SFC q-final: Champions' canter over the 'Hill

September 07, 2015

Navana O'Mahony's Gary O'Brien with Micheal Byrne and David Larkin Summerhill during the hoganstand.com Meath SFC quarter final at Pairc Tailteann.

Navan O'Mahonys scored an emphatic win over Summerhill in the hoganstand.com SFC quarter-final at Pairc Tailteann on Sunday evening.

Navan O'Mahonys  1-18
Summerhill  0-9

Played in ideal conditions, overcast, calm and dry, the meeting of the last two winners of the Keegan Cup didn't live up to expectations.

Upping their game from recent outings, O'Mahonys took the game to Summerhill from the off with an impressive work rate. They put seven points on the board before Declan McCabe's men registered.

Five points was as close as Summerhill got to their great rivals. Faint hopes of a recovery were flatlined with Stephen Bray's brilliant solo goal, at the O'Mahonys end, that left it 1-12 to 0-5 after 35 minutes.

Shane Gillespie with David Dalton 

O'Mahonys outscored the 2013 champions - the last team to eliminate them from the competition - by 0-6 to 0-4 over the remainder of the hour.

Their reward is a semi-final meeting against Dunboyne or Dunshaughlin. Ten different players got off the mark for O'Mahonys. All bar one point of their total came from play. That score came from a Jake Regan second-half free.

Navan O'Mahonys were eliminated by Summerhill at this stage when holders two years ago at Trim. Then the south county outfit went on to lift the Keegan Cup beating Na Fianna.

O'Mahonys might have got in for more goals, but the points recorded instead kept the scoreboard ticking over.

Alan Forde had Padraig Geraghty for company

Though wearing 22, Damien Byrne put in a strong show for Summerhill, making some superb fetches close to his own goal and capped his performance with a 22nd minute point. Sean Dalton was involved in a tremendous duel with Darragh Maguire. Against a lesser defender, he might have scored more than three points.

David Nelson's men opened towards the Commons Road end and took just 35 seconds to open the scoring through Darragh Smyth. The margin was trebled by the sixth minute with two Stephen Bray efforts.

The champions continued to boss the opening quarter and had seven points on the board midway through the half.

The seventh arrived following a fine save by O'Mahonys' 'keeper Marcas Brennan from Sean Dalton. When play moved to the opposite end, David Bray pointed with his right boot.

Stephen Bray gets away from Micheal Byrne

Summerhill finally got off the mark through Sean Dalton in the 19th minute. O'Mahonys might have had two goals via Kevin Reilly, who fired one effort over for his side's ninth point. An earlier effort struck the butt of an upright.

When Stephen Bray posted his fourth point of the half, eight points separated the sides. Just before the break David Larkin became Summerhill's fourth scorer.

All bar one of the first-half scores came from play, the other courtesy of a Barry Dardis 45 in the 24th minute. Alan Forde added O'Mahonys 10th score before placing Stephen Bray for his side's next.

Darragh Smith and Willie Ryan

That moved the champions eight points clear. David Larkin pulled one back for Summerhill who were 0-4 to 0-11 in arrears at the break.

Dalton pulled another point back for Summerhill within a minute of the restart. Regan's free was followed by Bray's goal to settle matters.

O'Mahonys - Marcas Brennan; James O'Reilly (0-1), Niall McKeigue, Darragh Smyth (0-1); Brian Dillon (0-1), Darragh Maguire, Gary O'Brien (C); Stephen MacGabhann, Kevin Reilly (0-2); Henry Finnegan, Stephen Bray (1-4), Alan Forde (0-1); Shane Gillespie (0-5), David Bray (0-1), Jake Regan (0-1f). Subs - Ruairi O Coileain (0-1) for Finnegan (42), Cathal Smyth for Forde (52), Shane Crosby for Smyth (60).

Summerhill - Tony McDonnell; Padraig Jennings, Caolan Young (C), Willie Ryan; Stephen Husband, David Dalton, Eamonn McDonnell; Padraig Geraghty, Micheal Byrne (0-1 f); David Larkin (0-1), Kevin Ryan, Ross Ryan; Damien Byrne (0-1) , Barry Dardis (0-1 45), Sean Dalton (0-3). Subs - Brian Ennis (0-2, 1f) for R Ryan (22), Conor Gillespie for McDonnell (44), Paul Rispin for K Ryan (56).

Referee - David Coldrick (Blackhall Gaels)

Seanie Dalton is under pressure from Darragh Maguire


Most Read Stories