Setanta strike late to draw with St Eunan's in SHC 14-man thriller

A last-gasp point from the wing from Gerry Gilmore of Setanta scraped a dramatic draw in a feisty Donegal SHC affair that St Eunan’s will feel they left behind, at a sunny Cross.

For, with time almost up, a Conor O’Grady goal and some fine points from Ryan Hilferty and sub, Kevin Kealy left the Letterkenny team leading by 1-18 to 0-17.

It looked curtains for Setanta but cometh the crisis and cometh Danny Cullen, who rattled the net to leave just a point between the sides in the 62nd minute. Setanta then won a line ball, which was played to Gilmore, who kept ice cool to tie the affair.

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But, the drama didn’t end there as Eunan’s had a great chance to win the game but sub John Kealy elected to go for goal from 10 metres, but veteran keeper Kevin Campbell somehow saved it when a simple tap over would have won the day for Eunan’s.

Exchanges were typically robust with two significant melees- one at half time where Gilmore picked up a yellow card and a more dangerous one where St Eunan’s Conor McVeigh and Setanta’s Ryan Coyle got red-carded four minutes from time.

And in a game where both sides misfired, Eunan’s will rue their tally of 11 wides to their opponents' six over the game.

Referee Trevor Maloney had no linesmen and no neutral umpires, which made for a very trying situation.

Gilmore opened the scoring for Setanta from a free, to which Eunan’s marksman Cathal O’Brien replied in kind as the visitors played with the aid of the breeze and a slight slope.

Oisin Marley put the home side in front by 0-2 to 0-1 in the sixth minute and that set the pattern for a hard-hitting see-saw opening half.

Declan Coulter and Kevin Kealy swapped points as Setanta led and a further Coulter point put them into a 0-4 to 0-2 lead by the end of the first quarter.

O’Brien narrowed the gap as he swapped points with Gilmore, and a Marley and Gilmore points put Setanta ahead by 0-7 to 0-5 coming up to the break.

The lively Brian MacIntyre and Russell Forde levelled matters as O’Brien put Eunan’s ahead by 0-8 to 0-7 and another O’Brien free and a reply from Coulter left the visitors leading by 0-9 to 0-8 at the break.

The scoring rate exploded in the first five minutes of the second half with Cullen and Kevin Kealy exchanging points.

Bernard Lafferty and Ryan Hilferty exchanged points and O’Brien made it a two-point game by the 35th minute. But Marley and Gilmore levelled matters as exchanges got more intense and a Gilmore point made it 0-12 each.

Gilmore and the impressive Hilferty pointed at either end as Russell Forde put Eunan’s ahead by 0-14 to 0-13 by the 45th minute. Marley, though, soon edged Setanta in front ten minutes from time.

But it was then there was a moment of individual brilliance from O’Grady as he beat his man and smashed a great shot to the roof of the Setanta net to put his side in front by 1-15 to 0-16.

Points from Kealy and Kieran Larkin left St Eunan’s leading by a goal as they seemed set for victory.

Then there was the major melee where Coyle and McVeigh got red cards as full time beckoned.

It looked like Kevin Kealy had sealed it with a fine point to put his side ahead by 1-18 to 0-17, before the experienced Cullen and Gilmore saved the day for Setanta.

Setanta scorers: Gerry Gilmore 0-9, 8f; Danny Cullen 1-1; Oisin Marley 0-4; Declan Coulter 0-3, 2f; Bernard Lafferty 0-1.

St Eunan’s scorers: Cathal O’Brien 0-7, 6f; Conor O’Grady 1-0; Kevin Kealy, Ryan Hilferty, John Kealy, Brian MacInyre and Russell Forde 0-2; Brendan Larkin 0-1.

Setanta: Kevin Campbell; Mark Callaghan, Justin McBride, Fionn Farren; Dean Harvey, Sean Ward, Declan Coulter; Michael Donaghue, Ryan Coyle; Danny Cullen, Oisin Marley, Ruairi Campbell; Gerry Gilmore, Josh Cronolly McGee, Bernard Lafferty. Sub: Niall Cleary for Fionn Farren (55).
St Eunan’s: Cian Hennessy; Sean Halvey, Conor McVeigh, Lorcan Heavey; Kieran Larkin, Conor O’Grady, Conor Parke; Fergal Delaney, Cormac Finn; Kevin Kealy, Cathal O’Brien, Ryan Hilferty; Brian MacIntyre, Peter Kelly, Russell Forde. Sub: John Kealy for Forde (48).
Referee: Trevor Maloney (Buncrana)