St Patrick's Cup Results
Round 5- Sunday 22nd May 2005

Disclaimer! While every effort is made to have all the correct information on the games (teams/scorers) should you see any inaccuracies please e-mail pro@sfgaa.org with the correct information. Thank you.

YIs Get a Win At Last
Mens’ Football
Young Irelanders 1-8 Shannon Rangers 0-7

Declan McConn bursts through for YI

Weak backs in the Young Irelanders let Rangers go into the half time break leading by five points to two. In the second half the YIs gained some composure thanks to their stronger forwards and mid fielders. They also gained a tailwind and a hand of God goal by Freddie McCroon, and they steadily edged into the lead with a lot more confidence. Rangers only got two points in the second half, way short of what was needed.

Referee: Frankie Keenan

Clan na Gael Lose Lead in Thriller
Ladies’ Football
Fog City 5-10 Clan na Gael 3-4

The opening period in this dramatic game was notable for inaccurate passing and wayward shooting by Fog City who just were not at the races at first. Clan na Gael were able to take full advantage of this and quickly march two points into the lead thanks to Olive Ennis lobbing a ball over the head of the Fog City goalkeeper that bounced on into the net. Some heart-stopping goalmouth moments followed shortly thereafter with Clan na Gael threatening to get more goals. This they duly did twice thanks to Connie McNamara and Anna Glennon, the latter shooting from a seemingly unfeasibly tight angle and squeezing the ball in on target.

With a half time lead of 3-4 to 1-4, the only question was would it be enough for the Clans facing a second half headwind. A preview of what the answer would be came soon enough with a goal from Claire Dolan and then Cathy Burke rattling the Clans’ net by firing a ball into the box for it to bounce over the goalie’s head out of reach and drop nicely into the goal.

Misjudging the high bounce of the ball on this hard surface was a common problem for many players in all the games on Sunday.

With Fog City well and truly on top, the game had to be interrupted for fifteen minutes due to a medical emergency on a neighbouring soccer field in which ambulance paramedics had to be brought in.

When play resumed, Fog City continued to extend their lead with goals from Deirdre Deneghy, Siobhan Dolan, and Ashling Bryant. Despite a strong showing by Clan na Gael’s Olive Ennis and despite Michelle O’Leary playing an absolute blinder in the middle of the field, tough defending by the ladies in black prevented Clan na Gael from scoring at all in the second half. A comprehensive demolition job had been done on their lead, and the second half very much belonged to Fog City.

Referee: Frankie Keenan

High School Game a Credit to the Youth Board
High School Championship
Penninsula 4-13 St Ignatius 2-2

James Daly, Malachy Higgins, and Mark Connolly

Peninsula were very much the dominant side all through this game both with the wind at their backs and against them. Most of the action was taking place in the St Ignatius half of the field with a fifteen point lead built up by half time. Once again the basketball skills of these young players came in very useful, with superb ball control skills on display from both sides. There were a few little errors creeping in from players who were either less familiar with the rules or still thinking in basketball mode, with frees being given away by chest-to-chest passes without the striking action of the hand, but these are minor problems that will doubtless be ironed out as time goes on.

See also: streaming video report.

Referee: Malachy Higgins

Celts Come Tantalisingly Close
Mens’ Football
Michael Cusack’s 2-12 Celts 2-7

The plucky Celts, playing with the wind in the first half, confidently took the lead with two successive points giving Cusack’s a wake up call that they were probably not expecting. The response soon came with Cusack’s powering into the lead with rapid fire points, and tempers actually began to flare with a little bit of pushing and shoving. Both sides settled down and the Celts retrieved their lead with a goal by Max Mills, but Cusack’s retaliated for this with Tony O’Gloghlan running in from the half forward line and getting a goal of their own. The lead was changing hands at a rapid rate and at half time the sides were level.

Cusack’s had a lot more shots at the target in the second half, but so many of them were going wide that the Celts still held on and eventually got another goal from Sean Smith who ran in to intercept a sideline ball and punch it into the net. It took the injury of two key players to slow the Celts down. Aidan O’Flynn, who fell and was concussed, and Joey McCarthy, who twisted his ankle, both had to come off.

Cusack’s capitalised on this with points galore from Fergus O’Sullivan, Kevin White, and Seamus O’Gara who kept the pressure on and eventually pushed clear of their younger rivals to win by five points. Nevertheless, it was not a bad day for the youth in the city.

Referee: Malachy Higgins

Sean Treacy’s Winning Streak Comes to an End
Mens’ Football
Sean Treacy’s 0-5 Ulster 2-10

Most of the teams who had a headwind on Sunday were able to take advantage of it. Sean Treacy’s was not one of these teams. A timid approach to play, misjudging of the ball’s bounce, and a consistent failure to win the breaking ball gave a two point lead to Ulster by half time.

Whatever speech Treacys’ were given at half time must have made them sit up and listen, for they came out fighting for every ball at the start of the second half. But Ulster simply kept the pressure on and extended their lead to five points. An Ulster goal by Daragh McAuley ratcheted up the pressure even more, Sean Treacy’s allowed careless marking to creep into their game, and a second Ulster goal by Kevin Grimly finished it off. There was no coming back from that.

Referee: Declan O'Donnell

Naomh Padraig Still to Get it Together
Hurling
Naomh Padraig 3-5 Na Fianna 4-12

This opening hurling match of the year was a bit imbalanced. Naomh Padraig are clearly still in the early stages of getting their teams together, which would explain why they would have been shut out all through the first half. On the Na Fianna side, fitness was less than impressive, although some notable performances were put in by goal scorer Tom Carroll, Dingo, and also Brian Murray, a new recruit from the world of lacrosse who scored two points in this, his first ever competitive game of hurling!

The season promises to get a lot more interesting as championship time draws nearer.

See also: streaming video report.