All Ireland Title For St Patrick’s Academy

Friday 29.03.2019

 

ORLAGH Gavin’s player of the match display propelled St Patrick’s Academy, Dungannon, to Lidl All-Ireland Post Primary Schools B glory on Friday in Carrick-on-Shannon.

On an afternoon laced with emotion at Páirc Seán Mac Diarmada, full-forward Gavin scored 1-6 as St Pat’s held off the determined challenge of Coláiste Bhaile Chláir.

A minute’s silence to honour the memories of the three teenagers who died in the St Patrick’s night tragedy in Cookstown was impeccably observed before throw-in.

Connor Currie and Morgan Barnard were both students at St Pat’s, while Lauren Bullock was a student at St Patrick’s College, also in Dungannon.

At full-time, it was clear to see how much this victory meant to St Pat’s, who claimed a very first Senior B crown in front of a vocal crowd.

Despite the best attacking efforts of Shauna Brennan and Eimear Mitchell, the latter scoring 1-4 in the second half alone, Coláiste Bhaile Chláir were denied but they do have a Junior A Final to look forward to next weekend.

CBC will look back and rue a tally of 16 wides throughout the game but they showed character in the second half to fight their way back into contention after falling six points behind.

The first half was a low-scoring affair, with St Pat’s just a point clear at the break, 0-4 to 0-3.

Gavin notched up three first half frees while Brennan had two points from play on the board for CBC by the interval.

The game really exploded into life in the second half as Gavin served notice of her intentions with an early effort that forced CBC full-back Aoife Lyons to tip over the crossbar.

But Gavin wouldn’t be denied in the 37th minute as she clinically finished a low shot to the net after collecting Amy Walsh’s brilliant pass.

Gavin followed up with a point and, in what seemed like the blink of an eye, St Pat’s were 1-6 to 0-3 clear.

Back came CBC, however, as Mitchell was credited with a goal in the 42nd minute that squeezed past St Pat’s net-minder Rebecca Dobbin Donaghy.

A free from Mitchell midway through the second half had CBC back to within a point, 1-5 to 1-6, but Alanah Donnelly drilled home a fine goal in the 48th minute for St Pat’s to put them four clear.

With Mitchell bagging three points down the home straight, the margin was back to the bare minimum again in stoppage time but Gavin, fittingly, would have the final say with a superb long-range free.

Scorers for St Pat’s: O Gavin 1-6 (0-4f), A Donnelly 1-0, C McCusker 0-1.

Scorers for CBC: E Mitchell 1-4 (0-3f), S Brennan 0-3, K Slevin 0-1f.

St Pat’s: R Dobbin Donaghy; R Cunningham, A Wylie, E Conlon; S Fitzgerald, Á McNulty (capt.), C McGeary; A Donnelly, A Rafferty; C McCusker, S Quigley, A McLaughlin; L Rushe, O Gavin, B Hendron.

Subs: T Conlon for McLaughlin (h.t.), N Eilian for Hendron (h.t.), C Pinkerton for Quigley (45).

CBC: A Griffin; M Flaherty, A Lyons, L Flynn; S O’Connell, G Coll, Kiara Kearney, Kaitlin Kearney (capt.), A Walsh; C McCarthy, N McGrath, K Slevin; N Moran, E Mitchell, S Brennan.

Subs: C Trill for Flaherty (h.t.), B Naughton for McGrath (h.t.), L Scanlon for Moran (43), E Murphy for O’Connell (55).

Referee – G McMahon (Mayo)