ST EUNAN’S PROGRESSED to the semi-finals of the County Under-21 Hurling Championship with victory over Aodh Ruadh at a crisp O’Donnell Park this afternoon.
St Eunan’s 3-10 Aodh Ruadh 0-7
A fine individual performance from Kevin Kealy, who scored 2-6 alone, drove the Letterkenny side to victory. They will now face Buncrana in the last four after the Scarvey based team had a walkover victory over Burt – who couldn’t field – on Saturday.
Colm Flood and Sean McVeigh took charge of St Eunan’s after manager Paddy Flood was unable to attend the fixture due to a back complaint.
However, manager Flood would’ve been delighted to hear of the progress of his team.
Photo caption: Action from today’s Under-21 Hurling quarter-final between St Eunan’s Conor O’Grady and Eddie Lynch from Aodh Ruadh, Ballyshannon at O’ Donnell Park. Photo: Gary Foy, newsandsportfiles.com
Kealy grabbed his first goal on five minutes when he stabbed past Brendan Gillespie at the second attempt and then added a second on 13 minutes when he finished off a pass from Aaron O’Connell.
St Eunan’s Under-21 hurlers huddle up at O’Donnell Park this afternoon following their victory over Aodh Ruadh in the County Under-21 Hurling Championship quarter-final
That made the score 2-2 to 0-4, with the Ballyshannon outfit having posted points through Patrick Faherty, Daragh Cleary, Oisin Rooney and Matthew Ahern.
Kevin Meehan and Dara McCarthy posted the last two points of the half to leave St Eunan’s 2-4 to 0-4 ahead by the break.
Rooney and Ahern grabbed the first two scores of the second half for the Fr Tierney Park based team but from then on – after Niall O’Donnell in the St Eunan’s goal had saved from Stephen Connolly – it was a black and amber procession.
St Eunan’s reamed off 1-6 to 0-1 in the closing stages, with Kealy involved as always. Meehan landed a couple of fine long range efforts as well and eight minutes from time the win was rubber-stamped by a goal from Conor O’Grady, who ghosted through the Aodh Ruadh defence and planting the ball past Gillespie.
St Eunan’s: Niall O’Donnell; Sean Halvey, Francis Lennon, Caoimhinn Lennon; Brian MacIntyre, Conor O’Donnell, Noel Gorman; Stephen Doherty, Conor O’Grady (1-0); Aaron O’Connell, Kevin Meehan (0-3, 2f), Dara McCarthy (0-1); Cian Durack, Kevin Kealy (2-6), Anthony Horgan. Subs: Daniel O’Connor for Horgan (19), Conor Parke for Gorman (half-time),  Horgan for Durack (48), Gorman for McCarthy (54).
Aodh Ruadh: Brendan Gillespie; Tommy Gillespie, Eugene Dummond, Donal Sweeney; Thomas Anderson, Oisin Rooney (0-2, 1f), Ciaran Rami; Matthew Ahern (0-1, 1f), Eddie Lynch (0-2, 1f); Rory Cullen, Conor McNeilly, Stephen Connolly; Patrick Faherty (0-1), Ciaran Duffy, Daragh Cleary (0-1). Subs: Ciaran Kelly for Faherty (half-time), TJ Gillespie and Sean Maguire for Aherne and Cleary (56), Faherty for Rami (59).
Referee: Aidan McAleer (Naomh Padraig, Muff)
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