Alan Douglas the Trim captain (right) and his Clara counterpart with the number 23 jerseys in memory of Ashling Murphy.

Triumphant Trim march on

Published: Sun 16 Jan 2022, 4:31 PM

Last updated: Sun 16 Jan 2022, 5:02 PM

The dream lives on for Trim - and so does their remarkable unbeaten record.

Today Kevin O'Reilly's trroops completed a cherished piece of history for the club when they won the Leinster IFC title, defeating Clara 1-15 to 2-8.

They proved victorious at the end of a highly entertaining, engrossing encounter that ebbed and flowed throughout with three players seeing red in an uncompromising clash. Trim's Gerry Dwayne and captain Alan Douglas made the long walk while Clara's Matthew Mitchell was also dismissed.

This was a memorable victory for Trim for all sorts of reasons but it was particularly memorable for one of their marquee players Aaron Lynch who bagged 1-7 in a barnstorming display.

Trim went into this game on the back of 17 straight wins and the kind of confidence that run engendered was evident here.

They produced sharp, swashbuckling football at times to defeat the Offaly Senior B champions.

Trim led 1-9 to 2-3 at the break with Cathal O'Meara and Ross Brady netting for Clara. However with Lynch a real threat, Reilly's charges completed their journey to the top of the mountain.

They stayed strong in the second-half to see out the game and secure the win and another piece of silverware.

SCORERS

Trim - A Lynch 1-7, three frees; M Cullen, E O’Connor 0-2 each, J Toher 0-1 free; R Bourke, C Caulfield, C Joyce 0-1 each.

Clara - R Brady 1-3, two frees; C O’Meara 1-0, L Hiney, M Mitchell, P Smith free, J Fleming, C Delaney 0-1 each.

Trim - P Farrell; G Dwane, L Moran, D Dowling; C Quigley, J Toher, C O’Rourke; R Bourke, S Fitzgerald; C Caulfield, A Douglas, D Lynch; M Cullen, A Lynch, E O’Connor. Subs: J Murray for D Lynch 53 mins, B Holden for Cullen 56m, I Bermingham for O’Connor 59m, C Joyce for Fitzgerald 63m.

Clara - J Deehan; S O’Brien, Ciaran Doyle, C O’Meara; Colm Doyle, J Ledwith, L Hiney; C Stewart, G Guilfoyle; C Egan, E Cullen, M Mitchell; J Fleming, R Brady, C Delaney. Subs: D Falsey for Egan, S Brady for Ledwith (both half-time), P Smith for R Brady 51 mins, A Kelly for Delaney 53m, A Ngo for Hiney 59m.

REF - J Hickey (Carlow)