The 1A Final finished in dramatic circumstances.
2024 Carlow Minor Football Finals
By Harry Shorthose
Division 1B Football Final
Rathvilly 1-10
Tinryland 1-8
Rathvilly were crowned the 1B Minor champions on Thursday night as they edged past Tinryland. They were the better team and took their chances. It was tit for tat with both sides cancelling each other out for large periods, with neither really able to get a stronghold on the game. Rathvilly just had the edge.
The early stages were tight with neither side managing to really seize advantage. They shared a wide apiece in the early stages. Tinryland went closest with an effort being saved and then a handpass just a minute later being cleared off the line and pushed wide.
Rathvilly began to take the game by the scruff. Luca Kavanagh hit over a free before Liam Lobiza-
Heydon added a point from the left. Each side went close with both putting an effort wide apiece. With 18 minutes on the clock, Bobby Doyle hit an effort over from the left but it was quickly cancelled out by Rory Gavin a minute later. Tinryland had a glorious chance when a long distance effort was collected by the ‘keeper but it was parried away into the path of Matthew Brennan who got taken down.
Jamie Walker’s penalty was saved as he hit it to the bottom right hand corner. They got awarded a second penalty seconds later, but Conall McGuire hit his effort wide to the left of the goal. With five minutes to go until the half-time break, Walker and Mikey Byrne added points to level the game up.
With two minutes to go, Robert Coleman hit Rathvilly into the lead again. McGuire blasted Tinryland into the lead just before half-time, intercepting the ball in the Rathvilly defence and hitting a goal into the
bottom left hand corner of the goal.
Rathvilly started off best in the second half, Jack Corcoran hitting an effort over the bar. Lobiza-Heydon cancelled it out with a point of his own. Kyle Byrne hit an effort over for Rathvilly from distance. With seven minutes gone, Alex Byrne made good ground through the middle and down to the right of the box and hand passed into Cillian Molloy in the middle who fired into the goal to bring Rathvilly back ahead. Both sides hit a free over.
Rathvilly went close but hit a goal effort wide. Six minutes into the second half, multiple efforts cleared
off the line before Byrne hit the ball over the bar. McGuire hit a point over just a minute later for Tinryland. Two quickfire points from Lobiza-Hayden and Robert Coleman pushed Rathvilly into a four point lead. Tomas Murphy went close for Tinryland, hitting an effort at a Rathvilly defender.
With four minutes to go, Tinryland rescued a point back. Rathvilly went close but had a couple of efforts saved. Calum O’Brien Murphy pulled back a point in stoppage time as he aimed for goal but went over the bar. Lorcan O’Connor went close but his effort was saved.
Teams:
Tinryland: Johnny Scully, Keelan Quigley, Sean Murphy, Luke Cahill, Robbie Fitzpatrick,
Ross Moran, Paddy Waslh, Jamie Walker, Mikey Byrne, Bobby Doyle, Tomas Murphy,
Lorcan O’Connor, MacDara Deane, Matthew Brennan, Conall McGuire. Subs: Darragh
Redmond for Brennan (h/t), Calum O’Brien Murphy (for Deane, 58).
Rathvilly: DJ Carroll, Padraig Corcoran, Robert Coleman, Sean Kelly, Alex Byrne, Luca
Kavanagh, Joseph Gibbons, Daire Byrne, Jack Corcoran, Kyle Byrne, Cillian Molloy, Enda
Byrne, Liam Lobiza-Heydon, Darragh Connors, Rory Gavin. Subs: Paul Keogh (for Molloy,
58)
Scorers:
Tinryland: Conall McGuire (1-3, 0-2 free), Bobby Doyle (0-1), Calum O’Brien Murphy (0-1),
MacDara Deane (0-1), Jamie Walker (0-1), Ross Moran (0-1)
Rathvilly: Luca Kavanagh (0-1, free), Liam Lobiza-Heydon (0-3, 0-1 free), Rory Gavin (0-1),
Robert Coleman (0-2), Jack Corcoran (0-1), Kyle Byrne (0-2)
Division 1A Football Final
Eire Óg 3-5
Palatine 1-13
Palatine were crowned Division 1A Minor Champions after victory over Eire Óg. However, that victory was somewhat overshadowed by the ending to this match. Eire Óg thought they had the match won, they scored a last gasp goal in the dying embers of the game and had begun to celebrate.
