02-12-2012
Looney plays the tune as Dr Crokes retain
Munster crown with emphatic win
Dr Crokes
0-19
Castlehaven
0-12
 |
| The victorious Dr Crokes captain Kieran O'Leary after their emphatic win over Castlehaven |
Dr Crokes Brian Looney
is fast becoming accustomed to winning major awards after another Man of the
Match performance in Dr Crokes comprehensive win over Cork representatives Castlehaven
in the 2012 AIB Munster Club Senior Football Championship Final.
In perfect playing
conditions and in front of a healthy crowd at Pairc Ui Chaoimh, the Dr Crokes
wing forward scored seven points in total, five scored from distance with his
trusted right foot along with a converted 45 and fisted score added in for good
measure. He was ably assisted by fellow wing forward Kieran O’Leary who was a
menace every time he got on the ball and midfielder Johnny Buckley who
dominated the midfield area in large parts and scored two points in to the
bargain.
The movement of the
Killarney sides sextet of forwards in the opening half was a joy to behold and
the West Cork men really struggled to keep tabs on them during this
period. The biggest complement to the
Crokes was that Colm Cooper was just an efficient cog in the wheel, spraying
balls around for his colleagues to feed off and chipping in with the odd score
himself. Credit must go to Castlehaven
however who never threw in the towel.
Centre back Damian Cahalane drove his team forward at every opportunity
and if anything could be deemed guilty of maybe trying too hard at times. Full Forward Brian Hurley also worked
tirelessly and caused Dr Crokes full back Mike Moloney many problems, particularly
in the first half, while centre forward Mark Collins could not be faulted with
his six point contribution.
Dr Crokes hit the
ground running and after Buckley had fed Daithi Casey from the throw in, the
centre forward swung the ball over to set the tone for the first half. Further quick scores followed from Buckley
himself and a double by Cooper to give the Killarney men a four point lead by
the 8th minute. It could have
been worse for the Cork men when an exquisite cross field ball by Cooper was
fetched by Doolin but somehow he managed to drill the ball wide with the goal
at his mercy.
The impressive Cahalane
opened Castlehaven’s account in the 10th minute with a booming point
from play but this was cancelled out immediately by O’Leary’s first score of
the game. Mark Collins once more
responded with a converted free but Dr Crokes reply was swift with three further
points from play by Looney(2) and corner forward Chris Brady to give them an
8-2 advantage by the 20th minute.
Dr Crokes lost Eoin
Brosnan to injury at this juncture but his replacement Shane Doolan proved a
more than capable deputy. After Mark
Collins converted a further free, O’Leary, corner forward Jamie Doolin and
Looney again from a 45 added further scores to stretch the Crokes lead to 11-3.
Looney’s 45 was as a result of an
excellent point blank save by Castlehaven keeper Paudie Hurley to deny Fionn Fitzgerald. To
emphasise how impressive the Crokes forward play was, Doolin’s score meant that
all six forwards had scored from play by the 30th minute. Cahalane kicked over a 45 for Castlehaven in
injury time to leave Dr Crokes leading at the break by 11-4.
Castlehaven would need
to come out with all guns blazing at the start of the second half in order to
edge their way back in to the game but instead it was Cooper who extended the Crokes
lead within two minutes of the restart from a free. Midfielder Sean Dineen responded with a long
range point from play for Castlehaven but Looney replied in kind once more for
the Crokes.
And the game should
well and truly have been put to bed by Dr Crokes in the 36th minute
when after a sweeping move down the field, midfielder Ambrose O’Donovan took
the final pass from Cooper but his goalbound effort somehow came back off the
upright. Castlehaven responded from this
let off with a further point from play by centre forward Collins.
However, any notions
that Castlehaven had of now starting a comeback were wiped out in the 40th
minute when midfielder Sean Dineen received a second yellow card for a high tackle
around the neck of Cooper. Dr Crokes
added salt to the wounds with points from play by O’Leary, Looney (2) and score
of the match after another storming run from Buckley from midfield, and finally
Looney again to extend the Crokes lead to 18-7.
The variety of the scores by Crokes at this juncture was most impressive
with their four fisted points a standout feature.
With the game now over
Dr Crokes were happy to play out time but credit to Castlehaven who battled
away to the end. Wing forward Sean Cahalane
was unfortunate with a clear cut goal chance in the 55th minute
which he blasted over. After a further
Doolin point from play, substitute David Burns from play and two pointed frees
from centre forward Collins in injury time left Dr Crokes victorious at the
final whistle on a scoreline of 19-12.
Dr Crokes now advance
to a quarter final meeting in the All Ireland Club Championship with Tir Chonaill
Gaels in London in two weeks time. Assuming they get over that hurdle all eyes
will then be focused in the new year on another joust with fellow black and
amber giants Crossmaglen Rangers. For
Castlehaven they will be disappointed with their overall performance but will
appreciate that they came up against a side with their sights set on bigger
prizes. They should be content enough
when they look back however at their first county title in nine years.
Man of
the Match: Brian Looney, Dr Crokes
Teams and Scorers:
Dr Crokes: D. Moloney, J. Payne, M. Moloney, F. Fitzgerald, L. Quinn, E. Brosnan,
S. Myers, A. O’Donovan, J. Buckley (2 pts), Kieran O’Leary (c)(3 pts), Daithi Casey
(1 pt), Brian Looney (7 pts, 1 45), Chris Brady (1 pt), C. Cooper (3 pts, 2
frees), Jamie Doolin (2pts)
Replacements: A. O’Connell, S. Doolin (for E. Brosnan 21
mins), D. O’Leary (for S. Myers 46 mins), Gavin O’Shea (for C. Brady 44 mins),
Andrew Kenneally (for J. Doolin 56 mins), B. Falvey, K. Ward ( for F.
Fitzgerald 59 mins), J. Jones, C. Fitzgerald
Castlehaven: P. Hurley, D. Limrick (c), L. Collins, T. O’Leary, R. Whelton, D. Cahalane
(2 pts, 1 45), C. Hayes, S. Dineen (1 pt), D. Hurley, S. Cahalane(1 pt), Mark
Collins (6 pt, 4 frees), M. Cahalane, S. Nolan, B. Hurley (1 pt, 1 free), S.
Hurley
Replacements: A. Seymour, A. Cahalane (for M. Cahalane 29
mins), D. Burns (1 pt)(for S. Hurley 50 mins),
M. Dineen, S. Hurley, S. Collins, T. O’Donovan ( for D. Limrick h/t), O.
Dennehy, D. Cahalane
Referee: Michael Meade (Limerick)
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