The Kerryman (South Kerry Edition)
Promising Listowel Emmets strike back at St Senans
COUNTY PJFC GROUP 4 ROUND 1 Listowel Emmets 1-11 St Senans 2-8
EVEN in these socially distant times, even without the kind of crowd this game would ordinarily have drawn, there was a real crackle of electricity around O’Sullivan Park in Finuge for this North Kerry derby.
Pretty much as soon as the draw for this group was made way back when – and we really do mean way back when! – this fixture stood out as one to watch. Town versus country, two proud clubs more than familiar with each other, neither of whom would be willing to give an inch, and so it proved.
There was a real cut and thrust to this tie, an edge that told you championship football was back. That it ended in a draw was probably a fair reflection on the game. Still, one got the sense that where Emmets were pleased to have taken something from the game, Senans more so felt it was one that got away.
That’s nearly always the case where one team chases down the other and catches them. In the round though Senans got out of the match pretty much what they deserved. Same goes for Emmets, who could justifiably claim that had the match gone on a few minutes longer they would have secured a winner.
Of course, football doesn’t work that way. You have to do your stuff in the time allotted and the Emmets took a little longer to get into this game than they needed to. It was, nevertheless, really encouraging stuff from a young looking Listowel side who gained in strength and composure as the game progressed. Promising ahead of a trip to Portmagee next weekend.
For their part Senans will rue quite a number of missed chances – eight wides from scoring chances. The most frustrating thing from their point of view is that they got themselves into a position to win the game and didn’t finish the job.
There was a touch of luck about St Senans’ second goal, which put them in such a commanding position at half-time, but that hardly mattered once the points were on the board and they had a six point lead and an extra man for the second half following Thomas McCarthy’s dismissal on a straight red card.
It was relatively even in the opening exchanges – two points apiece after eleven minutes – before a blisteringly brilliant goal by Dónal Hunt put the Senans into pole position. Hunt, having taken an assist from David Foran, turned and shot and rifled home from distance on twelve minutes.
Hunt’s goal didn’t really disrupt the pattern of the game from before. Listowel remained competitive. A David Behan point on thirteen minutes extended Senans’ lead to four, but Listowel hit the next three unanswered – frees from Seán Keane and Sam Tarrant and a point from play by the impressive Cormac Mulvihill at full-forward – to make it a one point game again.
A pointed free from Seán O’Connell on twenty one minutes staunched the bleeding for Senans before that fortuitous goal from Conor Kennelly on twenty five minutes swung the pendulum decisively in the direction of Mountcoal.
It was a deeply frustrating one for Emmets too as a fisted effort for a point by O’Connell was deflected into the path of Kennelly who palmed home. That coupled with the hammer blow of McCarthy’s dismissal felt fairly decisive as the teams retired at 2-6 to 0-6 at the break.
Emmets refused to be deflated by this turn of events, however, and attacked the second half with real gusto. A couple of Sam Tarrant frees early in the half put a dent in Senans aura of inevitability straight away and when Mike Keane was dismissed on thirty six minutes for Senans it really was game on.
Darragh Leahy – impressive in the first half – really came into his own in the second and did much to get Emmets on the right path. Even so the cushion of the two goals from the first half afforded Senans a degree of security.
With ten minutes to go – and after the water break – St Senans still retained a five point lead, 2-8 to 0-9. A goal from Sam Tarrant on fifty one minutes, however, dramatically shifted the centre of gravity once more as Emmets, already moving well, pushed it up another gear again.
Indeed, Listowel held Senans scoreless for the final quarter of an hour, scoring 1-2 of their own to secure a draw that could easily have been a win had one last ‘45 from Tarrant not drifted just wide of the mark.
LISTOWEL EMMETS: Cathal Keane, Eddie Browne, Mark Galvin, Tom Melvin, Ciarán Pierse, Niall Collins, Michael Kennedy, Thomas McCarthy, Sheldon O’Neill, Darragh Lynch, Cormac Mulvihill (0-2), Darragh Leahy, Seán Keane (0-2 f), Sam Tarrant (1-96f), Jamie McVeigh Subs: David Keane (0-1) for S O’Neill, half-time, Ger McCarthy for C Pierse, 47
ST SENANS: James Barry, Mike Keane, Bill Keane, Kieran Lyons, Darragh Behan, Seán T Dillon, Mark Behan, Paudie Dillon, Cillian Trant, Dónal Hunt (1-1), Paudie Quille, David Foran, David Behan (0-1), Seán O’Connell (0-4, 3f), Conor Kennelly (1-2, 2f) Subs: Eoin O’Connell for P Dillon, half-time, Éamonn Shanahan for B Keane, 40, Seán Weir for P Quille, 41, Jason Browne for D Behan, 50, Jason O’Leary for M Behan, 50
REFEREE: Brian Fleming (Currow)