Lavey/Castlerahan 0-6
North Eastern Gaels 0-6

Two late points from Gerry Smith saw Lavey/Castlerahan salvage a draw against North Eastern Gaels in this afternoon's Cavan minor football championship final at Kingspan Breffni Park.

In what was a drab county decider, Lavey/Castlerahan totalled 12 wides over the hour while both teams only registered that many scores between them. North Eastern Gaels would have thought they had done enough when they opened up a two-point lead heading towards the closing stages, but Smith's late interventions ensured his team another crack at the title.

Lavey/Castlerahan opened the afternoon's scoring inside seven minutes when their 40 years man Enda Flanagan burst through the Gaels' centre and rifled over. They should have doubled their lead afterwards, but rued two wides and their opponents seized the opportunity as Damian O'Brien equalised and a Liam McKenna free had them in front by the 13th minute.

The lively Flanagan levelled for the green and whites and a Daire McEnroe free gave them back the advantage, but they failed to kick on, bringing their wides' tally up to six instead, and allowing Stephen Jackson to equalise with a free on the eve of half-time, leaving it at 0-3 each at the interval.

Fergal Reilly signalled Lavey/Castlerahan's intent early on in the restart when he cut inside and fired over what was arguably the score of the game, but it was the Drung/Kill/Laragh combo that took over proceedings over the next quarter hour by shooting three unanswered points. The leveller came via a Jackson free before McKenna shot them into the lead on 40 minutes with the help of the crossbar. The lead would arrive five minutes later for the Gaels when midfielder Brian Crowe evaded two challenges and sent over off the fingertips of Seamus Tierney.

There was still plenty of fight left in the trailers, who had registered 10 wides by this stage, and they were indebted to their joint-captain Gerry Smith after the centre-back struck two quick points to leave the game in the melting-pot with five minutes to go.

Both sides had chances to win the game in the closing stages, particularly Lavey/Castlerahan, who kicked four consecutive wides, but time ran out on them and they'll have to meet again in order to decide where the Sheridan Cup rests for 2012.

Lavey/Castlerahan: Seamus Tierney; Darren Donegan, Killian McEnroe, James Cunningham; Dermot Conaty, Gerry Smith (0-2), Ryan Egan; Senan Gilcreest, Dean Rutherford; Paul Gilcreest, Enda Flanagan (0-2), Dara Conaty; Jamie McGrath, Daire McEnroe (0-1, 1f), Fergal Reilly (0-1). Subs: Jake Buckley for J McGrath (30), Cormac Daly for D Conaty (44), Barry Cusack for D McEnroe (53).

North Eastern Gaels: Joseph O'Donoghue; Eoin O'Donoghue, Shane McCann, Kieran Reilly; Aaron Watson, Shane O'Rourke, Ian Middleton; Brian Crowe (0-1), Aaron McIntyre; Liam McKenna (0-2, 1f), Stephen Jackson (0-2, 2f), Cian O'Rourke; Caolain O'Reilly, Gary Watters, Damian O'Brien (0-1). Subs: CJ McCabe for E O'Donoghue (18), Sean Tierney for C O'Rourke (38).

Ref: Chris McCaffrey (Templeport) Tweet

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