Sports
Bish boys advance
St. Joseph’s College 1
Deele College, Raphoe 1
(AET, St. Joseph’s won 5-4 on pens)
Joseph’s College, Galway (the Bish) booked their place in the Dr. Tony O’Neill Senior Cup Final after coming out on top following a pulsating penalty shootout with Deele College, Raphoe in the Showgrounds, Sligo on Tuesday.
The Galway boys were without Diarmuid McNee going into the game as he failed a late fitness test so Tommy McClean was drafted in as a replacement.
Neither side could break down some hardy defensive work as both keepers had an uneventful opening quarter, but Raphoe came close to breaking the deadlock on the half hour mark when Oliver Quinn saw his free kick sail over the woodwork
Ross Murphy then had a fine chance to put St. Joseph’s ahead going into the break after he ran through on goal, but his shot from close range went just wide of the mark. It was scoreless at the interval.
Within seconds of the restart Deele took the lead. The ball was played down the wing straight from tip off and crossed perfectly into the box for Simon McGlynn to knock home.
St. Joseph’s almost pulled a goal back five minutes later when Ross Murphy’s free kick from the right hand side skimmed across the face of the goal before it was knocked out for a corner.
The Galway lads continued their attack with the resulting corner. The ball was whipped in and met with determination by Bobby Keane who headed just wide of the near post.
Deele almost doubled their lead on 61 minutes when Philip Doran picked up the ball from 20 yards and shot inches wide of the St. Joseph’s goal.
St. Joseph’s thought they had gotten their equaliser when Josh Marvesley’s effort which was destined for the back of the net was cleared off the line at the last second by the in-form Shane Mahon.
Deele College then suffered a body blow as St. Joseph’s were awarded a penalty following an infringement on Conor Melody inside the box. The talented Ross Murphy converted with confidence with 14 minutes left in normal time.
James Grealish pulled off the save of the game two minutes later following an Oliver Quinn header from a set piece. The ball was destined for goal but Grealish reacted quickly to tip the ball over the bar with a one handed save for yet another corner for Deele
Neither team could find a winner as the minutes ticked by. Both teams were tired going into the additional 20 minutes of play.
After a lively 90 minutes that produced plenty of chances, there were only two clear cut opportunities in injury time, both of which were from the Galway side.
Ben Brennan had a rocket of a shot that just sailed over the bar on 97 minutes, while Murphy had one more attempt on goal before the final whistle from a free kick. The shot was hit low and the goalkeeper got down well to save.
And so the fate of the two teams was to be decided on spot kicks. The sides were level on four aiece heading into sudden death penalties before substitute David Cater converted to take his side through
Robert Grealish and his players will be anxiously awaiting the result of the other semi-final which will be played on Monday next in the RSC, Waterford between Coláiste Éanna CBS, Rathfarnham and Presentation Brothers College, Cork. The All Ireland Final is scheduled for Wednesday, March 11.
The School also have a Tom Ticher Connacht Final to schedule in between now and March 11 with Presentation College, Athenry. If they’re successful there, they could be in contention for possibly two All-Ireland titles this season.
St. Joseph’s College: J Grealish, T McClean, E Higgins (D Carter, 58), B Keane, B Lally, M Costello, B Brennan, J Coyne, J Marvesley, C Melody, R Murphy. Subs: J Kennedy, A Fitzgerald, C Scully, Mark Walsh (GK), C O’Connell, C Maloney
Deele College, Raphoe: S Friel, M Ayton, S Mahon, B McGinty, B McNamee, Z Brolly (M Devine, 59), O Higgins, O Quinn (Capt), S McGlynn, D Sharkey, P Doran. Subs: S Lawrence, S McDaid, C O’Kane, A Bogle, D Keys
Referee: R Barry (Sligo).
Galway 3-18
Cork 1-10
NEW setting; new opposition; new challenge. It made no difference to the Galway minor hurlers as they chalked up a remarkable sixth consecutive double digits championship victory at Semple Stadium on Saturday.
The final scoreline in Thurles may have been a little harsh on Cork, but there was no doubting Galway’s overall superiority in setting up only a second-ever All-Ireland showdown against Clare at the same venue on Sunday week.
