Feis Cup Round 3
Seneschalstown 2-09 Dunshaughlin 0-10
Seneschalstown concluded their Feis Cup campaign with a five point victory over Dunshaughlin at a greasy Fr. Tully Park on Friday night. Prior to throw-in, Seneschalstown still had an outside opportunity of advancing to the knockout stages of the competition with a win, coupled with the result of the other games between Gaeil Colmcille and St. Colmcille’s going in the Furze men’s favour. Alas, despite keeping up their end of the bargain, qualification was not forthcoming but Seneschalstown can look back on this three game block quite fondly with plenty of building blocks in place ahead of the upcoming League campaign.
Conditions were far from ideal for the majority of the game, the rain beforehand making the ball greasy along with a tricky breeze favouring neither team.
The visitors got the opening score of the hour four minutes in with a point from play, with Cathal Finnegan replying with Seneschalstown’s opening point of the hour from a free after being fouled himself. Seneschalstown moved ahead for the first time in the game in the ninth minute. Alan Mulvany engineered a bit of space for himself before playing a one-two with Dylan Keating, Mulvany received the ball back before popping over the bar. Just after the quarter hour mark, the lead became two when Cathal Finnegan took on his marker along the outside and clipped the ball over the black spot.
The visitors were about to enjoy their most productive spell of the hour, hitting three in a row to move ahead for what would be the last time over the course of the hour as Seneschalstown wrestled back control almost instantly.
From Dunshaughlin’s lead point, Neill Darby won David Gordon’s kickout. Darby laid off to Robbie Finnegan who tore through the heart of the Dunshaughlin defence before he laid off to Alan Mulvany. Mulvany checked back onto his right foot before blasting the ball to the roof of the net, an emphatic response from the home side.
Dunshaughlin answered with a point to reduce the gap to a point, but Seneschalstown would follow up with their second goal as the clock ticked over the 30 minute mark. Podge Finegan intercepted a loose ball in midfield, and he moved the ball onto James Meade. Meade found Cathal Finnegan on the 45, who produced a beautifully dinked ball over the top into the path of Dylan Keating. Keating set himself to shoot, finishing low to the bottom right hand corner of the net. Seneschalstown received a further boost before the break as Rob Wogan sent a skyscraper towards the Dunshaughlin posts which eventually dropped over the bar. From there Keith Sheerin blew the half time whistle and Seneschalstown held a five point advantage, 2-04 to 0-05.
Dunshaughlin opened the second half scoring as Seneschalstown had to wait eight minutes to trouble the scoreboard, Cathal Finnegan knocking over on the loop after good work from Keating and Mulvany in the build-up. The visitors replied with a free, and did manage to bring the deficit back to three but that would be the closest they would get as the home side finished strongly.
Inside the last 10 minutes, Séimí Byrne and Podge Finnegan did well to win a turnover up the pitch and Byrne set Alan Mulvany off to send over another point. Indeed Mulvany brought his tally to 1-03 when popped over off his left, Robbie Finnegan and Cathal Finnegan did extremely to create the opportunity for Mulvany to finish off.
Robbie Finnegan got his just reward for his evening’s work when curled over a fine point in from scoreboard corner, before Ryan Finnegan finished out Seneschalstown’s scoring for the evening with a tidy point to move the hosts two clear goals ahead. Dunshaughlin got the last point of the evening, leaving five in it at the end – 2-09 to 0-10.
It was another positive evening for Seneschalstown who made it two wins from three in the Feis Cup where plenty of lads were given game time ahead of the opening League game in two weeks time at home to Syddan. On the night, Éamon Finnegan came on for his Senior debut, brother of Cathal and Eoin, just one of six Finnegans on the wider training squad, as did Joe Norris while Danny Waters made his first start having come off the bench in the first round v Gaeil Colmcille.
Seneschalstown: David Gordon, Danny Waters, Brian Maguire, Cillian Lawlor, Rob Wogan (0-01), Niall McCabe, Séimí Byrne, Podge Finegan, Ronan Conneely, Robbie Finnegan (0-01), James Meade, Alan Mulvany (1-03), Neill Darby, Cathal Finnegan (0-03, 1f), Dylan Keating (1-00)
Subs: Ryan Finnegan (0-01), John Smith, Ross Howard, Cormac Carolan, Joe Norris, Liam Maguire, Éamon Finnegan
