Drumconrath 0-12 Dunderry 1-9 (after extra time)

Drumconrath win 6-5 on penalties

Sometimes the phases Captain Fantastic or Captain Marvel are loosely thrown around but not so in this case as Drumconrath captain Steven Crosby who through Grit, Determination and no little Skill drove his beloved Reds to a 1st Championship win in just over a quarter of a century since their JFC win in 1996 and their 4th ever Championship victory.

In the smaller Clubs a Championship win once a generation in common place as at the end of the day it's normally a numbers game and in these cases seldom is wonderful.

Fifteen years ago Crosby was a member of the Drumconrath side heartbreakingly beaten by a single point in the IFC Final and he has soldered through thick and thin (mostly thin) to try and salvage a Championship medal. On Saturday he was aided and abetted by others who played in that 2006 Intermediate Final namely Jamie Myles, Peter Tighe and Terry Skelly who all played vital roles both on and off the field in inspiring their younger colleagues in securing the Liam Creavin Cup.

This was in no way a one man show as while mistakes where many this was a total panel display in eking out a victory that at times looked unlikely as a fluent Dunderry side really put it up to the North Meath Men in an edge of the seat, heart stopping, nerve racking game.

In the Round Robin game an early Matthew Durnin goal was the difference between the sides when they met in a game which decided who finished top of the table as Drumconrath finished the that campaign unbeaten, and it looked as if Durnin would do a carbon copy of that goal but this time Dunderry goalie and captain Garth Dooley smothered his shot but fouled the ball which gave Crosby an easy tap over free to open the scoring.

Dunderry soon countered as Alex Walsh and Isaac McKeever showed great pace and no little skill to constantly trouble the Drumconrath rearguard.  Durnin scored a neat point on the run as the water break landed with the sides level on 2 points each.

An excellent Crosby point was cancelled out by Dunderry and a foot trip on Crosby saw a Black card for Jamie Leavy. Drumconrath failed to take advantage of the extra man and no scores were added by the time Leavy reappeared as in 1st half injury time Crosby pointed to give Drumconrath a slim 0-4 to 0-3 lead.

A mighty cheer from the Reds faithful greeted the players as they left the field but this was nothing to the telling off managers Brian Roe and Raymond Clarke gave them in the sanctuary of the dressing rooms under the old stand.

Drumconrath came out in determined form with substitute Sean McMahon replacing the unlucky Shaun Murray, winning midfield ball and Crosby edged them two clear but a high ball into the Drums square broke to Leavy and he fired home the only goal of the game to give his side the lead for the first time. Drums countered by introducing the experienced Terry Skelly into the fray.

Further points pushed the Black and Whites 3 points clear but disciplined defending from Drumconrath prevented the gap widening as Full back Declan Lafferty led by example as Tom Callan, Cathal Dunne and Daragh Dunne worked tirelessly to keep Dunderry at bay. The pacy Patrick Halpin replaced that great old warrior Peter Tighe who had used his experience and strength to great effect for nigh on 50 minutes.

Dunderry led by that goal 1-6 to 0-6 at the 2nd water break. Points from Crosby on 47 & 49 minutes as Dunderry resorted to fouling the same player had the gap down to a single point but Dunderry where more economical with chances and seemed to be getting their scores when they attacked that little bit easier, But the switch of Robert McEntaggart onto Walsh limited his effectiveness, while the work rate in tracking back of wing forwards Oran Brady and Daniel Byrne meant Dunderry were getting nothing easy.

Crosby pointed a free on 57 minutes after the ball was moved forward as Dunderry defender Aaron Feeney picked up a Black Card along with an earlier Yellow seen his day done.

Another Crosby point leveled the game as we entered injury time but both sides had chances to win it no more than when Drums substitute Pado Farrelly stole a misdirected Dunderry kickout and he raced from the 45m line on a one on one with the keeper who stood tall and strong as all Drumconrath held their collective breaths,  but Farrelly's low shot was blasted wide of the right hand post.

A long range Drumconrath free tailed wide but tigerish defending kept Dunderry out as they owned the ball for a good 2 minutes until the whistle sounded to signal extra time.

Crosby pushed Drumconrath ahead 6 minutes into the 1st period but soon Dunderry leveled the game again. Another Crosby point saw Drumconrath lead by a point at half time.

The final 10 minutes saw lots of misses and brilliant action in the dwindling light as the cool chill of the November air was furthest from everyone's mind. Dunderry leveled the game with the only point of that half as Skelly made an unbelievable interception to deny Dunderry a certain score late on.

And so it was onto the dreaded penalty shootout as Finish on the Day was declared on this Fixture. Dunderry up 1st and the shot cannoned off the post at the ScoreBoard end, a good choice as it gave a little extra light ! The Dunderry captain Dooley was doing his best and saved 2 Drumconrath penalties as Dunderry fired another high and wide while Declan Lafferty coolly converted to leave in tied 3-3 and onto sudden death. Sean McMahon and Jamie Myles had scored for Drumconrath.

In GAA the penalty takers for sudden death line up in the same formation and each go again in sequence.

McMahon netted again and 17 year old Matthew Durnin defied his young years expectly put his shot out of Dooley's reach. Dunderry's 8th shot skidded wide of Eoin Muldoon's goals knocking the green flag as it went and the crowd peered in almost darkness for the umpires signal. It was waved wide and it was left to "Cool Hand Luke '' Jamie Myles to step up to the plate. Once again Drumconrath hearts missed a beat as he sauntered up to the spot, placed the ball and dispatched to the net, to signal enthusiastic celebration on both pitch and stand as Drumconrath people went truly wild.

A tough way to lose a game but my God what a great way to win it. Drumconrath never do easy but this was a fitting way to end the last few years of turmoil and heartache as the Club struggled for survival as now the most northerly Village in Meath sit proudly with a Championship Cup which will rest in their newly renovated Clubhouse amid the scenic Drumlin country that surrounds their well appointed grounds.

As we left Pairc Tailteann in Cold Darkness, Our Hearts recovered  and warmed, our toes thawing, The future is Bright, the Future is Red.

Drumconrath; Eoin Muldoon; Patrick Dunne, Declan Lafferty, Tom Callan; Robert McEntaggart, Cathal Dunne, Daragh Dunne; Tomas Conlon, Jamie Myles; Oran Brady, Shaun Murray, Daniel Byrne; Matthew Durnin (0-1), Stephan Crosby (0-11), Peter Tighe. 

Subs; Sean McMahon for Murray, Terry Skelly for P. Dunne, Josh Flanagan for D.Dunne (inj), Patrick Farrelly for Tighe, James McMahon for Flanagan (inj). 

Subs in extra time; Patrick Halpin for Callan, Thomas Duff for Byrne.

Panel members; Sean Kane, Christopher Tighe, Jamie O'Neill, Conor Meegan & Cormac Dunne,

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