Great comeback swings it for Ilen
Ilen Rovers 0-12 Dohenys 1-8
The old clichés still hold good and, truly, this senior football quarter final in Rosscarbery on Sunday last was a game of two distinct halves. For much of the first half Dohenys looked a team of all talents as they ran a-drag with an Ilen side that seemed mesmerised by the pace and tenacity of the Dohenys’ football. Racing into a seven point lead within eleven minutes, courtesy of a Ger McCarthy penalty, Dohenys were in total control and even though the strong breeze was a factor, the gulf between the sides was as large as it was alarming to the Ilen supporters, who seemed to be in the majority in the large crowd.
The picture began to change somewhat in the second quarter as Ilen got to grips with the pace and slowly they hauled themselves back into contention, containing Dohenys to just two points in that period while closing the gap to four points by half time. Still, few in the crowd could have envisaged the amazing transformation that was to come over the game in the second half and it all stemmed from the vice-like grip that Ilen secured at midfield. With Fachtna Collins at his regal best and David Coughlan having the kind of proverbial stormer that made us all wonder why the Cork selectors had ignored him all season, Ilen took a stranglehold on the game around the middle diamond of the pitch and with a marvellous display of attacking football, they powered their way to the front with seven unanswered points. Outplayed, outpowered and outrun, Dohenys looked a poor shadow of the side that had dominated the opening quarter and simply had no answer to Ilen’s power and physique. The fact that Dohenys failed to raise a flag between the 20th and 56th minutes tells the tale of Ilen’s complete dominance for most of the second half.
It was to Dohenys’ credit that they battled gamely to stay in contention and were still in with a shout, three points in arrears, as the final whistle approached. A late mini-revival saw them cut the lead to a single point and only a missed free prevented them from salvaging an unlikely draw that would, on the trend of the second half, have been something of a minor miracle.
While there was some top class football played in this game at different times by both sides and the pace was frantic, the contest was spoiled by too much fouling and over-robust tackling which could have been more severely punished by a lenient referee.
This was a power-packed display by Ilen once they got going, stemming, as we said, from the powerful midfield pairing of Fachtna Collins and David Coughlan, but with superb displays also from full back, Diarmuid Duggan, wingbacks Conor O’Driscoll and John Sheehy, half forwards John Wycherley and Edward Sheehy and the O’Sullivan brothers, Kevin and Brian, up front with Kevin accounting for seven points and Brian two. The mystery was how they allowed themselves to be so outplayed in the opening quarter.
For the opening fifteen minutes Dohenys looked superb, tackling with fire and determination, hunting in packs in defence and looking dangerous every time they attacked. With Paul Deane keeping a tight rein on Kevin O’Sullivan, well supported by Michael O’Donovan, Dennis Lyons and Alan Murray in defence, Pat Collins and Micky Farr working very hard at midfield, helped by big Donal O’Sullivan, and Ger McCarthy leading a lively attack in which Michael Milner and Daniel O’Donovan looked very sharp, it seemed they were determined on reaching another final to prove that last year’s slip against Nemo was only a learning process. However, it all went horribly wrong in the second half and they just had no answer to the sheer power and pace of Ilen’s football. They will wonder how it all went wrong after such a great start and lament the fact that they still only finished a single point in arrears.
Stand-in referee, Cathal McAllister of Aghada, tried to be friends with everybody, a tactic which didn’t work at times and he ignored too much pulling and dragging and failed to penalise some obvious illegal tackling.
The Rosscarbery grounds were in perfect condition for this long-awaited local derby, the weather obliged and the stewarding and arrangements were first class.
With the breeze to their backs, Dohenys got off to a flier before Ilen realised they were in a game. Playing at break-neck pace they opened the scoring with a Michael Milner point in the first minute and followed with a like effort from Ger McCarthy as the defence fought tigerishly to block off the Ilen forwards. In the fifth minute severe Doheny pressure resulted in Daniel O’Donovan being fouled in the square and up stepped Ger McCarthy to blast the penalty to the net via the underside of the crossbar. Donal O’Sullivan, working very efficiently as a third midfielder, stretched the lead to six points and when Daniel O’Donovan popped over another point in the 11th minute Dohenys were seven points to the good with no reply from shell-shocked Ilen.
