Kerry SFC final: Dr Crokes 3-8 Dingle 0-11
Dr Crokes are Kerry county SFC champions for the 14th time – more than any other in the Kingdom – and it all came down to a ruthless six-minute period in the second half when they stung Dingle with three goals.
Trailing by three points after 42 minutes, and not playing particularly well, goals from David Shaw, Kieran O’Leary and Evan Looney torpedoed Dingle’s chance of taking the county championship title to the west Kerry town for the first time since 1948.
Beaten by Crokes in the 2012 and 2018 finals, as well as the senior club championship final a few weeks ago, Dingle must wonder what it will take to bridge that 76-year gap since they were last county champions. Not conceding three goals in six minutes would be a good place to start.
Leading 0-6 to 0-4 at half time, Dingle extended that lead to three points 30 seconds into the second half, but then it all fell apart. After Tom Leo O’Sullivan had a shot on goal well saved by Shane Murphy in the Dr Crokes goal, four minutes later at the other end, Shaw made no mistake with his close-range shot.
A good turnover on the Dingle defence allowed Shaw grab the ball and he drove it past Gavin Curran to level the score for the first time since Paul Geaney had given Dingle the lead just 25 seconds into the game.
Barry O’Sullivan momentarily gave Dingle back the lead with a point, but two minutes after Shaw’s goal, O’Leary poked the ball over the Dingle goal line to put the Killarney club two points ahead. Even with a quarter of the game still to play, there only looked one winner from here.
If Dingle’s heads were scrambled after that double strike, they were well and truly fried in the 48th minute when Looney scorched through the Dingle defence and fired in goal number three.
Five points up in a county final with 10 minutes to play, a Pat O’Shea managed side simply doesn’t lose from that position. And Dr Crokes didn’t. Micheal Burns added three points to ice the win as Dingle will wonder where it all went awry.
It had all started so well for Dingle, who built on that early Paul Geaney score to move 0-5 to 0-1 ahead after 17 minutes, with Dylan Geaney and Tom O’Sullivan among their scorers.
Dr Crokes found a little momentum in the second quarter with Gavin White firing over two long-range points to haul his side back into contention. Playing against a stiff, Dingle would have been satisfied to turn it around at the break two points in front.
Few teams bide their time better than Dr Crokes, though, in these circumstances, and few know how to go for the jugular with such precision and devastating consequences for the opposition.
Dr Crokes: Shane Murphy; Evan Looney (1-0), Fionn Fitzgerald, John Payne, Maidhcí Lynch, Gavin White (0-2), Brian Looney; Mark O’Shea, Charlie Keating, Micheál Burns (0-4, one free), Gavin O’Shea, Tom Doyle; Tony Brosnan, David Shaw (1-1), Cian McMahon. Subs: Kieran O’Leary (1-1) for T Doyle (36), Michael Potts for C Keating (36), David Naughton for M Lynch (53), Daithi Casey for C MaMahon (56)
Dingle: Gavin H Curran, Conor Flannery, Conor O’Sullivan, Tom O’Sullivan (0-1), Brian O’Connor, Darragh O’Sullivan, Tom ‘Leo’ O’Sullivan, Barry O’Sullivan (0-1), Billy O’Connor, Cathal Bambury (0-1), Matthew Flaherty, Niall Geaney, Dylan Geaney (0-5), Paul Geaney (0-2, one free), Tadhg de Brún. Subs: Micheál Flannery for C O’Sullivan (inj, 25), Conor Geaney (0-1) for D O’Sullivan (39), Mikey Geaney for T De Brún (52), Seán Óg Moran for Billy O’Connor (58), Eoghan Hoare for Brian O’Connor (61)
Referee: Brendan Griffin (Clounmacon)
