St MacDara’s capture Dublin Schools Championship title

ST MacDARA’S Community College secured the Dublin Schools Senior ‘C’ Football Championship title with a 1-11 to 0-8 victory over St Kevin’s College at the National Games Development Centre in Abbotstown on Monday afternoon.

Up 0-6 to 0-4 at the break, the Templeogue outfit were helped to the silverware by a second-half goal from Adam Danaher.

Coached by Kilmacud Crokes pair Pat Burke – a former Dublin and Clare footballer – and Naomhan O’Riordain, this MacDara’s squad draws players from St Jude’s, Robert Emmet’s, Good Counsel/Liffey Gaels and St Mary’s, Saggart.

In a tentative opening to action, a point from Sean McDonnell (one of the Jude’s contingent) was the difference between the teams.

Cuan Manning, Paddy Fitzgerald and Conor Durkan were subsequently on target as – despite playing against a breeze – MacDara’s found themselves in the driving seat at the interval.

The impressive Tadhg Gorman had kept St Kevin’s in touch, but the Finglas side found the going tough when action resumed.

Supplementing another Manning point, Danaher got on the end of an attacking move to rattle the opposition net.

This helped put some daylight between the sides and with Fitzgerald, Durkan and team captain Sean Kirwan all kicking late scores, MacDara’s eased over the line.

While the likes of Manning, McDonnell and Conor Dunphy shone at the far end of the pitch, the defensive quartet of Kirwan, Darragh O’Connor, Cian Langan and Aaron Farrell were every bit as crucial to their side’s success.

For MacDara’s, a Leinster final against either Heywood CS (Laois) or O’Carolan College, is now on the horizon.