Anne’s advance to Under-20 hurling final with extra-time win
ST. ANNE’S NA FIANNA 2-21 0-20 (AET)
ST. ANNE’S edged out Na Fianna after extra-time to book their place in the Greenstar Under-20 hurling Premier ‘B’ championship final in Bunclody on Saturday.
Trailing by four points with just six minutes to play, the Rathangan men fought back and, with the help of a late Darragh Furlong penalty, they forced the game into overtime.
In a competitive tie from start to finish, Na Fianna took a narrow lead into the half-time interval. Eddie Black scored five times, while singles from Cathal Doyle, James Kelly, Eddie Kelly and Seán Cooper gave a clinical HWH-Bunclody and Davidstown-Courtnacuddy combination their two-point advantage (0-9 to 0-7).
Black continued his form after the re-start, hitting another three before the 45th minute. Kelly, Doyle and John McCormack also added points to extend Na Fianna’s lead into the final few minutes (0-15 to 0-11).
During this period of Na Fianna sharpshooting, St. Anne’s did their best to stay in the game. Dylan O’Brien was their main source of scores in the early exchanges, but the responsibility passed to Darragh Furlong in the second period.
Furlong pointed four times after the break to help claw St. Anne’s back to within one score, and he was also on hand to dispatch the penalty earned by Luke Redmond in the 58th minute, which briefly put his side into the lead for the first time.
Determined not to let the Rathangan boys complete the ultimate smash and grab, Black held his nerve over a late free to force the game to extra-time.
However, despite Na Fianna’s late leveller, the momentum and the energy seemed to be with St. Anne’s, and they won the first-half of extra-time by four points to two.
Furlong knocked over all of their scores, while Black and Tadgh O Ceallaigh kept the Enniscorthy District crew in touch.
St. Anne’s kicked on again in the final ten minutes. Furlong, O’Brien and Kyle Kennedy all rose the white flag before a long free from Furlong found its way into the back of the net.
Black and Kelly offered some resistance to the St. Anne’s storm but couldn’t do enough to get Na Fianna back in the game.
St. Anne’s: Jack Donovan; Michael Carroll, Andrew Walsh, Eoin Ryan; Justin Moran, Kevin Breen, Barry Roche; Andy Kennedy (capt.), Philip Rawson; Darragh Furlong (2-10, 1-8 frees, 1-0 pen.), Dylan O’Brien (0-6, 5 frees), Cillian Byrne; Karim Byrne, Kyle Kennedy (0-5, 1 free), Conor Ryan. Subs. - Cillian Brennan-Roche for Rawson (32), Luke Redmond for K. Byrne (52), Rawson for Breen (78), Byrne for O’Brien (79).
Na Fianna: Mylie Connors; James Black, Lee Levingstone, Alan Carton; Tadgh O Ceallaigh (0-1), Seán Cooper (capt., 0-1), Eddie Kelly (0-1); Ciarán Kelly, Eddie Black (0-11, 8 frees, 1 ‘65); Jack Regan, Edward Dunbar, James Kelly (0-3); Cathal Doyle (0-2), John McCormack (0-1), Gerry Connors. Subs. - Adam Hogan for G. Connors (45), T.J. Owens for Carton (45), Michael Murphy for Cooper (49), Ciarán Regan for J. Regan (50).
Referee: James Owens (Askamore).