McCarthy provides inspiration for Navan O'Mahonys
Navan O'Mahonys recorded a 0-17 to 2-7 victory over Donaghmore / Ashbourne in the MFC Div 2 decider at Skryne on Friday night.
The temperature plummeted during an absorbing 60 minutes, but there was plenty of top class action on the pitch to to keep the supporters focused on the football.
The reward for O'Mahonys was the Liam Tolan Cup, a prestigious piece of silverward that will reside in the Brews Hill clubhouse for the next 12 months.
To make the victory all the more sweet, O'Mahonys didn't look like they were going to win until late in the game.
They only got back on level terms with about seven minutes remaining after trailing by four points (0-4 to 1-5) at the interval.
The strength of the Donaghmore / Ashbourne club can be gauged by the fact that they also had a team in action in the MFC Div 6 on Friday night.
That was in a fifth round game against Oldcastle that they won by 2-16 to 1-11.
While the Donaghmore / Ashbourne team mentors in Skryne on Friday night will be disappointed with the outcome, they can rest easy in the sense that they certainly have a pool of talented young players coming through the ranks.
Manager Cathal Cullen and his selectors Mick O'Grady, Maurice O'Sullivan, Michael Gleeson, Conor O'Dwyer and Eddie Maher can take lots of positives from this display.
In Josh Lancaster, Donaghmore / Ashbourne has a hugely talented forward reflected in a return of 2-1 with the goals especially important, one in each half.
Add in players like Paul Wilson, Darragh Gleeson and Conor Twomey and the determined and hard-working wing-back Dominion Abagha who was always willing to make a run off-the-ball in an effort to build at attack.
And it all looked promising for Donaghmore / Ashbourne once they recovered from a tentative start as Lancaster found the net with points added by Gleeson and Wilson (two each) and Adam Murray.
After a bright opening that yielded points from Jack McConnell, Shane McCarthy and Shane Maguire, O'Mahonys managed only one more McCarthy point from a 29th minute free as they trailed by double scores at the break.
However, the future also looks promising for O'Mahonys and they rocketed out of the traps for the second-half with team captain McCarthy providing the inspiration.
Five points in as many minutes gave them the lead as McConnell (two), Louis Collins, McCarthy (free) and Jack Quinn sent over.
Gleeson's pointed free had Donaghmore / Ashbourne back on terms and then Lancaster surged forward for his second goal.
McCarthy (free) and Lancaster traded points before the water break, but even after such a promising display O'Mahonys were still adrift by three points (0-10 to 2-7).
Time to stand up. That's what a McCarthy-inspired O'Mahonys did and, significantly, Donaghmore / Ashbourne disn't score again.
Further points from McConnell (two) and McCarthy hauled O'Mahonys level and the Navan lads survived some intense Donaghmore / Ashbourne pressure.
Two major pieces of impressive fielding under a high ball in the O'Mahonys square by McCarthy were crucial as Donaghmore / Ashbourne created chance after chance and were repelled.
At the other end McCarthy got forward and sent over four priceless points that sealed victory and had manager Damien Moran and his trusty selectors Rory Maguire, Cormac McGuinness, Gordon McCarthy and Simon O'Connor beaming when referee Henri Clifford sounded the final whistle.
And McCarthy's talents are not just confined to kicking a football, he made a fine speech that was respectful to the efforts of the Donaghmore / Ashbourne players.
Then the emotional element clicked in as he dedicated the Liam Tolan Cup to the late Mikey Leddy who was fatally injured in a fall on a family holiday in Lanzarote a little over 12 months ago and had played with Navan O'Mahonys.
SCORERS
Navan O'Mahonys - Shane McCarthy 0-9 five frees; Jack McConnell 1-4; Shane Maguire 0-1, Louis Collins 0-1; Jack Quinn 0-1.
Donaghmore / Ashbourne - Josh Lancaster 2-1; Darragh Gleeson 0-3 one free; Paul Wilson 0-2; Adam Murray 0-1.
TEAMS
Navan O'Mahonys - Brien Yourell; Eoin Hughes-Magennis, Peter McEntaggart, Darragh Murphy; Sean Williamson, Ciaran Vaughan, Jack Boyle; Shane McCarthy, Shane Maguire; Louis Collins, Colm O'Toole, Eoghan Nugent; Bradlee O'Connor, Jack Quinn, Jack McConnell. Subs - Cian Murtagh for Boyle and Padraig Gallagher for Vaughan both 50 mins; other subs - Daniel McEvoy, Hugo Fitzherbert, Jack Coyle, Jamie Crowley, Cormac McCarthy, Thomas Cully, Evan Culligan, Jamie Lee McAreavey, Nathan Carolan, Max Lafford, Colm O'Toole, Riordan Russell, Evan Cully.
Donaghmore / Ashbourne - Alex Ward; Ben Mather, Cianan Finn, Scott Ward; Dominion Abagha, James O'Sullivan, Adam Murray; Conot Twomey, Darragh Gleeson; Josh Lancaster, Paul Wilson, Sean Tyrrell; Sammy Corcoran, Cian Deegan, Matthew Doran. Subs - Thomas Cooney for O'Sullivan six mins, Daniel Martyn for Cooney and Kevin O'Dwyer for Doran both 56m. other subs - Leo Hendrick, Sean O'Sullivan, Cael Sullivan.
Referee - Henri Anderson.