Moyna hails heroes as DCU secure Sigerson

FOUR years after they burst onto the Sigerson Cup scene with a maiden triumph, DCU confirmed their staying power as a third-level football force by claiming honours in Saturday’s decider in Leixlip, Kildare.

Inscribing their name on the roll of honour for a second time was a notable milestone after a series of disappointingly short campaigns since 2006. They have assembled talented teams in the interim but lacked the consistency to produce a winning run.

On Saturday, they atoned for those misses, rounding off a fine weekend of football by possessing the greater power and experience to dislodge a spirited UCC side.

At half-time, DCU led 0-6 to 0-3 and it was then that coach Niall Moyna impressed upon his players the significance of grasping this chance.

“Without a doubt, we didn’t build on 2006 and I’ve learned a valuable lesson since then. I was actually involved with the Pittsburgh Steelers and when you win one SuperBowl, you think you’re going to win lots of them. It’s a bit like that with the Sigerson, we thought in 2006 that we were going to arrive into every final.

“I said to the guys at half-time that you may never be in a final again.”

It was not the most sparkling of games, but the competitive nature of the final consumed the interest of those present until the finish. The outcome was certainly the right one but when reflecting on the game, UCC will rue certain phases.

The start was particularly crucial. On Friday against Athlone IT, UCC’s dominant early play laid the foundations for their ultimate progression but on Saturday they suffered a debilitating opening that left them on the back foot. By the 14th minute, DCU were 0-4 to 0-0 ahead, with the free-taking of man-of-the-match Brian Sheridan a strong feature.

It was no coincidence that there were four points between the teams at that juncture and at the final whistle, with UCC never managing to retrieve that early scoring leakage.

“We decided that we’d play a high-intensity game and push up from the very beginning,” remarked Moyna afterwards. “We knew they didn’t have a very tough game on Friday. I think it took them 20 minutes to get into it and by then we’d created enough of a lead.”

UCC selector John Corcoran concurred with that assessment.

“In our semi-final our start was instrumental in our victory and on Saturday DCU got that big start. It was key and that was the margin all through. But they were the best team we met and strong all over the field.”

After that barrage of pressure, UCC settled well and by the interval had chipped away at DCU’s advantage to trail by three points. Crucially, after the break, it was DCU who began with greater purpose again. The growing sense that a goal would be decisive was substantiated when the Dublin outfit struck to the net in the 41st minute. Moments previously they had spurned a chance when Ken O’Halloran produced a superb save to deny Paddy Andrews. But when Cathal Cregg knifed through the heart of the UCC rearguard and off-loaded to Sheridan lurking inside, the Meath player made no mistake. With 19 minutes left, they were 1-8 to 0-5 ahead and cruising.

But then DCU’s play stalled as UCC enjoyed their best phase of the game. The shrewd use of their substitutes was at the core of the comeback with Peter Crowley, David Goold and Mark Collins all starring. Allied to improved inputs from Eoin Hegarty and Michael Shields, UCC pinned DCU back in their own half and a succession of scores from Goold, Collins and Daithí Casey left them 1-9 to 0-9 behind with nine minutes left.

Yet UCC couldn’t get any closer. They kept on pressing but were hampered by a bad referee call when Seamus Hayes was clearly fouled in attack in the 58th minute. DCU turned possession over to move swiftly up field and when Brian Sheridan was hauled down near goal, he popped the resultant penalty over the bar.

They were never going to relinquish that four-point lead yet Corcoran was clearly irked by the referee’s failure to spot the foul on Hayes.

“I think there was an important referee decision made near the end. Seamus Hayes was definitely fouled and that was a very poor decision. But I’m not taking from DCU, they’re worthy champions and they deserved to win.”

Scorers for DCU: B Sheridan 1-5 (0-4f, 0-1 pen), P Flynn 0-2, P Andrews, R Flanagan (0-1f), C Cregg, D Kelly 0-1 each. Scorers for UCC: B O’Driscoll (0-2f), D Goold, D Casey, M Collins 0-2 each, K O’Driscoll, S Hayes 0-1 each.

DCU: M Boyle (Donegal); P McMahon (Dublin), K Gavin (Westmeath), K Nolan (Dublin); D Mooney (Monaghan), B Cullen (Dublin), J Cooper (Dublin); D Sheridan (Cavan), H McGrillen (Kildare); P Flynn (Dublin), R Flanagan (Cavan), C Cregg (Roscommon); P Andrews (Dublin), B Sheridan (Meath), D Kelly (Sligo).

Subs: H Gill (Dublin) for Cooper (44), R Cullivan (Cavan) for Flynn (51), D Shine (Roscommon) for Gavin (58).

UCC: K O’Halloran (Cork); E Cotter (Cork), E Hegarty (Cork), S Enright (Kerry); D Limrick (Cork), A Greaney (Kerry), P Corrigan (Limerick); M Shields (Cork), J Buckley (Kerry); K O’Driscoll (Cork), S Kiely (Cork), D Casey (Kerry); B O’Driscoll (Cork), S Hayes (Cork), D Kearney (Cork).

Subs: P Crowley (Kerry) for Greaney (half-time), D Goold (Cork) for Kiely (38), M Collins (Cork) for K O’Driscoll (46), B Daly (Cork) for Corrigan (53), P Honohan (Cork) for Kearney (58).

Referee: Marty Duffy (Sligo).