Senior Football Championship: Killucan 1-12 Mullingar Shamrocks 1-10

No joy for Mullingar Shamrocks in Cusack Park tonight as Killucan ended our interest in the winner's section of the 2020 championship. We are now engaged in a battle to retain our senior status and next weekend we face the first match that will determine our status for 2021. Killucan successfully defended our early attacks and after thirteen minutes established an 0-4 to 0-1 lead, a Dean Moore pointed free in the seventh minute our only contribution to the scoreboard. Killucan's four points were fine efforts from a David Bryan free, two excellent efforts from Cormac Boyle and a neat score from Ciaran Doyle. A patient Shamrocks build-up ended with a Killian Daly point but the value of this score was quickly wiped out when some sloppy defensive play ended with a Devin Hill goal to send Killucan into a five point lead (1-4 to 0-2) after twenty-two minutes. Hard grafting by Daragh Daly created an opportunity for Dean Moore but Dean's volleyed shot was superbly turned over the bar by Killucan goalkeeper David Bryan. The gap was reduced still further by Brendan O'Reilly who worked a passage along the end line before punching over the crossbar, Eoghan Ahearne responded with a like score to restore Killucan's four point advantage (1-5 to 0-4). In the final minutes of the half Dean Moore pointed a free for Shamrocks and on the stroke of half-time Killian Butler finally found his bearings and pointed a long range free to bring the half-time score to 1-5 to 0-6 in favour of Killucan.

Shamrocks with the advantage of a strong wind were well placed but Killucan added the first two scores after the restart. Aron Kiernan pointed a free and Sean Quinn added a second after great run from Devin Hill. A strong run from Robbie Greville drew a foul and the routine free was pointed by Aron Kiernan to extend the Killucan lead to five points after eight minutes. Dean Moore pointed a free as a black card infraction reduced Killucan to fourteen men for the obligatory ten minutes. Lorcan Smyth, a fortieth minute replacement for Kieran Gavin, was making an impression and good work by Lorcan, Micheál Curley and Daragh Daly drew a foul that became a simple point for Dean Moore when a bit of Killucan dissent encouraged the referee to move the ball forward. A great long range pointed free by Lorcan Smyth reduced the deficit to two points. A long delivery from Dónal O'Donoghue was fielded by Daragh Daly who was dragged down and the referee after consulting with his umpires pointed to the penalty spot. Dean Moore's kick was brilliantly saved by David Bryan but Dean buried the rebound to establish a Shamrocks lead for the first time in the match. However, Killucan responded well to what could have been a crucial setback and Conor Jordan popped over a simple free to equalise. Again this free was reduced to the routine category when some Shamrocks players disagreed with the referee's adjudication. A draw was sufficient to send Killucan forward to the quarter final and to send Shamrocks to the exit door. The task became much harder in the thirty-first minute when Conor Jordan kicked a great 45 and a minute later David Bryan kicked a superb left footed point from another 45 to edge Killucan into a two point lead and when David Hickey from a ground strike added a third point to the lead Shamrocks championship campaign was effectively over when Dean Moore kicked the final point from a close range free.

Mullingar Shamrocks: Philly Shaw; Eddie Moore, Pádraic McKenna, Marc Eivers; Brendan O'Reilly (0-1), Micheál Curley, Killian Daly (0-1); Patrick Fagan, Dónal O'Donoghue; Alan Cashman (Jordan Warde), Dean Moore (1-6), Kieran Gavin (Lorcan Smyth 0-1); Killian Butler (0-1), Daragh Daly, Denis Corroon (Darren Keena).