AIB All Ireland Junior Quarter Final, Templenoe V John Mitchels

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John Mitchels (Lancashire, Britain) 0-06 v 2-08 Templenoe (Kerry, Munster)

Match report by Cathal Harkin, Lancashire GAA PRO

Pairc na hEireann, Birmingham

John Mitchel’s quest for All-Ireland glory got stuck in the Pairc na hEireann mud, as visitors Templenoe easily secured passage onto the semi-finals. This was not a fair reflection on the capabilities of the Liverpool men as they did not play to their potential; barring Paraic McGuirk, the rest will no doubt be disappointed with how they fared. On the other hand, it was felt that Templenoe could up the gears if needed and that they played well within themselves. Templenoe had won the Munster Championship on December 12th while their opponents hadn’t been in competitive action since November 8th. Throughout the game this stat would tell a tale; as rustiness was quite evident through Mitchel’s sloppy passing and running off the ball. The conditions would not lend itself to good football, the bright sunny day was a bogus front for a chilly, windy afternoon with terrible underfoot conditions.

Mitchels got off to a great start and took the lead through Kildare’s Paddy Mulligan, as he knock over the opening score from 30 metres out. This was good as they got for the Liverpool men, as for the remainder of the half they failed to gain a foothold in midfield and move the ball to their inside forward line. Templenoe were totally dominant in the middle where Sean Sheehan and Adrian Spillane reigned supreme, every breaking ball the Kerry men were to first. Within 5 minutes, Stephen O’Sullivan, Killane Spillane and Danny Cahalane had put scores on the board to reflect their dominance. Numerous last-gasp blocks by the John Mitchel’s rearguard, showed just how under pressure they were. By this time, Templenoe were employing a cross-field long ball policy which to be fair to John Mitchels, they were dealing with well. Another long ball however was the straw that broke the camel’s back. Cian Hallissey majestically soared through the air to pluck the ball amid an army of players to feed Killiane Spillane and without much back lift, he let rip to make the ball fly past Matty Deeney in the Mitchel’s goal. It was a fantastic finish by the young lad to bring his tally to a goal and two points by the 20th minute. Soon after, an effort from Mitchel’s Michael Higgins as he raced clear of the Templenoe defence, was cleared off the line by a defender to the woes of the travelling Liverpudlian support. Spillane added another soon after to leave the score at half-time Templenoe 1-05 v 0-01 John Mitchels. Mitchels struggled badly in this opening half as they flooded men back to plug holes, however this was robbing Peter to pay Paul, as now the men who should have been receiving the ball in the half-forward line, was not deep in their own defence. McGuirk was going through a mountain of work for John Mitchels, but the Templenoe men had done their homework and stopped his runs by fair means or ‘other’.

Mitchels came out in the second-half with wind advantage and replicated what they did in the opening half by scoring first, again through the boot of Paddy Mulligan. Hallissey soon replied however, as Teddy Doyle was starting to stamp his authority on the game. Disaster then struck for John Mitchels, an altercation involving Higgins, resulted in him receiving a red card for striking. They now had to see out the remaining 22 minutes with 14 men, and things soon got worse as Stephen O’Sullivan buried a shot to the back of the net after great work by Brian Crowley. This signalled the end of their victory chances. To be fair however, they kept fighting up to the very final whistle and outscored the Kerry men by 4 points to 1 over the next 10 minutes. All their scores coming from Mulligan frees. The last score of the came from the impressive Brian Crowley from a tight angle to leave the final score Templenoe 2-08 v 0-06 John Mitchels.

No doubt Templenoe will enter the semi-final stage as favourites. They looked like a Senior team at times today and one can only think of what they would be like on hard ground. Templenoe were made up of mainly young men, but many stood 6 foot tall and had the build to match which was a surprise to many of the supporters in Britain, they have a great combination of physique and skill. Overall, they had some impressive displays today, none more so than wing back Patrick Clifford who was the man of the match as his tackling and driving runs were a joy to behold. John Mitchels however, will feel that they just didn’t turn up and will be bitterly disappointed. What a season it has been however for the Liverpool men, another Lancashire and British Championship to add to their collection. They have been the British Champions for the last 3 years now and have won 7 of the last 9 Lancashire Championships. Barry Morris (Fermanagh) has done a fantastic job at the helm and he has played a huge role in the GAA here in Britain, so the future is bright for them.

John Mitchels: Matty Deeney (Donegal); John O’Hagan, David McTeggart (Louth), Marty Carey (Derry); Michael Higgins (Down), Paraic McGuirk (Monaghan), Sean Rice (Cork); Rory Sharvin (Down), Denis O’Neill (Meath); John McDermott, Frank Cassidy (Antrim), Craig Owen; Aidan Kearney (Antrim), Edward Jackson (Cavan), Paddy Mulligan (0-06, 5f) (Kildare)

Subs: Niall McShane for John O’Hagan, Paddy Murphy (Fermanagh)for Marty Carey, Alan Murray for Denis O’Neill, Aidan McCartan (Down) for John McDermott, Sean Clarke (Armagh) for Aidan Kearney.

Templenoe: Anthony Sheehan; Kieran O’Neill, Tadgh Morley, Michael Hallissey; Patrick Clifford, John Spillane, Gavin Crowley; Sean Sheehan, Adrian Spillane; Brian Crowley (0-01), Cian Hallissey (0-01), Danny Cahalane (0-02); Killiane Spillane (1-03, 2f), Teddy Doyle, Stephen O’Sullivan (1-1)

Lancashire PRO
Cathal Harkin

Attendance: 600