However, referee Patrick Murphy had already blown the full time whistle during the Eire Óg build up, as they were about to take that shot, causing controversy. The Eire Óg players didn’t seem to have realised the whistle had gone as they were celebrating what they thought to be a win. Many in the stands didn’t seem to realise either, and those that did were bewildered that the referee had chosen that exact moment to blow it up.
Nevertheless it was a much deserved win for Palatine who were in command for a lot of the game.
After the first ten minutes, you’d have been forgiven for thinking Eire Óg would cruise through this match. Jamie Coakley hit over a free from the right after three minutes. Eoin Myers hit a point over seconds later. Coakley hit an effort wide too as Eire Óg started to put their foot down.
With ten minutes gone, Myers got in behind the ‘keeper and hit into the bottom left hand corner. However, the town side’s defence switched off as Palatine bounced back straight away. Oran O’Boyle found space and hit into the back of the net.
Two quickfire points from Ewan Breen and Eoin Ryan brought Pal level midway through the first half. With
20 minutes gone, Fionn O’Toole hit over a free from the left to push Pal into the lead for the first time. Coakley hit an effort wide for Eire Óg. Sean Walsh hit a point over three minutes later. O’Boyle added another one from the left.
Eire Óg went close as Dermot Lawlor hit an effort off the left upright and wide on the near side. With three minutes to go, O’Toole hit over an effort from the left as Pal went into the break with a five point lead.
It was Eire Óg who came out fighting in the second half as Ruarc Murray’s effort was saved but he parried in the rebound into the back of the net within a minute of the restart. O’Toole hit an effort over the bar for Palatine a minute later. With nine minutes gone in the second half, O’Boyle hit an effort over the bar. Kealan Walker Burnett hit a point over but it was quickly cancelled out by Walsh as he hit an effort over from the right. George Cassidy hit an effort over from the left. Pal went close with an effort from the right but hit it straight at the ‘keeper.
With 12 minutes to go in the match, Eire Óg put themselves right back into the game as Myers found the back of the net to bring it back to a one point game and set up a grandstand finish. Four minutes later, Jacob Curran hit over a point for the town side to bring the game level.
Mark Buggy nudged Pal back ahead. Eire Óg did go close to hitting a fourth goal to go back ahead but Leon FitzGerald’s through ball into Murray just missed him. With a minute to go, O’Toole hit over a point to open up a two point lead.
In the dying embers, Eire Óg were on the attack and had the ball in the back of the net and had started to celebrate when Palatine backroom team members infiltrated the pitch and started to celebrate, to
much confusion.
In the end, Palatine took top honours.
Teams:
Eire Óg: Tommy Cooney Joseph Travers, Jonah Ingram Chatten, Daire Dooley, Ryan
Donnelly Finn, Oscar Siney, Paul Shaw, Eoin Myers, Ruarc Murray, Keelan Walker Burnett,
Ryan FitzGerald, Cathal Brady, Dermot Lawlor, Jamie Coakley, Alex Woods. Subs: Jacob
Curran for Brady, 47, Leon FitzGerald, for Lawlor 55.
Palatine: Joe Bermingham, Ewan Breen, Sam McHugh, Kyle Broderick, Luke Campion,
John Byrne, Mark Mulhall, Aiden Ryan, Oran O’Boyle, Jack Keating, Eoin Ryan, George
Cassidy, Charlie Deacy, Fionn O’Toole, Sean Walsh. Subs: Makr Buggy for Cassidy 35,
Peter Lynch for Deacy 40
Scorers:
Eire Óg: Eoin Myers (2-2), Jacob Curran (0-1), Ruarc Murray (1-1), Jamie Coakley (0-1,
free)
Palatine: Fionn O’Toole (0-5, 0-1 free), Oran O’Boyle (1-2, 0-1 free), Ewan Breen (0-1), Eoin
Ryan (0-1), Sean Walsh (0-2), Mark Buggy (0-1), George Cassidy (0-1)
The Division 2A Final saw MLR narrowly beating Clonmore by 0-13 to 1-9 at Fenagh.
