Mission accomplished
November 27, 2011When Cavan Gaels set out their stall for 2011 the objective was quiet simple. Nothing less than the Oliver Plunkett Cup returning to Terry Coyle Park would do for a crop of players which had already achieved so much at club level and with a rich influx of young stars firmly making their break through, there could be no excuses for Darren Chapman's side.
When it came to incentive, the Gaels only had to look back as far as the previous September to remind themselves of the gutting defeat which they suffered on county final day at the hands of Kingscourt Stars at Kingspan Breffni Park, where they were harshly denied of an elusive four-in-a-row of Cavan SFC titles.
2011 would see the Gaels' compass pointed towards a return to that same county final and as the season unravelled an eighth county title in 11 seasons would see the Cavan town men achieve the objective which they yearned and in the process return their club to the summit of Cavan club football.
The season's start would see them enter into the All County Football League as defending champions as firm favourites and a convincing 3-11 to 0-12 win over Lacken at Terry Coyle Park saw them get off to a good start. Wins over Lavey (0-11 to 1-7) and Ramor United (1-15 to 0-12) followed, before the first bump in the road came at home to Ballinagh. Despite ace attacker and Cavan team captain Sean Johnston kicking an incredible 2-9 for the hosts, Chapman's men would fall to a 5-10 to 2-17 defeat against the Saffrons to endure their first lost of the season in mid-May.
A draw in their next outing against Ballyhaise (2-6 to 0-12) would be far from convincing and although home wins over rivals Mullahoran (0-8 to 0-7) and Belturbet (2-15 to 2-11) would follow, the Gaels were looking far from their sharpest and it would show in their next three outings. What ensued over the next month was something unheard of for the past decade for the Cavan town club as they suffered three defeats on the bounce to league-leaders Redhills (2-14 to 0-18), Castlerahan (1-11 to 1-9) and Cuchullains (2-12 to 1-13).
The poor run of form caught the attention of GAA buffs around the county, as speculation and futile gossip whirled that the Gaels were slumping but as the season progressed nothing could have been further from the truth as it turned out.
With former player and club stalwart Anthony Forde being installed into the management team, the Gaels went on about their business and would go through the remainder of the league campaign practically untouched as they inflicted heavy defeats on Drumlane (1-16 to 0-7) and Killygarry (1-16 to 0-5) to send out a sharp reminder that they were going nowhere, while further wins over Gowna (0-22 to 2-12) and struggling Killeshandra (6-11 to 1-3) left nobody in doubt about their scoring prowess heading into the championship.
The recovery again saw punters tipping the Blues for championship success as they entered into a group with Lacken, Ballinagh and Ramor, and Chapman's team would flex their considerable muscle in their first outing on July 22 when they met Lacken, who would go on to suffer relegation, at Kingspan Breffni Park, where they would finish 5-16 to 0-11 winners in a game which saw Sean Johnston came off the bench to kick a devastating 3-1 in the space of 20 minutes.
Johnston would line-out for the club's second-string later in the weekend against Drumgoon in the intermediate championship - a competition which saw the Gaels come up just short as they narrowly missed out on advancing from the group stages to Drumgoon on score difference. Incidentally, 'the Goonies' would go on to win the Tommy Gilroy Cup, something which the Gaels would both be disappointed with and take heart from looking towards 2011.
As for the senior championship, the next test for the Gaels would be by no means straight forward as their first outing as they met a Ballinagh side which had already defeated them at Terry Coyle Park in the league. In another close battle between the two rivalled sides, it was Ballinagh that upset the odds at Kingspan Breffni Park, where they would come away 1-12 to 1-9 winners to book their place into the knock-out stages, leaving the Gaels' remaining group game against Ramor a 'must win' if they were advance to the quarter-finals.
The previous championship meeting between the two sides had saw the Virginia men hold the then defending champions to a draw in the group stages, but the Gaels were sore need of a win after the disappointment of the Ballinagh defeat and they got off to a decent start this time at Kingspan Breffni Park with points from Sean Johnston, Michael Lyng and Martin Dunne to lead by 0-6 to 0-2 at the break.
With veteran Cathal Collins in fantastic form in defence, the Gaels never looked like conceding too much and with Johnston and Niall Murray in good scoring form they kept the scoreboard ticking over. Just as he did in the All-Ireland Under 21 final a few months previous, Conor McClarey came off the bench to bang in a superb goal which all but killed of the game in the latter stages as Chapman's men emerged 1-11 to 0-8 winners to move into the last eight.
The quarter-final draw would throw up an intriguing clash with Kingscourt Stars which, needless to say, the Gaels would need no extra motivation for as the sides met at Kingspan Breffni Park at the end of August. Keen to exact revenge, a Gaels side minus the services of Sean Johnson went about tearing the champions to shreds as an early Micheál Lyng goal had them in command from the outset, while the points of Niall Murray, Niall Smith and the superb Martin Dunne propelled them towards an unassailable 1-9 to 0-2 lead at half-time. The Stars upped their performance somewhat in the second-half, but were no match for a red-hot Gaels side, which again saw Cathal Collins put in an excellent display at full-back to nullify the threat of Ryan McCormack, who was kept scoreless from play over the hour, while Under 21 Ulster championship winners Niall Smith, Niall Murray, Kevin Meehan, Marc Leddy and Conor McClarey all played their part once more, with the latter two coming off the bench to secure victory.
