Extra-time heartbreak for St Joseph’s

Dungarvan CBS 1-22  St Joseph’s, Tulla 1-15
(after extra time)

A margin of seven points is not an accurate reflection of how closely matched the teams were in what was a most entertaining final of the Munster Colleges Senior B Hurling Championship (Corn Phadraig) at Golden in Tipperary on Saturday afternoon.

Extra time was required before the raging-hot favourites, appearing in the final for the fourth year in succession, managed to edge ahead and capture the honours.

From the very beginning of the championship, Dungarvan CBS were installed as favourites for the title, which wasn’t surprising given that their smallest winning margin on their way to the final was nine points.

On Saturday, they more than met their match as Tulla made the running for most of this tie and, with a little luck, could have captured the crown in normal time.

Playing with the aid of the wind in the opening half, they were seven points ahead after 20 minutes before taking a five-point advantage to the break. The first opportunity fell to the winners, who started confidently and won a penalty in the second minute. Dan Vaughan in the Tulla goal saved Cormac Curran’s effort before being awarded a free out. The opening score came in the fourth minute when Colin Corbett converted a 25m free and he quickly followed with a second before Eoin Tuohy landed a superb score from a 95m free.

Team captain Oisín Donnellan converted a 35m line ball in the 10th minute to give his side a four-point advantage.

A further four minutes elapsed before Patrick Curran opened Dungarvan’s account when he converted a 25m free having missed a few chances earlier in the game. Tulla responded with four points in as many minute to go seven clear with 20 minutes played. The game’s opening score from play came from Steven Conway in the 17th minute while Eoin Tuohy’s score from play was an excellent score after he received a pass from team captain Donnellan.

Dungarvan then had two very good goal chances but failed to convert either, Mark Perrill coming to Tulla’s rescue when he cleared off the goal line before Ryan Donnelly blazed the ball across the goal and wide with only Dan Vaughan to beat.

Dungarvan finished the half strongly with two Curran frees and one from Colin Dunford to a single reply from Con Smyth to leave the half-time score 0-9 to 0-4.

Dungarvan had the opening two points of the second half but a John O’Brien effort six minutes in kept Tulla four clear. Another brace from the winners followed before Colin Corbett converted a free, leaving the score at 0-11 to 0-8 11 minutes into the new half.

The margin was still three with 12 minutes left after the teams had swapped points. Curan, who got little space from the outstanding Ciarán Cooney, cut the margin to two before he finished off a good Dungarvan move with a goal in the 19th minute, a score that put them in front for the first time.They had pulled three clear with five minutes to play but Tulla weren’t giving up and they piled forward in search of an equaliser. When Colin Corbett missed a 20m free two minutes from the end, it looked like their chance had gone but a minute later they were on the attack again and won a 20m free in front of goal.

Eoin Tuohy came up from wing-back and while his attempt for goal was stopped, Con Smyth was following up and he found the net to tie up the game. A further two minutes failed to yield a score and when the final whistle sounded, they were level at 1-12 each.

Tulla had the assistance of the wind for the first period of extra-time when a personnel change in each side was to have an effect on the game. Aaron Donnelly was in the Dungarvan line-up and his pace in attack caused some problems for Tulla, who lost defender Evan McMahon to injury.

Early points from Oisín Donnellan and Steven Conway pushed Tulla two clear in as many minutes but the failed to score again in this first period of additional time while Dungarvan managed three converted frees from Curran and a point from substitute Donnelly to lead by two (1-16 to 1-14) at the turnover.

Tulla reduced the margin to one when Corbett pointed a free but from here to the finish Dungarvan’s experience was evident and they scored six points without reply, to capture the crown.

The Tulla defence was superb, with Ciarán Cooney, Eoin Tuohy and James Noonan particularly prominent. Team captain Oisín Donnellan played his heart out at midfield and he got good support from Con Smyth. The Tulla attack struggled and certainly missed the suspended Diarmuid Moloney.

While the experienced Patrick Curran finished with a tally of 1-13, 0-9 of which came from frees, he was well policed by Ciarán Cooney. Kevin Daly, Jack O’Donnell, Colin Dunford and substitute Aaron Donnelly did well for the new champions, 10 of whose team will line out for Dungarvan Colleges against Our Lady’s Templemore in the Harty Cup final this weekend.

Dungarvan CBS: Gavin Power; Cian Culloo, Kevin Daly, Michael Cronin; Kieran Barron, Kealan Looby, Jack O’Donnell; Colin Dunford, Cormac Curran; Ryan Donnelly, Michael Harney, Christoir Breathnach; Darragh Lyons, Jack Morrissey, Patrick Curran.
Subs: Aaron Donnelly for Morrissey and Morrissey for Barron.
Scorers: Patrick Curran (1-13, 0-9 f), Aaron Donnelly (0-3), Colin Dunford (0-2), ­Cormac Curran, Ryan ­Donnelly, Christoir Breathnach, ­Darragh Lyons (0-1) each.
St Joseph’s, Tulla: Dan Vaughan (Tulla); Mark Perrill (Crusheen), James Noonan (Feakle), Evan McMahon (Feakle); Eoin Tuohy ­(Feakle), Niall Bolton (Tulla), Ciarán Cooney (O’Callaghan’s Mills); Oisín Donnellan (Feakle) Capt, Con Smyth (Feakle); Darren Chaplin (Broadford), Mark Lynch (Tulla), David Kearney (Crusheen); John O’Brien (O’Callaghan’s Mills), Colin Corbett (Tulla), Steven Conway (Feakle);
Subs: Justin Nelson (Feakle) for Kearney and Martin Daly (Feakle) for McMahon (inj).
Scorers: Colin Corbett (0-6f), Con Smyth (1-1), Oisín Donnellan, (0-2, 1lb), Eoin Tuohy (1f), Steven Conway (0-2) each; Mark Lynch, John O’Brien (0-1) each.
Referee: John McCormack, Tipperary.