Mitchelstown find an extra gear to beat Adrigole in IAFC semi-final with Mark Keane available
Mitchelstown's Sean Walsh is tackled by Adrigole's Cathal O'Sullivan and Sean O'Shea during the Bon Secours IAFC semi-final at Kilmurry. Picture: Eddie O'Hare
MITCHELSTOWN are through to their third Cork IAFC final in four years, but that doesn’t begin to tell of the drama of their extra-time win over heartbroken Adrigole at Kilmurry on Saturday.
Cruising at 0-7 to 0-2 ahead heading into the second half, Mitchelstown were rocked by a huge Adrigole fightback that saw the west Cork men lead by a point entering the last minute of normal time.
Credit to Mitchelstown though. They steadied the ship in extra time to wear down their opponents and eventually secure another final spot, this time against Aghabullogue. When that final will be played is still uncertain with Aghabullogue also through to play the intermediate hurling final in the meantime.
Mitchelstown were short some regulars but had Mark Keane back from AFL duties while Cork footballer Cathail O’Mahony also played over 70 minutes and scored five points.
O’Mahony, who had both hamstrings strapped, contributed four of those points in a dominant first half for Mitchelstown. He formed a formidable inside line with Sean Walsh who had to be in contention for man of the match over the 80 minutes. Walsh kicked three points, the same total as his namesake Micheal, who only flew in from Australia on Thursday morning.
There will be a lot of neutral sympathy for the Adrigole lads who eventually wilted in extra-time having lost some of their more prominent personnel to injury.
Their second-half surge brought a huge crowd in Kilmurry to fever pitch, Cian O’Shea kicking two points with sub Kevin Goggin deadly accurate with three second-half frees.
Mitchelstown may have four weeks to the final and will be looking to get a few names back in contention to start like captain Shane Cahill and Cork hurler Darragh Flynn.
Adrigole tied it all up for the first time at 0-7 each on 47 minutes from a Goggin free. It was score for score then until Adrigole hit the front in the 57th minute when Cian O’Neill converted from a mark.
It would have been easy at that stage for Mitchelstown to buckle. After all, they didn’t open their second-half account until the 49th minute, a full 17 minutes after their seventh point just before the break.
David Harrington’s free late in the day brought it to extra time where Sean Walsh, seemingly still with plenty in the tank, scored two massive points along with a Patrick Magee score to seal victory.
C O’Mahony 0-5 (0-3 f), M Walsh 0-3 (0-2 f), S Walsh 0-3, D Reidy Price 0-2, P Magee 0-1.
K Goggin 0-4 f, D Harrington 0-4 (0-3 f), C O’Shea 0-3, C O’Neill 0-1 m.
L Hanna; F Herlihy, D Dineen, K Roche: J O’Sullivan, M Keane, P Magee; S Beston, S Walsh; D Reidy Price, S O’Sullivan, K Fox; C O’Mahony, R Donegan, S Kenneally.
J Sheehan for S Kenneally (40), D Flynn for R Donegan (44), M Walsh for K Fox (44), K Cotter for D Reidy Price (76), P Molloy for C O’Mahony (78).
W O’Sullivan; L Harrington, F Carey, D Harrington; Cathal O’Sullivan, S O’Shea, S O’Sullivan; C O’Neill, Charlie O’Sullivan; Cian O’Neill, J Harrington, K Fox; B O’Sullivan, C O’Shea, D Harrington.
G O’Shea for Cathal O’Sullivan (22), K Goggin for B O’Sullivan (44), D Collins for Charlie O’Sullivan (53), T O’Sullivan for J Harrington (67), D O’Sullivan for S O’Sullivan (73).
Pat O’Leary (Kilmurry).
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