Wolfe Tones 0-10 Dunshaughlin 0-9

Cé gur chaill foireann Bhulf Tón lán tosach Stephen Sheppard go luath sa dara leath do chárta dearg agus iad trí cúilín chun deiridh, thainig said ar ais agus bhuaigh said an cluiche le cuilín ó fear ionad Allan Callaghan ag an deireadh.

In a tough physical encounter Wolfe Tones snatched a win in the final minute after overcoming a 3 point deficit and the loss of full forward Stephen Sheppard to a red card early in the second half. The first half was very evenly contested and the visitors held a 1 point lead at half time 0-6 to 0-5.

Dunshaughlin began the second half in whirlwind fashion and added 2 points in as many minutes to lead by 0 08 to 0 05 after 32 minutes. Remarkably they would only register one more score. As so often happens the dismissal of Stephen Sheppard in the 38th minute seemed to galvanise the hosts and they dominated for the remainder of the game although they didn't manage to add to their score until 52 minutes had elapsed.

Cian Ward converted a 45 and Éanna Harrington added a point from play to reduce the gap to one point. Dunshaughlin responded with a point from Cathal O Dwyer but Tones added 3 points in the last 5 minutes to gain a morale boosting victory.

Conor Sheppard and Niall O'Reilly were very lively in defence, Stephen Corrigan and Mark Coleman had very good outings in midfield while Thomas O'Reilly, Cian O'Neill and Eanna Harrington also caught the eye up front.

Wolfe Tones: Trevor Browne, Niall O'Reilly, Daniel O Neill, Conor Sheppard, Niall Mc Loughlin, Daniel Glynn, Brughach O Fionnagain, Stephen Corrigan, Mark Coleman, Charlie Mc Garry, Thomas O'Reilly (0-1), Padraic Diamond, Cian Ward ( 0-5, 4F,1'45 ) Stephen Sheppard, Éanna Harrington (0-2)

Subs: Éanna O Kelly Lynch for Charlie Mc Garry (HT), Cian O Neill for Padraic Diamond (40), Alan Callaghan (0-1) for Niall Mc Loughlin (53)

Dunshaughlin report

Wolfe Tones 0-10 Dunshaughlin 0-09

Dunshaughlin suffered an agonising defeat on Sunday evening as they went down by the minimum in this thrilling, hard hitting encounter played in glorious Spring conditions in Kilberry. The home team thought they were in for an easy ride when the party bus arrived in the gate, fresh from Pharmacist John Crimmins' stag weekend in Galway. However Dunshaughlin played with heart, determination and team spirit and were unlucky to come away empty handed. 

It was a tight affair throughout. The swirling wind really suited no team, however Dunshaughlin did kick some great scores. Shane Gallogly was lively throughout and won plenty of possession. Ben Duggan worked tirelessly in the middle of the field all evening, his tummy seems to be on the road to recovery. Alongside him, John Crimmins sweated pure Guinness for the hour, so much so that his marker Stephen Corrigan wouldn't leave his side. Corrigan is no doubt a Guinness lover. The defence stood up to everything Wolfe Tones threw at them in the opening half with Anto Johnson lookalike, Adam McDermott, impressing between the sticks. New home owner and now Ratoath resident Ray Maloney had an excellent outing and linked play brilliantly. 

The away team broke from defence well and attacked as a unit. Cathal O'Dwyer kicked 4 first half frees due to brilliant attacking play from Maloney, Niall Murphy, Dan Quinn and heartthrob of the team Tadhg Delaney, who after the Galway stag, has become the first man to 'complete' Tinder. Dunshaughlin led at the break by 6 points to 5.

Dunshaughlin manager and father of two Anthony Moyles must have had some stern words at half time. Dunshaughlin came out and dominated for the first 10 minutes after the break. They won every breaking ball and hit two great scores from the left boot of Gallogly and the gorgeous Delaney. Selector Marty Reilly, on vacation in the Big Apple with wife Jane, was able to speak to the dressing room at half time via a Skype call from friend Tossie's laptop. He and the Dunshaughlin team will be frustrated they didn't get more scores on the board in that ten minute period. Wolfe Tones fought back and through some soft frees came back into the game. Stephen Sheppard saw red for a nasty incident with Ben Duggan which was spotted by the umpire. Duggan was left with a bloody face. 

With two minutes to go O'Dwyer put Dunshaughlin two points up and in the driving seat but Wolfe Tones scored 3 points in a row, one with the last kick of the ball to earn a fortunate win. Dunshaughlin can be very pleased with how they performed. Their preparation might not have been ideal but that didn't prevent them working hard for the hour. The game marked a vast improvement on recent performances and the bar has been set in terms of work rate for the remainder of the year. That level of performance will rise and get better as the weeks advance. On the weekend that was in it, Man of the Match has to go to John Crimmins.  

Dunshaughlin: A McDermott, A. Doyle, C. King, D. Dunne, D. Quinn, N. Murphy, T. Delaney (0-1), J. Crimmins, B. Duggan,  M. Devaney, R. Geraghty (0-1), T. Johnson, S. Gallogly (0-2), R. Maloney, C. O'Dwyer (0-5). Subs: M. Caldwell for T. Johnson

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