Kilcoo 1-17 Carryduff 1-11
Kilcoo were aiming to make history as the only club to win seven successive Down Championships, and they did so as dusk settled in Páirc Esler with a six-point victory over Carryduff and the Magpies were well-deserving of their win.
It was a fairly close first half but while they always had the edge, a penalty scored by man-of-the match Paul Devlin gave Martin Corey's men a 1-06 to 0-05 lead at the break.
They led by 10 points at one stage in the second half and seemed unstoppable, but Carryduff got back in the game with a couple of big scores including a goal of their own. But having been denied seven-in-a-row on their previous attempt by Burren, Kilcoo were determined that wouldn't happen again as they took control of the game again in the last five minutes.
The final was in doubt due to the earlier heavy rain, but it went ahead 90 minutes later than scheduled when the weather had cleared up.
Still, the ground was slick underfoot as the teams settled in, but it was the reigning champions who raced into a three-point lead with scores from Darryl and Aaron Branagan and Anthony Morgan.
Carryduff responded through brothers and inter-county players James and Daniel Guinness, with Pearse McCabe levelling with 19 minutes on the clock.
Kilcoo wiped out those scores, however, when they were awarded a penalty during a goalmouth scramble where Owen McCabe was penalised for a throw-ball. Paul Devlin stepped up and drilled into the roof of the net.
Shealan Johnston tagged on a point from a tight angle to give the Magpies a 1-04 to 0-03 lead and while James Guinness narrowed the deficit with the first two-pointer of the game as half-time approached.
Kilcoo goalkeeper Niall Kane responded raising an orange flag from a free outside the arc, to leave the score-line at 1-06 to 0-05 at the interval.
Devlin scored the first point after the restart, but Odhran Sherry replied in kind. The Magpies machine kicked into gear after that however, hitting seven of the next
eight points to lead 1-14 to 0-07.
Carryduff battled back with a point from Joe McFlynn who was just on as a sub and another from Michael McGrath, but a roar went up from their supporters in Pairc Esler when a lovely overhead kick by John McGeough, landed at the feet of Eoin Donnelly by the left hand post and he planted the ball in the net.
McGeough then nailed a two-point free to make it 1-15 to 1-11, but time was running out for Carryduff and Kilcoo finished the job with the last two scores of the game from Sean Óg McCusker and Ryan Johnston for a 1-17 to 1-11 victory.
Kilcoo: N Kane (0-02, 1tpf); A Branagan (0-03), R McEvoy, N Branagan; M Rooney, D Branagan (0-02), C Rogers; Aaron Morgan, Anthony Morgan (0-01); C Doherty, R Johnston (0-02), S Johnston (0-01); P Devlin (1-03), E Branagan J Johnston (0-02).
Subs: J Devlin for E Branagan (35'), S Og McCusker (0-01) for J Johnston (50'), C Laverty for P Devlin (58'), C Rooney for S Johnston (60+1')
Carryduff: R Lavery; L Toal, C Cassidy, O Sherry (0-01); M McGrath (0-01), D Guinness (0-01), P McCabe (0-01); E Donnelly (1-00), T McCarroll; G Henderson, J Guinness (0-03, 1tp), D McCabe; J Tunney, R Beatty, J McGeough (0-03, 1tpf)
Subs: C Clinton for Tunney (38'), J McFlynn (0-01) for McCabe (42'), L Blaney for McGrath (48'), S McGonigle for McCabe (52'), R Elliot for Sherry (57')
Referee: Colum Gribben
