Midleton 3-15 Glen Rovers 1-18

MIDLETON retained their Carrigaline Court Hotel Premier 1 MHC title after a hard-fought win over Glen Rovers at Páirc Uí Rinn last night.

It was a bit of revenge for the Magpies as they beat the club that had gotten the better of them two years ago, before they came back to win the title last year.

Three second-half goals were the key scores, one of them coming from a penalty that was retaken after it was deemed that the keeper had come off his line to save the first effort.

For them the likes of Christian Murphy, Sam Quirke and Tim O’Sullivan were in top form, topped off by a Man of the Match performance by Aaron Mulcahy, who ended with 1-10.

He opened the scoring for Midleton two minutes in from a free, with Evan Murphy equalising, also from a free.

The Glen were unlucky not to get the opening goal four minutes in, when Luke Horgan’s effort went narrowly wide. Lee Quilligan put them in front, with Murphy on target from another free, to make it 0-3 to 0-1 with 10 minutes gone.

Mulcahy got Midleton’s second point, but the Glen went further ahead with Murphy and Quilligan on target again. Paul Connaughton pulled a point back for Midleton, with Mulcahy getting his third free, to put a point between the sides.

Horgan got a great point from distance for his side, before points from Mulcahy and Tim O’Sullivan had the sides level as half-time approached.

After consulting with his umpires Midleton got a 65 and Mulcahy duly converted to put them a point up, 0-8 to 0-7, at half-time.

Murphy and Eoin O’Leary pulled points back for the Glen at the start of the second-half, with Quirkes and Fitzgerald replying for Midleton. They got their first goal, with 36 mintues gone, when Connaugton found the back of the net and when Quirke got their second it stretched their lead to 2-11 to 0-11.

Credit to the Glen they came back at Midleton, with two points from piont and one from Quilligan, before sub O’Leary got their goal to put only a point between the sides, 1-14 to 2-12.

But with 10 minutes to go Midleton were awarded a penalty after Conor Fitzgerald was found, with Cian Long saving Mulcahy’s first effort. But he was adjudged to have come off his line and Mulcahy made no mistake at the second time of asking.

Murphy hit four frees for the Glen, but two from Mulcahy, along with one from McCarthy ensured the cup stayed in the Magpies clubhouse for another year.

Scorers for Midleton: A Mulcahy 1-10 (0-7 f, 0-1 65), P Connaughton, S Quirke 1-1 each, T O’Sullivan, J Fitzgerald, D McCarthy 0-1 each.

Glen Rovers: E Murphy 0-10 f, E O’Leary 1-1, L Quilligan 0-3, D Murphy 0-2, D Milner, L Horgan 0-1 each.

MIDLETON: B Saunderson; C Smyth, D Scanlan, P Kane; L Hennessy, C Murphy, C Walsh; S Quirke, G Reddy; J Fitzgerald, A Mulcahy, A Quirke; T O’Sullivan, C Crowley, P Connaughton.

Subs: C Fitzgerald for G Reddy, D McCarthy for L Hennessy.

GLEN ROVERS: C Long; S Corcoran, G Marshall, E Downey; J O’Driscoll, A Lordan, G Mulcahy; C O’Sullivan, L Horgan; R Long, L Quilligan, D Murphy; D Milner, E Murphy, N Goulding.

Subs: E O’Leary for J O’Driscoll, D Long for R Long.

Ref: Ciaran O’Regan, Ballyhea.