Dromore take the title after cracker with Carmen

DROMORE 2-11 CARRICKMORE 2-9

THE County Senior Reserve Knockout Final in Beragh between two big hitters was a thriller that teetered on a knife edge until the final whistle. Both sides had their opportunities late on but ultimately it was Dromore who came out on top in the end with two points to spare.

The St Dympna’s had an eight-point first half advantage clawed back to just two at the break. Carrickmore grabbed the lead just seven minutes into the second period, Mark Donnelly breaking through for a goal. Dromore came storming back to lead again and in a tense climax Carmen steered a couple of late frees wide of the target.

Carrickmore took an early lead, Stephen Grogan knocking over a point yet the opening quarter belonged to Dromore.

The accurate Caolan McCarron pointed a free and was involved in an excellent team goal minutes later, with Eoin McShane crashing the ball to the net.

With their tails up St Dympna’s tagged on three further points courtesy of McCarron as the St Colmcille’s struggled to break down the Dromore back line at the other end. Tiarnan Mc Garrity pulled one back for Carrickmore only for McCarron to add another to leave six still between the teams.

This was a dominant Dromore. Aidan Lawlor and Gavin Teague were excellent at the back, Matty McCaffrey tireless through the middle, with Colm Mac Rory a real threat. Despite a massive free kick from Ryan McGarrity, the Carmen keeper’s next task was to pick the ball out of his net again.

An inch-perfect pass over the top from Cathal Colton went to the lively MacRory who slipped a defender along the end line and rattled in a great goal to put Dromore eight clear.

Stephen Grogan led the Carmen fightback ably assisted by Paddy Mc Callan who wrested control around the middle.

Grogan pointed a close-range free before being on hand to grab a vital goal moments later. The impressive defender Rory McElroy was rewarded out right when Conor Gormley collected and flashed a shot across the face of goal for Grogan to turn the ball in.

Substitute Aidan Fullerton and Grogan landed points, before Declan McNulty responded for St Dympna’s. But the Carmen had found their groove now and McElroy and Mark Donnelly combined to tee up a crucial Grogan point on the stroke of half time, to leave two between them.

Gormley slotted a tidy score on the restart, though Dromore responded through a well worked McNulty point and they pressed for a goal too only for Conor Colton’s effort to be well dealt with by McGarrity.

The complexion of the game changed on 37 minutes when Carrickmore edged in front. Mark Donnelly made no mistake when he broke the line slipping the ball to the net. Cahir Munroe added a point, that coming after McGarrity was black carded.

A McCarron brace of frees levelled things with ten minutes left. During a tense finale Carrickmore missed two scoreable frees. At the other end a sweeping passage of play with quick hands from Teague and Pearse McNabb sent Mac Rory through for a go-ahead point.

Carmen pressed and goalkeeper McGarrity dropped a long ranger into the square but there was no end product and even when Ruari O’Neill was sent off late on Carrickmore capitalise as McNulty out on the right directed a late free over the bar to secure the title for Dromore.