Shaw shoots the lights as Sem surge to another Hogan Cup final

HOGAN CUP SEMI-FINAL

FOR the fourth consecutive year a Kerry School will contest the Hogan Cup Final with the defending champions making it back to Croke Park for the second consecutive time in that run. St Brendans College Killarney secured their first ever back-toback appearances in Post-Primary Schools showpiece match.

It wasn’t all plain sailing on Saturday in Ennis on Saturday, the Sem needed to hold their nerve in the face of a strong challenge from an unfancied St Colman’s College of Claremorris, the only Mayo School to have ever won the Hogan Cup back in 1977.

That year saw them beat the Sem in the 1977 Semi-Finals but fortunately for the Killarney side there was to be no repeat result on the 40th anniversary of the two sides meeting again at the same stage! It wasn’t for the want of trying from the Mayo side though as despite being against the breeze in the first period they kept the Corn Ui Mhuirí winners scoreless inside the opening nine minutes.

They scored the first three points of proceedings themselves before David Shaw finally got the Sem on the scoreboard. Four more straight points would follow from the Sem from four other players as they led by 0-5 to 0-3 after 16 minutes. Shaw had a goal disallowed four minutes later but a moment of fortune at the other end put St Colman’s back in front as an effort at a point from wing-back Brian Quinn dropped short with midfielder Conor Diskin taking advantage of a moment’s hesitancy to fist the ball into the net for the lead in the 21st minute.

The Sem would recover to take an 0-8 to 1-4 advantage at half-time but no one in Cusack Park was in any doubt about the difficulty they would face against the breeze in the second period. Three minutes after the restart they did find the back of the net for the first time, Donnachadh O’Sullivan setting up Mark O’Shea for a four point advantage.

St Colman’s were not for crumbling however as it was their turn to reel off four consecutive points through Evan Ronane (3) and Quinn to level matters at 1-8 apiece. In the 40th minute came arguably the crucial moment. Whether Colman’s goalkeeper Brian McGuinness was unsighted in seeing Shaw’s hopeful effort along the ground is debatable but in McGuinness failing to prevent the ball from going underneath him and into the net it just seemed to take the sting out of the Mayo side.

Three minutes later came the third Sem goal as Cian Gammell and O’Shea combined for Shaw to fist home for a 3-8 to 1-8 advantage. Niall Donohoe and Dara Moynihan managed to forage forward well for scores in the concluding stages but Chris O’Donoghue’s efforts in defence for the Sem were crucial when the going was tough in Ennis as both Billy Courtney and Gammell eventually started to dominate proceedings at midfield. McGuinness denied Shaw a hat-trick of goals before the end as Donnachadh O’Sullivan hit the post as well but with eight different scorers on the day The Sem managed to find their way out of trouble through their sheer scoring prowess. The range of their kicking was impressive but they certainly had to be patient and on their feet throughout in securing another trip to GAA Headquarters.

Diskin and centre-forward Jack Ronayne were the most impressive for the Mayo side in a gallant loss as the third Kerry vs. Mayo All-Ireland semi-final in Ennis this year went the way of the Kingdom.

In getting back to Croke Park on Saturday April 1, the Sem have been tested far more than they have been compared to last year’s journey there. You sense they will be the better for that though as they await the winner of today’s other semi-final between St Marys of Magherafelt Derry and St Peters College Wexford.