Stalemate at the Stadium in divisional U-21 A final

Salthill-K’carra 0-9

St Michael’s 0-9

Exciting if error strewn due to the wretched underfoot conditions, Sunday afternoon’s Pearse Stadium West Board U-21 A decider culminated with the fairest possible outcome.

Perhaps there was an inevitably about the stalemate because the teams were level nine times over the hour with neither club able or allowed to dominate for a sustained burst. Both camps will reflect on misses during a fast and furious climax, but a replay will be necessary to determine who advances to the county final.

Salthill-Knocknacarra brought a favourable reputation and pedigree into this encounter, but they were certainly matched by a gritty St Michael’s side. It was encouraging for the development of the game in the city to see two of Michael’s most consistent contributors in the senior grade, Alan Glynn and Eddie Hoare, patrolling the line and they had their panel organised and ready for a battle.

That is precisely what occurred as the heavy overnight rain turned it into a truly demanding and physical clash. In fairness to Salthill-Knocknacarra, they also adapted and when twice forced to chase scores in the closing stages they had the required survival powers to restore parity on each occasion. Previous Salthill-Knocknacarra collections might have wilted, but with substitutes Paddy Kitt and Seanie O’Leidhinn effective, they eked out a draw.

Of Salthill-Knocknacarra’s total, seven points came from play so they had more of a scoring spread than St. Michael’s, who were prompted by the assured right boot of Damien Connaughton. During the tussle 42 scoring chances were manufactured and unsurprisingly those figures were similar for Salthill-Knocknacarra and Michael’s who both posted 0-9 from 21 opportunities.

At the end of the opening period, St Michael’s went in protecting a 0-6 to 0-5 advantage and on the balance of play they should have been further ahead. They had completely restricted Salthill-Knocknacarra with a ferocious work ethic as most of the contest took place between the two respective 45 metre lines.

Salthill-Knocknacarra’s kicking in the middle third was poor ensuring their forward line – which they believed to carry a fairly potent threat – wasn’t given much quality possession. To emphasise St. Michael’s commitment, the three points Salthill-Knocknacarra registered from play in the first half arrived from distance.

It wasn’t all about grunt, though, because St. Michael’s had a few footballers who have serious ability too. Out of their 11 trips into the red zone, two of them were goalscoring attempts which Salthill-Knocknacarra custodian Ronan Burke saved, but St. Michael’s were value for the interval lead.