close
09 October 2008
Dr. Tommy Daly Park in Tulla was the setting last Sunday for a unique achievement for Clooney/Quin Minor GAA Club as the U-16B and U-15B Hurling championship double was secured. 
Our U-15 Hurlers made little of their underdog status as they faced up to Eire Og. There may have been only 2 points separating the sides at the finish but ours was the dominant team throughout the match. It was Eire Og who took the lead with a point from play in the 1st minute. C/Q went on the attack from the puckout and were awarded a 20M free for a foul on Jason Ryan. When Peter Duggan stepped up to take it he saw a goal opportunity and went for it. The shot was well saved and cleared 60M where Daire Kelly won possession and he,too, was fouled. Peter made no mistake with the free and the sides were level.
As our boys had the lion's share of possession they began to run at the Eire Og defence and the frees came our way. Peter Duggan landed one after 8 minutes to give his team a lead that they were to hold to the end. A minute later he slotted over another free. Niall Hehir then gathered a long free from David Barry and fired over from an acute angle to register our 1st from play in the 12th minute. Peter got his 1st from play 2 minutes later after great work from John Hennessy and Niall Hehir. Strangely, that was to be our last score of the half despite putting tremendous pressure on the Eire Og defence. Two pointed frees by the Townies in the 21st and 25th minutes were the only other scores of the half. So the half-time score of 0.5 to 0.3 in our favour scarcely reflected our territorial advantage and left mentors on both sides with plenty of room for thought during the break.
The 2nd half started as the first with a score in the first minute. This time it fell to Clooney/Quin. It fell to Peter Duggan. And it fell into the back of the Eire Og net. A perfect start for the boys in Green and Red. The Town side responded to the challenge thrown down to them and hit 2 points in the 7th and 9th minutes. Niall Hehir replied with his 2nd point of the day to make it 1.6 to 0.5. Eire Og brought our lead back to a goal after 22mins. Shane Smyth got his name on the scoreboard after 25 mins. and Peter extended our lead to 5 points when he converted his own free from near the sideline. With 2 mins. of 'normal' time remaining, Niall Hehir delivered a great ball from the right which was caught by Jason Ryan and he put 6 points between the sides. 'Injury time' arrived and Eire Og piled on the pressure on the C/Q defence. A pointed free and a cracking goal was their reward but it was not enough to save the game and Clooney/Quin were crowned U-15B Champions for 2008.
Like the U-16s before them, this was an excellent team performance. Keith Hogan was rock solid in goal. Brian Clune was a colossus at full back. David Reynolds was well on top in the right corner while Richard Hennessy shepherded his man all over the field to great effect. The half-back line was excellent all through. David Barry, having his finest hour ever in a Clooney/Quin shirt won every ball that came his way and drove his team forward time and time again. Either side of him were two great warriors in Mark Taylor and Conor Cleary. These two foiled any attempts Eire Og made to raid down the wings. Have we ever seen a livelier midfield pairing in a Clooney/Quin team than John Reynolds and Daire Kelly? Both have pace to burn and worked tirelessly and selflessly for the 60 minutes. John Hennessy also produced his best game for the club at wing forward. He worked his socks off and delivered great ball into the full forward line. On the other wing Conor Clune had a tremendous game and proved again why he is such a great prospect. Our captain, Shane Smyth having been laid low with a virus all week, showed great leadership at centre forward and topped his performance with a fine point. Niall Hehir was an absolute menace to the Eire Og defence. Not only did he score two excellent points from play, he chased, hooked, blocked and generally made it almost impossible for defenders to clear their lines. Jason Ryan, our best player in the semi-final, was severely hampered with a leg injury for the entire game. That did not prevent him from putting in an excellent 60 minutes at corner forward. Peter Duggan's move to full-forward this year has been a masterstroke. He was excellent again in this game and he has certainly found a knack of scoring goals.
The substitutes were: James Corry, Shane Duggan, Vadim McEvoy, Colm Loughnane, Fergal Culligan, Ryan Taylor and Luke Harrisson. Though none were used in the final it is worth noting that all 22 players on the panel have played in this championship. We would not have been in the final without them.
After the game, Rosaleen Monahan, Secretary of Bord na nOg Iomaint presented the trophy to our captain Shane Smyth.
Final Score: Clooney/Quin 1.9 Eire Og 1.7 Our Scorers: Peter Duggan 1.5 Niall Hehir 0.2 Shane Smyth 0.1 Jason Ryan 0.1
