Burren's `Shorty' Treanor picked up his 10th down senior football championship medal at Newcastle yesterday. He also won the county final man-of-the-match award for a record third time as he inspired his side to surmount a stiff challenge from Ross Carr's young and spirited Clonduff team.

The youthful Clonduff, a dozen of them under 22 years of age, put up a strong showing, and were dominant in the early stages. With 28 minutes played they led 0-4 to 0-3.

Burren had relied on the famous stickiness of their defence and the equally famous marksmanship of Treanor to remain in contention.

Then five minutes of Burren brilliance transformed this game. Gavin Murdoch galloped through from midfield to equalise. Aidan McGivern threaded his way past three defenders for a goal, and Jimmy McAlinden pounced on a Tom Fagan pass for another. A couple of points from McGivern and Murdoch left Buren 2-6 to 0-4 up at the interval. Clonduff pressed relentlessly in the second period; but their hopes crashed in the 46th minute, when Gary Walsh tipped over a penalty taken by Carr.

Solid defending, including a superb Ronan McGovern block from a Shane Ward drive, saw the champions through to the final whistle.

The artistry of Treanor made a huge contribution to this Burren victory and, for Clonduff, Carr worked heroically and won fine performances from young players making their county final debuts.