Bish boys advance

Deele College, Raphoe 1

(AET, St. Joseph’s won 5-4 on pens)

Joseph’s College, Galway (the Bish) booked their place in the Dr. Tony O’Neill Senior Cup Final after coming out on top following a pulsating penalty shootout with Deele College, Raphoe in the Showgrounds, Sligo on Tuesday.

The Galway boys were without Diarmuid McNee going into the game as he failed a late fitness test so Tommy McClean was drafted in as a replacement.

Neither side could break down some hardy defensive work as both keepers had an uneventful opening quarter, but Raphoe came close to breaking the deadlock on the half hour mark when Oliver Quinn saw his free kick sail over the woodwork

Ross Murphy then had a fine chance to put St. Joseph’s ahead going into the break after he ran through on goal, but his shot from close range went just wide of the mark. It was scoreless at the interval.

Within seconds of the restart Deele took the lead. The ball was played down the wing straight from tip off and crossed perfectly into the box for Simon McGlynn to knock home.

St. Joseph’s almost pulled a goal back five minutes later when Ross Murphy’s free kick from the right hand side skimmed across the face of the goal before it was knocked out for a corner.

The Galway lads continued their attack with the resulting corner. The ball was whipped in and met with determination by Bobby Keane who headed just wide of the near post.

Deele almost doubled their lead on 61 minutes when Philip Doran picked up the ball from 20 yards and shot inches wide of the St. Joseph’s goal.

St. Joseph’s thought they had gotten their equaliser when Josh Marvesley’s effort which was destined for the back of the net was cleared off the line at the last second by the in-form Shane Mahon.

Deele College then suffered a body blow as St. Joseph’s were awarded a penalty following an infringement on Conor Melody inside the box. The talented Ross Murphy converted with confidence with 14 minutes left in normal time.

James Grealish pulled off the save of the game two minutes later following an Oliver Quinn header from a set piece. The ball was destined for goal but Grealish reacted quickly to tip the ball over the bar with a one handed save for yet another corner for Deele

Neither team could find a winner as the minutes ticked by. Both teams were tired going into the additional 20 minutes of play.

After a lively 90 minutes that produced plenty of chances, there were only two clear cut opportunities in injury time, both of which were from the Galway side.

Ben Brennan had a rocket of a shot that just sailed over the bar on 97 minutes, while Murphy had one more attempt on goal before the final whistle from a free kick. The shot was hit low and the goalkeeper got down well to save.

And so the fate of the two teams was to be decided on spot kicks. The sides were level on four aiece heading into sudden death penalties before substitute David Cater converted to take his side through

Robert Grealish and his players will be anxiously awaiting the result of the other semi-final which will be played on Monday next in the RSC, Waterford between Coláiste Éanna CBS, Rathfarnham and Presentation Brothers College, Cork. The All Ireland Final is scheduled for Wednesday, March 11.

The School also have a Tom Ticher Connacht Final to schedule in between now and March 11 with Presentation College, Athenry. If they’re successful there, they could be in contention for possibly two All-Ireland titles this season.

St. Joseph’s College: J Grealish, T McClean, E Higgins (D Carter, 58), B Keane, B Lally, M Costello, B Brennan, J Coyne, J Marvesley, C Melody, R Murphy. Subs: J Kennedy, A Fitzgerald, C Scully, Mark Walsh (GK), C O’Connell, C Maloney

Deele College, Raphoe: S Friel, M Ayton, S Mahon, B McGinty, B McNamee, Z Brolly (M Devine, 59), O Higgins, O Quinn (Capt), S McGlynn, D Sharkey, P Doran. Subs: S Lawrence, S McDaid, C O’Kane, A Bogle, D Keys

Referee: R Barry (Sligo).