Darren Curran goal exorcises Dungloe's ghosts to beat Naomh Columba in IFC final

Dungloe exorcised the ghosts from 2021 as Dessie Gallagher’s men overcame Naomh Columba in Saturday’s Donegal Intermediate Championship final in Letterkenny.

Dungloe 1-8
Naomh Columba 0-4

The game, by no means a classic, was still up for grabs - although Dungloe’s 0-6 to 0-3 advantage felt like a landslide in the circumstances - when Darren Curran bagged the decisive goal.

A wayward shot by Aaron Ward was kept in play by Karl Magee before substitute Shaun McGee offloaded to Curran. The midfielder finished low past Paddy Byrne and the Dungloe support was in raptured. The silverware - and a passage back to senior football - was now within touching distance.

St Mary’s, Convoy hit back from the brink to down Naomh Columba in Intermediate B final

Naomh Columba failed to score in the second half as St Mary’s, Convoy came from seven points behind to win the Intermediate B Championship title

Until their demotion from the top tier, following a 2020 relegation play-off final defeat by Milford, Dungloe operated at senior level ever since their 1986 Intermediate final triumph against Naomh Conaill.

At the outset of the year, Gallagher made no secret of Dungloe’s desire when he told Donegal Live: “They want to get back to the senior championship.”

Dungloe were worthy winners, backboned by a mean defence in which Mark Curran shackled Aaron Doherty and Jason McBride led superbly with Daire Gallagher chosen as man of the match after an excellent hour at centre-forward.

Naomh Columba were appearing in a first intermediate final since a 1-5 to 0-3 defeat by St Naul’s in 2011. Of those who took to the field in Letterkenny, only Barry Carr and Declan McGuire played in that final 11 years ago in Donegal Town.

The intervention of Carr was vital when, in the 28th minute, Dungloe midfielder Darren Curran had a sight of goal after breaking through.

Glen were wasteful in possession in the opening half, coughing up ten turnovers before full-back Philip Doherty got them off the mark. It was the 27th minute when Doherty bent over his team’s only score of the first half.

With that in mind, Glen would, perhaps, have been content to be within three points when referee Pat Barrett (incidentally an IFC winner with Milford 30 years ago in 1992) called half-time.

Oisin Bonner punished one of the early Naomh Columba turnovers when he kicked the game’s first point after seven minutes. Goalkeeper Danny Rodgers came up to wonderfully curl over a 35-metre free that doubled the lead.

Dungloe were certainly warming to the task with a little less fuss and Barry Curran stepped onto his left foot to arch Dungloe 0-3 to 0-0 in front with Daniel Ward adding a fourth point in the 18th minute.

Dungloe had two bites at the Intermediate title last November, but saw Cloughaneely lift the crown. Dominant on day one, Dungloe still had to claw back a five-point deficit to draw a crazy final. In the replay, Cloughaneely were nine-point winners and Dungloe left chew on one that got away.

Three points in arrears, Naomh Columba introduced Lanty Molloy and Oisin McGinley for the second half. They began with purpose, yet kicked two wides inside the opening three minutes after the restart before Ward majestically curled over from distance down the other end.

Points from Eric Carr and Kevin McNern briefly flickered the Naomh Columba flame, but Bonner found the range in between times as Dungloe held sway, albeit with Glen stilly clinging to the tails of their overcoats.

Any fading hopes of a Glen fightback were extinguished when Curran finished to the net.

For Glen and their hoards of supporters, it was a pain that was all too familiar from a generation previous when they lost in five of the six senior finals they contested in the 1990s.

This was a chance to get a ticket back among the elite, but it’s Dungloe who go up in the elevator with the Cathal McLaughlin Cup back at Rosses Park.

Dungloe scorers: Darren Curran 1-0; Oisin Bonner 0-3; Daniel Ward 0-3, 1f; Barry Curran 0-1; Danny Rodgers 0-1, 1f.

Naomh Columba scorers: Ryan Gillespie 0-1, 1f; Philip Doherty, Kevin McNern, Eric Carr 0-1 each.

Dungloe: Danny Rodgers; Jason McBride, Aaron Ward, Gerard Walsh; Mark Curran, Conor O’Donnell, Karl Magee; Darren Curran, Christy Greene; Dylan Sweeney, Daire Gallagher, Matthew Ward; Daniel Ward, Barry Curran, Oisin Bonner. Subs: Shaun McGee for Sweeney (46), Ryan Brennan for Gallagher (56), Jordan Saville for Magee (57), Noel McBride for D.Ward (60+2), Rory McLaughlin for Bonner (60+5).

Naomh Columba: Paddy Byrne; Pauric Ward, Philip Doherty, Barry Carr; Eric Carr, Philip McNern, Pauric Hegarty; Fionn Gallagher, Declan McGuire; Paul O’Hare, Aaron Doherty, Kevin McNern; Ryan Gillespie, Christopher Byrne, Ryan McNern. Subs: Lanty Molloy for R.McNern (half-time), Oisin McGinley for O’Hare (half-time), Stephen Jones for P.McNern (41).

Referee: Pat Barrett (Milford)