South West Antrim Under-16 Football – Breslin Cup Final
Cúchullains Dunloy 3-10 Naomh Séamas Aldergrove 0-17
Portglenone

Three first-half goals and a superb display from their goalkeeper Ciaran O’Brien helped Cúchullains Dunloy edge out Naomh Séamas Aldergrove in a thrilling Breslin Cup final at Portglenone.

Only two points separated the teams at the finish, with Aldergrove producing a determined second-half fightback. However, they could not find the goal they needed as O’Brien made a series of outstanding saves to protect Dunloy’s slender advantage.

Aldergrove began brightly, with Eoin McGrady opening the scoring from play after only a minute. They continued to apply pressure and added another point after O’Brien had made his first point-blank save before McGrady converted a 45 to extend their early advantage.

Sean Kelly pointed a free in the sixth minute, but Dunloy finally got off the mark when Dylan McTague converted a placed ball two minutes later.

A well-worked Aldergrove move ended with Kelly splitting the posts, but the character of the contest changed dramatically moments later. Dunloy’s Lorcan Martin collected possession deep inside his own half and set off on a magnificent solo run through the Aldergrove defence before finishing emphatically to the net.

That outstanding individual effort brought Dunloy right back into contention and, two minutes later, Harry Blaney finished another flowing attack with their second goal.

Oisín O’Brien then landed a two-pointer from play to put the Cúchullains firmly in control. Kelly responded with another Aldergrove free, but Blaney and O’Brien added further points as Dunloy began to take a grip on proceedings.

Aldergrove refused to let their opponents pull clear. Ethan Martin landed an excellent point under severe pressure before Cillian Baker and Cian Bell also found the target. O’Brien was called upon again in the Dunloy goal, producing another excellent stop and later palming McGrady’s goal-bound effort over the crossbar.

Dunloy struck for their third goal in the 28th minute when Roan Neenan forced the ball home following a scramble around the Aldergrove goal. A late Aldergrove free left Dunloy leading by 3-05 to 0-10 at the interval.

Aldergrove resumed with real purpose and two early frees from Kelly reduced the deficit. Oisín O’Brien replied from a placed ball for Dunloy before Neenan landed an excellent point while under heavy pressure.

Baker kept Aldergrove in touch with a point from play, while their goalkeeper also made a vital point-blank save from Ronan Elliott, diverting the shot over the bar rather than allowing Dunloy to claim a fourth goal.

As the second half progressed, Aldergrove continued to close the gap. Kelly remained accurate from frees, while another brilliant intervention from Ciaran O’Brien denied them a potentially decisive goal, although the rebound was sent over the bar.

Neenan’s second point of the half gave Dunloy some much-needed breathing space with time running out, and Oisín O’Brien added another from a free on the half-hour mark.

Aldergrove refused to accept defeat, and two late Kelly frees brought them back to within two points. However, Dunloy held firm through the closing moments to secure a memorable 3-10 to 0-17 victory.

Aldergrove’s second-half performance ensured a tense finish, but Dunloy’s greater goal threat and the heroics of Ciaran O’Brien ultimately proved decisive as the Cúchullains were crowned Breslin Cup champions.

Cúchullains Dunloy: 1 Ciaran O’Brien, 2 Tiernan O’Reilly, 3 Anraí Burnett, 4 Noah Bradley, 5 Peadar Doherty, 6 Aaron Richmond, 7 Blaine Mullan, 8 Ethan Guiney, 9 Lorcan Martin, 10 Pearson McMullan, 11 Oisín O’Brien, 12 Harry Blaney, 13 Rónán Elliott, 14 Dylan McTague, 15 Roan Neenan.

Naomh Séamas Aldergrove: 1 Brendan Maguire, 2 Jack Savage, 3 Noah Anderson, 4 Noah Mulholland, 5 Ethan Martin, 6 Ollie McVeigh, 7 Cillian Baker, 8 Eoin McGrady, 9 Caelan Mallon, 10 Cian Bell, 11 Sean Kelly, 12 Rhys Condie, 13 Jack Corrigan, 14 Cormac Brown, 15 Lorcán Higgins.

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