Danske Bank Dalton Cup final

St Jospeh’s Donaghmore 3-16 St Louis Ballymena 2-15

In a final that will be remembered for years to come, St Joseph’s Donaghmore etched their names into the history books, defeating St Louis Grammar School Ballymena to claim their first-ever Danske Bank Dalton Cup. In a clash at Castledawson between two schools making their debut at the pinnacle of U13 Schools Football in Ulster, it took over 80 minutes of high-octane drama to separate the sides.

The Tyrone school appeared to have won the game in normal time when a last gasp injury time goal seemed to have given them the victory. However the scoreboard was showing that teams were level and after debate between match officials and team mentors on both sides, extra time was ordered. Donaghmore had the better of matters during that better time and though St Louis had a chance of bringing the game to penalties with a late goal chance, the Donaghmore goalkeeper was equal to the shot and they went up the field to add the insurance point through corner forward Daniel O’Neill. You had to feel for the St Louis boys who were withing seconds of writing their names in the record books but Donaghmore struck with a brilliant goal two minutes into injury time to deny them

Donaghmore opened the scoring in the very first minute of normal time with a point from play by O’Neill, but St Louis quickly took control. Midfielder Conan McKeever ignited a scoring spree in the second minute, taking charge of the middle of the park. Cahan O’Kane added a great point from the right, followed swiftly by a well-taken score from Oisin Anyalechi. McKeever continued to punish the Tyrone side, adding multiple points before Ronan Laverty struck for a magnificent goal in the 16th minute. Despite Daniel O’Neill doing his best to keep Donaghmore ticking over, St Louis dominated the half and went into the break with a commanding 1-10 to 0-03 lead.

Trailing by ten points, the Tyrone side emerged for the second half a completely transformed outfit. With the breeze at their backs the comeback commenced in the 6th minute when centre half-back Roan Ogle surged forward to finish a brilliant goal. Just two minutes later, Lorcan Barr raised another green flag to completely shift the momentum. Point by point, Donaghmore chipped away at the deficit, with Conal Bonner and Barr finding their range to cut the gap to just two. St Louis managed brief respites, including a great team move where Anyalechi set up Laverty for a point, and a clever short free from McKeever to Kiran Jayaprakash to keep the scoreboard ticking. However, Donaghmore would not be denied. A relentless Barr knocked over another free before striking for his second goal in the 27th minute, seemingly winning the game. However, amidst scenes of total confusion, the scoreboard and official tallies signalled a draw. After frantic consultations between match officials and team management, extra time was ordered.

Donaghmore carried their fierce momentum into the additional periods, defying a stiff breeze to slot the first two points. St Louis fought back through a crucial free from McKeever, leaving the extra-time half-time score at 3-10 to 1-14 in favour of the Tyrone men. In the second period of extra time, the intensity reached fever pitch. Naoise Woods stretched the lead to three points right after the restart, followed by another point from Bonner. St Louis substitute Oisin Martin then breathed life back into the Ballymena challenge with a stunning goal, but Bonner responded instantly to keep Donaghmore ahead. As St Louis hunted for a winning strike, Donaghmore goalkeeper Conan Kelly became the hero, producing two good saves to deny goal-bound efforts from Laverty and Martin. Ruan Kavanagh stepped up to land a crucial point before Daniel O’Neill hit a well-taken score to finally seal the victory for Donaghmore, rendering a late injury-time point from St Louis a mere consolation.

Team Line-outs

St Joseph’s Donaghmore: 1 Conan Kelly, 2 Daithi McCullagh, 3 Matthew O’Neill, 4 Tomai McGlone, 5 Ronan Horisk, 6 Roan Ogle, 7 Tommy Haughey, 8 Ruan Kavanagh, 9 Naoise Woods, 10 Oliver Kerr, 11 Lorcan Barr, 12 Conal Bonner, 13 Daniel O’Neill, 14 Leo Sheehan, 15 Charlie Morris.

St Louis Ballymena: 1 PJ Marron, 2 Charlie O’Brien, 3 Lir Hodkinson, 4 Lir Hamill, 5 Mark Kirby, 6 Joseph Killough, 7 Nicholas McCrory, 8 Conan McKeever, 9 Cayden McGuckian, 10 Ronan Laverty, 11 Oisin Anyalechi, 12 Kiran Jayaprakash, 13 Cahan O’Kane, 14 Odhran Cassidy, 15 Alfie Gordon. (Substitute used: Oisin Martin).

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