Kiltale stun champions and book their spot in SHC decider

Kiltale avenged their defeat to Ratoath in the decider 12 months ago by knocking the champions out in the SHC semi-final on Sunday in Devenish Park

Kiltale 1-18

Ratoath 2-13

Ratoath’s reign as SHC champions came to a halt in the semi-final on Sunday in Devenish Park as the team they beat in last year's decider Kiltale put to bed their regrets from 12 months ago with a superb victory over the title holders. John Donogue’s side will now battle with Kilmessen for the Jubilee Cup at Trim in two weeks and it will be the first time since 2021 that Ratoath have not contested the Meath SHC final.

Kiltale’s resilience and tenacity in the second-half proved crucial. A strong breeze blew towards the road end at Pitch Six and so Kiltale’s four-point lead at half-time did not look overly secure. Kiltale’s hunger can be defined by the fact that Ratoath scored less in the second-half with the wind (1-6) than they did against the breeze in the first (1-7).

One particular instruction was barked into the field by the Kiltale bench on a few occasions. “Turn it into a battle,” and that is exactly what the contest became. The rain overnight may have played into Kiltale’s hands as they won almost every dirty loose ball available to them.

Another key factor to Kiltale’s victory was just how clinical they were in front of the posts. They only hit three wides for the entirety of the contest and seven of their players contributed to the scoreboard.

After 25 minutes, Ratoath would have been pleased with how things were progressing. They only trailed by one-point and had played into a very strong wind. Kiltale rattled off three points on the spin before the interval but it was their game management and work rate in the second-half that got them over the line.

With that aforementioned strong wind behind them, the eventual winners made a good start to the contest and they raced into a 1-4 to 0-1 lead after just seven minutes.

Summerhill will be concerned by the fact that Ross Ryan had to be helped off the pitch with an injury five minutes into the second half but the dual star made his mark early on with a superb finish to the Ratoath net in the fourth minute. Two super frees from Jack Regan followed before a Mark O’Sullivan point from a wide angle put Kiltale six points ahead.

Daithi McGowan knocked over a nice point in the eighth minute to settle Ratoath. The men in blue and yellow really should have had the sliotar in the back of the net shortly after but Kiltale’s defence dealt well with an enormous scramble in front of their goalmouth.

Towards the end of the first quarter, a cracking ball from Ciaran O’Hanrahan was claimed well by Cian Rogers before he turned on the burners and polished the sliotar to the back of the net to bring Ratoath back to within two points.

Kiltale’s response was very positive. Ross Ryan set up late addition to the starting 15 Craig Gilsenan for a nice score before James Kelly split the posts and reinstated a four-point lead.

Having already raised a green flag, Rogers took a stronghold on the contest in the second quarter and he rattled off two points in quick succession before he set up Niall McLarnon for another. After 25 minutes, Kiltale’s advantage had been reduced back to a single point.

Crucially, Kiltale finished out the half strong and scored three points on the spin courtesy of two of their more experienced campaigners. Regan contributed a brace of frees while Kelly added his second point to give Kiltale a 1-11 to 1-7 advantage at the break.

Despite the fact they were now playing into the wind, Kiltale started the second-half with intent as Peter Durnin had a goal chance well saved by Colm O’Riordan. Regan knocked over the resulting ‘65’ before he added another free.

Ratoath did not register a score in the second-half until the 40th minute when Podge O’Hanrahan split the posts with a free before Regan cancelled out that score with a point from play. Ratoath were given a boost in the 45th minute when Daithi McGowan and Jack McGowan secured possession before Bryan McMahon made a burst towards the Kiltale goal and buried the sliotar to the net.

Ratoath’s young hero from the Trim encounter Eoin Flanagan was introduced in the 48th minute and two minutes later he pulled Andy Dermody's side back to within two points of the lead.

Towards the tail end of the contest, it was Kiltale’s work-rate and scores from their stalwarts Kelly and Regan that got them over the line. Regan split the posts with a free in the 55th minute and Kelly scored an insurance point in the 57th minute. Podge O’Hanrahan knocked over a couple of frees to keep Ratoath’s hopes alive but they faded abruptly when Derek Argue sounded the final whistle.

Kiltale: Shane McGann; Jack Bannon, larla Hughes, Seán Harrigan; James Kelly (0-3), Philip Garvey (0-1), Fearghal McCabe; Brian O'Reilly, Conor Ryan (0-2); Adam Murphy, Craig Gilsenan (0-3), Mark O'Sullivan (0-1); Peter Durnin, Ross Ryan (1-0), Jack Regan. Subs: Conor Quinn for Ross Ryan 36m, Cillian O’Sullivan for Durnin 48m.

Ratoath: Colm O’Riordan; Liam Corbett, Ben McGowan, Conor McGill; Domhnall Rogers, Darragh Kelly, Niall McLarnon; Ciaran O’Hanrahan, Jack McGowan; Rob Hayes, Padraig O’Hanrahan, Daithi McGowan; Gavin McGowan, Cian Rogers, Bryan McMahon. Subs: Liam Kelly for B McGowan 36m, Eoin Flanagan for Hayes 48m.

Referee: Derek Argue (Cavan).