Caragh overcome the odds and the elements to land famous win
Caragh celebrate after winning the Auld Shebeen Intermediate Football Championship Final Photo: Sean Brilly
The odds and elements seemed to conspire against them but the renowned Caragh club from Prosperous produced a famous victory in atrocious conditions for football to clinch a first Auld Shebeen Athy Intermediate Football title in 29 years at Manguard Park on Sunday afternoon.
Having lost influential midfielder Dan Lynam to injury beforehand and with Eoghan O’Haire having to leave the field after only five minutes, Caragh might have thought fate was against them but in the end it was Leixlip who were cursing their luck as they failed to take advantage of the majority of possession to secure a return to senior football after six seasons at the Intermediate grade.
Storm Ashley brought a cross-field gale that made shooting a lottery, but Leixlip will still rue a dozen wides over the course of the hour, having had the lion’s share of possession.
Caragh defended doggedly, none more so than man-of-the-match Ryan Burke, Cathal McKennedy and Matthew McNally while the likes of Darragh Swords worked like trojans to supplement that defensive effort.
In the end a first half goal, credited to Swords, but freakish in nature and owing much to the wind conditions, proved the difference between the teams. No need for four points for a green flag in these sort of conditions.
Caragh had a point on the board from Kevin Campbell within fifteen seconds before Leixlip responded through Paddy Meagher and Ronan Fitzsimons.
As if Caragh’s pre-match loss of Lynam wasn’t bad enough, another midfielder O’Haire went down in a heap from Eamonn Murphy’s shoulder and had to depart after a little over five minutes.
Two minutes later their spirits were lifted, and it was a goal that owed at least something to the gale. Swords launched a ball that curled and meandered in the wind and although Josh Gannon jumped to try to get a touch it seemed to travel unaided past goalkeeper Niall McConnell to the net.
McConnell was the hero a minute later, though, when Connor got a touch to Campbell’s ball into the goalmouth. McConnell stretched and diverted it for a ’45.
The rest of the half was largely dominated by Leixlip, but they ended it with six wides and only three points on the board, Barrett volleying one over from close range to finish off a break involving Luke Mahon and Jack Quinn in the sixteenth minute.
Caragh, meanwhile, were defending stoutly and hitting Leixlip on the break, with one such sortie out of defence seeing them sweep the full length of the pitch with Campbell capping it with a point to give them a two-point advantage at the interval.
Half-Time: Caragh 1-2 Leixlip 0-3 The second quarter offered up only one score, a fine effort from Jake Corrigan, tipped over the bar by McConnell after a quickly taken free six minutes after the break.
Leixlip, whose impatience in front of the posts had let them down, seemed to flick a switch around the three-quarter mark with Quinn finishing off a more measured move with their first point in thirty minutes.
That galvanised them and when Moolick sensibly fisted one over after his initial shot was blocked and midfielder partner Fitzsimons added another, they had drawn level and looking the more likely winners with seven minutes remaining.
The game took a critical turn in the 56th minute. Quinn’s fisted effort looked destined to give Leixlip the lead but dropped short in the wind and Caragh broke upfield immediately with Ronan Doorley winning the 13 metre free which Swords converted off the ground.
Their one-point margin looked perilous and Leixlip might have equalised when Barrett drove a difficult free wide of the posts from about 35 metres with a minute left.
If that wasn’t a clear cut chance the one that fell to Moolick a minute into injury time was much easier. Like Barrett’s it was on the “wrong side”, considering the wind, but you’d have backed a man of his experience all day long. But the former Kildare man perhaps over-compensated for the wind and his effort went wide to the right of the posts.
Leixlip must have felt it wasn’t going to be their day at that point and in the third minute of injury time Gannon snaffled possession in midfield and earned a free some fifty metres from goal. Making light of the conditions, he arrowed a wonderful kick off the ground and between the posts to extend Caragh’s advantage to two.
That left Leixlip chasing a goal in the minute or so of injury time remaining, but Caragh were resolute.
Barrett’s effort was blocked, Fitzsimons was crowded out and when Jack Travers launched one final attempt into the box, Burke’s relieving clearance over the sideline signalled a heroic victory for Michael Browne’s side and a return to Senior for the first time since 2001.
Michael Behan; Cathal McKennedy, Matthew McNally, Billy Byrne; Conor Sullivan, Ryan Burke, Paul Dockery; Kevin Connor (captain), Eoghan O’Haire; Josh Gannon 0-1 (f), Darragh Swords 1-1 (0-1 f), Dan Murray; Ronan Doorey, Kevin Campbell 0-2, Jake Corrigan 0-1. SUBS: Austin Nevin for O’Haire 7, Fergal McKennedy for Campbell 54, Cian Burke for Sullivan 54, Joe Barrett for Nevin 59.
Niall McConnell; Ciaran Fadian, Ryan Doyle, Kevin Conneely; Jack Quinn 0-1, Jack Travers, Darren O’Connor; Tommy Moolick 0-1, Ronan Fitzsimons 0-2; Ben Travers, Luke Mahon, Paddy Meagher 0-1; Jack Barrett (captain) 0-1, Darren McDermott, Eamonn Murphy. SUBS: Darragh Melville for Murphy 30, Rory Flynn for O’Connor 45, Ciaran Silke for B Travers 52, Sean Jeffrey for Fadian 58, Niall White for Mahon 60+2.
Kieran Harris
