Castlemartyr edge out Carrigtwohill in dramatic finish to East Cork JAFC final
Joint captains Mike Cosgrave and Conor Whyte lift the Jim Ryan Cup for Castlemartyr after they beat Carrigtwohill in In the Michael O’Connor Motor Factors sponsored East Cork Junior A Football Championship final in Rostellan. Picture: Larry Cummins
Castlemartyr have marked their centenary year celebrations with the addition of the East Cork Junior A Football Championship title after a captivating win over Carrigtwohill in Rostellan on Saturday.
A dramatic final and a thrilling finish – it was closely fought all the way through. The gap between the teams was never greater than three – until the only goal of the game arrived in the 47th minute.
Ciarán Joyce, who had put in a superb shift at centre-back all throughout, intercepted a wayward pass. He surged forward from outside his own 45.
He carried it as far as he could and handpassed to Jack McGann at just the right time. McGann laid it off to Barry Lawton. Lawton passed across goal.
The oncoming Jamie Stack was there to meet it, knocking it home from close range.
After a dominant first half in possession, it looked like Castlemartyr would now pull away.
But that was their final score of the game. Carrigtwohill raised the tempo and improved in transition.
In the 52nd minute, Mark O’Connor pointed to bring the gap back down to three. A minute later Daniel Murnane pointed from a free, 1-10 to 0-11.
What held Carrig back was their failure to find another score until Murnane’s next free in the 60th minute, but that left the minimum in it.
Again, Carrigtwohill fought on, and Castlemartyr couldn’t handle the pace their opponents showed. They did well to win a free. Referee Willie Wallis moved it further forward after Castlemartyr’s protests.
In the final minute of added time, Murnane had a chance to send it to a replay. He’d been perfect from frees, five from five.
Uncharacteristically though, he missed. They fought on but time quickly ran out.
Carrigtwohill pleaded to the referee, while Castlemartyr stormed the pitch.
They had made history. Their first Junior A football title since 1991, on the anniversary of their centenary.
While we very easily could have been headed for a replay, if anyone deserved to win it was Castlemartyr, and they showed why with their first half performance.
By the 10th minute the teams were level at 0-2 each, but Carrigtwohill pushed ahead as Adam Rooney and Murnane both found the target.
But Castlemartyr replied with a run of five points from play in five minutes, including three outstanding scores from man of the match Mike Kelly. That left the eventual winners 0-7 to 0-4 ahead after 23 minutes.
Carrigtwohill did get the gap down to two at the break, but their opponents had only hit one wide, and Carrig needed to be more clinical in the second half.
Liam O’Sullivan set up Seán de Búrca for a point on the restart, while scores from Murnane and Cillian Barry got Carrig back in front, 0-9 to 0-8.
Two outstanding efforts from McGann – the first a long range free and the latter a tight angled kick put Castlemartyr back in front, before they hit for goal and held out to win the game.
J McGann (0-2 f), M Kelly 0-3 each, J Stack 1-0, L Martin 0-2, J Lawton, E Martin 0-1 each.
D Murnane 0-6 (0-5 f), M O’Connor 0-2, S de Búrca, A Rooney, J Horgan, C Barry 0-1 each.
C Whyte; C Martin, E Ronayne, N O’Donovan; B Ó Tuama, C Joyce, J Lawton; D Joyce, D Coughlan; M Kelly, J McGann, L Martin; E Martin, J Stack, B McGann.
Brian Lawton for L Martin, Barry Lawton for Coughlan (both 41), C O’Neill for E Martin, R Black for Stack (both 57).
T English; S Brennan, T Hogan, S Ahern; A Rooney, P Hogan, P O’Sullivan; A Walsh Barry, S de Búrca; C O’Riordan, D Murnane, B Twomey; J Horgan, L O’Sullivan M O’Connor.
C Barry for Twomey (HT), J Oke for O’Riordan (48), P Walsh for L O’Sullivan (51), D Nolan for P O’Sullivan (57), L Kelly O’Regan for O’Connor (60+2).
Willie Wallis (Aghada)
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