Dowling supreme but Rags hold Croft to a draw

The Auld Shebeen Athy IFC, group D

Kilcullen 0-13

Suncroft 1-10

Despite an outrageous 1-7 from Suncroft’s Fionn Dowling, Suncroft and Kilcullen drew on Saturday afternoon in Athy in their first game of the group phase of the Auld Shebeen Athy IFC.

The former county man Dowling rolled back the years with a vintage performance; however, it was only good enough to muster a draw.

It was a dream start for Suncroft, as they scored the game’s only goal just two minutes in. Jack Setright made an explosive run toward the heart of the Kilcullen defence.

Setright laid it off to Eoghan Lawless, who flicked it across the Kilcullen goal to Dowling who didn’t catch it at the first time of asking but managed to hammer it into the empty net with his second bite at the cherry. Dowling’s goal was promptly followed by his first point of the game.

Slow start

Despite their slow start, Kilcullen didn’t panic and opened their scoring account in the seventh minute through Thomas Hickey. They managed to rattle off another two scores consecutively through Dave Marshall and Robbie Lee.

There was little the Rags could do, however, to halt the Fionn Dowling show. Flawless from frees in the first half, Dowling kept the scoreboard ticking over for his team. It took until the 26 minute, when Tom Martin smartly fisted a point, for someone other than Dowling to score for Suncroft.

With the final kick of the first half, he pointed from a free to give his team a commanding four-point advantage at the break.

Suncroft substitute Jack Doyle pointed from an acute angle just after half-time. This, however, triggered Kilcullen’s best spell of the game. If they manage to maintain their intermediate status this year, they may look to the third quarter of this game as a turning point.

A super score from Paul Bell was followed by points from Thomas Hickey, Cathal Brophy, and Dave Marshall.

Midfielder Sean Knight was crucial in this purple patch, showing his excellent ability as a ball carrier to drive his team forward, as well as chipping in with some scores of his own.

When umpire extraordinaire Petey Dunne waved the white flag for Knight’s effort in the 46 minute, it meant that the teams were level, and all was still to play for.

Kilcullen’s Dave Marshall was granted a late opportunity from a free to steal a win for his side, but it dropped agonisingly to the right and wide.

KILCULLEN: Cormac Barker, John Lavin, Franny Shortt, David Toft, Cathal Brophy (0-1), Conor Bolton, Warren Kealy, Sean Knight (0-2), Ciaran Melinn, Paul Bell (0-1), Thomas Hickey (0-3, 1f), Liam Knight, Robbie Lee (0-1), Dave Marshall (0-5, 3f), Ronan Toft Subs: : Tim Carey for Kealy 30, Ciaran O’Brien for Bell 51, Darragh Kelly for Hickey 58.

SUNCROFT: Dave Sutton, Mikey Troy, Maurice Hartnett, Ethan Duignan, Ciaran Troy, Jack Setright, Sam Murphy, Maurice Moran, Cormac Linnane, Chris Phillips, Eoghan Lawless, Diarmuid Enright, Thomas Cleary, Fionn Dowling (1-7, 6f), Tom Martin (0-2) Subs: Jack Doyle (0-1) for Cleary, Mark Brown for Moran 47.

REFEREE: Alan Lagrue.