Blackhall use all nine lives

Daniel Carty was the hero for Blackhall Gaels at Pairc Tailteann on Saturday where he helped his side to the Junior C FC title with a merited victory over Na Fianna. Carty made three crucial second-half blocks and interceptions which prevented goals for Na Fianna and the woodwork also intervened as the Enfield / Baconstown combination were unable to make a breakthrough. Blackhall also finished strongest and late points from Thomas Clarke and substitute Gary Smith put an extra gloss on their performance. 'One man up' was a regular call from Blackhall Gaels manager Bruce Crehan who patrolled the sidelines nervously for 60 minutes despite the fact that his team were in control for long periods and took a 2-3 to 0-5 lead to the dressing room at half-time. 'We were probably fortunate that Na Fianna didn"t get any goals, although they could have had four or five, that"s the way it goes sometimes and we could have had a few more goals as well,' he told the Meath Chronicle as the celebrations got underway in earnest. Blackhall didn"t have it all their own way and Na Fianna enjoyed a reasonable share of midfield possession, but they were unable to capitalise on that and had to work extremely hard for every score. They conceded two goals in the opening 10 minutes as Blackhall exposed huge gaps in the Na Fianna rearguard and found the net through Clarke and David O"Hanlon. However, Blackhall were also fortunate to have 15 players on the pitch following an early exchange. Scarcely a minute had elapsed when James Larkin needlessly kicked out at an opponent and forfeited a free. He also escaped with a yellow card from referee Seamus O"Connor who had a good game and could have pointed the Blackhall player towards the departure lounge. Larkin, John Staunton and O"Hanlon formed a slick half-forward line for the Gaels who were denied further goals by a combination of poor finishing and good defending. Staunton, Larkin and Jim Finglas added the first-half points while at the other end Na Fianna kept in touch with points from play by the dynamic Brian Queeney, Mark Baldwin, Stephen Leonard, Shane Burke and Seamie Donegan. Na Fianna resumed smartly with full-forward Donegan, who adopted a sporadic roving role, claiming a point inside 20 seconds after Queeney launched a solo raid from the throw-in. Both teams worked extremely hard during a tight third-quarter and Na Fianna were denied a goal when Carty got enough of a touch on the ball to deflect it around the post. The Gaels tallied four wides during this period with a solitary point from substitute Dermot Carty. They remained in the ascendancy due to the efforts of wing-backs Donncha Tobin and John Kelly who consistently broke up what looked like promising Na Fianna attacks. There was also another crucial block by Carty which denied Na Fiann"s David McCormack a goal and kept the Gaels in front by four points, 2-4 to 0-6, as the game entered the final quarter. Erik Broad eventually split the posts for the Gaels after a further two wides, but Na Fianna kept battling and Carty made another goal-line clearance which denied substitute William Davey who was foiled again soon after by 'keeper Martin Hennessy. In the final minute, Na Fianna crashed the ball against the crossbar. It was that type of day for them, which spelt good news for all connected with Blackhall Gaels. SCORERS Blackhall Gaels - T Clarke 1-1; D O"Hanlon 1-0; J Finglas, J Staunton, J Larkin, E Broad, Dermot Carty, G Smith 0-1 each. Na Fianna - S Donegan 0-2; S Burke, S Leonard, M Baldwin, B Queeney 0-1 each. THE TEAMS Blackhall Gaels - M Hennessy; Daniel Carty, P Snee. U Colgan; J Kelly, S Rattigan, D Tobin; J O"Hora, E Broad; J Larkin, J Staunton, D O"Hanlon; D Larkin, T Clarke, J Finglas. Subs - G Smith for O"Hora, Dermot Carty for D Larkin, both 32 mins; D Mulligan for J Larkin 50m; G Smith for Staunton 57m; M Crehan for Kelly 60m. Na Fianna - F Clinton; B Hilton, G Greville, A McDonald; N Burke, F Foran, S Farrell; H Dorgan, B Queeney; M Baldwin, S Leonard, S Burke; D Downey, S Donegan, D McCormack. Subs - F O"Connor for Burke 24 mins; D Curran for McDonald 44m; P Hogan for Downey 36m. REFEREE Seamus O"Connor (Carnaross).