St Vincent's in their element

St Vincent's 2-9 Crossmaglen 0-11:ST VINCENT'S manager Mickey Whelan had made no secret of the fact he would have been happy with just a few points in it going into the last 10 minutes of yesterday's AIB All-Ireland club football semi-final at Navan. He'd probably changed his mind by the time the teams went in at the break with the Dublin champions leading sensationally by 10 points.  

That first-half performance defined the difference between the sides and not just on the scoreboard. Having won a crucial toss St Vincent's opted to play with a strong breeze. Their tactical acumen built the platform for success but there was more to this win than simply catching the All-Ireland champions cold with a surprise emphasis on long ball.

In the opening half hour Vincent's broke better than even in every area but also established crucial and hugely damaging supremacy in their astute use of the strong wind. Harnessing it to hit a steady supply of early ball into the full-forward line the Dublin champions pocketed the pay-out as Crossmaglen struggled to cope with the barrage.

That clever exploitation of the elements gave Vincent's the decisive edge. Crossmaglen were as at sea trying to make the wind work for them in the second half as they had been countering it in the first. Although Francie Bellew took the field after long-term injury to a vibrant welcome from the crowd in the 39th minute, his absence from the start meant the Ulster champions suffered badly.

There was an element of fortune to the first goal when Paul Kernan was caught out by Tiernan Diamond's dropping ball, allowing Brian Maloney a one-on-one with Paul Hearty but the Mayoman's finish was clinical and as early as the fourth minute it was evident the favourites were in trouble.

The veteran Dublin All-Ireland winner Pat Gilroy lined out at full forward and caused pandemonium under the high ball. He mightn't have scored but 1-2 came off him in the space of four loaded minutes, between the 13th and 17th. He won a long ball for an assist to Diarmuid Connolly's point, laid off another long delivery, this time from Hugh Coghlan, for Tomás Quinn to dispatch the second goal and was fouled by an increasingly harassed Tony McEntee for a pointed free.

Even the legendary ice-blooded champions were rattled beyond recovery by the massive deficit they were now facing and their own game became unhinged.

They had actually started reasonably well against the wind, mounting some dangerous attacks featuring quickly constructed combination play. But gradually the carnage in their defence wore down the favourites. John Murtagh, a late replacement for Michael McNamee, snatched at chances and got rushed into wrong options. Even someone as dependably calm as John McEntee was unable to take control and his own use of the ball became erratic.

The St Vincent's kinetic energy in attack perfectly complemented the long-ball variation. Tiernan Diamond moved the ball efficiently, Connolly gave Aaron Kernan a penitential time on the wing (a ninth-minute point the most graphic evidence) while Maloney and Quinn were a constant menace in the corners.

It was a stunning departure from the well-thumbed script of Cross matches. Normally expert at lying deep and blocking off potential inroads, the champions were too often chasing shadows. At centrefield High Coghlan and Michael O'Shea won the preponderance of high contested ball.

Vincent's might have been even farther ahead at the break than 10, 2-8 to 0-4, given wing back Pat Kelly's solid-looking penalty claims in the 21st minute.

This had become a nightmare for Cross whose genius over the years has been to turn every match into a form of mano a mano struggle. They don't even look comfortable when far ahead so it must have been disorientating to find themselves with a mountain to climb in the second half.

After the restart Murtagh was dispossessed when raiding along the endline with a goal chance opening up. John McEntee and Tony Kernan shot points but a succession of wides bore worrying testimony to the fact they didn't look as sharp with the wind at their backs as their opponents had. To deepen the anxiety Connolly expertly clipped a point at the other end to contrast the economy of either side - even if it turned out to be the winners' only score of the second half.

The Crossmaglen supporters raised the roof for Bellew's entrance but the rate of scoring remained too slow. Vincent's had also done their homework on Oisín McConville whose goals have often transformed matches and he was given no space. Eoin Brady was excellent at full back and contributed greatly to Cross's inability to make more out of their attempts at playing a long game with the wind.

The Armagh club are hard-wired not to go down easily and although their game wasn't near top gear they whittled away scores but couldn't get the goal that might have had a radical impact on the outcome.

St Vincent's take their season to St Patrick's Day and a traditionally flavoured final against the championship's top club, Nemo Rangers.

ST VINCENT'S: M Savage; P Conlon, E Brady, H Gill; T Doyle, G Brennan, P Kelly; H Coghlan, M O'Shea (0-1); K Golden, T Diamond (0-1), D Connolly (0-4); B Maloney (1-1), P Gilroy, T Quinn (1-2, points from frees). Subs: R Trainor for Golden (56 mins), W Lowry for Gilroy (60 mins).

CROSSMAGLEN RANGERS: P Hearty; S Finnegan, T McEntee (0-1), P Kernan; A Kernan (0-1), J Donaldson, B McKeown; D McKenna, S Clarke; M Aherne, J McEntee (capt; 0-1), S Kernan (0-2); T Kernan (0-1), J Murtagh (0-1), O McConville (0-4, frees). Subs: M McNamee for Aherne (36 mins), F Bellew for Clarke (39 mins), P McKeown for Finnegan (43 mins), J Hanratty for P Kernan (47 mins), K Carragher for Murtagh (52 mins).

Referee: Marty Duffy (Sligo).