minute of nor- mal time, it appeared that Ard Scoil were heading towards the final.
St Caimin’s refused to be beaten though and after Patrick Sheehan held his nerve to point a free from half-way, up stepped Wolfe Tones’ John Guilfoyle to save the day with
a point on the run. St Caimin’s did have two late chances but after com- ing from behind, a draw was argu- ably the fairest result in the end. Mock exams, football commit- ments and a mid-term break mean that the replay will now take place on Saturday week, with the final against Thurles CBS down for March 8.