Christy O'Connor: Kilcoo get the job done in style on the pitch, but not off it

CHAMPIONS: Kilcoo's Darryl Branagan and Aaron Morgan lift the trophy for Kilcoo. Pic Credit ©INPHO/Ben Brady

Despite their dominance in Down, having won ten of the previous 11 titles prior to Sunday, Kilcoo didn’t exactly rule the county with the iron fist that their record suggested it did. Six of those last ten titles were secured by one score wins, with two of the last four secured by one point.

Despite heading into last season as All-Ireland champions, Kilcoo needed every get-out-of-jail card in their deck in the latter stages of the championship to retain their county title. They beat Clonduff in the quarter-final on penalties before needing extra time to squeeze past Warrenpoint in the final by one point. It was the fourth year in succession that Kilcoo needed to win at least one game in extra-time.

This year though, Kilcoo have been as authoritative and dominant at almost all stages of their crusade. After beating Carryduff in their first round and quarter-finals by an aggregate margin of 11 points, they whacked Clonduff in the semi-final by 11 points. Yesterday, they defeated Burren in the final by nine points.

The arrival of Karl Lacey from Donegal this year has made them a slicker, pacier and more athletic team, even if it seems scarcely believable that they could get any faster and more athletic.

They were ruthless too when they needed to be, setting the tone early on when scoring six unanswered points in the first quarter. When Burren got the margin down to four points with 12 minutes of normal time remaining, Kilcoo just stepped on the gas again. Burren were engulfed in a snare of Kilcoo bodies who nailed them on the counter-attack off turnovers. From their last four shots, Kilcoo scored 1-3. At the other end, Burren converted just two of their last six shots. It was vintage Kilcoo.

Given the toxic history between these two teams, Down GAA were glad that there was no flashpoints or red-cards on live TV. And yet, this game will still be remembered for anything but the football on the field, and the brilliance and quality Kilcoo showed.

In the lead up to the match, Kilcoo objected to the appointment of referee Paul Faloon, which led to a raft of appeals at county and national level. It smacked of a stalemate situation until news filtered through that Faloon was being replaced by David Gough from Meath, which proved to be completely untrue.

Less than an hour before the game, which was live on TG4, there was no referee in place. There was talk about a possible postponement until it was confirmed that Annaclone’s Brian Higgins was to referee the match. It was so one-sided that a tiny handful of yellow cards was about as fractious as it got.

In the end, Kilcoo won another title playing the best and most commanding football they have played in Down in years. But they won’t care that that’s not really how their 2023 final success will be remembered down the line.