Under 21 Club Championship Final 2007

Dr Crokes 1-09  ---  Fossa/Listry 1-08 (Lewis Road Sat Dec 22nd 2007)

In a game in which neutrals fancied us to win comfortably we just had the minimum to spare over Fossa/Listry. It was just as well that our players and mentors paid no heed to the predictions but got themselves focussed on the job in hand and used our extra bit of class to get us over the finishing line after a very close game. It was important that we won this game as we have fallen short in a number of County competitions in the last few years. It was a historic victory as well as this was the first running of the Under 21 Club Championship.

Our opponents had a point in the seventh minute but we equalised a minute later. The teams swopped points again in the next five minutes. Fossa/Listry went in front again a few minutes later. Their point lead was however short lived as we broke through for a goal in the 22nd minute. This resulted from a great defence splitting run by Jamie Doolan to set up Ruairi Mangan for a goal. Our opponents had a point in the 28th minute to leave us 1-2 to 0-4 in front at the interval.We were guilty of several wides in this half and we were also guilty of indiscipline as their four pointed frees in the first half, all expertly converted, were due to protestations on our part that permitted the referee to bring forward the ball to more scorable positions.

The teams exchanged points on two occasions in the first five minutes of the second half. In the next ten minutes we had three points to Fossa's one to put us two points ahead at the end of the third quarter. Each team had a point in the next five minutes but when Ruairi Mangan and Luke Quinn sent over points in the 54th and 57th minutes to double our lead the game looked in safe keeping. Our opponents however did not see it that way and struck for a goal from a free and had the chance of equalising in injury time to leave us the first Under 21 Club Champions in Kerry.

Dr Crokes Best Player; Fionn Fitzgerald.

Team and Scorers; Alan Kelly; John Payne, Mike Moloney, Fionn Fitzgerald; David O'Leary, Ian Howard, Gavin Tucker; Luke Quinn 0-2, Shane Doolan; Brian Looney 0-2, Kieran O'Leary 0-2(0-1free), Daithi Casey; Mike O'Grady 0-1(free), Ruairi Mangan 1-1, Jamie Doolan 0-1. Subs; BarraO'Connell, Denis Galvin, David Neeson, Tommy Ryan, John Bartlett, Jonathon Clarke, Pat Buckley.

Under 21 Club Championship Semi-Final.

           Dr Crokes 2-13 ------- Beaufort 0-3(Played in Beaufort on Sat 10/11/07.)

The scoreboard would indicate that this was the easiest of easy wins for us. Nothing could be further from the truth. The first half was a very close contest with our opponents having every bit as much of possession as we had. They failed to convert their attacks into scores, having several wides and ending the half with just three points, all from frees. In the same period we were less wasteful, scoring six points ,all from play. One would also have to give our defence some credit for their tight marking during this thirty minutes.We were well on top in the second half, notching up 2-7 to Beaufort's nil.

We had two unanswered points in the first ten minutes of the game, during which period our opponents were guilty of some bad misses They had their first point in the 12th minute but by the 15th minute we had raced into a four points to one lead. Both sides had two points in the second quarter, leaving us six points to three in front at the interval.

The game virtually ended as a contest by the 40th minute as we scored 2-3 without reply, the goals coming from Jamie Doolan in the 36th and 38th minute. Beaufort never gave up but they were fighting a lost cause after this scoring spree of ours.We registered four more points before the end of the game to run out winners by 2-13 to 0-3.

Dr Crokes Best Player; Jamie Doolan.

Team and Scorers; Alan Kelly; Fionn Fitzgerald, Luke Quinn 0-1, John Payne; David O'Leary, Mike Moloney, Gavin Tucker; Johnny O'Sullivan, Johnny Buckley 0-2; Brian Looney 0-3, Kieran O'Leary 0-1, Shane Doolan 0-3; Daithi Casey, Ruairi Mangan 0-2, Jamie Doolan 2-1.    Subs;  Ian Howard, Barra O'Connell, Denis Galvin, John Bartlett, Tommy Ryan.