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Scoileanna Thír Eoghain Land Casement Cup
Friday 23.11.2018
Danske Bank Casement Cup Final
Scoileanna Thír Eoghain 2-22 St.Mary’s Magherafelt 2-9
It’s never been done before but tonight at Loup GAA a team of Tyrone school hurlers landed the first ever Ulster Schools title for the county. Scoileanna Thír Eoghain produced a fantastic performance to comfortably see off the challenge of St.Mary’s Magherafelt and walked away with the Casement Cup.
The Tyrone lads were the better side throughout and ran out deserving winners despite finishing the contest with thirteen players, Magherafelt finishing with fourteen. They led by four points at the break after St.Mary’s bagged a goal late in the first half but they upped the tempo after the break and their opponents couldn’t match them.
It was St.Mary’s Magherafelt who opened the scoring after two minutes via Ruairi O’Hagan but then Scoileanna Thír Eoghain hit a purple patch during which they played some superb hurling in a blistering seven minute spell.
James McCann levelled matters before Cian Ferguson edged them in front. Centre half forward Ben Gormley then weighed in with a brace of points before Conall Devlin and Cormac Hughes both got their names on the scoresheet as they made it six scores on the trot.
Centre half forward Morgan Nelson stopped the rot for St.Mary’s Magherafelt from a free before an effort from play from Sean Duffin reduced the deficit further.
Scoileanna Thír Eoghain though continued to look the better side with full forward Matthew McCann pointing before Ruairi Slane scored as well. Nelson converted another free for Magherafelt but that score was quickly cancelled out at the other end of the field by Rory Weir.
Magherafelt trailed by five points at this stage but with less than five minutes to go in the half they got right back into contention with a goal. A defensive error was pounced on by Nelson who finished the sliotar in style low to the right hand corner of the net past keeper Ryan Haughey.
Scoileanna Thír Eoghain though quickly regrouped to finish the first half strongly with fine points from Haughey and midfielder Fergal Donaghy to give them a deserved 0-11 to 1-4 advantage.
Magherafelt landed the opening two scores of the second half both from Nelson frees before both sides were reduced to fourteen men in the 40thminute when Ben Gormley and Ronan McKenna were both straight red carded.
Hughes opened Tyrone’s second half account but moments later the Magherafelt school’s wing half back Ciaran O’Neill burst through on a superb run and rounded it off with a quality finish to the net.
Things got worse for Tyrone sixty seconds later when they lost midfielder Donaghy to a straight red card as well. In the last thirteen minutes though the winners took control as they restricted their opponents to just a further three points.
Slane, Weir and Cahir Munroe all weighed in with points before a great pass from James McCann set Weir up for a 57thminute goal. Nelson and O’Neill had Magherafelt points but Scoileanna Thír Eoghain had the bit between their teeth and they closed the game out in style.
Hughes, Weir and McCann all had points with the highly impressive Ruairi Slane grabbing the final 1-2 of the contest as the winners lifted the silverware in style.
Congratulations to centre back Conal Devlin who picked up the man of the match award. Unfortunately he missed the presentation as he was on his way to hospital following a nasty injury to his hand. We wish Conal a full and speedy recovery.
Scoileanna Thír Eoghain: R Slane 1-6, R Weir 1-4, C Hughes 0-3, B Gormley 0-2, J McCann 0-2, C Ferguson 0-1, M McCann 0-1, F Donaghy 0-1, C Devlin 0-1, C Munroe 0-1
St.Mary’s Magherafelt: M Nelson 1-6, C O’Neill 1-1, R O’Hagan 0-1, S Duffin 0-1
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