Nation leads Nemo to glory

In the end, it was something of a canter for Nemo Rangers as they claimed a 12th Cork County U21AFC title against Bantry Blues at Páirc Uí Rinn on Saturday night.

While they trailed 0-2 to 0-1 after 11 minutes, once Luke Connolly’s goal put them 1-2 to 0-2 ahead on 16 they began to dominate and, bar a brief suggestion of a Bantry revival at the start of the second half, the outcome was never in doubt.

Central to the victory was the excellent display of captain David Nation, included as a late change despite suffering from a cruciate injury. His aerial ability was key, especially in turning the momentum in the middle period of the first half, and manager Larry Kavanagh admitted it had been a gamble to play him.