Glenanne men secure Neville Davin Cup

GLENANNE’S men’s team had plenty to cheer about on St Patrick’s Day when they claimed the Neville Davin Cup title.

The Tallaght side put together a fine display as they overcame the challenge of Bray 3-1 to come out tops.

Both teams eased their way into the game and playing with caution, resulting in a goalless first quarter.

However, Glenanne found their stride in the second quarter, putting Bray under serious pressure with attack after attack on the Bray Goal.

Their persistence paid off just before halftime when Gary Shaw scored from a short corner, giving Glenanne a 1-0 lead.

After the break, Glenanne maintained their high pressure on the Bray defence.

John Stewart extended the lead to 2-0 by getting on the end of a ball passed across the circle by Riagan Dunne.

Entering the final quarter, Glenanne’s management team emphasised the importance of not becoming complacent in the game.

Glenanne came out in the last quarter with the same intensity, with Gary Shaw playing the ball to Ian Walker, who calmly put the ball into the back of the net, to make it 3-0.

Bray managed to score a consolation goal to make it 3-1, but it wasn’t enough to shift the game’s outcome.

However, Glenanne had done enough by that stage and held out for a well-deserved victory.

The Glenanne squad is made up of a combination of emerging talent and experienced players proved too much for Bray in the end.

The teams journey in the Neville Cup competition began on Halloween night where they played a strong Pembroke side in Serpentine Avenue.

They were unlucky to lose 4-2 with Garry Shaw and Ríagan Dunne getting the goals for Glenanne but it wasn’t enough to get the win.

This meant that Glenanne were now into the Neville Davin Cup quarter final, where they would face the highly experienced and skilful Monkstown side away in Rathdown school.

Glenanne proved the dominant side in this encounter, despite Monkstown having a strong 3rd quarter, Glenanne came away with a 5-3 win, with Garry Shaw, Sean Brennan, Alan McLoughlin, Marco Gayubo Kinch, and Ríagan Dunne getting the goals for Glenanne.

Glenanne now had the tough challenge of EY2 side Railway Union in the semi-final, which would be another away fixture for Glenanne.

Glenanne started well, but so did Railway, with it being 1-1 at the end of the first quarter with Lukas Odendaal getting the opening goal for Glenanne.

Ríagan Dunne then found the top corner of the goal from a well-executed short corner with Garry Shaw assisting to put Glenanne ahead.

Lukas Odendaal then got his second goal to secure the 3-1 win and a place in the final for Glenanne’s Men’s firsts.