Senior Footballers Open Campaign with a win

DUBLIN 4-30 LAOIS 2-9

Dublin got their Leinster Senior Football Championship campaign off to a winning start as they comfortably accounted for Laois in their quarter-final encounter at O’Moore Park on Sunday afternoon.

Four first-half goals set the tone of Dublin dominance and while the hosts scored two goals of their own in the second-half, it proved an exercise in damage limitation for the large part for Laois.

Con O’Callaghan, Colm Basquel, Lee Gannon and Ciaran Kilkenny all raised green flags in a first-half that saw the hosts take the lead through a Paul Kingston point.

O’Callaghan and Mannion replied at the opposite end before Dublin began to create goal opportunities with O’Callaghan calmly slotting home in the 6^th minute after a defensive error from Laois.

Basquel added a second goal within two minutes with an excellent finish from a strong run by his Ballyboden St Enda’s team-mate Ross McGarry.

Dublin added points via Brian Fenton and Mannion before they almost had another goal when Sean Bugler went racing through on goal and forced Scott Osborne into a fine save.

The hosts scored three points through Kingston, Mark Barry and Mark Timmons to briefly stem the flow by the 16^th minute but it proved their final score of the half as their opponents added five points on the bounce in the ensuing eight minutes.

That sequence of white flags was interrupted as they struck a third goal in the 25^th minute, with Basquel turning provider on this occasion to set up Gannon for an emphatic finish beyond Osborne.

There was sufficient time for Kilkenny to added a fourth goal three minutes before the break with Dublin easing into a 4-15 to 0-4 lead by the turnaround.

O’Callaghan and Basquel added to their personal tallies in the early stages of the second-half but Laois offered their supporters some cause for optimism as they pounced for two goals in quick succession.

In the 42^nd minute, Evan O'Carroll slapped a high ball down and Eoin Lowry ran clear before smashing a shot into the top corner.

Laois got a second goal minutes later when a misplaced pass in the away defence was seized upon by Kingston, who handed Lowry the easiest of tasks of palming into the empty net.

That optimism was soon punctured as normal services resumed with Dublin kicking the next eight scores with O’Callaghan, Cian Murphy, Kilkenny, Brien Fenton and substitute Dean Rock all on target.

Rock added two further scores from play in a lively cameo with a trademark outside of the boot score from another substitute Brian Howard setting the seal on a dominant display.

Dublin will now look to book a final berth when they meet Kildare in Croke Park next Sunday afternoon (4.00).

Scorers – Dublin: C O’Callaghan 1-7 (0-2 marks, 0-1 f), C Basquel 1-5, C Kilkenny 1-4, B Fenton, D Rock, P Mannion (1f) 0-3 each, L Gannon 1-0, R McGarry 0-2, S Bugler, B Howard, C Murphy 0-1 apiece. Laois: E Lowry 2-1, P Kingston 0-3 (1f, 1 mark), E O'Carroll 0-2 (1f, 1 mark), M Timmons, P Kirwan and M Barry 0-1 apiece.

Dublin: D O’Hanlon; C Murphy, D Byrne, D Newcombe; S Bugler, J McCaffrey, S McMahon; B Fenton, J McCarthy; L Gannon, C Basquel, C Kilkenny; P Mannion, C O’Callaghan, R McGarry. Subs: B Howard for McCarthy (HT); E Murchan for McCaffrey (47); C Costello for O’Callaghan (55); D Rock for Mannion (58); C Dias for Fenton (63).

Laois: S Osborne; S Greene, T Collins, R Pigott; S O’Flynn, M Timmons, P Kirwan; K Lillis, D Larkin; K Swayne, P Kingston, P O’Sullivan; E Lowry, E O’Carroll, M Barry. Subs: D Kavanagh for Green and S Lacey for Pigott (both HT); C Murphy for Barry (49); J Finn for Swayne (56); A Mohan for O’Flynn (64).

Referee: Barry Judge (Sligo).