The momentum was certainly building as the Gaels approached the business end of the championship, but doubters felt that Ballinagh could be the side that once again upset their rhythm. On the day, however, a one-sided contest would develop as Martin Dunne struck for 2-5 to help move the Gaels into another senior football championship final with a nine-point victory at a wet Kingspan Breffni Park.
After an even first-half which saw the sides level on 0-4 each, the Gaels, who failed to score until the 19th minute of the game, eventually found their groove and hit the forefront through Dunne, as he fired in their first goal on 47 minutes before wrapping up matters in injury-time with a brilliant second. Ranked as 3/1 outsiders coming into the game, Ballinagh's second-half performance was a lethargic one as they were simply outgunned by a side that booked themselves into a 12th Cavan SFC final in 14 seasons.
Cavan Gaels (SFC semi-final v Ballinagh): Eoghan Elliot; Darren Rabbitt, Cathal Collins, Niall Gurhy; Darragh Sexton, Eamonn Reilly, Robert Maloney-Derham; Enda King, Dominic Reilly (0-1); Niall Smith, Sean Johnston (0-2, 2f), Niall Murray; Martin Dunne (2-5, 2f), Kevin Meehan (0-1), Micheál Lyng (0-1). Subs: Conor McClarey for Lyng (57 mins), Marc Leddy for King (60 mins), Morgan Young for Elliot (60 mins, inj).
Having been there and done that so many times before, the Gaels approached the final as calm and collected as ever against a Castlerahan side competing in their first Cavan SFC decider in 43 years. In hindsight, many will say that nerves played a part in Castlerahan's below par performance on the day, but it should be noted that a Gaels side, which had been shocked 12 months previous in the same fixture, were under a mountain of pressure to deliver themselves. And deliver was exactly what they did.
It took just two and a half minutes for Chapman's charges to settle into the decider after the throw-in, with Martin Dunne setting up Kevin Meehan to rifle to the back of Jamie Leahy's net, and from then onwards the Gaels simply wouldn't let back. Two strong saves from the experienced Eoghan Elliot denied Castlerahan the net over the next quarter hour and it set-up the Gaels nicely to hit back with their second goal which Meehan this time turning provider to Dunne, who side stepped his marker and blasted to the net to open up a 2-3 to 0-2 gap. Oisin O'Connell pulled back a point for Castlerahan, but more overs from Sean Johnston and Niall Smith pushed the Gaels' lead up to 2-6 to 0-3 by half-time.
Micheál Lyng, who more or less enjoyed a welcome injury-free season for club and county in 2011, grabbed the Gaels' first score of the second-half with a neat left-footed point, which would be backed up by another hammer blow for the Ballyjamesduff men when 'Man of the Match' Kevin Meehan intercepted a line ball and carried possession as far as Johnston on the edge of the square, from where the lethal attacker found the bottom corner of the net. Another point would bring the county ace's tally up to 1-3 for the day before the excellent Robert Maloney-Derham added the Blues' fourth goal after a one-two with Lyng, which deceived the Castlerahan full-back line and left the young wing-back unmarked approaching the square from where he flashed the ball past Leahy to the net. The emphatic 4-11 to 0-7 win would be rounded off with Dunne, whom had been in spectacular form throughout the entire championship campaign, sending over a classy point to ensure the Gaels' Promised Land was reached.
Cavan Gaels (SFC final v Castlerahan): Eoghan Elliot; Darren Rabbitt, Cathal Collins, Niall Gurhy; Darragh Sexton, Eamonn Reilly, Robert Maloney-Derham (1-1); Enda King, Dominic Reilly; Niall Smith (0-1), Sean Johnston (1-3, 2f), Niall Murray; Martin Dunne (1-4), Kevin Meehan (1-0), Michael Lyng (0-2). Subs: Karl Crotty for N Murray (41mins), Paul O'Donnell for N Murray (46mins), Daniel Graham for E Reilly (46mins), Sean Reilly for E King (48mins), Cormac Nelligan for S Johnston (56mins).
After the game, two of Cavan Gaels' veteran stars put their side's victory down to the experience which they boasted over their Castlerahan counterparts.
"Even though the club was only established in 1957, we've now won 12 titles and that's an unbelievable record and something which brings with it an awful lot of experience and know-how in the club," Gaels captain Eamonn Reilly said after lifting the Oliver Plunkett Cup.
"For all that, we have benefited an awful lot from the introduction of a handful of the club's Under 21 players and their hunger and drive has helped keep the likes of myself, Paul O'Donnell and Dominic (Reilly) on our toes at training."
Cathal Collins, who had been outstanding at full-back for the club all season long to collect his eighth SFC medal, felt the turning point of the final came down to Eoghan Elliot's block on Brian Coleman in the 24th minute in what proved to be Castlerahan's only clear-cut goal chance of the game.
"Castlerahan rallied a bit after the start of the second-half but from the moment Eoghan (Elliot) denied them a goal a few minutes before the half-time break, I had an inkling it was going to be our day. I think our experience counted big time on the day to because, once we got out heads in front, they never looked like out-maneuvering us," said the 33-year-old defender.
He added: "It's number eight now but after last year and with the years rolling on, this is as sweet as any. We haven't looked any further than this game, we had the target set on this game all year after last year and it's so joyful now that we have it in the bag." Tweet
