St Vincents edge out Whitehall Colmcille in thriller at Parnell Park

ST VINCENT’S 1-28

WHITEHALL COLMCILLE 5-15

14-man St Vincent’s secured their first win in Group 1 of the PTSB Dublin Senior 1 Hurling Championship following their thrilling one-point victory against Whitehall Colmcille at Parnell Park on Friday night.

There was little to separate the teams after an entertaining first-half that saw Whitehall lead by 2-12 to 0-16 with goals at either end of the half from Lee Gannon and Eoghan O’Donnell pivotal to their narrow lead.

An own goal from Mark O’Farrell and a further O’Donnell strike saw Whitehall maintain their narrow lead in the second-half but a sumptuous Conor Burke goal saw Vinnies back in the mix with substitute Stephen Williams scoring the winning point in injury time.  

There was a dramatic start to proceedings as Gannon gained possession at midfield and while his point attempt lacked sufficient power, it deceived Rory O’Neill in the Vinnies goal as it trickled into the net.

A superb Burke score from the right flank opened the St Vincent’s account but O’Donnell soon restored Whitehall’s three-point buffer from a clever Paddy Spellacy pass.

The Marino outfit, who lost their opening two games to Kilmacud Crokes and Erin’s Isle, settled into the clash through a brace of Brian Bolger points and further scores from Mark Sweeney and Bolger saw them overtake their opponents by the 9th minute.

While Conor Cummins levelled for Colmcille, the momentum was with Vinnies at this stage and they pushed ahead by the end of the first quarter following points by Matteo Cardiff, Tom Connolly, Bolger and James Mulcahy.

Mulcahy and Connolly kept the Vins scoreboard ticking over but an economical Whitehall side managed to keep in their sights as Spellacy, Gannon, Conor Sheedy and Cormac Costello all clipped over scores at the contest evolved.

Points by Sweeney and Burke looked to have stalled Colmcille’s momentum approaching the break but O’Donnell burst through in trademark style in the 27th minute before leaving O’Neill helpless with a powerful strike across the keeper.

Spellacy converted two further frees while Sheedy added his second point to edge their side into a marginal two-point advantage by the interval.  

St Vincent’s were buoyed by the introduction of John Hetherton for his first taste of Championship action this season and it wasn’t long before they had restored parity courtesy of scores from the influential Connolly and Sweeney.

Further scores by Oisín Mulcahy and James Mulcahy were just reward for their strong resumption and the contest seemed to be slipping away from Whitehall as Cardiff put three points between the teams.

However, a speculative ball by Costello caused consternation in the Vins defence with O’Farrell unfortunately deflecting the ball past O’Neill, bringing the teams level in the process.

Matters deteriorated for O’Farrell and his side by the start of the final quarter as O’Donnell offered a replica of his earlier goal to edge his team in front before the Vinnies defender received his second booking after dragging the marauding Gannon down close to goal.

The locals were in dire need of inspiration at this stage and it duly arrived through Burke, who gathered possession in his own half, eventually trading passes with Williams before unleashing an impeccable finish beyond the diving Ronan Murray.

O’Donnell completed his hat-trick in the 52nd minute but it was St Vincent’s that finished the stronger with Bolger and Hetherton adding cracking points before Williams settled the issue to give a suitably dramatic conclusion to this hugely enjoyable encounter.

Scorers – St Vincent’s: B Bolger 0-10 (5f, 2 ’65); C Burke 1-2; T Connolly 0-4; M Sweeney, J Mulcahy 0-3 each; M Cardiff, J Hetherton (1f) 0-2 each; O Mulcahy, S Williams 0-1 apiece. Whitehall Colmcille: E O’Donnell 3-1; P Spellacy 0-8 (6f, 1 ’65); L Gannon 1-1; M O’Farrell 1-0 (own goal); C Sheedy 0-2; C Cummins, C Costello, M Noonan 0-1 apiece.

St Vincent’s: R O’Neill; P O’Connell, B Moorehouse Carroll, L Sweeney; S Mulcahy, C Burke, P Gilroy; M Sweeney, M O’Farrell; M Cardiff, B Bolger, O Mulcahy; T Connolly, J Mulcahy, K Ward. Subs: J Hetherton for Ward (half-time), S Williams for J Mulcahy (48), R Murphy for O’Connell (50).

Whitehall Colmcille: R Murray; K Nangle, S Kellett, J Thorp; E Moran, D Gray, S Dunphy; L Gannon, C Cummins; M Noonan, C Costello, J Raftery; C Sheedy, Eoghan O’Donnell, P Spellacy. Subs: D Noonan for Cummins (37), S Foran for M Noonan (40), N Carroll for Sheedy (60).  

Referee: Rory Hanley (St Brigid’s).