Naomh Conaill peer through red mist and a disallowed goal to see off St Eunan’s for third SFC triumph

A SENDING OFF and a disallowed goal that might have been their downfall proved to be the very sparks that fired Naomh Conaill towards their third Donegal SFC triumph. 

Naomh Conaill 0-11 St Eunan’s 0-10

For long spells, it wasn’t vintage Naomh Conaill, but they stayed in for touch long enough to strike the decisive blows when they mattered.

Dermot Molloy, Johnny McLoone and Aaron Thompson drilled over the late points that prised St Eunan’s fingers, slowly and surely off the ears of Dr Maguire.

St Eunan’s had led 0-7 to 0-6 at half-time and the boat looked to have set sail away from Naomh Conaill’s harbour in a bizarre seven-minute spell that saw the Glenties team lose a man and a goal.

Eoghan McGettigan was sent off in what was surely record time while Leo McLoone was stunned when he drilled to the net only for referee Andrew Mullin to call the play back for a foul on the Naomh Conaill captain.

Picture caption: Naomh Conaill celebrate victory in the Donegal Senior football championship final. Picture courtesy of Evan Logan

McLoone, 50 years to the day from his father, Leo senior, played on a Glenties team that lost the SFC final to St Joseph’s, was inspirational in the second half and left Ballybofey holding both the Man of the Match trophy and Dr Maguire.

McLoone bustled his way past Sean Hensey and slammed past John Paul Clarke but Mullin, who had signalled the advantage, called the play back.

Molloy pointed, but there was no doubt Naomh Conaill felt aggrieved – particularly since they were down to 14 by that stage.

With the red mist falling, it was unclear as to what exactly happened in the melee that ensued as McGettigan entered the play in the 39^th minute, but the officials clearly pinned the 17-year-old as the culprit and he his evening was over before it had begun.

McGettigan was barely a minute on the field when he looked skyward, horrified as referee Andrew Mullin stood before him with the red card hoisted, an incident that will certainly have soured an hour of glory.

It would have been unjust and fair were those incidents to have denied Naomh Conaill and Martin Regan’s team made sure they weren’t heading home cursing their luck.

The free by Molloy was their first score of the second half, 16 minutes, in and they drew level through a McLoone free before Molloy, after taking a ball from the excellent substitute Ethan O’Donnell.

Caolan Ward carried the can for St Eunan’s in the second half and he leveled matters for the sixth time, but the Naomh Conaill dander was up and that trio of late scores secured a heroic victory.

Pre-match Chinese whispers suggested that Kevin Rafferty wouldn’t start for St Eunan’s, but those rumours proved unfounded, while Regan elected not to start McGettigan in spite of the youngster’s Man of the Match display against Kilcar in the semi-final.

St Eunan’s had the better of the play early on, but they couldn’t quite pull away from Naomh Conaill in the manner that they’d swatted Glenswilly and St Michael’s aside on their previous outings.

The narrative could have been so different had they netted a goal chance in the 13^th minute.

A superb team move that saw the ball change through the hands of Conor Parke, Rory Carr and Peter Devine concluded with Devine slipping Eamonn Doherty into position.

Doherty lined up his target, but a thumping effort shook the crossbar.

McDyer, who had been absent since their big win in Letterkenny because of a knee ligament injury, pushed Naomh Conaill in front.

Haunted by an excruciating experience three years ago when his pass back to Stephen McGrath went out for the ’45 from which Mark McGowan scored the match-winning point, McDyer was lively here and he turned provider for John O’Malley to put them two ahead.

St Eunan’s hit four in a row, through Rafferty, McMonagle, Dunne and Carr but, after Naomh Conaill drew level courtesy of Eoin Waide and McDyer, the Letterkenny men needed a free from Dunne to lead 0-7 to 0-6 at half-time.

Ciaran Thompson and Molloy put Naomh Conaill ahead in the opening passage after an early point from McMonagle, but they lost their way somewhat although St Eunan’s couldn’t wrestle away.

Dunne, from a free, put them two up, but a 20-minute scoreless spell followed while the introduction of Cillian Morrison, the Derry City striker, off the bench for his first appearance of the year in the black and amber proved fruitless with the attacker black carded almost as quickly as McGettigan had been dismissed.

Ten years ago, it took a second game to separate these teams, but St Eunan’s couldn’t find a breakthrough with a final effort from Dunne tailing badly to the left just as the enlarged lady was clearing her vocal chords.

Soon after Mullin called time and the blue and white tide swept across Sean MacCumhaill Park.

Unbridled joy again for Naomh Conaill, but it’s a winter of what-might-have-beens for St Eunan’s.

St Eunan’s: John Paul Clarke; Eamonn Doherty, Caolan Ward (0-1), Conor Parke; Conor Morrison, Peter Devine, Sean Hensey; John Haran, Rory Kavanagh; Sean McVeigh, Kevin Rafferty (0-1), Conor Gibbons; Conall Dunne (0-3, 2f), Rory Carr (0-3, 2f), Lee McMonagle (0-2). Subs: Mark McGowan for Conor Morrison (44), Cillian Morrison for Gibbons (50), Gibbons for Cillian Morrison (black card, 52), Niall O’Donnell for Haran (58).

Naomh Conaill: Stephen McGrath; Aaron Thompson (0-1), AJ Gallagher, Kevin McGettigan; Marty Boyle, Anthony Thompson, Eoin Waide (0-1); Leo McLoone (0-1, 1f), Ciaran Thompson (0-1); Eunan Doherty, Dermot Molloy (0-3, 2f), Daragh Gallagher; John O’Malley (0-1), Leon Thompson, Brendan McDyer (0-2). Subs: Johnny McLoone (0-1) for O’Malley (38), Eoghan McGettigan for Gallagher (38), Seamus Corcoran for Doherty (47), Ethan O’Donnell for McDyer (52), Cathal Ellis for Boyle (55), Johnny Bonner for L.Thompson (60).

Referee: Andrew Mullin (Killybegs).