DOHENYS 0-15

CROMANE 2-9

(Cromane won 6-5 on free kicks aet)

GER McCARTHY REPORTS

DOHENYS’ first-ever Munster LGFA junior championship odyssey ended in heartbreak following defeat to Cromane after a sudden-death free kick shootout.

The huge crowd in Sam Maguire Park, Dunmanway, certainly got their money’s worth from Saturday’s marathon encounter.

Newly-crowned Cork junior A county champions Dohenys were looking to build on their provincial quarter-final victory away to Fr Casey’s. Their opponents from Kerry, Cromane, were also making their Munster championship debut.

Level at the final whistle and extra-time, free kicks were needed to decide the outcome. When that shootout finished level – four apiece – sudden death was added to the drama.

Disappointingly for Dohenys, it was Cromane who emerged 6-5 winners and the West Cork club’s long season was finally at an end.

Cromane's Mairin Duffy is tackled by Dohenys' Mairead Crowley.

‘We are so proud of these girls,’ Dohenys' mentor Miriam Forbes told The Southern Star.

‘At the start of the year, if you told us we’d win a West Cork final, a junior A county final after losing four in the last five years and get to a Munster semi-final, we wouldn’t have believed it.

‘It is the stuff of dreams. We were so close to getting to the Munster final and that’s probably what hurts the most because we knew how good Cromane are. Either team could have won it at full time. Either team could have won it after extra-time. There was very little between those two teams today but we are super, super proud of our players.’

A tight, tense opening period was blown open after 18 minutes. Eimear Burke and Mary Kate Smith were involved in the build-up to Roisín Griffin gaining possession and firing into Dohenys’ net. That made it 1-1 to 0-3 in the Kerry side’s favour.

Yet, a resurgent Dohenys, with Melissa Duggan seeing a goalbound effort blocked on the goal-line, changed ends 0-7 to 1-2 ahead. Duggan, Ava O’Donovan (two) and Mairead Crowley efforts helped the West Cork club build a two-point interval lead.

The hosts stretched that advantage to three when a major turning point occurred after 43 minutes. Mary Kate Smith was brought down by Dohenys’ Alison Hayes resulting in a yellow card and a converted Roisín Griffin penalty. All square, 0-9 to 2-3 and all to play for. But despite their numerical disadvantage, it was Dohenys who finished strongly.

Two Ava O’Donovan frees sandwiched an Eimear Burke score but Dohenys couldn’t hold on as Roisín Griffin’s leveller, six minutes into injury-time, meant extra-time.

The additional period proved just as exciting. Griffin and Ava O’Donovan each scored twice in the opening half of extra-time. O’Donovan scored again on the resumption before Eimear Burke replied via two consecutive frees.

Dohenys' Abbie McCarthy goes past Cromane's Naoise Burke.

Another Ava O’Donovan free levelled matters for the final time, 0-15 to 2-9.

Amid unbearable tension, each side missed one of their free kicks before Mairin Duffy and Melissa Duggan nervelessly converted to make it four each. An engrossing semi-final was going to sudden death.

Eimear Burke and Roisín Griffin converted as did Dohenys’ Ava O’Donovan before Abbie McCarthy – one of Dohenys’ best players on the day – missed and Cromane emerged victorious.

Despite the heartbreaking loss, Dohenys supporters applauded their team off the pitch. Rightly so, as the West Cork club gave their all before coming up short in the lottery of free kicks.

Next year will herald intermediate football and an emerging Dohenys team is ready for the challenge.

‘It is a hard way to lose a game but, as we said, getting to this stage (Munster) for the first time was just a bonus for us,’ Dohenys captain Michelle Duggan admitted.

‘We are thankful for all we have gotten this year. Our main goal was to get to a county final, win it and go up intermediate. That’s all we wanted.

‘Unfortunately, we didn’t get the win today but congrats to Cromane. It was such a great experience playing in the Munster championship. It drove us on because the teams we met were stronger than anything we have played so far.

‘We will definitely build on this going into next year’s intermediate county championship.’

Scorers 

Dohenys: A O’Donovan 0-10 (8f); Melissa Duggan 0-2; R McCarthy, M Crowley, K A Buttimer 0-1 each.

Cromane: R Griffin 2-3 (1-0 pen); E Burke 0-5 (3f); M K Smith 0-1.

Dohenys: K Corcoran; A Hayes, C Aherne, Michelle Duggan; M Collins, A Duggan, L Farr; E O’Donovan, M Crowley; Melissa Duggan, A O’Donovan, H McCarthy; C Galvin, R McCarthy, A McCarthy.

Subs: K A Buttimer for C Galvin (34), G O’Mahony for H McCarthy (48), H McCarthy for L Farr (et).

Cromane: E Murphy; N Burke, O Burke, S O’Donovan; S Corkery, S Foley, O Dunphy; L O’Sullivan, R Smith; M Duffy, M K Smith, E O’Sullivan; R Griffin, E Burke, S Harkin.

Subs: M E McDonnell for O Dunphy (5, inj), C Hurley for E McDonnell (48), S Clifford for M Duffy (et), M Duffy for S Clifford (et).

Referee: Billy Cummins (Tipperary).