LEINSTER MFC QUARTER-FINAL
Kildare 3-15 Wexford 2-4
BRYAN Murphy’s Kildare minor team cruised into the Leinster championship semi final with another comprehensive win, this time over Wexford, at St Conleth’s Park on Saturday afternoon (23 May).
After hammering Wicklow by 26 points in the first round, Murphy’s young colts were expected to be given a much tougher examination by a fancied Wexford team. Afterall they had been comfortable winners in their first round clash against Kilkenny, winning by 23 points.
They were completely outclassed by a far superior Kildare team. Tomás Moolick and John Comerford lorded over the midfield area and gave Kildare the platform to go on and win the game. Moolick finished the game with 1-3 but that owed a lot to hard work by Comerford, which gave Moolick the chance to push forward at every opportunity.
The fact that this Kildare team have recorded two massive victories is something of a surprise because many people saw this team as simply building for next year due to the number of players who will be available again in 2010 but when those players include Paul Cribbin, convention goes out the window. Cribbin is no ordinary player.
He never reached the levels that he did against Wicklow in the previous game but he still finished the game with two goals. Wexford couldn’t live him when he got his hands on the ball and he is a serious player in the making.
Cribbin was ably supported in attack by Athy’s Darroch Mulhall, who scored five points to go with the 1-4 he bagged against Wicklow.
It is still very difficult to assess this team given how easily they have won their two matches to date.
“We can only play what is in front of us. That is all that we can do, look after our own performances. We have a good team bunch, the backroom team included, fellas are working hard for each and that is the main thing,” said manager Murphy afterwards.
And while Wexford were highly thought of coming into this, they are a poor team and until this Kildare team have their backs against the wall and show how they respond there will be doubts about how far they can go.
On Saturday Murphy sent his team out to do a job and his players carried out his instructions with ease.
The Lilies came out of the dressing rooms like a house on fire and hit 1-7 before Wexford finally troubled the scoreboard in the 29th minute.
Moolick gave notice of the kind of performance that he was going to give when he scored the game’s first point after two minutes and a barnstorming run from Donnacha McDonnell set up another score for Mulhall soon after.
There were seven minutes on the clock when Paul Cribben scored the game’s first goal. He collected a sideline ball and turned away from Barry O’Gorman and raced towards goal. No Wexford defender thought it necessary to come and close him down so he continued running before blasting the ball past Sean O’Gorman.
Seán Hurley, Moolick, Mullhall, (two) and Reynolds all added points before Declan Murphy hit Wexford’s first point of the day from a free.
There were six minutes of injury time to be played in the first half because Donnchadh McDonnell needed lengthy treatment before heading to hospital after he was knocked unconscious following a tackle by Matthew O’Hanlon.
Kildare used that added time to tack on scores from Mulhall and Hurley.
Barry O’Gorman and Cian Reynolds traded early points but Kildare moved 14 points clear when Moolick found the back of the net in the 35th minute, following good work by Reynolds and Cocoman.
Points from Mulhall and substitute Bernard Deay increased that lead to 16 points but Kildare understandably took their foot off the pedal a little in the final quarter.
It was just a lapse of concentration that let Michael O’Regan in to score a goal in the 45th minute but the introduction of John McAndrew brought new life to the Kildare forward line and he finished with two points.
Cribben scored his second goal of the game with a terrific finish in the 57th minute but Wexford had the final say when a run by Declan Murphy ended with O’Regan scoring from close range with almost the last kick of the game leaving Kildare comfortable winners by 14 point s.
Beforethisseason’schampionship, it had been four long years since Kildare won a game in Leinster. It would be unfair to put too much pressure on this young team but with performances like this, it’s hard not to wonder just how far this team will go.
KILDARE: Danny Byrne (Clane); Donnchadh McDonnell (Sarsfields), Seán Dowling (Na Fianna), Pauric Cullen (Ballykelly); Colin O’Shea (Na Fianna), Kevin Corrigan (Kill), Eoin Doyle (Naas); Tomás Moolick .-. (Leixlip), John Comerford (Maynooth); Philip Cocoman (Naas), Paul Cribbin
.-. (Balyna), Seán Hurley . (Balyna); Darroch Mulhall . .fs (Athy), Pádraig Fogarty (St. Laurence’s), Cian Reynolds
.-. (Athy). Subs: Tomás Barron (St. Kevin’s) for McDonnell, ..; Bernard Deay .-. (Clane) for Mulhall, ..; John McAndrew
.-. (Maynooth) for Cocoman,
..; John Byrne (Na Fianna) for Dowling, ..; Mark Browne (Suncroft) for O’Shea, ... WEXFORD: Seán O’Gorman; Michael Roche, Brian Berney, Michael Furlong (.-.); Alan Nolan, Barry O’Gorman (.-.), Shane Sinnott; Brian Leacy, Matthew O’Hanlon; Declan Murphy (f), Michael O’Regan (.-.), Liam "g McGovern (.-.); Aaron Goff, Craig Doyle, Daragh McDonald. Subs: Mark Fanning for Goff, ..; Noel Casey for Leacy, ..; Graeme Cullen for Doyle, h/t; Aidan Cash for Roche, ..; Brendan Halpin for McDonald, ...
REFEREE: F. Kelly, Longford.