St Eunan's show their class in U-21 A hurling decider to overcome MacCumhaills

St Eunan’s U-21s showed their class on Friday night as they put MacCumhaills to the sword in a clinical final showing in Convoy. 

Eunan’s have only three starters overage next term but, ironically enough, it was their promising 17-year-old Conall Heron who caught the eye with two wonderfully finished goals in each half.

READ NEXT: Andy Moran adds 2012 Donegal All-Ireland winner to new Mayo backroom team. 

Cormac Haran got their other goal while Brendan Gaffey was deadly accurate from frees.

For MacCumhaills, centre back Jacob Malone had a fine game while Dylan Patton and Dan Donnelly supplied the bulk of their scores.

Eunan’s had a dream start when, after 15 seconds, a long ball from Gaffey was brilliantly doubled to the net by Heron.

Gaffey quickly followed up with three pointed frees to leave Eunan’s leading by 1-3 to no score after nine minutes.

MacCumhaills were struggling to get into the game before Rory Doherty opened the scoring with point and Dylan Patton then doubled their tally by the close of the opening quarter.

Gaffey and Patton would swapped points before a rasper from MacCumhaills’ Donnelly was batted away by Eunan’s netminder Evan McFadden.

And five points would split the sides at the midpoint after a pointed free from Gaffey made it 1-5 to 0-3 at the break.

MacCumhaills fare better in the third quarter and came more into the game but Patton was unusually off target.

John Kealy increased the Letterkenny lead on the restart as Gaffey landed a ‘65 to make it 1-8 to 0-3 by the 36th minute.

Patton pointed for the Twin Towns side as MacCumhaills began to win more ball around the middle but were still not translating it into scores.

Gaffey continued to keep the scoreboard ticking over before a breakaway Eunan’s hit the clinching goal when Haran finished a long ball to the net.

He added a point for good measure as Eunan’s tightened their grip on proceedings. Donnelly then broke through for MacCumhaills but McFadden superbly saved.

Gaffey landed another free while Jacob Malone and Donnelly pointed two late frees as MacCumhaills continued to battle to the finish.

But this encounter was finally decided when another direct delivery from Gaffey was brilliantly flicked to the net by Heron.

St Eunan’s scorers: Brendan Gaffey 0-9,8f; Conall Heron 2-1; Cormac Haran 1-0 John Kealy 0-1.

MacCumhaills scorers: Dylan Patton 0-5f; Dan Donnelly 0-2f; Rory Doherty 0-1.

St Eunan’s: Evan McFadden; Ruaidhri Bradley, Killian Barr, James Patrick Curran; Joseph Duddy, Conor Neely, Johnny Lambe; David Horgan, Peter Kelly; Conall Heron, Brendan Gaffey, Liam Dowling; Cormac Haran, John Kealy, Shane Ellison. 

Subs: Thomas Dooher for Liam Dowling (39), Sean Harvey for Johnny Lambe (54).

MacCumhaills: Fionn McNulty; Lorcan Byrne, Adam Byrne, Shay Bradley; Davitt Bradley Flynn, Jacob Malone, Patrick McElhinney; Pauric Kelly, Sean Brady Devenney; Conor Murphy, Rory Doherty, Rian McBrearty; Dylan Patton, Jamie Gallen, Dan Donnelly. 

Subs: Ruairii Callaghan and Liam Gallen for Sean Brady Devenney and Patrick McElhinney (HT), Jamie Fallon and Fritz McNulty for Pauric Kelly and Rory Doherty (54), Peter Sweeney for Dylan Patton (59).

Referee: Trevor Moloney (Buncrana).