Summerhill’s title following a dour decider

It was far from a classic, but Summerhill won’t mind as they were crowned A FL Div 1 champions with a narrow victory over Donaghmore/Ashbourne at Pairc Tailteann on Sunday afternoon. End of season games are often below par and this final was no exception. Neither side managed to hit top form in a game that was decided on errors. There were a few incidents of enterprise and considerable skill. Most notably from Tony McDonnell in the Summerhill goals and from Andy Tormey for Donaghmore/Ashbourne in attack, but apart from a few brief moments this was a snooze-fest. McDonnell’s heroics were performed seven minutes into the second-half when he got down low to his left to save an Andy Tormey penalty. That missed opportunity rattled Donaghmore/Ashbourne and they lost the initiative. The introduction of Damien Byrne at the three-quarter stage helped steady Summerhill and earned them valuable possession around midfield. His hunger and quick reactions at the breakdowns provided the platform for Summerhill to earn the win. Shortly after his introduction, Byrne was vital in helping Summerhill establish a 2-5 to 0-8 lead with 11 minutes remaining, but they failed to score again as Donaghmore/Ashbourne threatened to force extra-time. Frees from Andy Tormey and Faolain Smith closed the gap to the minimum as full-time approached, but Donaghmore/Ashbourne couldn’t get any closer. Bryan Menton did go close a minute into injury-time, but his long range effort sailed wide. That miss epitomised the game. There was very little free-flowing football as both sides seemed more intent on stopping each other. Scores were scarce as well with 10 of the 17 scores coming from placed balls. Donaghmore/Ashbourne managed just four scores from play while Summerhill had to rely on placed balls for four of their scores which included Stephen Kennedy’s penalty. Although Menton opened the scoring with a fine point after two minutes the quality didn’t get any better. A minute later Stephen Kennedy (pictured) converted a free after he was fouled and in the eighth minute Summerhill took the lead. A dangerous ball into the square broke to Paul Larkin who was impeded by Leon Tormey. Stephen Kennedy converted the resultant penalty and Summerhill looked comfortable. However, it took them a further 21 minutes to register their next score and by that time Smith (three, two frees), Eoin Reilly and Andy Tormey (free) had Donaghmore/Ashbourne ahead by 0-6 to 1-1. Summerhill were struggling to make any headway, but they were boosted two minutes before the break when Micheal Gorman’s poor point attempt fell short and Brian Ennis punched to the net to give them a 2-1 to 0-6 interval lead. Within 90 seconds of the restart Donaghmore/Ashbourne were level when Andy Tormey converted a free. Four minutes later they should have been ahead, but Eric Callaghan deflected the ball wide with a careless punch. David Morgan did eventually edge Donaghmore/Ashbourne ahead with a simple score, but again they should have pulled out of sight when Morgan claimed a long ball from Ciaran Ellis and was fouled by Mark O’Reilly. Andy Tormey didn’t hit the resultant penalty with much conviction, but McDonnell did well to keep it out and that save inspired Summerhill. Stephen Kennedy restored parity from a free and then following Damien Byrne’s introduction they took control with points from Maurice Kennedy, Stephen Kennedy (free) and Ennis and kicked on to claim the title following a difficult season which had already seen them beat Donaghmore/Ashbourne in both league and championship. Summerhill - T McDonnell; C Young, M O’Reilly, W Ryan; M Gorman, A Kenny, R Hatton; P Comey, C Gillespie; S Kennedy (1-3, 1-0 penalty, three frees), B Lyons, D Larkin; S Dalton, P Larkin (0-1), B Ennis (1-0). Subs - M Kennedy (0-1) for D Larkin 25mins, A Ryan for Gorman 40m, D Byrne for Comey 43m, S Husband for Gillespie 52m. Donaghmore/Ashbourne - P Durkan; I O’Donnell, C McGill, S Curran; C Ellis, T Kelly, M Roche; L Tormey, B Menton (0-1); E Reilly (0-1), I Dowd, E Callaghan; F Smith (0-4, three frees), D Morgan (0-1), A Tormey (0-3, frees). Subs - P Finn for Roche 44mins, K Lanigan for Callaghan 48m. Referee - Cormac Reilly (St Mary’s).