Bective best in JFC final thriller

Bective won a thrilling JFC decider this evening in Páirc Tailteann with a 0-15 to 0-12 victory over Dunsany in a game where the balance swayed in favour of each team for brief periods throughout the hour.

Shane Walshe had wind-assisted Dunsany on the scoreboard from a first minute free, but Paul McCabe drew the sides level for the first time from a free at the other end in the fourth minute.

Prior to that Marty Mulhall had sent a 40-metre free off the ground wide.

Mulhall made amends for that miss when he converted yet another free, this time out of his hands, from about 20 metres, but Pierre Fox had Dunsany on level terms with the first score of the decider from play in the seventh minute.

Dunsany had a fleeting goal chance from Walshe that was blocked by a a couple of Bective defenders and from the resultant clearance Padraig Maguire gained possession and split the posts.

Walshe gave Dunsany a two-point lead from a well-directed free, but Bective got back on terms with good efforts from play by Ciaran Breslan and Cathal McConnell which left it 0-4 each at the end of the first-quarter.

Shane Brennan edged Dunsany ahead again with a superb long-range point from play, but again Bective bounced back to parity from a Craig Roche effort that sailed over the black spot in the 20th minute.

The tempo dropped a little for the closing minutes of the half with McCabe (free) and Walshe trading points before Bective lost Ciaran Reilly to a black card a minute before the interval. The influential midfielder was replaced by Paul Lyness.

Brian Cantwell pointed Bective in front 50 seconds after the resumption and Sean Keating doubled the advantage a minute later as Bective broke smartly from the traps, but Walshe (free) replied for Dunsany to leave the minimum in it.

Bective enjoyed a period of dominance that brought points from Keating, Mulhall from a free about 50 metres out, and McCabe (free) and then Dunsany lost full-back Gavin Byrne to a black card.

However, just when it looked like they would fade out of the game, Dunsany fashioned a mini-rivival with a brace of pointed frees from Mark Brennan and a flicked effort by Shane Brennan that left the minimum in it again (0-10 to 0-11) with nine minutes remaining.

On a surge at that stage, Dunsany got back on terms from a well-worked move that made the opening for an Eoin Marsh point.

Bective were on the ropes and needed some inspiration, it was provided by a surging McConnell run that produced a point and that was followd by a superb effort from Lyness for a 0-13 to 0-11 advantage with three minutes remaining.

Shane Brennan's point left the minimum in it again, but then Bective dug deep and carved out two more chances which Keating and Mulhall converted to prolong Dunsany's agony in search of an elusive JFC title.

For Bective there is the lure of the IFC in 2017 and before that a run in the Leinster Club JFC starting in a fortnight.