U20 Footballers beaten after extra time

KILDARE 0-16 DUBLIN 0-13

It proved another heart-breaking final defeat for Dublin at Netwatch Dr Cullen Park on Tuesday night as they succumbed to Kildare by three points after extra-time in their Eirgrid Leinster Under 20 Football Championship decider.

The counties met at the corresponding stage last year with Kildare prevailing by just two points and there was more disappointment for the battling Dubs to endure as their opponents finished strongly to claim a deserved success in extra-time.

Dublin had one hand on the trophy as they led by a single point in injury time but Kildare raised one final attack in normal time with Colm Dalton splitting the posts to ensure they seized the initiative with extra-time pending.

Subsequently, Kildare built a healthy four-point lead before Ross Keogh kicked a free to leave a goal between the sides but that levelling goal proved elusive as time ran out on their challenge.

It was the holders that took the lead in the 2^nd minute through Ryan Sinkey with the Dubs levelling matters within three minutes thanks to Joe Quigley.

The influential Sinkey restored Kildare’s lead five minutes later and the contest remained delicately poised at Keogh restored parity in an instant.

There were few goal chances to speak of throughout with Luke Ward’s goalbound shot diverted over the crossbar in the 14^th minute as Dublin took the lead for the first time but almost inevitably, Kildare hit back through Dalton at the end of the first quarter.

Quigley and Sinkey exchanged scores as the half progressed before Dublin grasped the initiative thanks to successive points from Greg McEneaney and Séamus Smith within seven minutes of each other.

Dalton’s second point of the half trimmed Kildare’s deficit to a solitary point in the 29^th minute before Quigley’s late free saw Dublin enter the break with a narrow but welcome 0-7 to 0-5 advantage.

Dublin lost a degree of fluidity up front after the break but managed to extend their lead to three points courtesy of a brace of excellent frees from Keogh.

However, the momentum was beginning to turn in Kildare’s favour and three fine scores in quick succession by Callum Bolton, Sinkey and Oisin O’Sullivan ensured the sides were deadlocked once again by the start of the final quarter.

An Adam Fanning point in the 48^th minute edged the Lilies in front but Dublin managed to regroup superbly as they drew level thanks to a well-worked team point from Bill Costello.

A Quigley free in the 58^th minute looked like it might prove decisive but Colm Dalton proved Kildare’s saviour with another composed score from distance to ensure an 0-11 apiece stalemate after sixty minutes.

Kildare resumed in a dominant manner as they pulled clear thanks to Fanning, Bolton, Shane Farrell and Cormac Barker with Dublin limited to frees by Quigley and Keogh as their ambitions lay in ruins by the final whistle.

Scorers – Kildare: R Sinkey 0-4, C Dalton 0-3, S Farrell (2f), C Bolton, A Fanning, O O’Sullivan 0-2 each, C Barker (f) 0-1. Dublin: J Quigley 0-5 (3f), R Keogh 0-4 (3f), L Ward, G McEneaney, S Smith, B Costello 0-1 apiece.

Kildare: C Barker; H O’Neill, T Von Engelbrechten, R Burke; J Harris, J McGrath, J McKevitt; F Cooke, S Farrell; R Sinkey, C Bolton, C Dalton; A Fanning, O O’Sullivan, E Cully. Subs: S Hanafin for Cully (40), D Swords for Cooke (53), E Mountaine for Von Engelbrechten (61), N Dolan for Sinkey (64), F Ó Giolláin for Burke (70), D Guerin for McGrath (75).

Dublin: A Smith; F Bruton, T Clancy, E Nugent; L Gavin, G McEneaney, D O’Leary; E Dunne, M McDonald; C Dolan, L Ward, S Smith; R Keogh, J Quigley, D Dempsey. Subs: B Costello for Dempsey (half-time), J Cotter for Smith (46), T Brennan for McDonald (50), D McGrath for O’Leary (61), C McMorrow for Cotter (61), McDonald for Costello (67), C Moriarty for Quigley (70), C Burke for Dolan (76).

Referee: Alan Coyne (Westmeath).