Slevin breaks Naas hearts with last-gasp winner
Heartbreak for James Burke and Brian Byrne at final whistle Photo: Sean Brilly
Referee Thomas Gleeson drew the ire of Naas manager Mark Dowling after the Kildare champions were pipped by a monstrous Conor Slevin free in extra time as 14-man Offaly kingpins Kilcormac Killoughey escaped from Cedral St Conleth’s with a one-point win after eighty-plus pulsating minutes.
“I don’t think in ten years I’ve ever called out poor refereeing decisions, and we all can feel like you get hard done by here and there and obviously every ref goes out to do their best,” Dowling told the Kildare Nationalist afterwards.
“The free count against us was ridiculous if I’m being honest. And the last free, it happened right in front of me, and the reason I’m saying it is because it was right in front of me, I thought it was very dubious to say the least.”
Certainly, corner back James Mahon went to ground very easily for that free two minutes into injury time and with goalkeeper Conor Slevin showing unerring accuracy from long-range you feared the worst, even though it was back on his own 45-metre line and relatively close to the line. Slevin duly split the posts and Naas were out.
Dowling certainly had a point about Dublin referee Gleeson, with Kilcormac Killoughey landing no fewer than sixteen frees and seeming to earn them a little easier than their Kildare counterparts, his booking of Peter O’Donoghue when Ter Guinan clearly charged him in extra time another case in point.
Naas, though, will have to look in the mirror as well. They failed to take advantage when the Offaly side were reduced to 14 men after 52 minutes, their outstanding centre-back Cillian Kiely departing on a second yellow card with the sides level.
You could question the relative strength in depth of the two sides as well, with Naas only using seventeen players on the day with both of their substituted players coming back on in extra-time to replace the men who had earlier replaced them.
On a day when hurling was the real winner with the teams producing a game that enthralled the big crowd (though the away team were in the majority not for the first time in Newbridge this year), Naas can also look to their failure to drive home the advantage gained by two goals inside the opening twelve minutes.
Prior to Slevin’s winner, Naas sharpshooter Jack Sheridan had appeared to bring the game to penalties as he blocked down Brecon Kavanagh’s attempted clearance and swept over a superb point, but when Mahon was fouled near the sideline Slevin stepped up to the mark and drove between the posts at the town end.
Earlier, midfielder Colin Spain had brought it to extra time as he drove over the equalising point in normal time from out near the terrace sideline.
Naas had made a flying start. Slevin plucked Simon Leacy’s point attempt from the air, but his attempted short pass went straight to Sheridan who took aim for the bottom left corner with Slevin scrambling to get back in position.
Naas found the net again when James Burke’s under-hit shot was flicked to the net over his head by the alert Cathal Dowling on twelve minutes to put them 2-4 to 0-5 ahead.
With a shootout developing between Sheridan and Adam Screeney, both of whom finished on 1-13, Naas reached half-time four points ahead (2-8 to 0-10), but the Offaly men turned up the heat early in the second half to draw level at 0-16 to 2-10 after 37 minutes. Screeney gave his side the lead for the first time on 46 minutes.
The sending off of Kiely appeared to turn the odds in favour of the Kildare side, though, and Sheridan’s free saw them head into injury time a point ahead (2-18 to 0-23). Substitute Karl Guinan levelled from near the terrace sideline but Naas bounced back with Burke edging them ahead again. The last word, at least in normal time, fell to Spain, though, as he took it to extra time.
Naas shaded the opening half of extra time and reached the break 2-23 to 0-27 ahead but Kilcormac Killoughey hit back with a Screeney finish to the net on 74 minutes after Alex Kavanagh had wriggled through the Naas cover.
But back came Naas from the next attack with Brian Byrne improvising under pressure to bat to the net from close range.
That made it 3-24 to 1-28 in Naas’ favour, but the Offaly side hit four of the last five points, including Slevin’s dramatic winner to earn a semi-final place against Shelmaliers from Wexford.
Conor Slevin 0-5 (5fs); Brecon Kavanagh, Tom Spain, James Mahon; Ter Guinan, Cillian Kiely 0-1, Enda Grogan 0-1; Colin Spain 0-4, Damien Kilmartin; Daniel Hand 0-1, Conor Mahon 0-3, Leigh Kavanagh; Thomas Geraghty 0-2, Peter Geraghty 0-1, Adam Screeney 1-13 (11fs). Subs: Jack Screeney for Leigh Kavanagh 50, Karl Guinan 0-1 for Peter Geraghty 53, Alex Kavanagh for Thomas Geraghty 59, Brian Guinan for Kilmartin 59, Jordan Quinn for Enda Grogan (extra-time), Thomas Geraghty for Karl Guinan 72.
Cormac Gallagher; Liam O'Reilly, Rian Boran, Evan O'Brian; Daire Guerin 0-2, Conan Boran 0-1, Harry Carroll; Peter O'Donoghue, Simon Leacy 0-1; Cian Boran, Cathal Dowling 1-0, Brian Byrne 1-3; Charlie Sheridan, James Burke 0-4, Jack Sheridan 1-13 (10fs,1’65). Subs: Fionn Maher for Charlie Sheridan 55, Oisín O’Neill 0-1 for Cian Boran 56, Charlie Sheridan for Oisín O’Neill 73, Cian Boran for Fionn Maher 78.
Thomas Gleeson (Dublin).