But Ilen don’t do panic and slowly but surely they began to come to grips with Dohenys’ flying start. Kevin O’Sullivan, finding it so hard to shake free of Paul Deane, opened their account from a free in the 13th minute and brother Brian added another a minute later, following good work from John Wycherley and Edward Sheehy, the only forward causing trouble at that stage of the proceedings.
Ger McCarthy kicked a marvellous free from 40m out on the right wing to begin the second quarter and when Pat Collins fisted over another in the 20th minute, after a great movement which saw Daniel O’Donovan’s shot blocked in the square by a brave save from Gary Coakley, Dohenys were seven in front again and the Ilen mentors were really beginning to worry. Amazingly, Dohenys weren’t to score again for another 36 minutes and it was Ilen who finished the first half on top as Brian O’Sullivan blasted over the bar with a goal chance on, and Kevin O’Sullivan added two more, one from a free. Dohenys’ pace was evidently waning now as the game grew very scrappy with numerous fouls disrupting play.
It was 1-6 to 0-5 at the interval and the game was up for grabs, with Ilen having the advantage of the breeze in the second half. Dohenys restarted with Michael Milner and Pat Collins at midfield but they could do absolutely nothing about the amazing improvement that came over Ilen. With David Coughlan fielding everything in the air and Fachtna Collins doing a real general’s job, Ilen took complete control around midfield from the restart. John Wycherley thundered into the game on the forty, wingbacks Conor O’Driscoll and John Sheehy broke forward at every opportunity and up front, Kevin O’Sullivan finally broke free of the shackles of Paul Deane.
It was all Ilen as they poured forward in waves of attacks and in the 32nd minute Darragh Farr did very well to save from Edward Sheehy but it was only delaying the inevitable. Kevin O’Sullivan pointed two frees and Conor O’Driscoll added a third to close the gap to a single point, 1-6 to 0-8, by the 35th minute. Again the game grew scrappy as Dohenys resorted to fouling in an effort to slow the fierce Ilen attack and there were no further scores in the third quarter. Even Ger McCarthy had to fall back into defence in an effort to win some possession for Dohenys but it was all in vain as Edward Sheehy fisted over the equaliser in the 46th minute.
Paul Deane retired injured for Dohenys and the writing was really on the wall when Kevin O’Sullivan kicked Ilen into the lead in the 48th minute and Donie Duggan added another four minutes later. Dohenys had hardly been seen in attack in the second half and were finding Ilen’s physical strength just too much for them. Kevin O’Sullivan stretched the lead to three points with five minutes remaining and it seemed all over but, to their credit, Dohenys somehow managed to resurrect themselves in those closing minutes. With injured sub, Patrick McCarthy, making an impression up front, Ger McCarthy pointed a free in the 55th minute, their first score since the 20th minute, but then he missed another which was to prove crucial. In the 61st minute McCarthy kicked another free to close the gap to a single point and it seemed they might just escape with a draw. It was not to be as Ilen were in possession, playing keep football, when the referee blew the final whistle to signal great scenes of delight in the Ilen camp.
Man of the match, David Coughlan, Ilen Rovers.
Scorers; Ilen Rovers – Kevin O’Sullivan 0-7, 0-4 frees, Brian O’Sullivan 0-2, Edward Sheehy 0-1, Conor O’Driscoll 0-1, Donal Duggan 0-1. Dohenys – Ger McCarthy 1-4, 1-0 penalty, 0-3 frees, Donal O’Sullivan 0-1, Daniel O’Donovan 0-1, Pat Collins 0-1, Michael Milner 0-1.
Ilen Rovers – Gary Coakley, Don al Murphy, Diarmuid Duggan, Finbarr O’Donovan, Conor O’Driscoll, Liam O’Driscoll, John Sheehy, Fachtna Collins, David Coughlan, Kieran Daly, John Wycherley, Edward Sheehy, Donie Duggan, Kevin O’Sullivan, Brian O’Sullivan. Subs, Davin Whooley, Shane Holland, Donie Duggan.
Dohenys – Darragh Farr, Conor Collins, Dennis Lyons, Alan Murray, Timmy O’Donovan, Michael O’Donovan, Paul Deane, Micky Farr, Pat Collins, Michael Milner, David Nyhan, Denis Healy, Daniel O’Donovan, Donal O’Sullivan, Ger McCarthy. Subs, Ronan O’Sullivan, Patrick McCarthy, Noel Collins.
“Cois Farraige”