Premier SHC: St Finbarr's back in final after seven-point surge
Kanturk forward Alan Walsh takes on Sean Daly of St Finbarrs at SuperValu Páirc Uí Chaoimh. Picture: Tyler Miller/Sportsfile
The micro reflected the macro as St Finbarr’s finished strongly to book their return to the final of the Co-op SuperStores Premier SHC.
At SuperValu Páirc Uí Chaoimh on Sunday, the Barrs began slowly against Kanturk before improving and then gunned for home with seven unanswered points. It was a journey reflective of their championship campaign as a whole – having qualified with one win in three, they are now carrying form into the decider as this followed the win over Imokilly in the quarter-finals.
They certainly had to earn it as the heaviest charge against a Kanturk side that gave their all was that they ran out of legs and didn’t have the depth to replenish.
The Barrs had the depth and were not afraid to use it while they could also rely on big players coming to the fore when it was needed, none more so than midfielder Ethan Twomey.
In the first half, the Cork panellist was pulled for needlessly over-carrying close to his own goal, something that underlined how Kanturk were putting the Barrs under pressure and forcing mistakes. In the second, it was Twomey’s 49th-minute goal that quartered a four-point deficit – when the ball break around the edge of the football arc, Twomey was on to it and drove towards the goal before unleashing a low shot to the bottom corner.
That made it 1-19 to 1-18 and its importance was heightened as it had come shortly after a wonderful Shane Hurley save to deny Alan Walsh a goal that would have opened up a six-point lead. While Brian O’Sullivan did convert the free that was given for the advantage they held before the goal chance, Twomey’s strike reinvigorated the Barrs.
After the goal, Barrs sub James Murray did well to set up Ben Cunningham for his seventh point and a levelling score.
Kanturk summoned a massive effort to get three of the next four points, Colin Walsh with the pick of them from Lorcan O’Neill’s delivery, but the Barrs never panicked.
It says much about the levels Brian Hayes has set for himself that five points from play represented a fine man-marking job by Darren Browne but it was the Togher side’s captain who set up John Wigginton Barrett to cut the deficit to a point.
Twomey got his second following a quick free after Colin Walsh was deemed to have fouled Ciarán Doolan under a dropping ball and they had the lead for the first time since the fifth minute when sub Jack Cahalane and Twomey combined for Cunningham’s eighth.
The latter added another with a free from his own 65 before the youngest Cahalane put them three ahead.
When O’Sullivan went for a goal with a driven free from distance, it was repelled and Hayes and Cunningham added the finishing touches to give the scoreboard a slightly misleading look by the end.
The final reckoning shouldn’t detract from what was a supreme Kanturk effort. In the first half, O’Sullivan was excellent in midfield while Tommy Walsh did much to curb the impact of William Buckley and they got plenty joy from their wind-assisted puckout in the opening quarter.
When O’Sullivan converted a free following a foul on Alan Walsh on 17 minute, it was 0-10 to 0-5 but even then there was a sense that goal opportunities had not been taken.
Hurley denied Liam O’Keeffe early on and had touched a rasping Alan Walsh shot over the bar for 0-8 to 0-5 while Wigginton Barrett got a block on another O’Keeffe half-chance.
A change from a zonal defence to man-to-man allowed the Barrs to gain a foothold in the central sector and their late surge was foreshadowed with a run of five points to level before Kanturk edged the remained to retire 0-14 to 0-13 in front.
On the restart, the wind was more foe than friend to the Barrs as five of their first six shots went astray while O’Sullivan’s pass was the catalyst for Alan Walsh’s goal three minutes in. The Barrs did not let it become a fatal blow though and stayed in touch, aided by that Hurley save. When it was there to be won, they had the kick in their stride.
B Cunningham 0-10 (0-5f), E Twomey 1-4, B Hayes 0-5, W Buckley, E Finn 0-2 each, J Wigginton Barrett, S Cunningham, J O’Kelly, J Cahalane 0-1 each.
B O’Sullivan 0-9 (0-7f), A Walsh 1-2, C Walsh, D O’Connell 0-3 each, L O’Neill 0-2, C Noonan, P Walsh, D Browne 0-1 each.
S Hurley; S Daly, D Cahalane, J Burns; E Finn, C Doolan, C Cahalane; E Twomey, C Walsh; B Cunningham, W Buckley, B Hayes; J Wigginton Barrett, S Cunningham, J O’Kelly.
J Murray for Burns (37), A Barry for Walsh (43), C McCarthy for O’Kelly (47), R Barrett for S Cunningham (48), J Cahalane for McCarthy (51, injured).
G Bucinskas; L McLoughlin, J McLoughlin, M Healy; D Browne, T Walsh, R Walsh; B O’Sullivan, C Noonan; L O’Neill, P Walsh, D O’Connell; A Walsh, C Walsh, L O’Keeffe.
I Walsh for Healy, R Sheahan for O’Keeffe (both 54).
C Lyons (Nemo Rangers).
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