Dingle put themselves in pole position to reach final

SENIOR CLUB CHAMPIONSHIP GROUP 2 ROUND 2

Dingle 0-13 Legion 0-11

A SPLENDID second quarter performance gave Dingle the breathing space they required to see off the second half challenge of Legion in this hard-fought County Senior Club FC encounter at Pairc An Aghasaigh on Saturday afternoon.

Playing against the elements in the opening half, the Killarney men would have been satisfied to only trail by the minimum (0-4 to 0-3) at the water break, but when the sides resumed play, the home team put their foot on the accelerator to build a cushion that, in the end, could not be pegged back.

Midfield dominance was the key factor in Dingle’s period of dominance as Barry O’Sullivan and the recalled Darragh O’Sullivan ruled the roost and, with Paul Geaney making his presence felt in a deeper role, the supply line to Conor Geaney in the inside line was very plentiful.

The corner-forward was on fire from the outset, despite being marked by such a tight defender in Cian Gammell, and he had three superb points from play before the break, as Dylan Geaney, Matthew Flaherty, Paul Geaney and the ever-penetrating Tom O’Sullivan also kept the scoreboard ticking over for the Westerners.

Legion, hindered from the very first whistle by having to start without star attacker James O’Donoghue and promising midfielder Darragh Lyne, were shellshocked by the Dingle barrage of scores but, with Conor Keane always a threat up front and the swashbuckling Peter O’Sullivan making several inspirational runs from deep, they retired at the break facing a five-point deficit (0-10 to 0-5).

While Dingle manager Padraig Corcoran will have taken great encouragement from the way his charges fought back in their opening draw with Austin Stacks, he will also have pinpointed their backs-to-the-wall second half display on Saturday as a further sign of their growing development.

That was emphasised by their willingness to graft for each other after Barry O’Sullivan was black-carded in the third minute of the second period after pulling down Legion’s Donal Lyne. In the ten minutes that they were reduced to fourteen men, the winners only conceded two pointed frees to Conor Keane and goalkeeper Brian Kelly.

With numerical parity restored, Dingle finally got off the mark in the second half in the 45th minute with Conor Geaney pointing a free and, when a patient build-up involving Tom Leo O’Sullivan and Padraig O’Connor ended with the afore-mentioned Geaney kicking a brilliant score from play, the winning post remained steadily in view for Dingle entering the last ten minutes (0-12 to 0-7).

Aided by the stiff breeze at their backs throughout the second half, and with Lyne and O’Donoghue introduced off the bench, Legion gave it their all in a physical contest that left no room for the faint-hearted, but they struggled alarmingly for attacking invention from beginning to end.

However, they were nothing if not defiant, and two O’Donoghue frees and a magnificent 50 metre bullet from goalkeeper Kelly, had the home team starting to sweat just a little heading towards the climax (0-12 to 0-10).

Cometh the hour, cometh the undisputed man of the match, as Conor Geaney, this time with his right peg, kicked his fifth point from play as the game drifted into injury-time, and despite substitute Jamie O’Sullivan notching a fine point from a mark, there was no disputing Dingle’s overall superiority as they claimed a deserved victory.

If they can beat Kilcummin this weekend, a place in the final could well be theirs. Legion, for their part, must regroup in a potential thriller against Austin Stacks, with manager Stephen Stack certain to emphasise to his charges that one point from open play from his entire forward line will rarely ever be enough to win a game like this. DINGLE: David O’Connor; Tom Leo O’Sullivan, Michael Boyle, Padraig O’Connor; Brendan Kelliher, Tom O’Sullivan 0-2, Aidan O’Connor; Barry O’Sullivan, Darragh O’Sullivan; Matthew Flaherty 0-1, Mikey Geaney, Ruan McCarthy; Dylan Geaney 0-2, Paul Geaney 0-2 (1f), Conor Geaney 0-6 (1f). Subs: Brian O’Connor for McCarthy (h-t), Niall Geaney for Boyle (58), Paul Devane for Flaherty (60).

LEGION: Brian Kelly 0-3 (1 ’45’, 2f); Cian Gammell, Danny Sheahan, Damien O’Sullivan; Peter O’Sullivan, Jonathan Lyne, Rob Leen; Shaun Keane, Billy McGuire; Donal Lyne, Jack O’Neill, Peter McCarthy; Conor Keane 0-5 (4f), Padraig

Lucey, Thomas Moriarty. Subs: Darragh Lyne for Lucey (h-t), Jamie O’Sullivan 0-1 (m) for McGuire (41), James O’Donoghue 0-2f for McCarthy (47), Kieran Slattery for

S Keane (60).