Having claimed an historic Leinster title the previous weekend, Galway took a while to get going against the Rebels and also endured their first period in a match in which they were heavily outscored, but still the boys in maroon roll on.
Beating a decent Cork outfit by 14 points sums up how formidable Galway are. No team has managed to lay a glove on them so far, and though Clare might ask them questions other challengers haven’t, they are going to have to find significant improvement on their semi-final win over 14-man Kilkenny to pull off a final upset.
Galway just aren’t winning their matches; they are overpowering the teams which have stood in their way. Their level of consistency is admirable for young players starting off on the inter-county journey, while the team’s temperament appears to be bombproof, no matter what is thrown at them.
Having romped through Leinster, Galway should have been a bit rattled by being only level (0-4 each) after 20 minutes and being a little fortunate not to have been behind; or when Cork stormed out of the blocks at the start of the second half by hitting 1-4 to just a solitary point in reply, but there was never any trace of panic in their ranks.
For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.
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GALWAY United need to guard against any kind of complacency when they make the short hop down the M18 this Friday to take on Treaty United at the Markets Field (7.45pm).
The game is a meeting of the two form teams in the division, and as in previous meetings between the sides, will have an additional edge given the number of former United players in the home side’s ranks, and the pair of Limerick lads playing for United.
There might have been just the eight meetings between the sides since Treaty became the latest iteration to represent Limerick in the League of Ireland in 2021, and while United have yet to lose to the men in the candy-cane strips, there has never been more than a goal in four of their eight wins.
The most recent of those was back in February, when Rob Slevin scored the only goal of the game in Eamonn Deacy Park after a tough battle against a side who made a slow start to the season, before finally finding their groove in the past month.
Having taken just three points from their first six games before finally getting a win against Longford Town, they reverted to type with just one point from their next three games, but are now on a run of four wins on the spin, scoring 12 goals and conceding just one.
Their most recent win was a 3-0 victory away to Longford Town last Saturday, and they could have won by double that against the only side to have beaten United this season. That in itself is a warning.
For more, read this week’s Galway City Tribune.
Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App
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Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.
Or purchase the Digital Edition for PC, Mac or Laptop from Pagesuite HERE.
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The Connacht Tribune Live app is the home of everything that is happening in Galway City and county. It’s completely FREE and features all the latest news, sport and information on what’s on in your area. Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.
Soccer Wrap with Mike Rafferty
While the Salthill Devon men’s team might have lost their grip on the Connacht Junior Cup that they held for two seasons, the club’s women’s side have picked up the mantle and on Sunday last in Headford were crowned provincial champions with a 4-3 win over Manulla.
Following midweek wins for Maree/Oranmore and Knocknacarra, the stage is now almost set for the semi-finals of the Michael Byrne Cup with Salthill Devon meeting St Bernard’s on Sunday in an outstanding quarter-final, with the winners advancing to a semi-final against Maree/Oranmore, while Colga will face Knocknacarra in the other last four contest.
Just one league issue remains to be decided, with the Championship runners-up position up for grabs, as Dynamo Blues have to win their two remaining games in order to overtake Colemanstown United who have finished their programme.
WOMEN’S CONNACHT CUP FINAL
Salthill Devon 4
Manulla 3
Ellerose O’Flaherty scored twice as Salthill Devon were crowned provincial champions with a win over a Mayo side who were losing in the final for the second year in succession.
Backboned by a number of players who previously had League of Ireland experience with Galway WFC, Devon suffered an early set back when Jess Nolan put Manulla ahead, before O’Flaherty levelled matters with a cracking finish on 20 minutes, which was quickly followed by a long-range free-kick from Aoife Walsh.
For more, read this week’s Galway City Tribune.
Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App
Download the Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App to access to Galway’s best-selling newspaper.
Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.
Or purchase the Digital Edition for PC, Mac or Laptop from Pagesuite HERE.
Get the Connacht Tribune Live app
The Connacht Tribune Live app is the home of everything that is happening in Galway City and county. It’s completely FREE and features all the latest news, sport and information on what’s on in your area. Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.
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