St Michael’s capture County Minor B Gaelic football title in style
St Michael’s 1-15 Dunmore McHales 1-9
Ultimately Sunday afternoon’s County Minor B final was decided by a clever opening period performance from St Michael’s, who left just enough in the tank to survive a spirited Dunmore McHales rally late on.
Even though Michael’s somehow allowed Dunmore McHales back into the reckoning, there was no doubting who deserved to win this lively encounter. For the past dozen years Michael's have been a seriously respected force at minor level in West Board A competition so it came as a Spring surprise to many that they were trading in B in 2013.
On this evidence Michael's would surely have been contenders in the top tier as they produced a capable display that had Dunmore worried from the first whistle.
Michael’s ran the legs off Dunmore in a first-half that simply belonged to midfielder Eamonn Brannigan, who was immense. Brannigan featured for the Galway minor hurlers in the All-Ireland defeat to Waterford and was also part of the extended football panel at the grade – it was easy to see why he is so well regarded by Michael’s.
The stylish manner in which Brannigan seized the initiative for Michael’s ensured Dunmore were in deep bother from an early stage. It was strange that in a game of such magnitude that they were left simply trying to put a respectable gloss on the scoreline after the restart.
That was chiefly because Michael’s had taken charge initially, with the figures confirming the city outfit’s complete superiority. In the first half Michael’s registered 1-9 from 19 scoring opportunities, Dunmore posted 0-3 from seven which gives an illustration of how dominant Noel Connaughton’s team were.
Michael’s went in 1-9 to 0-3 ahead and it was a similar story of pressure after the restart, but the central issue was that the victors weren’t anywhere near as clinical. Bizarrely, Michael’s only kicked 0-3 from 13 attempts in the third quarter which ensured Dunmore, who trailed by 1-12 to 0-5 at that juncture, were permitted to stay in touch.
Dunmore, defiant until the bitter end, launched a purposeful and passionate revival that was spearheaded by Matthew Redington’s excellence. Dylan Fallon poked a goal following a Stephen Daly save from Redington and that gave Dunmore a much desired drop of hope and momentum.
Redington nailed three points in a row and Evan Canny kicked a free as suddenly the gap had been reduced to 1-12 to 1-9. Michael’s, who could scarcely believe what was happening, commendably regained their composure and closed out the deal effectively as Dunne hit the insurance score with substitutes Aaron Collins and MacDara Day decorating the victory.