SHANE BLANEY HAD AN enjoyable afternoon by the seaside with an Ulster final hat-trick.
St Eunan’s College 6-2 Deele College
Blaney’s treble helped St Eunan’s College claim the Bank of Ireland FAI Schools Tom Ticher Ulster Junior (U-17) Cup at the expense of Deele College in Rathmullan.
St Eunan’s were full value for the big win after taking some time to bag the lead goal.
Deele battled manfully, but St Eunan’s were the superior side and, even if it wasn’t quite as comfortable as they ought to have made it, will advance to the All-Ireland semi-final brimming with confidence.
Blaney’s 41st minute free kick was all that stood between the teams at the break.
Two from Blaney – the first a penalty – followed by goals from Patrick McColgan, Shane Doherty and Ryan O’Donnell and the result was only momentarily in doubt when Bryan McNamee prodded in for Deele on 62 minutes.
Photo caption: The victorious St Eunan’s College Letterkenny squad celebrate their victory over Deele College Raphoe in the Bank of Ireland FAI Schools Tom Ticher Ulster Junior (U-17) Cup final this afternoon in Rathmullan
For Deele, it was perhaps unfortunate that a brilliant strike by Jordan Boyce – the World Youth Darts Championship finalist – didn’t come in better circumstances.
Boyce side-stepped two challenges and curled wonderfully into the far corner.
St Eunan’s – lining out without Jordan Ryan – bossed large segments of the game but it wasn’t until late in the half that they hit the front.
Keelan Kelly was penalised for pulling back Michael Gallagher and Blaney’s free from 25 yards flew all the way to the far corner, beyond the despairing dive of Kenan Gibson.
The Deele College goalkeeper won’t recall the second and third goals for Eunan’s with any fondness.
After failing to hold a Michael Gallagher shot, Gibson pulled Zach Gorman down and referee Vincent McLoughlin pointed to the spot.
Blaney coolly dispatched the penalty to double the lead.
The third came when Gibson parried a long-range Blaney free and McColgan smashed home. Deele were somehow back in the game after a lifeline from McNamee.
The Convoy man neatly finished to the bottom corner after connecting with Alex Carolan’s corner, but McColgan’s goal cut short the Deele celebrations.
Less than a minute later, Doherty headed in Jerome Angel Atahuene’s cross.
They still weren’t done as O’Donnell tapped in after Boyce goaled at the other end.
Blaney, a class apart for the winners, let fly with his third and St Eunan’s sixth that gave Gibson no chance.
Deele had fashioned their first chance on the half hour but Justin McGee fired over with McColgan’s challenge just putting the attacker off at the vital moment.
It was quite remarkable that Deele were in the contest by that stage. Deele were camped in their own half under siege from St Eunan’s.
A combination of Deele’s resistance and St Eunan’s blunt edge kept the deadlock intact.
Deele were without the influential Zak Brolly from the side which defeated Patrician High School in their semi-final.
It wouldn’t have been an injustice had Eunan’s put the game to bed in that opening half-an-hour.
A succession of chances came and went for the men in blue and Deele, somehow went unscathed.
It was mentally draining for the Raphoe scholars with the probing of St Eunan’s, and Conor O’Donnell in particular, having the traffic flowing firmly in one direction.
Michael Gallagher and Shane Blaney fired over from O’Donnell crosses in the opening five minutes before Zach Gorman screwed his body to get a shot away; he, too, was off target.
McColgan got on the end of another inch-perfect O’Donnell cross, but his header was wide.
St Eunan’s College captain Shane Blaney accepts the Bank of Ireland FAI Schools Tom Ticher Ulster Junior (U-17) Cup from match referee Vincent McLoughlin at Flagpole Park in Rathmullan today
St Eunan’s centre-back McColgan was closer still on 20 minutes, but a powerful header cannoned off the crossbar.
In the ensuing scramble, Shane Doherty got a shot away but fired wide of the far post.
Blaney flicked wide from another centre by O’Donnell, the Letterkenny Rovers man proving a real menace.
O’Donnell weaved through soon after and a delightful through ball teed up Gorman, who couldn’t direct his shot goal ward.
It was surely a hair-pulling view for Paul Browne and David O’Herlihy, the St Eunan’s management, but they were relieved when, finally, the opener arrived.
Eight minutes into the second half, it was 2-0, but it was game on when McNamee put a cat among the pigeons just shy of the hour mark.
It was a false dawn for Deele as St Eunan’s soon put the issue to bed.
It could have been a greater margin had Doherty and Gorman been more clinical, but O’Donnell struck a fifth after Boyce brought Deele closer than should have been and Blaney’s brilliantly-taken third placed the cherry atop the cake.
St Eunan’s College: Eoin O’Boyle; Jerome Angel Atahuene (Shane McDevitt 81), Patrick McColgan, Eoghan Kelly, Peter McEniff; Conor O’Donnell, Shane Blaney, Shaun Curran (Tarlach O’Boyle 77), Michael Gallagher (Oisin Purdy 83); Zach Gorman (Ryan O’Donnell 75), Shane Doherty (James Tourish 88).
Deele College: Kenan Gibson; Ryan Higgins, Keelan Kelly, Bryan McNamee, Daniel Lindsay; Ethan Coll, Dylan Brolly, Jordan Boyce, Justin McGee (Jack O’Donnell 66); Codey Brogan, Alex Carolan.
Referee: Vincent McLoughlin.
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