LEINSTER COLLEGES SF A FINAL Athlone CC 0-10 Gormanston 0-9THE GORMANSTON players will relive the last quarter of this final for a long time. Perhaps wondering how it passed them by. With a comfortable, three-point lead and a stiff breeze at their backs, they seemed poised to bridge a 34-year gap to the school's last provincial title.
It may not be the sole reason, but switching influential full forward Kevin Whyte out the field after midfielder Mark Reynolds picked up a knock marked the end of their scoring contributions.
By that stage, the flow of the match had begun to change anyway as Athlone reduced arrears to a single score thanks to points from Robert Kenny and Niall Daly. They were also by-passing the midfield battle with clever raids down the flanks, and heavily marked captain Ian Coffey was being used as a decoy to provide room for others to shine.
Kenny levelled matters with six minutes remaining but, considering the frantic nature of the contest, extra-time seemed unlikely. Something had to give.
Gormanston rallied, but a direct attack was pulled back by referee Derek Fahy, who adjudged Carl Mullen threw the ball. Mullen was incensed. It seemed harsh.
Another resonating tactical call was made by the Gormanston management before throw-in. Athlone released a dummy team for the programme with numbers, positions and personnel radically altered. The Meath college made just one positional change: captain Mark Battersby abandoned his forward duties to shadow Coffey, with Mullen pushed into attack.
A Meath minor covering a Westmeath minor provided an enthralling subplot. Battersby had done his homework, knowing that to keep Coffey away from using his trusty left boot would significantly reduce his influence. Besides a point early in each half, he did a fine man-marking job.
Coffey must also receive plaudits for the match-winning score, as he supplied Pádraig Cunningham with the last-minute opportunity. It was an acute angle, but the corner forward struck it cleanly over the bar.
The dramatic finale was in contrast to the game's general development that saw Gormanston gradually take control mainly thanks to three Whyte points from play and the free-taking accuracy of Battersby. They led 0-5 to 0-4, despite playing into a strong first-half wind, and pulled further away thanks to Whyte and David Ryan strikes before Athlone could settle into the second-half tempo. The midfield partnership of Ryan and Reynolds was also in command.
After a brief Athlone rally, Battersby and Whyte pushed matters back out to a three-point margin. There didn't appear to be any way back for Athlone, playing in their first Leinster final.
But then Gormanston lost all momentum. The Westmeath nursery, containing four county minors and another two from Roscommon, sensed an opportunity and began chipping away, with intercounty players Eoin Sheehy and Alan Fitzpatrick gradually coming into the midfield contest.
The finish was a special moment as supporters poured on to the pitch - a first provincial title for the Community College.
ATHLONE CC:J McMahon; B Moran, A Hanna, N Byrne; N Daly (0-1),D Donoghoe, J Byrne; A Fitzpatrick, E Sheehy (0-1); I Coffey (0-4, two frees, capt),A Ward, J Egan; R Kenny (0-2), D Dolan (0-1), P Cunningham (0-1). Subs:J Coyne for A Ward (38 mins).
FRANCISCAN COLLEGE, GORMANSTON:E Connolly; P Callaghan, C Lenehan, K Towell; R Tallon, C Mullen, C Reddin (0-1); D Ryan (0-1),M Reynolds; R Moore, M Battersby (0-3, three frees, capt),T McHugh; D Carrick, K Whyte (0-3), P Duff (0-1). Subs:A Howley for P Duff (49 mins), D Levins for M Reynolds (54).
Referee: D Fahy(Longford).
