Electric Ireland Sigerson Cup: UL edge out Maynooth
UL manager David Power. Photo by Brendan Moran/Sportsfile
Electric Ireland Sigerson Cup Quarter-Final
UL 3-16 MAYNOOTH UNIVERSITY 0-17 (after extra time)
By Kevin Egan at UL Maguire’s Fields, Limerick
UL’s dreams of adding a first ever Electric Ireland Sigerson Cup title to their maiden Division One league success earlier this winter are still alive, just about, after Daithí Hogan’s goal forced extra-time and gave them a new lease of life just when it looked like they were dead and buried.
Again in overtime, it seemed as if it wasn’t just the sodden, wet jerseys that were a weight on the shoulders of David Power’s side. Six minutes of the first half of extra time were played when a desperation tackle from Thomas Ross on the lively Eoin Cully saw stand-in referee Chris Maguire show Ross a black card to go with his earlier yellow.
On a night when Aaron Browne’s electric form illuminated Maguire’s Fields, the Celbridge centre-forward looked a sure-fire certainty to kick the free and move UL into the lead with an extra man, and the wind to come for the second half of overtime.
Browne’s free hit off one post, then the other, then rebounded to safety. By half-time in overtime it had all gone horribly wrong for University of Maynooth and they were the ones in deep trouble. Hugh O’Loughlin palmed in another goal, UL’s third of the night, Brian O’Halloran’s black card meant their numerical advantage was removed, and a Cian McHale two-pointer with the last kick made it 3-12 to 0-16 and left them with a lot to do.
Too much, it turned out. Hogan, Michael Freaney and Killian Butler hit points from play and while Maynooth carved out a couple of good goal chances, Daniel Scahill blasted one effort over the bar and another was smothered by a sea of UL bodies on the goal-line.
That free-scoring form was a stark contrast to the middle of the game, when between the 15th minute and the 54th, UL scored a mere one point.
Maynooth had made the stronger start with an Eoghan Frayne two pointer in between scores for Harry Plunkett and Aaron Browne, but UL replied with a sumptuous spell of play, quickly putting 1-6 on the board.
They got a little bit of luck with their opening goal where Cathal Ryan got a subtle touch on a hit-and-hope delivery from Cathal Brosnan, but there was no luck about the smooth attacking play that followed, featuring a Frank Irwin two-pointer and a clinical turnover score, finished by Charlie King.
Gradually, one step at a time, Maynooth ground their way back into the game. Conor Gray asserted himself at midfield under the kickout and Aaron Browne began to light up the contest with some darting runs and scores, but it was defensively where Maynooth were superb, squeezing the life out of their opponents.
As UL’s scoring drought went on, Cian Burke turned the screw by saving a Frank Irwin penalty and the introduction of Ruairí Kinsella only added a further element of quality to the Maynooth attack.
They led by 0-13 to 1-7 and then 0-15 to 1-9 following Luke Crowley’s score, but they couldn’t quite get to the finish line, saving one close-range goal effort from David Buckley only to see Hogan swoop in to change the course of the game, and the competition.
Scorers for UL: Cian McHale 0-5 (2f, 1tp), Frank Irwin 0-4 (1tp, 1f), Daithí Hogan 1-1, Cathal Ryan 1-0, Hugh McLoughlin 1-0 each, Conal Dawson 0-2, Charlie King 0-1, Cathal Keavney 0-1, Michael Freaney 0-1, Killian Butler 0-1.
Scorers for Maynooth: Aaron Browne 0-4 (0-1f), E Frayne 0-3 (1tp), Conor Duke 0-3 (0-1f), Eoin Cully 0-3 (1tp), Harry Plunkett 0-1, James Harris 0-1, Luke Crowley 0-1, Daniel Scahill 0-1
UL: Tristan O'Callaghan; Tommy Walsh, Thomas Ross, Ben Dempsey; Paddy O'Driscoll, Seán Morahan, Charlie King; Brian McNamara, Jack Melvin; Conal Dawson, Jack McCabe, Cathal Brosnan; Cathal Ryan, Cian McHale, Frank Irwin.
Subs: Cathal Keavney for King (37), Daithí Hogan for McCabe (39), Hugh O’Loughlin for Melvin (43), Michael Freaney for Brosnan (53), David Buckley for Ryan (53), Ciarán Collins for McHale (65), Killian Butler for Dempsey (74).
MAYNOOTH UNIVERSITY: Cian Burke; Rob Fitzgerald, Brian O'Halloran, Ryan Burke; Dan Scahill, Ciarán Daly, James Harris; Luke Killian, Conor Gray; Conor Duke, Aaron Browne, Daire Finn; Eoghan Frayne, Harry Plunkett, Eoin Cully.
Subs: Ruairí Kinsella for Finn (38), Luke Crowley for Plunkett (45), Seán Greene for Daly (59), Mark Gibbons for Gray (73), Shane Walsh for Browne (76).
Referee: James Molloy (Galway), replaced by Chris Maguire (Clare) after 49 mins.
