Kildare U21s triumph in final replay

Leinster U21 FC final replay result:

KILDARE 1-10 DUBLIN 0-12

Kildare have defeated All-Ireland champions Dublin 1-10 to 0-12 in the replayed final of the Leinster U21 football championship in Portlaoise.

Influential forward Derek McCormack was to score the clinching score in injury time, after Dublin had been six points down after just 11 minutes.

Ross Galvin’s sixth minute goal spurred Kildare into life in the first half, after James Kavanagh had pointed them in front with a free after forty seconds.

Dublin replied through Johnny Noonan but scores from Kavanagh, McCormack and midfielder Willie Heffernan put the Lillywhites 1-4 to 0-1 in front.

A Tommy Archibold effort bounced back off the Dubs’ woodwork in the fifteenth minute, but McCormack kept Kildare ticking with a brilliant left wing point five minutes later.

Bryan Cullen, undoubtedly the best of the metropolitan forwards, saw his side back to 0-7 to 1-7 down at the break, with a hand in two points, and extras from David O’Callaghan (0-2) and midfielder Declan O’Mahoney.

Noonan edged the reigning champions within two after the restart but Darryl Flynn was quick to cancel that. Noonan, Cullen and O’Callaghan (0-2) helped Dublin back level at 0-12 to 1-9, but critically midfielder Padraic Brennan was then sent off for his involvement in an off-the-ball challenge with Kildare half-forward Hugh Lynch.

O’Callaghan has pushed Dublin in front on 53 minutes but McCormack but first Kavanagh (free) and then McCormack pointed as Kildare ended Dublin’s three-in-a-row dreams.