Dalata Hotel Group: Kerry defeat Roscommon after extra-time

Dalata Hotel Group All-Ireland U20 Football Championship Semi-Final

Kerry 3-17 Roscommon 0-17

By Kevin Egan at FBD Semple Stadium

It may been their stellar inside forward line that caught the eye in the Munster final, but in this contest, the Kerry U-20s proved that they have plenty of graft to go with their craft, as they produced a diligent and disciplined defensive performance to edge their way past Roscommon.

The record books will show that the Tralee trio of Daniel Kirby, Paddy Lane and Tomás Kennedy combined to score 3-10 between them, but each of those goals came in the second half of extra-time, and it was the score after 60 minutes (0-11 each) that was a better summation of the type of game that was played.

For most of that 60 minutes, Kerry were the better team – but it has felt like Roscommon teams of all ages have forgotten how to lose matches since knockout championships began in 2026, and the Rossies looked like they might have pulled another one out of the fire when Ruairí Kilcline fired the ball over the bar on the turn in stoppage time.

Six points down with eight minutes to play, having scored a mere 0-5 in that opening 52 minutes, Roscommon finished with five scores in succession, including a Charlie O’Carroll two-point free.

If it wasn’t for a brilliant strip tackle by Dara Stack to rob Stephen Tighe on the last attack, they might even have stolen it inside the hour.

At 0-15 to 0-12 after the first half of extra-time, Roscommon had the strong wind to come for the last 10 minutes and were still right there. Kirby took a pass from Jack Joy, who made a transformational impact after coming off the bench, and fired low through a sea of Roscommon legs and into the net, and Kerry never looked back.

The scoreline was incredibly harsh on the backs of both teams, who were exceptional. Roscommon’s Michael Gillooly and Nikita Berzins stood out against elite forwards in Lane and Kennedy, while Kerry’s discipline and diligence as a collective unit was exceptional.

There was plenty of attacking class on show from the star forwards in the early exchanges, with Roscommon opening the scoring on foot of a lovely jinking run and dummy hop from John McGuinness, while Kerry hit back through team captain Paddy Lane.

From that moment until half-time, it was a defensive masterclass from Kerry, who went 25 minutes without conceding a score.

Kirby, Jack O’Sullivan and Gearóid White put in a world of work in the trenches, with Gearóid Evans the lynchpin of a watertight full back line.

There was still six in it approaching the end, as Kerry always seemed to come up with a score when they needed it. Gearóid White, Tomás Kennedy and Kirby all scored in response to Roscommon points when they happened and it was only at the finale when Roscommon mounted a final surge, building on points from McGuinness and a Charlie O’Carroll double.

They nearly got there too, but Stack’s tackle was yet another brilliant defensive play, and the one that tipped the scale.

Scorers for Kerry: Paddy Lane 1-4 (0-2f), Daniel Kirby 1-3, Tomás Kennedy 1-3, Jack Gearóid White 0-3 (1tp), O’Sullivan 0-1, Jack Joy 0-1, Dara Hogan 0-1, Máirtín McKivergan 0-1.

Scorers for Roscommon: Charlie O’Carroll 0-6 (0-2f, 2tpf), John McGuinness 0-4, Ruairí Kilcline 0-3 (0-1f), Niall Heneghan 0-1, Dean Casey 0-1, Patrick Gaynor 0-1 (45), Conor Grogan 0-1f.

Kerry: Kacper Robak; Dara Stack, Gearóid Evans, Michael Lynch; Eoin O'Flaherty, Aodhna Ó Beaglaoich, Pa Walsh; Evan Boyle, Daniel Kirby; Mark O'Carroll, Gearóid White, Jack O'Sullivan; Ronan Carroll, Tomás Kennedy, Paddy Lane.

Subs: Seán Ó Cuinn for O’Carroll (42), Máirtín McKivergan for Walsh (47), Dara Hogan for Carroll (52), David Sargent for O’Flaherty (57), Jack Joy for O’Sullivan (60+4), Paudie Finucane for Boyle (66), John Curtin for White (74), Isaac Brosnan for Stack (77).

Roscommon: Patrick Gaynor; Diarmuid O'Higgins, Nikita Berzins, Michael Gillooly; Colin Murray, Keelan Kelly, Eoghan Carthy; Niall Heneghan, Cathal Enright; Cathal McKeon, John McGuinness, Eoin Collins; John Curran, Charlie O'Carroll, Dean Casey.

Subs: Ruairí Kilcline for Curran (37), Declan Kennedy for McKeon (39), Kevin Hester for Casey (49), David Higgins for Collins (51), Stephen Tighe for O’Carroll (60+2), Conor Grogan for Murray (full-time), Collins for Carthy (HT in ET), Casey for Tighe (HT in ET), O’Carroll for Kennedy (76).

Referee: Seamus Mulhare (Laois).