Double delight as Mountmellick Parish Gaels add Division 1A title to Féile success
It was a superb game in Portlaoise on Tuesday evening
Mountmellick Parish Gaels capped off a memorable few weeks with a hard-fought win over Portarlington in the Midlands Park Hotel U15 Football Division 1A Final.
Fresh off their Feile triumph against Portlaoise earlier this month, the Gaels showed resilience and character to come through a pulsating contest.
Mountmellick Parish Gaels 1-12
Portarlington 2-7
Portarlington started brightly, with Rory O’Dwyer splitting the posts in the opening minute. However, Mountmellick Parish Gaels quickly found their rhythm as Fionn Burke punished some early indiscipline with three pointed frees, two of which followed fouls on the influential Charlie McEvoy.
Portarlington responded with a purple patch of their own, rattling off five unanswered points. Midfielder Aidan O’Reilly started the surge, followed by a sharp four-point haul from Patrick Emerson, three coming from placed balls, to swing the game in Portarlington’s favour.
Trailing by three, Mountmellick Parish Gaels rallied before the break. Alex Connolly pointed to reduce the deficit, and further scores from Burke and McEvoy ensured the sides were deadlocked at half-time, 0-6 apiece.
JJ Reddin sparked the second half into life for the Gaels, weaving along the end line before blasting to the net for the game’s opening goal. Portarlington hit back quickly as Aidan O’Reilly responded in kind to keep the match delicately balanced.
Mountmellick Parish Gaels then edged ahead through a pair of frees from Darragh Delaney, either side of a fine point from Connolly. Mountmellick Parish Gaels had a chance to extend their lead further, but were denied by a superb save from Joe Thunder to keep Burke’s goal-bound effort out.
With the match entering the final quarter, O’Reilly again proved instrumental for Portarlington, this time as a creator, laying on a pass for Luke Dunne to bury their second goal and tie things up once more. Emerson nudged Portarlington in front with a late point, but their scoring dried up thereafter.
Mountmellick Parish Gaels finished strongly, with Delaney converting another free to level matters before Dean Comerford capped off a slick team move by fisting over. Substitute Bobby O’Connell then stepped up with a crucial insurance point to seal victory and spark jubilant celebrations among the Gaels' faithful.