St. Joseph's long wait for a first junior football title finally ended in November when they overcame St. Paul's in a thrilling final. Here, manager Matt Geraghty reflects on a glorious year for the Streamstown/Horseleap club. St. Joseph's will compete at intermediate level for the first time this year following their historic junior football championship success last November. Scenes of unbridled joy and delight were witnessed at Cusack Park when the men from Streamstown/Horseleap finally got their hands on the Hugh Daniels Cup after a dramatic 0-12 to 0-11 victory over St. Paul's in the final. It was truly a moment to savour for St. Joseph's who had lost finals to Killucan and Caulry in 2000 and 2002 and seemed destined never to make the breakthrough. "They won't be calling us the bridemaids any longer," jokes St. Joseph's manager Matt Geraghty. "A lot of teams would have given up after the disappointments of recent years but not these lads. They stuck to their task and put in a savage effort last year. They played well all year and although there were a few hairy moments in the final, they came good in the end and that was all that mattered." Geraghty is no stranger to junior championship success, having previously achieved it as manager of Ballinagore, Kilbeggan Shamrocks and his native St. Columba's (Durrow). However, he admits that last season's triumph with St. Joseph's surpassed them all. "I never saw a club to celebrate a junior championship win as much, and that includes Ballinagore who I was involved with when they won their first title in 1986," he says. "You could see how much it meant to the St. Joseph's players and supporters after the final. They had their disappointments in 2000 and 2002 and again in 2003 when they lost the semi-final to Mullingar Shamrocks. There was no way they were going to be denied again." Although just 22 years in existence, the origins of the club date back to 1914 when a team called Bishopstown first represented the area. Subsequently, there was Streamstown Erin's Hope (1924-'36) who won the junior league in '33 and the championship in '34 before reaching the inaugural Feis Cup final which they lost to neighbours Rosemount. Last season's new-look junior championship began on a slightly disappointing note for St. Joseph's when they were held to a 1-9 to 1-9 draw by St. Paul's in what was a dress rehearsal for the final. The green and golds looked set for victory when leading by 0-8 to 0-3 at the interval but within 10 minutes of the restart, St. Paul's had regained parity and the sides were still on level terms at full-time. As it transpired, the two games against St. Paul's proved to be the most difficult for St. Joseph's en route to winning the championship. They secured their first win at Loughnavalley's expense (2-11 to 0-4) and followed it up with further victories over St. Fintan's/Multyfarnham (4-16 to 1-7) and Delvin (6-14 to 0-7). They were handed a walkover by Ballycomoyle in their final group match and thus, qualified automatically for the semi-final where they faced Athlone. With several players with senior experience in their ranks, Athlone were expected to provide a major test for the Streamstown-based outfit. Conditions at Mount Temple were far from ideal, but St. Joseph's were always in control and they took a 0-8 to 0-2 lead into the interval thanks to points from Daire Lynam, Aidan Lennon, Andrew McCormack, Declan Nannery and Fergus McCormack. The second half proved to be even more one-sided with Athlone's hopes being further hit by the dismissal of corner back Declan Byrne. When Andrew McCormack pounced for a 40th minute goal, the game was over as a contest. Before the end, McCormack and substitute Alan McDonnell added further goals to give St. Joseph's a facile 3-13 to 1-2 victory. Against St. Paul's in the final, St. Joseph's got off to a sluggish start and trailed by 0-0 to 0-3 after 10 minutes after John McGuinness twice found the target and Philip Gilsenan also pointed. Aidan Lennon eventually opened St. Joseph's account from a free in the 14th minute before Graham Dillon restored the Clonmellon side's three-point lead. But the second quarter witnessed a St. Joseph's resurgence and they were back on level terms by half-time thanks to unanswered points from Lennon ('45), Sean Lynam and substitute Ronan McDonnell. On the restart, St. Paul's went two points clear again before Lennon replied with a routine free. But the Clonmellon men continued to take the challenge to St. Joseph's and the game looked to be slipping away from Matt Geraghty's side when they trailed by three points with a little over 10 minutes remaining. However, St. Joseph's weren't about to let the opportunity pass them by without at least putting up a fight. Two quick points from Declan Nannery made it 0-8 to 0-9 before Gilsenan and Nannery traded points. Then, a great delivery in by Sean Lynam was collected by Fergus McCormack who duly sent over the equalizing point. The momentum was now with St. Joseph's and in the final minute of normal time, super-sub McDonnell gave them the lead for the first time. The former county minor star added another point before Graham Dillon reduced the deficit for St. Paul's. That set up a grandstand finish, but St. Joseph's greater resolve saw them hang on. "It says a lot for the character of the lads that they were able to win it, despite not having played well for the first 50 minutes," notes Geraghty, who won a Leinster under 21 championship medal with Offaly in 1971 and has been principal of Castletown-Geoghegan National School for many years. "It was probably our poorest performance of the year, but I always knew we had a chance because there was never any more than three points in it. The lads never gave up and I think they got their just reward in the end." Having finally made the breakthrough at junior level, St. Joseph's will now be hoping to consolidate their position in the intermediate ranks. Many clubs have found the step up difficult, but Geraghty doesn't foresee St. Joseph's having any problems in this regard. "I'll be very surprised if St. Joseph's don't make their mark in this year's intermediate championship. They are a young team and have five or six players of exceptional ability. "When we played intermediate teams in challenge matches last year, we always gave a good account of ourselves and I'd expect the style of football that's played at that level to suit us better than at junior. Apart from having plenty of ability, another big thing St. Joseph's have going for themselves is that they are great triers. They never give up." With neighbouring clubs such as Moate All-Whites, Kilbeggan Shamrocks and Rosemount also operating at intermediate level in 2005, Geraghty acknowledges that it should be some championship. "Depending on the draw, there could be some big local derbies to look forward to. And while the likes of Kilbeggan, Moate and Rosemount have great traditions, there is no way St. Joseph's will fear playing them," he conlcudes. The St. Joseph's team which captured the JFC was: Andrew Meares; Neil Keegan, Darren McCormack, Pat McCormack; James McCormack, Brendan Nannery, Aidan Elliffe; Sean Lynam, Declan Nannery; Daire Lynam, Fergus McCormack (captain), Damien Lynam; David McKnight, Aidan Lennon, Andrew McCormack. Subs used: Ronan McDonnell, Mark McCormack and Alan McDonnell. Tweet

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