Barrs end 33 years of hurt with late surge
A33-YEAR wait — encompassing eight losing finals — was finally put to bed as St Finbarr’s overcame Duhallow at Páirc Uí Chaoimh yesterday to claim the Cork SFC title for the first time since 1985.
Having been five points down twice in the first half, the city side improved considerably after the break, to the delight of manager Ray Keane.
‘We went in three points down at half-time. Some people will probably argue that it should have been more, I personally thought we had enough chances to go in ahead,’ he said.
‘We just took the wrong option at the top of the D a few times when we went through. That, to me, said to stick at it and increase the intensity around the middle because I felt in the first half they [Duhallow] were getting the ball into Donncha O’Connor and Jerry O’Connor a bit easy.
‘Our backs, no matter how tight they were, couldn’t get the hand in and if they did get the hand in, the ball wasn’t coming off. In the second half, there was more pressure out the field, we got a hand in a few times and the ball popped out and away we went.
‘Also, we upped the workrate, squeezed the kickout a bit more, which came to fruition, I think we got 1-1 out of it directly.
‘You’re probably listening to me going on about the heart and character of this team for two years, right to a man, up to number 41, each and every one of them died for that out there.
‘They were not willing to be beaten, it’s a lonely place when you’re beaten in a county final. Looking at them last year, the dressing room was a ghost town but they dug deep over the winter. Thankfully, we got over the line but it was only a small margin, a kick of a ball.’
Having levelled in the wake of conceding the game’s first two points, the Barrs were 0-3 to 0-2 behind when Duhallow struck for a goal. Aidan Walsh’s great pass allowed Jerry O’Connor a sight of goal and though John Kerins — son of the late Cork goalkeeper — saved, Séamus Hickey was there to net the rebound.
Eoghan McSweeney opened up a five-point lead but the Barrs struck back as Stephen Sherlock netted, set up by Eoin Comyns after a great move, and the same player converted a free to leave one in it again, only for Duhallow to respond in kind.
They had a second goal when Donncha O’Connor scored from the penalty spot after Dylan Quinn was deemed to have committed a foot-block and it was 2-5 to 1-3 as Paul Walsh pointed.
While Sherlock was the Barrs’ main scoring outlet in that opening half, Conor Dennehy and Denis O’Brien had points as they closed to within a goal, 2-7 to 1-7, by half-time. Colin Lyons eradicated that lead as he found the net after the resumption and though Jerry O’Connor put Duhallow back in front, it was the last time they led.
With captain Ian Maguire outstanding, the Barrs moved in front for the first time thanks to three Sherlock frees and a point from Colm Keane, but just as it seemed they would pull clear, Duhallow levelled thanks to Aidan Walsh, Jerry O’Connor and Donncha O’Connor.
If the Barrs were rattled though, they didn’t show it and they had a third goal as sub Eoghan Finn exchanged passes with O’Brien to slot home and then Enda Dennehy put them four ahead.
Once more, Duhallow looked to respond and they had three points, with Anthony O’Connor, Kevin Crowley and Jerry O’Connor on target, but a leveller remained elusive. Duhallow goalkeeper Patrick Doyle did deny Sherlock a clinching goal but Colm Barrett and Finn had the final say for the Barrs as they saw out the game impressively.
Duhallow took three games to get past Castlehaven in the semifinals but manager Pádraig Kearns said that could not be used as an excuse for this loss.
‘I thought it would happen again, another draw, but it didn’t, I would take it now but we didn’t get our draw,’ he said.
‘They drove on, they held on to the ball, they were cute in their play and they slowed it down, that’s the way you win games. They’re a good team and I think they’ll rattle the Munster and best of luck to them. You’d always admire the Barrs, they’re a traditional name in GAA in Cork.’
For the Barrs, the Munster Championship looms, but Keane — a Kerry native and brother of new Kingdom manager Peter — isn’t getting carried away.
‘These lads will go and celebrate and I’ll leave them celebrate, because they deserve it,’ he said.
‘We’ll regroup the week after next and see where it goes. I’m from down in Kerry and I go to a lot of the games, Crokes are at a totally different level at the moment, but we’ll go and give it a crack and see where it takes us.
‘Ideally, we’d have everyone available but we won’t, Cillian Myers Murray and Sam Ryan are huge losses.’