Killenaule into last eight of Tipperary SFC after winner-takes-all triumph over Cahir

FBD Insurance - County Tipperary Senior Football Championship - Group 3 Round 3

KILLENAULE 1-15 CAHIR 2-5

Killenaule secured second place in the FBD Insurance County SFC Group 3, and with it a place in the quarter finals, with a well-deserved win over Cahir in the Round 3 clash at Fethard on Saturday afternoon, 1-15 to 2-5.

It was a winner-takes-all contest to finish runners-up to table toppers, Upperchurch-Drombane, but despite a promising first half, Cahir never looked likely winners after the restart against a Killenaule side with much more purpose and zest.

Cahir led at the break, 1-4 to 0-5, thanks to a sixth minute goal from Jesse Kiely, but they went twenty three minutes of the second half without adding to their total. Killenaule scored six points without reply in that time.

Remarkably, the-one way traffic was interrupted by 1-1 from Sean O’Connor in the space of a minute, to tie the score at 0-11 to 2-5 with six minutes of normal time to go. But Killenaule finished the stronger with 1-3 without reply in those closing minutes, the goal with virtually the last kick of the game from substitute Oisin Shelly.

Despite picking up a black card minutes from half time, Sean O’Connor looked to be Cahir’s most threatening forward when returning to the play in the second half, and he opened his side’s second half account twenty three minutes in, pointing following a great run from Jake Kiely.

A minute later he tied the scores when kicking off the ground to the net from a high Ian Flannery ball into the square, but he lacked sufficient support up front to challenge for the victory.

Meanwhile, Killenaule were superb in attack, and the ploy of running hard and fast through the centre of the Cahir defence proved profitable. County star Paudie Feehan was unmarkable, and his link up play with Joe O’Dwyer and Michael Doyle was too slick for the overworked Cahir defence. O’Dwyer was outstanding, with five points from play, with Feehan and Doyle hitting two each.

O’Dwyer kicked Killenaule’s first three points as they began the game with real intent. However, Cahir got a huge boost just before O’Dwyer’s third when Jesse Kiely made his way up from defence to score a fine goal, the ball just edging in off the post despite the best efforts of Killenaule goalkeeper Michael Fitzgerald.

Paudie Feehan restored the Killenaule lead but Cahir were now very much back in the game and they were back in front with scores from Jake Kiely and Sean O’Connor in the space of thirty seconds, and then pushed the lead out to two, 1-3 to 0-4, in the nineteenth minute with Jesse Kiely again getting on the scoreboard.

Joe O’Dwyer hit the Robins’ first point in fourteen minutes to reduce the margin. And even though Cahir were reduced to fourteen with Sean O’Connor’s black card for a foul on O’Dwyer, it was Cahir who finished the scoring with Jack Buckley from a free putting them 1-4 to 0-5 ahead at the break.

Whether it was being reduced to fourteen players for eight to nine minutes of the second half, Cahir just appeared to fall off the pace after the restart. Killenaule suffered their own misfortune when influential defender Jack Hassett had to go off injured, but they overcame that setback to totally dominate for over twenty minutes.

Luke Ryan opened their second half scoring in the seventh minute and Michael Doyle took a pass from Tom Stakelum to tie the scores, 1-4 to 0-7, three minutes later. By now, Sean O’Connor was back on the field for Cahir but the play remained in one direction.

A typical Paudie Feehan point, after he burst through the centre, put Killenaule back in front, and Tom Stakelum increased the lead to two by the end of the third quarter. The game was now slipping away from Cahir, with Joe O’Dwyer pointing after taking possession from a Michael Doyle free, and then Doyle curling a beautiful shot just inside the post to make it 0-11 to 1-4.

But suddenly, Cahir roared back into contention. Just after goalkeeper Aaron Wall sent a 45 wide, Jake Kiely burst through the Killenaule cover before passing to Sean O’Connor for a crucial point seven minutes from time. A minute later a high ball into the Killenaule danger area from substitute Ian Flannery caused panic in the defence, and O’Connor was quickest to react and shot low and hard off the ground past Michael Fitzgerald.

Remarkably, Cahir had drawn level, 2-5 to 0-11, after being second best for so much of the half, and their hopes were raised again. But Killenaule regained their composure to push on for victory. Joe O’Dwyer from a free restored the lead and Michael Doyle added to it from another free.

Cahir then suffered another blow just before the end of normal time when goalkeeper Aaron Wall was shown a black card by referee Sean Everard. They brought on Patrick O’Donovan in goal with Jake Kiely the unlucky outfield player to make way, and playing with fourteen men for the extra four minutes of added time did the town side no favours.

Killenaule then went on to consolidate victory, and like the club hurlers, qualified for the knock-out stages. Eoin Shaw hit a point from play and Michael Doyle pointed a free following a foul on Paddy Codd. And they wrapped up the scoring with their only goal of the game, the Cahir defence parting like the Red Sea for Paudie Feehan to put an unmarked Oisin Shelly free and he placed the ball beyond the reach of O’Donovan in the Cahir goal.

Cahir finished third in a competitive group, missing out on the quarter finals, but avoiding a relegation dogfight, a fate that awaits Arravale Rovers. They will rue their two black cards, as well as their display in the third quarter, when they failed to match Killenaule’s intensity. Yet they had fine displays from Jesse Kiely and Sean O’Connor, who took their goals well, as well as Ger Hally, Stephen Grogan and Kevin Grogan.

Killenaule will relish the challenge of the knock-out stages, and with players of the calibre of Paddy Codd, Jimmy Feehan, Paudie Feehan, Michael Doyle and Joe O’Dwyer, none of the other contenders will take them lightly

Killenaule – Michael Fitzgerald, Finn Nolan, Jimmy Feehan, Jack Hassett, Daniel Guinan, Paddy Codd, Ciaran O’Dwyer, Thomas Keaveney, Tom Stakelum 0-1; Mark Stakelum, Paudie Feehan 0-2; Joe O’Dwyer 0-6, 0-1 free; Eoin Shaw 0-1; Michael Doyle 0-4, 0-2 frees; Luke Ryan 0-1. Subs – Cian Johnson for Hassett, Oisin Shelly 1-0 for Mark Stakelum.

Cahir – Aaron Wall, Jesse Kiely 1-1; Ger Hally, Sean Leahy, Ciaran Condon, Michael O’Connor, Nicholas Reidy, Stephen Grogan, Kevin Grogan, Jake Kiely 0-1; Sean O’Connor 1-2; Oisin Maher, Ger Quinn, Conor O’Brien, Jack Buckley 0-1 free. Subs – Dylan Butler for Nicholas Reidy, Eddie Kendrick for Michael O’Connor, Daragh Howard for Jack Buckley, Ian Flannery for Conor O’Brien, Patrick O’Donovan for Jake Kiely.

Referee – Sean Everard