Brilliant Brennan leads terrific Tramore to final success
County Board Chairman Sean Michael O'Regan presents the cup to Tramore captain Mattie Thompson after they defeated Sliabh gCua/St Mary's in their J.J Kavanagh & Sons County Intermediate football final
Two goals inside the opening three minutes put Tramore on the way to a convincing fourteen point win over a game Sliabh gCua side in Walsh Park on Saturday last. A third Tramore goal in the 11th minute effectively put a win beyond a gallant Touraneena side that, to their credit, never gave up the chase and battled right down to the final whistle.
Sliabh gCua started promisingly with David Condon breaking clear from the throw in and setting Denis Coffey up for a score but the corner forward shot wide. Tramore attacked from the kick out with Mikey Brennan catching the Touraneena defence cold as he raced on to a short pass and finished to the net with less than a minute played. Before Sliabh gCua could regroup Keylan Graham and Tommy Smyth combined to place Conor Butler for his side’s second goal in the third minute. A third goal looked on when Brennan again broke through but the Tramore forward sent over the bar.
Sliabh gCua had a great chance to strike back when Kevin Sheehan made a run through from midfield but shot wide from in front of the posts and again a minute later when Denis Coffey put Cillian Tobin in but his shot from close range was brilliantly saved by Paddy O’Neill in the Tramore goal before Brendan McGourty finally opened his sides account with a point in the 9th minute.
With two goal scoring chances missed Sliabh gCua still had it all to do and things got more difficult with Mikey Brennan sending over in the 11th minute and, from a poorly taken kick out, Tommy Smyth gained possession and sent on to the unmarked Brennan who made no mistake in finishing to the net for his second goal, giving his side a 3-2 to 0-1 lead.
Two minutes later Smyth received a straight red card for what the referee saw as dangerous play after a loose kick connected with a Sliabh gCua defender. Jason Sheehan pulled a point back for his side but Tramore retained the upper hand with points from Keylan Graham, Conor Butler and Mikey Brennan to take a comfortable 3-5 to 0-2 lead into the dressing room at halftime after Jason Sheehan somehow shot wide from a 12 metre free directly in front of the Tramore goal.
Sliabh gCua needed to make use of their extra man and it looked as though they might do that as they got the best possible start to the second half with McGoarty collecting a short free and sending over inside a minute. From the kick out they were back on the attack with Cillian Tobin getting on the end of a great move to finish to the net.
The possibility of a comeback was on as Keylan Graham and Jason Sheehan exchanged points from frees before Sheehan added another to leave seven between the sides in the 41st minute. However, the sending off of Cillian Tobin for a foul on Brennan in the 44th minute was a blow to Sliabh gCua’s slim chances and when Brennan sent over two points from frees and Tony Whelan got forward to finish to the net in the 47th minute it was game over.
A fifth goal followed in the 51st minute with Conor Butler sending a penalty to the net following a foul on Eoghan Quinlan and when Brennan followed up with a point in the 54th minute it was simply a case of playing out the remaining minutes.
Sliabh gCua continued to battle on and got the goal they deserved when Jason Sheehan converted a penalty in the 56th minute. Tramore still managed to have the last word with veteran Tony Whelan getting on the scoreboard with a last minute point.
It was a fully deserved victory for Tramore and the club’s first step on the road back to senior status as they face into the premier Intermediate grade next year. In Mikey Brennan they had the man of the match with a personal tally of 2-6. They were also well served by Martin Whelan, Eoin Hayes, Mattie Thompson, Keylan Graham and Conor Butler.
David Whelan in goal could do nothing about the shots that beat him while others such as Cillian Tobin, Kevin Sheehan, David Condon, Jason Sheehan and Brendan McGourty worked hard all through.
Mikey Brennan 2-6 (0-3Fs), Conor Butler 2-1 (1-0 pen.),Tony Whelan 1-1, Keylan Graham 0-2(1F),
Jason Sheehan 1-3 (1-0 pen, 1Fs), Cillian Tobin 1-0, Brendan McGoarty 0-2.
Paddy O’Neill, Shane Wyse, Martin Whelan, Adam Murphy-Farrell, Eoin Daly, Tony Whelan, Eoin Hayes, Ray Connolly, Mattie Thompson, Keylan Graham, Tommy Canavan, Cian O’Neill, Tommy Smyth, Conor Butler, Mikey Butler.
Jack Brennan for Murphy-Farrell (25), Eoghan Quinlan for O’Neill (41), Frankie Gillane for Daly (55), Richard Hickey for Hayes (60), Nick Cannell for Canavan (61).
David Whelan, Willie Power, Jack Power, Eoin McGrath, Sean Condon, Eoin Kearns, Cillian Tobin, Kevin Sheehan, David Condon, Sean Fitzpatrick, Jason Sheehan, Gearoid Hallinan, Mike Kearns, Brendan McGoarty, Denis Coffey.
Damien Quirke for W. Power (HT), Stephen Coffey for McGrath and Dermot Tobin for Hallinan (56), Dean Carroll for D. Condon (61).
Alan Kissane (Dunhill)
