Young Edenderry heroes hold on for deserved final win

A HEROIC Edenderry side held on for dear life to claim the Offaly Minor Football Championship title after an engrossing final in O'Connor Park on Saturday.

Offaly Minor Football Championship final

Edenderry 1-6
Ferbane-Belmont 1-5

The wind made this a game of two halves and Edenderry defended with tremendous tenacity, spirit and resourcefulness to hold off a brave Ferbane-Belmont side in the second half.

Edenderry had first use of the wind in the first half and their 1-6 to 0-2 half time lead did not look like it would be enough. 1-5 of that came in the first ten minutes and for the remainder of the first half, Ferbane-Belmont were the better team.

Edenderry only got one point outside of that first ten minutes and they never scored in the second half. That shows the role that their defence played here as they worked their socks off in the second half. They were also assisted by a wasteful Ferbane-Belmont attack who kicked a few poor wides and were also guilty of poor option taking.

As the half wore on, however, it became clear that Ferbane-Belmont were going to find it hard to win this. As the deficit didn't really close, their panic levels increased and the Edenderry defence were able to cut out danger time and time again. Ronan Flynn had got a F-B goal at the start of the second half but they didn't score again until the 47th minute while their final two points came in injury time.

It was that type of game and the conditions were mainly responsible for it being such a defensive battle. It was strong, blowing down to the Park Avenue end while rain made the underfoot conditions tricky. It was to the credit of both teams that they served up such an enjoyable, engrossing game, full of honesty and hard work with plenty of good football thrown in. They were both very good at keeping the ball and while there were plenty of mistakes, they were inevitable in these conditions and contributed to the entertainment value.

Dylan Byrne and Michael Brady were immense for Edenderry on a day in which Paidi Farrell and Cian Murphy worked very hard in their attack. Patrick Taaffe had a brilliant second half for Ferbane-Belmont while Conor Grennan, Mark Wren and Ronan Flynn also rose to the challenge for them but their forwards didn't do the business in the second half, when the odds favoured them and they had so much of the ball.

Edenderry had first use of that strong wind and for ten minutes or so, it looked like they would run away with it. They were excellent for much of the first quarter, laying siege to the Ferbane-Belmont goal and driving forward relentlessly.

They kicked the first three points and got a fine eight minute goal when Paidi Farrell jinked his way past a couple of players and drove to the net. Jake Connolly and Michael Brady (free) added points and Edenderry were full value for their 1-5 to no score lead after ten minutes.

Amazingly, however, they were to score only once more in the half – a 16th minute free from Killian Lowry after Sean Carroll had opened the scoring for F-B in the 12th minute. By now F-B had weathered the storm and they played some very composed, intelligent football in the second quarter, retaining possession and now allowing Edenderry to get their hands on the ball.

Ronan Flynn got F-B's second point in the 22nd minute and Edenderry were fortunate not to concede a goal. Corner back, Ben Whelahan made a great block to deny Ronan Flynn while Edenderry goalkeeper Joshua O'Reilly just got away with fumbling a high ball. Edenderry led by 1-6 to 0-2 at half time but with the wind to come, F-B were the happier side at this stage.

The second half made for compelling viewing. Ferbane-Belmont made a big early breakthrough when their goalkeeper David Dunican made a great save from Michael Brady, they swept down the field and Ronan Flynn got an excellent goal after just forty five seconds. F-B, however, didn't build on that as they kicked five poor wides and let other promising attacks go to waste. They were fortunate that Dunican rescued them again with a fine save from Paidi Farrell and Edenderry led by 1-6 to 1-2 at the second half water break.

In the final quarter, Edenderry mounted a desperate rearguard action under ferocious pressure, living on their wits a bit but always trying to do the right thing. Ferbane-Belmont eventually got it back to the minimum with three Ronan Flynn points, two frees, but the final one of those came over three minutes into injury time and only a goal could have saved them from defeat.

MATCH ANALYSIS

THE SCORERS

Edenderry: Michael Brady 0-2 (2f), Paidi Farrell 1-0, Jake Mooney, Jake Connolly, Killian Lowry (f) and Cian Murphy 0-1 each.

Ferbane-Belmont: Ronan Flynn 1-4 (2f), Sean Carroll 0-1.

THE TEAMS

FERBANE-BELMONT: David Dunican; Ruari O'Neill, John Dunican, Saran Flynn; Dylan Moore, Conor Grennan, Patrick Taaffe; Mark Wren, Michael Spillane; Sean Flannery, Donal Flynn, Conor Dunican; Matthew Darcy, Sean Carroll, Ronan Flynn. Subs – Eoghan Grennan for Moore (HT), Conor Beirne for Donal Flynn (35m), Luke Coleman for Carroll (55m), Eoin Tighe for Flannery (55m).

EDENDERRY: Joshua O'Reilly; Ben Whelahan, Rory Allen, Dean Mullally; Mark Whelahan, Dylan Byrne, Jake Connolly; Michael Brady, Jake Mooney; Mark Forde, Paidi Farrell, Mason Farrell; Killian Lowry, Cian Murphy, Mark McCarthy. Subs – Cathal Nolan for Forde (48m), Aaron Murphy for McCarthy (52m).

Referee – Kevin Williamson (Tullamore).

MAN OF THE MATCH

Michael Brady (Edenderry): Michael Brady was a real tour-de-force for Edenderry. He was brilliant as Edenderry flew out of the blocks at the start and continued to work tirelessly at midfield throughout, drifting back to help his defence in the secined half and racing forward into attacking positions when he did get the ball.

MOMENT OF THE MATCH

Paidi Farrell's goal came early in the seventh minute but ultimately it was the difference between the sides.

REFEREE WATCH

Kevin Williamson is a welcome addition to the Offaly refereeing pool. He has played a lot of senior football for Tullamore, was on their junior team that won the championship this year and knows the game very well. He has the potential to improve as he goes along and this was a good final for him to get. He refereed it well, getting the vast majority of calls right and allowing for the conditions. He might have let the advantage go a bit long on one occasion in the first half before giving the free but he did well and was consistent in the way he officiated while he consulted with his officials wen in doubt. Sean Carroll probably was entitled to a second half penalty for F-B after being pulled back while trying to shoot.

TALKING POINT

The split season has worked well but it does mean that clubs get the short straw with finals at the worse time of year.

VENUE WATCH

It was a horrific day for football but as usual, the O'Connor Park pitch was excellence and two enthusiastic sets of supporters created a good atmosphere.

STATISTICS

Wides: Edenderry – 4 (3 in first half); Ferbane-Belmont – 8 (1 in first half).

Yellow cards: Edenderry – 0; Ferbane-Belmont – 1 (Conor Beirne).

Black cards: 0.

Red cards: 0.