UCD 1-16 St Vincents 0-6 A rare and amusing moment came at the end of the Dublin county football final at Parnell Park yesterday when before handing the cup over to the winning UCD captain, a delirious Brendan Ó hAnnaidh, county board chairman John Bailey said it was a most exciting and sportingly contested hurling final.
Bailey could, of course, be excused for his lapse in concentration, as could the 4,000 unlucky spectators who paid into watching what must have been the worst football decider in decades. Certainly compared to the great clashes between these sides in the 1960s and 70s this was a disappointment.
Ó hAnnaidh was the first to captain a winning UCD team in 28 years. St Vincent's won their last title in 1984.
A young but more experienced UCD team played a short-passing type of game well. They also seemed fitter and more aware than a St Vincent's side that was far too one-dimensional by comparison.
St Vincent's total contribution to the scoreboard for the first half was an own goal credited to UCD's Noel McGuire and a point from wing forward Timmy Doyle.
UCD, who started slowly, indicated their intent once they got into their stride and realised they were faced with no huge task. They notched up three consecutive points from JP Casey, Ray Ronaghan and Brian McDonald once they found the range and direction to lay the basis for their 0-7 to 1-1 interval lead.
Most ominous for St Vincent's was UCD's ability to outfox them in swift movements of great authority.
The pattern of scoring was also a worry for them. The own goal, following a Tomás Quinn shot across the face of the UCD posts, came in the eighth minute. Their only other first-half score, Doyle's point, came 11 minutes later.
It was significant, too, that UCD created the best goal chances even though they failed to take them. Brian "Beano" McDonald, the star of the Laois All-Ireland minor winning team a few years ago, went closest to hitting the St Vincent's net.
Tomás Quinn looked a likely St Vincent's hero when he scored four consecutive points from frees in the third quarter.
St Vincent's manager Gay O'Driscoll said: "I thought that those points were going to swing it for us. However, we are a very young team and the experieince will do us good."
UCD look capable of doing well in the Leinster club championship though they face a tough opening game against Leinster champions Rathnew next Sunday and will have had little rest after the long drawn-out Dublin championship.
UCD: G McGill; A Costelloe, C Evans, B Ó hAnnaidh; N McGuire (1-0 - own goal), D Ó hAnnaidh, R Kelly; S Lucey (0-1), C McAnallen (0-1); P Curran, R Barry, R Ronaghan (0-3, one free); J P Casey (0-4, two frees), C McManus (0-1), B McDonald (0-4). Subs: J Fallon for J P Casey, D O'Connor for Ronaghan, J Hanly (0-2) for Curran.
ST VINCENT'S: M Doyle; R Lambe, C Wilson, J Calvert; C Browne, T Feehan, N Dunne; P Murphy, P Gilroy; T Doyle (0-1), S Brady, B Manning; C Hayden, K Golden (0-1), T Quinn (0-4, frees). Subs: R Brennan for P Murphy, P Nevins for Brady, S O'Neill for Hayden.
Referee: D Conway (Dublin).
