Reidy saves Charleville as St Caimin’s bow out

DRAMA at the end of this cracking Harty Cup third round group game in Ballybrown yesterday, fortunes swaying first one way and then the other, a precious quarter-final berth at stake.

St Caimin’s needed to win, with Charleville ahead in the group by just a single point in scoring difference. And, as the game headed into injury-time, the Clare college led by two points, 2-12 to 2-10, courtesy of a rapid-fire 1-1 from county minor star Alan Mulready. Up stepped Charleville’s magnificent centre-back David Reidy, however, and, after Caimin’s keeper Ronan Mulcahy had stopped a goalbound shot from midfielder Darren Sheehy, the Athlacca star of the future pounced for the third Charleville goal, putting his side a point ahead.

Still it wasn’t over, however. Finding a third minute of injury-time,, referee Michael Mann awarded a free to Caimin’s just inside the 45m line, and up stepped another Clare minor star of this year, Aaron Cunningham – their man of the match – and drilled it over the bar. A draw, and definitely the right result because neither of these two superb sides deserved to lose. But heartache for Caimin’s, pipped at the post for the last eight spot, joy for a very young Charleville side.