Kinvara 3-11

Menlough/Pádraig Pearses 0-10

Ivan Smyth at Tuam Stadium

Kinvara produced a powerful final quarter surge as they were crowned U-19 B North Board champions at Tuam Stadium on Saturday.

The win ensures Vinny Martyn’s charges progress through to face St. Michael’s in the U-19 B county final as they claimed the North Board title at this grade for the second consecutive year. This game was up for grabs midway through the final period as Menlough/Pádraig Pearses had shown resolve to cut their five point deficit to just two with 43 minutes on the clock.

With the score standing at 2-5 to 0-9, Kinvara were still lukewarm favourites but from there until the finish they found gears that their foes did not possess on the day. From the 43rd minute until the end of this contest, Kinvara outscored Menlough/Pádraig Pearses 1-6 to 0-1 as Joshua O’Connor’s second goal of the game proved the decisive blow with just over 10 minutes of normal time remaining.

Donal Loftus did as much as one man could by kicking all Menlough-Pádraig Pearses’s tally. Teddy Gormally, Robbie Lally and Eoin Lally’s side only registered one point from play which Loftus nabbed in the 41st minute. Kinvara’s defence proved the catalyst for this victory as once they reduced the needless fouls which plagued their opening quarter, they stifled Menlough/Pádraig Pearses in attack.

After the first quarter, centre forward Liam Martyn dropped much deeper and acted as a spare defender. Meanwhile, Shaun Phillips was busy out the field as Joshua O’Connor and Oisín Ivers formed a menacing two-man full forward line. O’Connor was a pest under the high ball, with Kinvara keen to use route one whenever possible. Meanwhile, Ivers’ pace and ability to jink his way past challenges proved tricky for the Menlough/Pádraig Pearses defence to handle.

Pictured: Seán Hansberry of Menlough/Padraig Pearses is chased by Kinvara’s Jamie Gunning during the North Board U-19 B Football Final at Tuam Stadium on Sunday. Photo: Joe O’Shaughnessy.