Cuala march on to last four with victory over Sarsfields

CUALA 1-18

SARSFIELDS 0-11

Cuala progressed to the last four of the AIB Leinster Club Senior Football Championship when comfortably overcoming Sarsfields by ten points in Parnell Park on Saturday afternoon.

Sarsfields played the more fluent football in the first-half with two early points by late replacement Ben McCormack helping build a narrow 0-7 to 0-6 lead by the turnaround.

The hosts were far more composed upon the restart with the decisive moment arriving in the 41st minute as Dan O’Sullivan pounced for the game’s solitary goal.

Cuala were keen to seize the initiative from the first whistle as Eoin Kennedy kicked a superb two-pointer in the opening minute but that proved an isolated moment of precision as the Dalkey outfit struggled for accuracy in the early stages.

Sarsfields weren’t devoid of wides either but their greater levels of possession were rewarded as McCormack and Ryan Kearney spilt the uprights to level matters by the 3rd minute.

The visitors were beginning to enjoy a degree of control in the aerial exchanges and with Cuala snatching at chances from the sporadic periods of pressure they enjoyed, the Sarsfields confidence began to grow in earnest.

McCormack and Karl Hartley pointed to edge Sarsfields two points clear and another score from Cathal White left them 0-5 to 0-2 ahead by the end of the first quarter.

Cuala could and should have eroded that margin in one fell swoop as Peter Duffy raced through on goal but the midfielder’s shot lacked sufficient accuracy as it cannoned to safety off the upright.

Sarsfields spurned a goal chance of their own in the 21st minute as Darragh O’Dowd denied Luke Mahon and Cuala availed of that let-off to draw within a point courtesy of a Con O’Callaghan brace.

The momentum seemed to be heading Cuala’s way as Niall O’Callaghan kicked a two-pointer in the 26th minute but unanswered scores by Shea Ryan and Daragh Ryan saw Sarsfields enter the break with a marginal lead.

As laboured as their first-half showing was, the hosts raced out of the blocks in the early stages of the second-half with Charlie McMorrow restoring the stalemate within a minute of the restart. 

Con O’Callaghan added another quickfire brace while a fisted Duffy point saw Cuala blitz their opponents for four points within three minutes. 

Far from building on this platform, the Dalkey side conceded the next two scores to Mahon and Kearney before Kennedy ambled forward for his third score, as Cuala began to put daylight between the sides. 

An excellent team move in the 41st minute involving McMorrow and David O’Dowd opened up the away defence and O’Sullivan took his time before crashing home from eight yards. 

Points followed by the end of the third quarter through Niall O’Callaghan and O’Sullivan and suddenly, Sarsfields were facing a seven-point deficit as their provincial ambitions began to drift into the distance. 

From that point, it was just a case of Cuala extending their lead without overly-exerting themselves as substitutes Conor Mullally and Jamie Conroy both scored while Con O’Callaghan finished the contest with 0-6 to his name. 

Scorers – Cuala: C O’Callaghan 0-6 (2f); D O’Sullivan 1-1; N O’Callaghan 0-4 (1 P2); E Kennedy 0-3 (1 P2); C McMorrow, P Duffy, J Conroy, C Mullally 0-1 apiece. Sarsfields: B McCormack, R Kearney 0-2 each; C Kavanagh, C White (‘Mark’), S Ryan, D Ryan, L Mahon, C O’Donovan, K Hartley 0-1 apiece. 

Cuala: Darragh O’Dowd; D Conroy, M Fitzsimons, E O’Callaghan; E Kennedy, C McMorrow, David O’Dowd; P Ó Cofaigh Byrne, P Duffy; D O’Sullivan, C Doran, C Groarke; C O’Brien, C O’Callaghan, N O’Callaghan. Subs: J Conroy for O’Brien (41), C Mullally for O’Sullivan (49), D Drummond for D Conroy (53), K O’Shea for Groarke (57), J Keenan for Kennedy (57).   

Sarsfields: C Moore; J O’Neill, C Kavanagh, C Harnett; D Conlon, D Shalvey, C White; S Ryan, C Bolton; C O’Donovan, R Kearney, D Ryan; B McCormack, L Mahon, K Hartley. Subs: B Loakman for McCormack (30+1), B Coffey for Mahon (42), M Byrne for Conlon (46), TJ Donohue for D Ryan (53), K Dwyer for White (55).     

Referee: Alan Coyne (Westmeath).