Counsel suffer big defeat
DUBLIN SOUTH put on an exhibition of hurling to retain the Top Oil Post Primary Schools Juvenile ‘A’ league title in Eire Og, Carlow, on Thursday.
If this is the future, with amalgamated areas playing with this much quality, then it’s scary for the run of the mill secondary schools around the province. Dublin South were streets ahead, with the quality of all-around game defying their lack of years.
Almost every facet of their play was razor-sharp. Their aerial ability was immense - plucking balls out of the sky at will. Their ground game was crisp and precise, and their striking was good; it really was a masterclass.
Poor Good Counsel just ran into a juggernaut. To their credit they battled on against all the odds and, to be fair, their full-back line was superb considering how much quality ball was fired into the goalmouth.
They might have been helped by winning the toss and playing with the elements, but it wasn’t to be. Luke Byrne-Doyle scored a nice sixth-minute point but it was a rare bright spot against a raft of South Dublin scores.
The impressive Jack Kielthy had three points for the Metropolitans, while Evin Dowling had four, as they moved 0-10 to 0-1 ahead, after firing ten wides, with 29 minutes gone.
If the New Ross boys could have kept their opponents from finding the net before the break, then maybe they would have retained some slim hope. However, it wasn’t to be as first Kielthy raced away for a major and then Dowling found the net with a longrange free.
Down by 2-10 to 0-1, a good start was imperative for Counsel. Painfully, within minutes of the re-start Kielthy pulled home at the second time of asking to increase the advantage to 19.
To their credit, Good Counsel kept battling and were only outscored by 0-8 to 0-6 in the last 27 minutes. Rathnure’s Owen Lennon registered a couple of dead-balls before Cian Byrne did likewise.
Colman O’Sullivan picked off one of the points of the game, dancing away to the right, past two tackles and finishing with a super strike with ten minutes to go. A raft of changes broke up the last quarter but Lennon did add another score right at the death.
Good Counsel must now regroup as they will need to be at their best when they are back in action in the Barry Cup in the coming weeks.
Good Counsel: Michael Kirwan; Rory Flanagan, Simon Kennedy, Barry Hassey; Owen Lennon (0-3, 1 free, 1 ‘65), Emmet Cullen, Cathal Cummins; Colman O’Sullivan (0-1), Luke Byrne-Doyle (0-1); Conor Foley, Jamie Power, Killian Griffin; Jack Redmond, Cian Byrne (0-2 frees), Mikey Sheehy. Subs. - Donal Murphy for Sheehy (36), also Philip Roche, Jack Mullally, Seán Kinsella, Jason Murphy, Michael Dundon, Brian O’Shea, George O’Connor, Eoin O’Brien.
Dublin South: Brian Hayes; Conor Burke, Joe Maguire, Luke Mulligan; Cian Duffy, Tom McVeigh, Jack Power; Evin Dowling (1-7, 1-5 frees), Davey Crowe (0-1); Ross Byrne, Tom Brennan, Dara Kennedy (0-3); Bryan Keogh (0-2), Jack Kielthy (2-3), Rhys McDonnell. Subs. - Jack Guinan (0-1) for McDonnell (36), Ferghal Kilbane (0-1 free) for Keogh (44), Liam Smyth for Burke (48), Senan Walsh for Brennan (49), Michael Foley for Kielthy (49), Rian Power for Maguire (50), Michael Young for Duffy (52), Fionn Murray for Kennedy (52), Sam Stewart for Dowling (54), Harry Lynch for Mulligan (55), Liam Mostyn (0-1) for Crowe (55), Harry Kelly for Byrne (56), Josh Corcoran for Power (60).
Referee: Patrick Murphy (Carlow).