Late Dingle scores deny Gneeveguilla

LAST year’s Kerry IFC champions Gneeveguilla face the prospect of an immediate return to that grade after they came up agonisingly short in a winner-take-all SFC round two clash at home to Dingle yesterday.

In a game they were always chasing after the concession of two first-half goals, Gneeveguilla’s heroic second-half effort had left just one point between the sides, 2-7 to 1-9, with minutes left.

But then Dingle, who lead division one of the Kerry County League, broke away to pick off two priceless scores with Joe Sheehy adding the finishing touch to a surging Aodan O’Neill run. Paul Geaney, who jets off to America this week, kicked the game’s final score, as the west Kerry club emerged with from Gneeveguilla with a place in the third round of the competition.

But the outcome of this game could have been very different if Gneeveguilla were not harshly denied what had looked like a legitimate goal early on the second half.

The game’s big talking point arrived just moments after wing forward Donie O’Connor had given Gneeveguilla the fillip they needed by scoring a goal within 20 seconds of the restart to drag his side back into the contest, 2-4 to 1-5.

Just over a minute later, a searching ball from Padraig Quaid bounced over Dingle goalkeeper Diarmuid Murphy. This left Donie O’Connor in, and just before the ball passed the post and went wide, he fisted to the net from the tightest of angles.

But the umpire signalled the ball had gone wide!

The referee stood by the umpire’s decision and the goal, which would have put Gneeveguilla ahead, was ruled out.

Despite that setback, Gneeveguilla kept coming but they only had a Gerard Moynihan score to show for it, while Dingle had stretched their lead with scores from Paul Geaney, Padraig Murphy and Joe Sheehy to lead 2-7 to 1-6 with 10 minutes left.

Three successive scores from Mike S Murphy, Donal Murphy and a Liam Murphy free for Gneeveguilla left just one point between the teams, 2-7 to 1-9, with minutes left, only for Dingle to grab two scores when it mattered most.

This was also the case in the first half when David Geaney goaled in the fifth minute to put his side 1-0 to 0-2 ahead, and three further scores from the goalscorer plus a point from Paul Geaney saw Dingle lead 1-4 to 0-2 midway through the half.

Gneeveguilla might have added 0-3 in the second quarter but Padraig Murphy’s 23rd minute goal for Dingle ensured that the home side trailed at the break, 2-4 to 0-5. Despite all the ball they saw in the second-half, they could never draw level, so they will now be involved in a relegation play-off.

Scorers for Gneeveguilla: Donie O’Connor 1-0, M S Murphy, L Murphy (1f), G Moynihan 0-2 each, PJ Murphy, F McAuliffe (f); D Murphy 0-1 each.

Scorers for Dingle: D Geaney 1-3 (1f), P Murphy 1-1, P Geaney 0-3, J Sheehy 0-2 (1f).

GNEEVEGUILLA: P O’Riordan; Danny O’Connor, B Sheehan, F O’Leary; T O’Leary, P O’Connor, J Sheehan; JP Brosnan, M S Murphy; Donie O’Connor, PJ Murphy, F McAuliffe; D Murphy, L Murphy, G Moynihan.

Subs: M Sheehan for M S Murphy (34), S O’Connor for B Sheehan (42), M S Murphy for F O’Leary (50), R McAuliffe for M Sheehan (52).

DINGLE: D Murphy; T Brosnan, E Murphy, G Curran; P Ó Dubháin, B Kelliher, P Quaid; L Óg Higgins, B O’Connor; P Murphy, M Geaney, A O’Neill; P Geaney, J Sheehy, D Geaney.

Subs: S Brosnan for P Quad (40), M Guiheen for L Óg Higgins (44).

Referee: Peter Lyons (Cromane).