Third time's a charm for resilient Fr O'Neill's

O'Neill's were facing a third final defeat on the trot but reeled in Courcey Rovers to clinch victory at last. 

JOY: Fr O'Neill's Declan Dalton celebrates the win over Courcey Rovers in the Co-Op Superstores Cork senior A hurling championship final. Picture: Eddie O'Hare

Fr O’Neill’s 0-20 

Courcey Rovers 2-12 

The higher that barriers are built, the stronger people become and that was certainly true of Fr O’Neill’s in Páirc Uí Chaoimh on Sunday as they were crowned champions of the Co-op Superstores Cork SAHC at the third time of asking.

In losing the previous two finals to Charleville and Kanturk, O’Neill’s had banked plenty of resilience and they needed it all here as they produced a stunning second-half performance that saw them go from trailing by five points at half time to leading by six as the game ticked into injury time.

The complete change in fortunes was of the type that would provoke the most inevitable, if clichéd, of questions; what was said at half-time? No doubt much of it wouldn’t be printable, but after the change of ends, O’Neill’s were just themselves. The best example of this was their deployment of their Cork star, Ger Millerick.

Millerick, rightly, has a reputation as being one of the best man markers around and while named at midfield, he was given the task of picking up Courcey danger man, Seán Twomey, from the off. It seemed a wise decision, after all Twomey did plunder four goals against Fermoy in the semi-final, but it also robbed O’Neill’s of one of their best hurlers further out the field.

Twomey didn’t score, but he did cause Millerick trouble, and broke the ball that led to Ronan Nyhan’s goal just before half time that had contributed to O’Neill’s deficit. After the break, Sean O’Connor picked up Twomey, Millerick played with more freedom and O’Neill’s were like themselves again as they launched wave after wave of attack that completely flummoxed their opponents.

Declan Dalton caught fire, hitting 0-6, Billy Dunne was a constant menace in hitting 0-3, Millericks Joe and Tomas hit a point each and with thirty minutes of the second half played, they led by 0-20 to 1-11.

At the other end Courceys went from being a team that couldn’t miss to one that couldn’t score. They went 12 for 12 in hitting 1-11 in the opening period but in the thirty minutes that followed they were 0 for 6 as the game just slipped away for them, as it can do on the big days.

Richard Sweetnam and Stephen Nyhan, who were excellent throughout, accounted for all of those wides and inevitably it would be the same pair who would nearly rescue something out of nothing in added time. Nyhan cracked home a 21-yard free to half the size of their mountain before a late effort from Sweetnam whizzed over, rather than under the bar, leaving O’Neill’s with the sweetest of their five county titles.

In a cracking opening period it was O’Neill’s who hit the ground running hitting the first three scores of the game through John Millerick (2) and Billy Dunne.

Courceys, however, countered quickly reeling off the next five. Sweetnam slotted over two frees, Nyhan landed a long range one while Olan Crowley and Colin Roche had the others. A Dalton ‘65 and a point from Kevin O’Sullivan got O’Neill’s motoring again but Ronan Nyhan then gave Courceys a 0-6 to 0-5 lead at the end of the first quarter.

Tomás Millerick then levelled the game for the second time before Joe Millerick traded scores with Sweetnam to even things up again. Courceys then enjoyed their best spell of the game. A stunning point from Sweetnam pushed them ahead, Crowley doubled the lead before two points from DJ Twomey sandwiched a Dalton free to leave the Ballinspittle/Ballinadee side three clear.

Then came Nyhan’s goal that gave his side a 1-11 to 0-8 lead before a Joe Millerick point left five between them at the break.

It wasn’t enough, however, and it is Fr O’Neill’s who will drink at the top table of Cork hurling in 2023.

Scorers for Fr O’Neill’s: D Dalton (0-7, 0-3 frees, 0-1 ’65), B Dunne (0-4), Joe Millerick and John Millerick (0-3 each), T Millerick (0-2), K O’Sullivan (0-1).

Scorers for Courcey Rovers: S Nyhan (frees) and R Nyhan (1-1 each), R Sweetnam (0-5, 0-3 frees), DJ Twomey and O Crowley (0-2 each), C Roche (0-1).

FR O’NEILL’S: P O’Sullivan; G Millerick, S O’Connor, M Millerick; M O’Keeffe, D Harrington, R Kenneally; T Millerick, K O’Sullivan (JC); J Hankard, D Dalton, Joe Millerick; John Millerick, C Broderick, B Dunne. Subs: E Motherway for Kenneally (h/t), P McMahon for John Millerick (47), J Barry for M Millerick (60), P Hassett for Joe Millerick (62).

COURCEY ROVERS: S Nyhan; C Daly, M Collins, B Mulcahy; S McCarthy, F Lordan, C Roche; DJ Twomey, L Collins; B Ryan, T O’Sullivan (c), O Crowley; R Nyhan, R Sweetnam, S Twomey. Subs: B Collins for McCarthy (inj, 27), J O’Neill for Ryan (inj, 44), J McCarthy for B Collins (47), D O’Donovan for R Nyhan (58).

Referee: Ciarán O’Regan (Ballyhea).