Rebels marooned by Tribesmen who capture All Ireland Under 21 Football title

04-05-2013

Galway                                                 1-14

Cork                                                       1-11

On a damp evening at the Gaelic Grounds, Limerick, and played in difficult underfoot conditions, Galway were crowned 2013 Cadbury’s All Ireland Under 21 Football Champions with a hard fought but deserved victory over Cork.

Superbly led by inspirational midfielder and captain Fiontain O’Curraoin, the Tribesmen took the game to their opponents from the off, and with corner forward Ian Burke in sparkling form, they always looked to have the measure of their opponents.

When these two sides met in the All Ireland minor semi final in 2010 Galway held a nine point lead over their opponents but were still defeated so they could be excused for becoming nervous when Cork full forward Brian Hurley drilled to the net in the 45^th minute.  However, on this occasion the Galway men were not to be denied and they rallied to defend their lead in the final ten minutes.

For the defeated Rebels their normal tactic of playing the short passing, counter attacking game was nullified by the Galway men particularly in the first half when full forward Adrian Varley and wing forwards Cathal Mulryan and Damian Comer dropped deep to help out their defence.  The faster, long ball in to Brian Hurley and Dan MacEoin reaped better dividends as the game wore on.  Corner back Conor Dorman was also very influential in carrying the ball forward for the young Rebels in the second half.

Galway took the lead in the 5^th minute when Comer drove towards goal but was upended and Shane Walsh converted.  They extended the lead shortly after when Walsh was on target once again.

Cork responded in the 11^th minute when full back Damian Cahalane drilled over a 45 with aplomb.  Galway pushed on again and after two clean catches by O’Curraoin at midfield the second led to wing forward Cathal Mulryan splitting the posts.

Galway’s defensive blanket at this stage was making it very difficult for the Cork men to break them down and they added further quick fire scores in the 18^th and 19^th minutes by Mulryan and full forward Adrian Varley to extend their lead to 0-5 to 0-1.

Full forward Hurley responded with a converted free for Cork but then Galway corner forward Ian Burke burst in to life and he kicked three beautiful scores in the lead up to half time off either foot.  Dan MacEoin was doing his best to keep the Rebels in the game and he had the final say of the half to leave Galway leading at the break by 0-9 to 0-5.

The second half started in a flurry and with Hurley and MacEoin finding their range once again, the deficit was reduced to 0-10 to 0-08 by the 35^th minute.  The momentum now seemed to be shifting but credit to Galway who responded with points from Mulryan and a further Walsh free. 

And they hit a decisive blow in the 40^th minute, when, after an attempted score by Mulryan fell short, the ball was fetched by Varley who fed the inrushing Comer who blasted to the net and the Tribesmen now led by 1-12 to 0-8.  And their grip on the cup became firmer with further scores from wing back Paul Varley and corner back David Cunnane to push the lead out to the nine points.

Galway thoughts then flashed back to that minor game of 2010 and their nerves were tested once more when Hurley expertly finished to the net after a fumble by Galway centre back Daithi Burke.  And with the Cork supporters now beginning to find their voice, substitute Cathal Vaughan and a cracking effort by MacEoin from a free on the stand side left just a goal between the sides entering the final ten minutes.

With both sides making a number of substitutions the game began to lose some of its shape but Cork continued to come at the Galway defence but they stood firm under the continous pressure.  They even had a further goal chance in the 50^th minute when a fisted effort by Burke was well stopped by Cork keeper David Hanrahan.

As the minutes ticked away Cork became more desperate for a goal to level matters and in one final desperate attempt a high ball in to the Galway square was expertly caught by substitute keeper James Healy who cleared and the final whistle was blown to the delight of the Galway players and their supporters.

Captain O’Curraoin was a deserving man of the Match and his victory speech given in a mixture of English and the cupla fochaill Gaeilge was well appreciated by all in attendance.

Teams and Scorers:

Cork: David Hanrahan, Conor Dorman, Damien Cahalane(c)(1 pt), Alan Cronin, Brian O’Driscoll, Tom Clancy, Jamie Wall, Sean Kiely, Ian Maguire, Alan Cadogan (1 pt), Mark Sugrue, John O’Rourke, Dan MacEoin (4 pts, 1 free), Brian Hurley (1 gl, 4 pts, 1 free), Luke Connolly

Replacements:  Jamie Burns (for Sean Kiely 36 mins), Cathal Vaughan (for Mark Sugrue 38 mins)91 pt), T.J. Brosnan (for Jamie Wall 42 mins), Kevin Hallissey (for Alan Cadogan 57 mins)

Galway: Thomas Healy, Eoin Walsh, James Shaughnessy, David Cunnane (1 pt), Mark Loughnane, Daithi Burke, Paul Varley (1 pt), Thomas Flynn, Fiontain O’Curraoin(c), Cathal Mulryan (3 pts), Sean Moran, Damian Comer (1 goal), Shane Walsh (4 frees), Adrian Varley (1 pt), Ian Burke (4 pts)

Replacements: Conor Rabbitte (for Sean Moran 47 mins), James Healy (for Thomas Healy 49 mins) Philip Ezergailis (for David Cunnane 54 mins), Garry Kelly (for Adrian Varley 59 mins), Shane Maughan (for Ian Burke 59 mins)

Man of the Match: Fiontain O’Curraoin, Galway

One to Watch: Ian Burke, Galway