At the full-time whistle a deafening cheer went up and within moments practically the entire parish of Abbeydorney – located just over six miles north of Tralee – was out on the Austin Stack Park playing surface. Most of them jumping, whooping, cheering, back-slapping each other alongside the players who had a few tears in their eyes.
This was just a fifth county championship for the club, their first in half a century. A fairytale ending to a remarkable campaign by Abbeydorney.
One way or another they weren’t going to be denied. Heroes all, the Abbeydorney players who strained every sinew, who battled against the odds and overhauled a more fancied Balllyduff side.
They led by nine at the break and, while it certainly felt like their hands were on the cup at that juncture, they job still wasn’t complete. Full of experience, Ballyduff were expected to mount a rally so a certain amount of tension was to be expected.
Pádraig Boyle had a couple of goal-scoring chances in the third quarter denied, and had they gone in, might we have had a different outcome? Possibly, but something tells us not. Destiny was always with O’Dorney on this day of days.
Whenever they had to they were able to respond, rallying brilliantly with 15 minutes to go to fashion a gap, and again in the wake of a Jack O’Sullivan goal for Ballyduff that came too little too late to make a significant difference.
A Micheál O’Leary free just before the hour-mark put a cap on the day for the new champions, appropriately given how central he has been to everything the club have done this year.
Indeed, less than 30 seconds in both he and Abbeydorney were laying down a marker. O’Leary winning and converting a free, and following that up two minutes later with a point from play.
Come the 10th minute O’Dorney were out to 0-5 to 0-1 clear – an off-colour Ballyduff having missed four early chances. And while Ballyduff steadied the ship for a time – bringing it back to a two-point game – a well-timed Abbeydorney goal made all the difference.
Niall O’Mahoney turned provider for Oisín Maunsell who shrugged off his man, Adam Segal, and a tug on the jersey, to finish powerfully past Darragh Quinlan to leave it 1-8 to 0-5. And by the break they were in full control, leading 1-11 to 0-5.
With no breeze to speak of for the second half it had the feel of an insurmountable advantage. But to their credit Ballyduff did their best to make a contest of it, starting with points from Jack Goulding and Segal.
Still O’Dorney looked dangerous. In addition to those two goal-scoring chances for Boyle, O’Dorney could easily have found the net for a second time, with good chances for David Egan (a brilliant Kevin Goulding block denying him) and Oisín Maunsell (who fired over the bar).
Try as they might, and they did try, Ballyduff just couldn’t trim O’Dorney’s advantage to make a real game of it. They did have one last sting in the tail, Jack O’Sullivan finding the net on the rebound from a Boyle free. However, this proved a mere consolation score as it turned out on a difficult afternoon for Ballyduff. There was simply no denying O’Dorney who were the superior force in most positions.
SCORERS – Abbeydorney: M O’Leary 0-7 (6f); O Maunsell 1-2; D O’Leary, J Sheehan 0-2 each; J O’Connor, N O’Mahoney, C O’Sullivan, B O’Leary 0-1 each. Ballyduff: J O’Sullivan 1-2; P Boyle 0-4 (3f); K Goulding, A Segal, J Goulding, E Boyle 0-1 each.
ABBEYDORNEY: C Bohane, K Dineen, S Egan, M Clifford, J O’Connor, R Donovan, J Maunsell, T Ó hAiniféin, D O’Leary, N O’Mahoney, O Maunsell, J Sheehan, D Egan, M O’Leary, C O’Sullivan. Subs: B O’Leary for O’Mahoney (36), D Hogan for Ó hAiniféin (41), K Sheehan for D O’Leary (59), M Slattery for O’Sullivan (60). Temp: M Slattery for O Maunsell (41-42).
BALLYDUFF: D Quinlan, A Kavanagh, P Costelloe, K O’Connor, E Boyle, K Goulding, D O’Carroll, N Mangan, A Segal, J O’Sullivan, J Goulding, A O’Connor, P Boyle, D Moriarty, L Rochford. Subs: D Slattery for Kavanagh (36), J Enright for Moriarty (36), JP O’Carroll for Rochford (43), K Boyle for E Boyle (57), J Bowler for A O’Connor (57).
REF: K Jordan (Tipperary).
