Paul Geaney drags defiant Dingle over the line in epic extra-time victory over Ballyboden
Tom O'Sullivan is held aloft by his Dingle team-mate Mark O'Connor after their side's victory. Pic: Piaras Ó Mídheach/Sportsfile
An All-Ireland club semi-final for the ages and yet another demonstration of Dingle’s defiance.
Ten points they had been in arrears here, nine at the break of normal time. If they were in the ownership of ducks, they would have drowned.
Then Paul Geaney appeared. The calf injury that had beset him and compelled him to be held in reserve until half-time was hardly visible as he gave a monumental display of leadership.
Eight points, the game’s top scorer despite not playing for 30-plus minutes, Geaney was a force of nature, as was Tom O’Sullivan who landed six points in the second half of normal time.
Ryan O’Dwyer had too been brilliant for Ballyboden St Enda’s who at times seemed to be toying with Dingle but that all changed upon Geaney’s introduction.
It was the 35-year-old who ultimately forced extra-time. The city end of SuperValu Páirc Uí Chaoimh was very much the scoring end – 1-29 of the 2-40 total in normal time was registered in that goal.
So it was probably no surprise that Ballyboden scored more facing into it in the first half of extra-time.
Their three points came from two placed balls, a Ryan O’Dwyer free and a two-point placed ball courtesy of Daire Sweeney.
In return, Dylan Geaney curled over a point before the turnaround and cousin Mikey added another on the other side of the break. Paul Geaney’s sixth point of the day levelled affairs once more, only for Ross McGarry to palm over a point in the 85th minute.
Geaney wasn’t done. Up he stepped to land a two-point free to give Dingle their first lead of this All-Ireland semi-final.
After a couple of Ballyboden wides, Mark O’Connor added his first point and Dingle had once again in Cork done the seemingly unimaginable.
Overran and outfought so often in the first half, the arrival of Geaney for the second half truly was a shot in the arm for Dingle. They scored the first three points of the half to cut the difference to six.
That early enterprise was undone when Colm Basquel followed up an O’Dwyer point with the game’s opening goal in the 35th minute. From the Dingle kick-out, Kieran Kennedy fed Daire Sweeney and he linked up with Ross McGarry to square for Basquel to turn and finish.
Ten points down, Dingle had to gamble. They went direct and responded to the setback with a brace of points. The margin was eight when Conor Geaney twice struck for goal in the 43rd minute.
His first attempt off his right foot was kept out by Hugh O’Sullivan. His second from his left peg was denied by the post.
Redemption came quickly for Geaney when he assisted Tadhg Browne for a goal less than a minute later. Dingle were finally in the game.
Four of the next eight scores came from the inside of Tom O’Sullivan’s left boot including a two-pointer that brought Dingle within two points in the 57th minute.
Conor Geaney backed it up with his second of the game and Ballyboden were reeling. Ross McGarry made amends for a disappointing wide in the 56th minute with an additional time point and then Paul Geaney landed an outrageous two-pointer to square matters at 1-20 apiece.
Colm Basquel could have won it when Patrick O’Connor was adjudged to have fouled the excellent Ryan O’Dwyer but his shot went badly wide and referee Fergal Kelly summoned a halt to this chapter of the game.
With Paul Geaney, Dingle were an uncoiled spring. Without him in the first half, they couldn’t string together successive points. Ballyboden were simply that good.
Although, Conor Flannery was unfortunate to be blown for a double hop towards the end of the half when he was merely trying to control the game.
The small mercy for Dingle was they didn’t concede a goal. Ballyboden had three openings, the first coming in the fifth minute. James Holland’s shot was kept out after he was teed up by Colm Basquel but Pa Warren compensated with a point.
It didn’t matter much in the grand scheme of things as Ballyboden stretched six points to no score ahead after 10 minutes. By that stage, Gneeveguilla-born Warren was the best Kerry player on the sod with two points.
A second goal opportunity came Holland’s way in the 13th minute. Tom Leo O’Sullivan had denied Ryan O’Dwyer and in the aftermath, Holland couldn’t make the attack count as he struck wide.
Dingle eventually changed the scoreboard in the 14th minute to bring them within six points but by the time Ballyboden spurned another three chances, the Dublin and Leinster champions had created a gap of eight points.
From close range, Ryan Basquel kicked wide in the 21st minute but Dingle were hardly appreciating the let-offs and the margin stretched to nine by the break, 0-14 to 0-5.
Dingle were close to done. Or so we so erroneously thought.
P. Geaney (0-8, 1 tp, 1 tpf, 2 frees); T. O’Sullivan (0-6, 1 tp); D. Geaney (0-4, 1 free); T. Browne (1-1); M. Flaherty, C. Geaney (0-2 each); N. Geaney, M. Geaney, M. O’Connor (0-1 each).
R. O’Dwyer (0-7, 1 tp); D. Sweeney (0-5, 1 tpf, 2 frees) C. Basquel (1-2); R. McGarry (0-4); P. Warren (0-3); R. Basquel (0-2); B. Bobbett (0-1).
G. Curran; P. O’Connor, T.L. O’Sullivan, B. O’Connor; A. O’Connor, C. Flannery, T. O’Sullivan; M. O’Connor, B. O’Connor; T. Browne, N. Geaney, D. Geaney; C. Bambury, M. Flaherty, C. Geaney.
P. Geaney (c) for C. Bambury (h-t); M. Geaney for M. Flaherty, S. Moran for A. O’Connor (both 52); N. Ryan for B. O’Connor (54); M. Flaherty for C. Geaney (inj 73); C. Bambury for T. Browne (inj 76).
H. O’Sullivan; B. Bobbett, C. Flaherty, S. Clayton (c), H. Donaghy; P. Dunleavy, C. Flaherty, P. Warren; C. D’Arcy, A. Gavin; J. Holland, R. O’Dwyer, R. McGarry; R. Basquel, C. Basquel, D. Sweeney.
K. Kennedy for P. Warren (inj 35); C. O’Dwyer for D. Sweeney (51); J. McGuire for R. Basquel (56); J. Madden for J. Holland (58); R. Baynes for H. Donaghy (60+2); D. Sweeney for C. O’Dwyer (e-t); J. Holland for S. Clayton (e-t h-t); L. O’Donoghue for A. Gavin (inj 73); C. O’Dwyer for R. O’Dwyer (inj 77).
F. Kelly (Longford)
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