Dublin make it 10 out of 11

DDSL 2 Waterford1

A deflected winner eight minutes from time yesterday completed an epic comeback by the Dublin and District Schoolboys League (DDSL) to lift their third successive SFAI U14 Kennedy Cup title.

Waterford had led for the most of the final at Limerick University before Dominic Peppard and Gavin Kilkenny struck in the second-half for the champions.

This was the DDSL’s 10th crown in the last 11 years but unquestionably their hardest earned. They were left stunned inside the opening 30 seconds as the Déise won a penalty from the first move of the game. Jack Connor’s trip on Dylan Swales allowed Lee O’Connor to send DDSL keeper Tom Murphy the wrong way from the spot.

Rory Patton was close to equalising for the champions with a shot from an acute angle approaching the break but Regix Madika and Daryl Walsh might have put the tie beyond them had their accuracy been better early in the second-half.

By that stage, the DDSL’s pair of interval substitutes, Thomas Caffrey and Aaron Bolger, had begun to make them tick and they duly levelled midway through the second-half. Dominic Peppard’s free-kick curled around the wall and inside the near post of goalkeeper Ian Holloway who got a hand to the ball but couldn’t prevent it crossing the line.

Patton blazed his shot over the crossbar as extra-time loomed but Gavin Kilkenny sunk the winner when his shot from the left found the far corner of the net via a cruel deflection.

Meanwhile, Kildare had their most successful Kennedy Cup by beating Limerick 2-0 to claim third, thanks to strikes by Mark Barry and Gary Redmond.

A late winner by Charlie Lyons gave Cork a 1-0 victory over South Tipperary in the Bowl decider while Galway’s Aaron Connolly scored a hat-trick as they beat Sligo/Leitrim in the Palte final.

DDSL: Tom Murphy; Jack Connor, Dominic Peppard, Joe Redmond, Ryan Burke; Charlie Barry (Aaron Bolger ht); Gavin Kilkenny, Aaron Lynch (Thomas Caffrey ht), Milenic Alli; Rory Patton (Jack Ryan 58), Dylan Byrne.

WATERFORD: Ian Holloway; Luke O’Brien, Daryl Walsh, Lee O’Connor, Lee Costello; Dylan Swales (Manus McFadden ht), Jason Goldsmith, Conor Whittle, Dean Beresford (Cian Kinsella 56); Regix Madika, Oisin Knox (Brian Cooke 46).

Referee: Andrew Keogh (Limerick)