Flanagan title for magnificent Muredach’s
Nathan Roddy of St Muredach’s gets his hand to the ball in this high-flying exchange with St Gerald’s players during the Mayo PPS Flanagan Cup 'A' final at Páirc Josie Munnelly, Castlebar, last Wednesday. Pictures: David Farrell Photography
There’s something stirring on the banks of the Moy. A week to the day after their statement victory over Connacht Colleges behemoth St Jarlath’s College, the senior footballers of St Muredach’s College didn’t so much as beat St Gerald’s College but obliterate them.
There were some mitigating factors from a Gerald’s perspective – 2024 Mayo minor Joe Forry was a notable absentee from the Castlebar school’s attack – but not enough to explain away last Wednesday’s thirteen points defeat. In fact, St Gerald’s selected a dozen of the players who had also started their nine points championship win against Sligo Schools the previous Friday, and two of the other three players were sprung from the bench. And yet St Muredach’s were superior in practically every area of the pitch and only grew stronger the longer the game went on.
The Flanagan Cup has seldom rested on Ballina soil but has found a deserving recipient in St Muredach’s who already look as though they could have quite the say in the provincial championship as well. That all of six minutes and 45 seconds of this match had passed before St Gerald’s broke inside the St Muredach’s 45-metre line was a sign of things to come. So good were St Muredach’s defensively that they managed to hold their opponents scoreless from play for the entire second-half while conceding just three points from two frees.
In contrast, both St Muredach’s midfielders, Dylan Sweeney and Oisin Gavin, had lofted over points inside three minutes and by full-time the duo had scored five points from play between them, which was as much as the entire St Gerald’s team. A converted free by Patrick Carr left St Muredach’s 0-3 to no score ahead after 10 minutes and while Tiernan Brady opened the St Gerald’s account a minute later with a point from play, Sean Foody was to blast home the game’s opening goal for St Muredach’s on the quarter hour.
Drifting full-forward Nathan Roddy had three involvements in the move, including delivering the exquisite left footed pass that picked out Foody whose finish into the top right corner was of the highest order.
That, however, was only the first of three goals in-a-row, with St Gerald’s raising green themselves in the 17th minute. There was a touch of fortune about the score as Patrick Garvey certainly looked to be attempting to point, but when his kick dropped short into the arms of Fionn McHale, the centre-back who somehow was the St Gerald’s player furthest forward displayed superb composure to slot past goalkeeper Conor Bohan.
Garvey went close again moments later, this time when his long range free rebounded off the post, but there was no slice of luck this time as St Muredach’s were soon burying their second goal at the other end, with Nathan Roddy following the flight of Marc Munnelly’s delivery to flick the ball beyond goalkeeper Cillian Curley.
An Oisin McCann point in the 25th minute meant that St Muredach’s now led 2-4 to 1-1 and St Gerald’s ate into that only marginally before half-time, as Tiernan Brady, a free, and Ryan McNamara kicked a point apiece either side of Oisin Gavin’s second of the game for Muredach’s.
It looked, however, as we could have a right game on our hands when Luke Lydon beautifully drilled a two-point free for St Gerald’s who then ripped a hole in the middle of the St Muredach’s defence in the 35th minute only for McNamara to shoot wide when the goal seemed at his mercy. So instead of levelling the game, St Gerald’s remained three points adrift and just three minutes later you could make that seven points, as Patrick Carr’s converted free preceded Nathan Roddy punching home his second goal of the game, this one the result of a flowing move launched by wing-back Alexander Smyth and also involving Conor Jordan, Carr and substitute Conor Lavery.
St Gerald’s were listing badly whereas St Muredach’s, driven on superbly by defensive dynamo Cathair Tighe, were to reel off seven more points from play, with three from the excellent Roddy and one each by Jordan, Sweeney, Gavin and Carr. A 58th minute point from a free by Tiernan Brady was the only score from St Gerald’s in the final 28 minutes of play.
Both teams are back in action this Wednesday, November 26 with St Muredach’s College visiting Ballinrobe Community School in Group 3 of the Connacht PPS senior ‘A’ championship (6.30pm) and St Gerald’s College away to Colaiste Bhaile Chlair in Group 2 (12.30pm).
Scorers – St Muredach’s: Nathan Roddy 2-0-3, Sean Foody 1-0-0, Patrick Carr (2f) and Oisin Gavin 0-0-3 each, Dylan Sweeney 0-0-2, Conor Jordan and Oisin McCann 0-0-1 each.
St Gerald’s: Fionn McHale 1-0-0, Tiernan Brady 0-0-3 (2f), Luke Lydon 0-1-0 (tpf), Ryan McNamara 0-0-1.
St Muredach’s: Conor Bohan; Cathair Tighe, Kenzie McKee, Sean Fleming; Conor Breslin, Cian Hastings, Alex Smyth; Oisin Gavin, Dylan Sweeney; Oisin McCann, Conor Jordan, Marc Munnelly; Sean Foody, Nathan Roddy, Patrick Carr. Subs: Peter Quinn and Corey Lavery (for Fleming and Munnelly ht), Eoin Golden (for Smyth 45), Cathal Finan (for Breslin 59).
St Gerald’s: Cillian Curley; Eoghan Murray, Andrew Gallagher, Matthew Kelly; Jack Diffilly, Fionn McHale, Eoghan Dever; Ben Joyce, Caolan Moran; Tiernan Brady, Patrick Garvey, Ross Connolly; Ryan McNamara, Luke Lydon, Rhys Neary. Subs: Matthew Flannelly (for Moran 5, inj), Paul Hurst (for Dever 23), William Hoban (for Murray 45).
REF: Jon Finn (Aghamore)
