Heartbreaking end but a year Russell Rovers will never forget

Though five points separated the teams at the end, Russell Rovers’ hopes weren’t beaten away until the additional time score from Darragh Maher.

That left Dave Dorgan dejected during his post-match interview, as the east Cork side suffered a second All-Ireland Junior Club Hurling Championship final defeat in five years.

“It’s fresh now, it’s only 15 minutes after the end of the game,” he began. “We’re raw. It’s bitterly disappointing.

“Even though we can look back on the year and reflect and say we’d a great journey, you always want to finish with a win. We’re just gutted now.

“The goal was a critical score in the game because it was even-stevens up to that point. It just came at a good time for them, but we’d be disappointed with the goal,” Dorgan admitted. “We’d always be disappointed with goals we give away, but it was a critical moment, and it was the only goal of the game.

“There were a few moments there, where if we had got that ‘next score’, put the margin to something that would give a bit of encouragement.

“Even the three points on 60 minutes, it was set up as a long ball into the square, and then they got the next point and the next point. That just seemed to be the nature of the game for us.” 

CHANCES

Goals eluded Russell Rovers from start to finish. They came close at several stages, but St Lachtain’s defensive prowess was an obstacle they could not move.

“Luke [Duggan Murray] had one that hit off the defender I think,” Dorgan explained. “Obviously if we had got that goal, it would have been a lift to the group.

But that’s the nature of the game, there’s no sentimentality in sport.

“The best team typically wins and today you have to give credit to Freshford, they were an outstanding team from Kilkenny.” While it hardly means much in the wake of defeat – what this Russell Rovers group have achieved not just in the last twelve months, but in getting back to Croke Park a second time counts for a lot.

“At some stage perspective will reign, and I’ll be able to say this means something.

“But today just feels very disappointing. Even though it’s been a good year, and the main objective was to win the county, but I’ll get perspective in the next couple of days maybe.

“It’s good for the club that they’re up at that level now, that was the main objective – to get out of junior and get into intermediate, so that will be the fresh focus of this for next year.”