St Colmcille’s U12 footballers were defeated by St. Nick’s in the Rebel Óg East Under 12 Football League Group 6 Plate Final this morning, but the young Colmcille’s side battled right to the final whistle and produced a much-improved second-half performance.
St. Colmcille’s got off to a bright start with Daniel Cotter opening the scoring with an excellent point from play. St. Nick’s responded with two points before adding a goal midway through the half. Cillian Buckley produced a fine initial save to deny the St. Nick’s attack, but the ball fell kindly to their full-forward, who finished from close range.
St. Nick’s added further scores before Darragh McSweeney converted a free for Colmcille’s. Daniel Cotter was a constant threat throughout the game, while the Colmcille’s defence worked hard to contain a strong St. Nick’s attack. At half time, St. Nick’s led 1-5 to 0-2.
The second half saw a determined response from St Colmcille’s. St. Nick’s extended their lead with an early goal and point, but the Colmcille’s lads refused to let the game drift away. Darragh McSweeney and Daniel Cotter both converted frees, before Isaac Duhig added a point from play.
Eoin Sheehan then produced one of the outstanding moments of the game, firing over a superb point from considerable distance. He was outstanding throughout the second half and saved one of his best performances for the final.
Daniel Cotter added two more points late on, but St. Nick’s finished strongly to secure a 3-6 to 0-8 victory. Both of these points could have been goals if not for two super saves from Nick’s netminder Charlie Goggin. Had these gone in, the end result may have been different.
The result may not have gone Colmcille’s way, but the lads battled extremely hard and made a real contest of the second half. There was plenty to be proud of from a committed performance in the final.
St Colmcille’s
1 – Cillian Buckley
2 – Tomas Kelleher
3 – Brody Forde
4 – Harry O Donovan
5 – Oli Cotter
6 – Isaac Duhig
7 – Eoin Sheehan
8 – Cayden Ramsey
9 – Sam Moloney
10 – Zen Barry
11 – Ryan McCarthy
12 – Darragh McSweeney
13 – Richie O Brien
14 – Daniel Cotter
15 – Alfie Griffin
SUBS: Ciaran Sheehan, Luke Walsh, Ted Pierse, Alex Quinlan, Billy Coughlan
St Nicholas
1 – Charlie Goggin
2 – Louie Cooney
3 – Darragh Duke
4 – Luke Nyhan
5 – Jack O’Driscoll
6 – Alex Kelly
7 – Padraig O Dughain
8 – Conor Phillips
9 – Billy Walsh
10 – Leon Murphy
11 – Cameron Murphy
12 – Alex Twomey
13 – Cameron Forde
14 – Jake Archer
15 – James Long
SUBS: Zach Kelleher, Brodie Dorney, Kevin Goggin
