Newmarket goal spree ends Dromtariffe’s reign in Duhallow

The tone was established with goals in quick succession from Newmarket's Hugh and Barry O’Connor inside seven minutes of the throw-in

Sat, 21 Oct, 2023 - 21:31

John Tarrant

Newmarket 4-14, Dromtariffe 2-13

Following a four-year absence, the famed John Joe Brosnan Memorial Cup took the short trip to Newmarket when overcoming defending holders Dromtariffe in the Duhallow JAHC Final before a large attendance at Meelin on Saturday.

The new champions operated with a pace and direction that Dromtariffe could never match. When it mattered, Newmarket laid the foundation for victory in the opening half, their superior stickwork and better coordination yielded four goals.

The tone of Newmarket’s game was established with goals in quick succession from Hugh and Barry O’Connor inside seven minutes of the throw-in. After Seán Howard pointed a pair of Dromtariffe frees, they faced a mountain to climb once Hugh O’Connor netted his second goal.

Four-in-a-row seeking Dromtariffe answered, a welcome goal from Stephen Coyne offered encouragement. However Newmarket remained strong and composed, driven on by man-of-the-match Josh O’Keeffe from centre back.

And Newmarket were firmly in the driving seat, yielding a fourth goal from full forward Rory Lynn to enjoy a 4-4 to 1-6 grip at the interval.

Poor shooting impacted on Dromtariffe’s game, that contrasted for a much slicker Newmarket to find the target much easier with Donal Hannon and Barry O’Connor pointing.

Again Dromtariffe battled, narrowing the arrears to five points to offer a ray of hope. Newmarket refused to buckle, regaining the momentum with a series of excellent points.

Late on, Dromtariffe grabbed a consolation goal from Daniel O’Keeffe before Newmarket saw their task to a successful conclusion to collect their 16th outright title.

Scorers for Newmarket: H O’Connor (2-1), D Hannon 0-6 (0-3f), B O’Connor (1-3), R Lynn (1-0), R O’Keeffe, K O’Sullivan, C O’Keeffe, C Browne 0-1 each.

Scorers for Dromtariffe: S Howard 0-8f, S Coyne (1-0), D O’Keeffe (1-0), K Cremin, T Howard, C O’Callaghan, E Murphy, J Murphy 0-1 each.

NEWMARKET: S McAulliffe, P Allen, A Ryan, P Browne; A Browne, J O’Keeffe, M Browne; H O’Connor, J Ryan; C O’Keeffe, C Browne, B O’Connor; D Hannon, R Lynn, R O’Keeffe. Subs. K O’Sullivan for R O’Keeffe (4 inj), T Ryan for J Ryan (57), C O’Sullivan for P Browne (58), G Forde for J O’Keeffe (58), D Fitzpatrick for K O’Sullivan (60).

DROMTARIFFE: D Cremin; M O’Brien, C O’Callaghan, S McSweeney; M O’Gorman, J Murphy, J Kelleher; D O’Keeffe, K Cremin; A Healy, S Howard, B Murphy, D O’Connor, S Coyne, T Howard. Subs. E Murphy for S McSweeney (ht), R Daly for S Coyne (50).

Referee: W King (Kilbrin).