ÕBridge work the miracle

Date Published: {J}

CIARAN TIERNEY

TWO minutes into stoppage time at the end of extra time, two points down and with the opposition fans already celebrating a return to Croke Park on St. Patrick’s Day, former county player Alan Kerins had only one thing on his mind as he bore down on the ‘town’ goals at Semple Stadium on Saturday evening.

The veteran Clarinbridge full-forward, who had turned in a truly remarkable performance over the previous 82 minutes, launched a blistering shot towards the De La Salle goals. Full-back Ian Flynn got his stick to it, but the deflected ball fell kindly for Eanna Murphy and the young midfielder gleefully batted the sliotar to the net.

In seconds, an epic game had been turned on its head, once again, and a Clarinbridge side who looked to have missed out, due to late scores from John Mullane and substitute Lee Hayes, were on their way to the All-Ireland final.

It was a rip-roaring finale to a wonderful tie, the action having swung from end to end throughout, and a total of 53 scores reflecting the epic nature of this encounter between the Galway and Waterford champions. It was a game which neither side deserved to lose and no wonder the De La Salle players were dejected at the finish.

Clarinbridge had got out of jail again, the 3-22 to 1-27 victory once again showing the true character of a side who had gone to a replay before seeing off Loughrea in last November’s Galway county final.

And central to this unforgettable semi-final victory were the performances of the veteran Kerins brothers, Alan and Mark, with centre forward Mark overcoming a virus to play a crucial role in maintaining the ‘Bridge’s interest in this year’s All-Ireland club championship.

For more, read this week’s Connacht Sentinel.