Power seals the deal with late strike

Minor footballers make history

On Wednesday 23rd May 2012 before a large local support, our minor footballers created a little bit of local history when they defeated Dungarvan in the Minor football division 1 county final in Walsh Park to claim our first minor “A” title in 77 years, with the last one coming back in 1935, when I’m sure there was only one level at this grade. This was a deserved victory for this team as they showed tremendous determination & no little skill throughout the field to get the better of Dungarvan. The standard of football on show was pretty good, & with every team in the division losing at least 1 match through the league section, this championship was very competitive. Rathgormack’s hunger & desire for success in this match was the clear difference between the teams in this game as all Rathgormack players on the field fought for every ball in their area & they were full of running & support when we were in possession. We started the game nervously, & despite having a lot of early possession, but taking the wrong options on a number of occasions, we didn’t open our scoring till the 8^th minute with a Jason Curry free. Dungarvan had got the scoring underway with a 45 in the 2^nd minute. Michael Curry got our first point from play in the 9^th minute, but in the next 2 minutes Dungarvan added a point & then the first goal of the match, to give them a 3-point lead. Jason Curry scored 2 more frees in the 13^th & 14^th minute following some very reckless tackling from Dungarvan, & then in the 15^th minute a Dungarvan player was sent to the line when he picked up a second booking following a clash with Michael Curry off the ball. Jason Curry slotted over his best free of the night from close to the 45-metre line as a result, & it was all-square with Dungarvan down to 14 men for three quarters of the match. The Curry brothers continued to have a huge influence on this match when Michael kicked another point from play in the 18^th minute to put us in the lead, & 2 minutes later cousin Tony Curry got in on the act with a good point following a good run through the middle. Our influential centre forward William Hahessy, who had come into the match with a hip injury, was beginning to struggle at this stage, & the forwards were re-arrange to move him into full forward. A pointed free in the 23^rd minute for Dungarvan left only the minimum between the teams, as we had not made use of the chances & possession which came our way since the sending off, & one feared the curse of the extra man. However the pressure paid off in the last 3 minutes of the half, as Michael Curry had 2 great points in the 27^th & 28^th minutes with a great goal from Conor Walsh sandwiched in between, as he was played in with a brilliant pass through the middle before finishing well to the keepers right corner under pressure from a defender. Jason Curry completed the first half scoring with his first point from play, his 5^th in the first half, in the 31^st minute, to send us in on a score-line of Rathgormack 1-10, Dungarvan 1-3, & we were in a strong position to secure the title. Dungarvan reminded us they were not finished yet when they scored the first point of the second half in the 31^st minute, & then we were dealt a blow a few minutes later when the injured William Hahessy had to be replaced by Daniel Crotty. Daniel made an immediate impact at corner forward winning the first few balls that came into him & scoring our first point of the second half in the 38^th minute. If the Curry brothers were the stars of the first half, then full forward Jason Gleeson & midfielder Liam Mulligan were the stand out players of the second, with Liam winning lots of possession & covering the entire pitch & Jason scoring 3 great points from play in the 39^th, 45^th & 49^th minutes, the 3^rd a fisted effort following a good solo run through the defence. Dungarvan had added a point in the 48^th minute but we were nine points up entering the last ten minutes, & although were never completely in control throughout the pitch, it looked like we would finish the game out comfortably. Great credit must be attributed to the Dungarvan players & management as they refused to concede the game, & with their excellent full back now playing out around the middle, were he caused us a lot of trouble, they added 3 points in the 51^st, 55^th 57^th minutes to leave us a little nervous. A minute later, a few missed tackles on the stand side allowed them to play the ball across the square where the ball was finished to the net to reduce the gap to 3 points. Dungarvan had all the momentum now as they drove on in search of another goal, which would break Rathgormack hearts, & a few half chances went abegging following good pressure from our defence. Just as the game entered injury time, another Dungarvan attack broke down inside our 45 & we launched a swift counter attack, & when Conor Murray played a hand pass inside the 21 yard line to Jason Curry, who had sprinted the whole length of the field to support the play, he capped a man of the match performance by finishing to the net to put the result beyond doubt. Two minutes later the final whistle went to spark off great scenes of excitement & celebration. Final Score Rathgormack 2-14, Dungarvan 2-8.

Team: Sean Clancy, Brian Connolly, Padraig Hunt, Quan Butler, David Connolly, Dean Kirwan, Jonathon Flynn, Michael Curry (0-4), Liam Mulligan, Jason Curry (1-5), William Hahessy, Conor Walsh (1-0), Tony Curry (0-1), Jason Gleeson (0-3), Conor Murray. Subs: Daniel Crotty (0-1) for William Hahessy, Robbie Flynn for Tony Curry. Subs not used: Eoin Norris, John Cullinane, Kevin Mulkearne, James Nugent, Gavin Sheehan, Declan Hennebry.

Everyone associated with the club would like to congratulate all the players for a terrific campaign, & an achievement they can be very proud of. County titles are very difficult to win, with a Division 1 title being particularly so for a rural club with limited numbers. Many good players who played for the club down through the years were unable to win this title, which puts the achievement in perspective. All the players involved are well capable of assisting & improving our adult teams over the rest of the year, & hopefully as many as possible will do so. The club would like to congratulate team manager Brendan Curry, & selectors Owen Gleeson & Joe Murray, on a job well done. It was a particularly enjoyable night for Brendan & his wife Josephine, who is also heavily involved with the club for many years, as their sons Jason & Michael had a major bearing on the outcome. Owen’s son, Conor Murray, who is not yet 15, also played his part on the night & throughout the campaign. Well done again to all involved, & as Brendan said in the dressing room afterwards, YOU’VE MADE HISTORY!!

Previous County Minor Title in 1935

Details are listed below of the last Rathgormack team, back in 1935 to win the minor county title.

In their first game they beat Mount Sion a team with two youngsters destined to achieve fame in the world of the GAA. Pat Fanning who would become President of the Association and John Keane one of hurling’s greatest heroes of all time.

Next they defeated Kill  before winning the East Waterford title by beating St.Stephens of Waterford city. The historic county final victory was won over the Western champions, Stradbally.   

Rathgormack Minor Football Champions 1935 

Front Row (L/R), M. Hennebry, D. Cleary, D. Kirwan, T. Hahassy (Trainer), M. Veale, P.Butler(Capt), T.Hogan, J. Foley. Back Row, T. Walsh, P. Curry, M. Whelan, J. Cronin, J. Halpin, J. Foley, W. Curran, M. Quinlan, J. Kirwan, R. Skehan, P. Kirwan, M. Curry, P. Hogan, M. Mc Cormack, M.Quinlan, T. Roche.