Disallowed goal costly for Emmets
at Aughrim SEIR KIERAN (OY) BRAY EMMETS 1-13 0-13
A DISALLOWED Padráig Doyle goal set in motion a nightmare second-half for Bray Emmets in the Leinster Intermediate Club hurling championship semi-final, as Paul Carley’s men fell at the hands of Seir Kieran on Saturday afternoon.
Emmets made the better start of the game in Aughrim; overturning an early deficit to go into half-time with a deserved and well-earned four-point advantage.
However, the second-half could not have been much different for Bray, as Seir Kieran turned the game around to win after Doyle’s chalked off goal early in the same half.
Regardless of which team came out on top on Saturday, a bit of history was going to be made. Neither Bray Emmets nor Seir Kieran had ever made it to a provincial final in their respective histories, making the Aughrim showdown all the more tantalising.
Despite a bright start from the Offaly champions, including an early goal from Joseph Bergin – his 40th goal on what was his 99th appearance - inside two and a half minutes, it would be Bray who would make the most of the opening 30 minutes.
Within nine minutes of the Kieran’s goal, Bray Emmets were level. Marc Lennon kicked off proceedings with a point, before Diarmuid Masterson, a Christy Moorehouse free, and a wellworked Eoin McCormack score restored parity.
Joseph Bergin took time from his epic tug-of-war with the outstanding Dáire Henderson to put Seir Kieran back in front with a free, only for the increasingly impressive Bray to claim a lead of their own through a pair of Christy Moorehouse frees.
While Seir Kieran were the more impressive outfit from the perspective of physical prowess, Bray were making up for that deficit with a tireless defensive workrate, as well as a pack mentality when going hunting for the second ball.
Four more Christy Moorehouse strikes, three of which being frees, affirmed Bray’s first-half dominance as, after Eanna Murphy’s late free for Seir Kieran, Paul Carley’s men went into the break with a well-earned 0-10 to 1-03 lead.
If Bray were able to maintain the momentum that they had built up in the first-half, there was only one winner in this contest.
Unfortunately, the break acted as much-needed reprieve for Seir Kieran, as they came out reenergised for the second-period.
Of course, any renewed sense of purpose that Seir Kieran would play with after the interval may have been rendered moot had it not been for the controversial cancelling out of what would have been a priceless Bray goal.
Christy Moorehouse hooked a high free towards the right side of the Kieran goal. With the ball drifting wide, a Bray man rose highest to knock the ball back to Pádraig Doyle, who was on the spot to put the ball past Eoin Coughlan in the goal.
Following consultation with his umpires, referee Barry Redmond chalked the goal off, much to the protestations of Doyle and co.
This acted as an important momentum shift for Seir Kieran, who turned the game around within eight minutes of the disallowed goal. James Mulrooney got the first score of the half, before Stephen Hynes (2), and a 65’ from Joseph Bergin brought the two teams back together at 0-10 to 1-07.
Joseph Bergin, in particular, was finding joy where there was none in the first-half. Whereas he was suffocated by the joint effort of Seán Moloney and Dáire Henderson in the opening 30 minutes, he found himself often deployed on the opposite side of the Bray back-line, and was finding a lot more space to work with.
Meanwhile, Bray’s defensive integrity was weakened by an injury suffered by Moloney, while Henderson was begrudgingly substituted by Ciarán McKay.
While Seir Kieran were finding their groove, Bray were struggling find any sort of answer, as was seen by four frees that Christy Moorehouse struck wide at the start of the half.
Another Bergin 65’ gave Kieran a well-deserved lead after 47 minutes, before he set up James Mulrooney to give the visitors a two-point cushion at 0-11 to 1-10.
Christy Moorehouse got his first and only score of the half with eight minutes left to play to put it back to a one-point game, but Seir Kieran were well and truly in their stride.
Tom Carroll and substitute Barry Kealy stretched the lead out to three points.
Diarmuid Masterson gave a give-and-go with Moorehouse to offer Bray a glimmer of hope, but it wasn’t to be, as Joseph Bergin capped off the scoring with a free on 58 minutes.
Bray Emmets: Christy Moorehouse (0-08; 0-07f), Diarmuid Masterson (0-03), Eoin McCormack (0-01), Marc Lennon (0-01).
Seir Kieran: Joseph Bergin (1-04; 0-02f; 0-02 65’), Stephen Hynes (0-03), James Mulrooney (0-02), Barry Kealy (0-01), Eanna Murphy (0-01), Kevin Dunne (001), Tom Carroll (0-01).
Conor McNally; Peter Walsh, Karl Lacey, Seán Moloney (for Daire Lohan); Cian Lohan, John Henderson, Dáire Henderson (for Ciaran McKay); Cathal Ó Dulacháin (for Luke Moloney), Diarmuid Masterson; Pádraig Doyle, Marc Lennon, Eoin McCormack; Christy Moorehouse, Davy Moloney (Paul Cunningham), Ben McCormack.
Scorers - BRAY EMMETS: SEIR KIERAN:
Eoin Coughlan; Donal Coughlan (for Emmett Scully), Sean Coughlan, Brian Moloney; Michael Gilligan, Eanna Murphy, Dermot Mooney; James Scully, Kevin Dunne; Peadair Murray (for Barry Kealy), Stephen Hynes, Adrian Hynes; Joseph Bergin, Tom Carroll, James Mulrooney.