Beaufort hang on to seal another Mid Kerry crown in tense replay

Beaufort edged past Milltown/Castlemaine to claim a fourth title in five years

Kerry player Seán O'Brien was Beaufort's man of the match. Photo by Seb Daly/Sportsfile

Mid Kerry SFC final replay: Beaufort 0-13 Milltown/Castlemaine 0-12 

Beaufort have retained the Michael O’Connor Cup, edging past Milltown/Castlemaine by a single point in a tense Mid Kerry Senior Championship Final Replay at JP O’Sullivan Park, Killorglin on Sunday afternoon to claim a fourth title in five years and a sixth in the past decade.

Dara Hogan clipped over the first score on two minutes before Beaufort replied through Darragh Dennehy. Hogan then won a penalty moments later, but his effort was superbly saved by Jason Foley to keep it level. Beaufort took confidence from the stop, nudging ahead through Liam Carey and a free from Fergal Hallissey.

Scores remained hard won in the first half, with Brendan Casey and Donal Dennehy keeping Milltown/Castlemaine in touch. Donal Dennehy pointed and Éanna O’Connor converted from a placed ball before the break to leave the sides level at 0-4 apiece.

Beaufort struck first after the restart as man of the match Seán O’Brien landed a two-pointer, but Éanna O’Connor responded shortly after when play was pulled back for a free – Dara Hogan through on goal when the whistle sounded to Milltown’s frustration. A point from Ciarán Kennedy and another from O’Brien pushed Beaufort ahead again, only for O’Connor to level the game once more with a two-pointer from a free followed shortly by another placed effort.

With Milltown temporarily down to 14 after Aaron Dinham’s black card, Beaufort took advantage with scores from O’Connor brothers Jack — including a valuable two-pointed free — and Darragh. Dara Hogan hit back from play while Gavin Horan added another, but Jack O’Connor’s late free ensured Beaufort kept their noses in front in the dying minutes.

Éanna O’Connor struck another two-point free to bring Milltown within a point and set up a frantic finish. Milltown/Castlemaine saw a line ball to them reversed in favour of a throw in at midfield for a double breach, although they won the throw to set up another attack. However Cathal Moriarty’s final shot fell short and Liam Carey ended the game by sending the ball over the sideline – a fitting end to a hugely exciting championship that saw the finalists separated by a single point after 120 minutes of enthrallment.

Scorers for Beaufort: Jack O’Connor 0-4 (1f, 1tpf); Seán O’Brien 0-3 (1tp); Fergal Hallissey 0-2 (2f); Darragh Dennehy, Darragh O’Connor, Liam Carey, Ciarán Kennedy 0-1 each.

Scorers for Milltown/Castlemaine: Éanna O’Connor 0-7 (3f, 2tpf); Dara Hogan 0-2; Brendan Casey, Donal Dennehy, Gavin Horan 0-1 each.

BEAUFORT: J Foley, S Kelliher, E Coffey, K O'Sullivan, M Neary, M Breen, S O'Brien 0-3, R Murphy, F Hallissey, L Carey, C Kennedy, E O'Hagan, D O'Connor, D Dennehy, J O'Connor. 

Subs: J O’Sullivan for S O’Brien (22-24 blood sub), J O’Sullivan for M Neary (60).

MILLTOWN/CASTLEMAINE: C Leane, A Dinham, P Wren, S Roche, A Kelliher, D Roche, G McKenna, G Horan, D Dennehy, K Kerins, B Casey, D O'Neill, D Hogan, É O'Connor 0-7, C Moriarty. 

Subs: M Lynch for D O’Neill, S Hogan for K Kerins, J O’Connor for G McKenna.

Referee: E Walsh (Rathmore).