Image courtesy Conor Ryan
TEMPLEOGUE SYNGE STREET 2-14
NAOMH BARRÓG 0-10
Templeogue Synge Street advanced to the final of the Go-Ahead Ireland Dublin Senior 2 Football Championship when accounting for Naomh Barróg by ten points at Parnell Park on Saturday afternoon.
In doing so, they secured their place in Senior 1 for 2025 and while their final margin of victory was a flattering one, there’s no question they deserved the victory given their greater attacking variety over the hour.
Having played with the breeze in the first-half, Templeogue Synge Street enjoyed a 0-9 to 0-4 lead by the turnaround, with Niall Scully accounting for five of those scores.
Their margin was reduced to two points at one stage upon the restart but goals in added time from Killian O’Gara and Bruce Waldron ensured their comprehensive victory by the final whistle.
After his injury sustained in their quarter-final win two weeks previously, Synge Street were boosted by the presence of Lorcan O’Dell in their starting line-up and he duly opened the scoring in the 3rd minute off his left foot.
However, a miss soon after from a similar position hinted at O’Dell’s discomfort as Naomh Barróg restored parity two minutes later through a well-worked score from dual player Paddy Doyle.
With chances at a premium and neither side establishing control, the tightness of the exchanges continued with O’Gara denied a goal in the 10th minute following a superb block from Barróg centre-back Ciaran Gallagher.
An incisive run from Liam Durran saw Barróg take the lead three minutes later but their opponents struck for three points inside two minutes through Niall Scully (free), substitute Fintan Dignam and Scott McConnell to lead by two points by the end of the first quarter.
Scully and Paul Tolan exchanged frees as the contest evolved and Dignam, who replaced O’Dell early on, continued to impress as he popped over his second score in the 24th minute.
While Paul Tolan converted another free two minutes later, Templeogue finished the half on the front foot as Scully added three points approaching the break to leave his team five points clear by half-time.
The second-half failed to ignite initially with O’Gara denied once again thanks to a smart stop at his near post from Tom McGuirk with Max Fitzgerald calmly slotting over the resultant ‘45’.
However, the Synge Street goalkeeper wasn’t as comfortable on his kick-outs with his options limited and Barróg took advantage as Tolan clipped over three points in quick succession to bring his side to within two points by the 41st minute.
Crucially, Synge Street managed to weather that storm as Fitzgerald landed another excellent placed ball from distance and O’Gara’s facile score brought their buffer back to four points by the start of the final quarter.
Almost inevitably, it was Tolan that kept his side in the hunt with a further brace but with Mick Tolan black carded for the remainder of the contest, their challenge unravelled in the closing stages.
A foul on Luke O’Brien in the 60th minute saw O’Gara send the resultant penalty over the crossbar but he made no mistake two minutes later after the Dublin attacker had been impeded close to goal.
O’Gara turned provider in the 63rd minute to release Waldon through for an emphatic finish high past McGuirk, allowing their side to ease their way into the decider.
Scorers – Templeogue Synge Street: N Scully 0-5 (4f); K O’Gara 1-2 (1-1 pens); B Waldron 1-0; M Fitzgerald (‘45’, f), F Digman 0-2 each; S McConnell, L O’Dell, E Sheehan 0-1 apiece. Naomh Barróg: P Tolan 0-7 (4f); P Doyle 0-2; L Durran 0-1.
Templeogue Synge Street: M Fitzgerald; C Murphy, C Cunningham, C McKiernan; G Holian, D Murphy, A O’Toole; J McCormack, S McCormack; C Curran, N Scully, K Hughes; S McConnell, L O’Dell, K O’Gara. Subs: F Dignam for O’Dell (15), E Sheehan for Curran (half-time), B Waldron for J McCormack (39), L O’Brien for McConnell (46).
Naomh Barróg: T McGuirk; M Sharry, C Gibson, D Keegan; M Owen, C Gallagher, M Tolan; P Tolan, F Alexander; S Gallagher, P Doyle, H Nolan; L Durran, R Alexander, L Nolan. Subs: M Nolan for L Nolan (47), A Ó Donncha for H Nolan (50), N Reilly for R Alexander (59).
Referee: Eamonn Drumgoole English (Cuala)
