Daingean Uí Chúis 2-13 Austin Stacks 1-12
Cometh the moment, cometh the man, as Paul Geaney struck for two late goals to help deliver the Kerry county SFC title to Daingean Uí Chúis (Dingle).
The win bridges a gap of 77 years since Daingean Uí Chúis' last county title win in 1948, and also denied Austin Stacks the chance to join Dr Crokes at the top of the roll of honour with a 14th senior title.
The victory also helps Daingean Uí Chúis ease the pain of losing last year's county final to Dr Crokes, and two other deciders since 2012.
Having trailed the game for most of it, Daingean Uí Chúis needed a late smash-and-grab to wrestle the win from Stacks, and who else but Paul Geaney delivered the coup de grace of two goals that will only embellish the legend of this county final - and Geaney's reputation - over time.
For Austin Stacks this was a tough defeat, having led from the second minute to the 52nd only to see it all snatched from them by Daingean Uí Chúis' resilience and Geaney’s lethal eye for goal.
Geaney’s Kerry team mate Tom O’Sullivan played his part too, sending in the two long balls that Geaney so brilliantly capitalised on, while the defender also scored two points in that devastating period when Daingean Uí Chúis' feasted on 1-04 without reply to go from 0-11 to 0-9 behind to take a five-point lead in the 56th minute.
Stacks then won and scored a goal from the penalty spot – Cian Purcell coolly slotting his spot kick past Gavin Curran after Colm Browne was taken down by the goalkeeper – but it was brief respite for a team on the rocks.
Another long ball in from Tom O’Sullivan was fed off to Paul Geaney by Ned Ryan and the three-time All-Ireland winner doesn’t pass up those chances for goal.
When they reflect on it, Stacks – senior champions in 2022 and intermediate champions last year – will know their half-time lead wasn’t enough having played the first half with a huge wind behind them.
Dylan Geaney had opened the scoring for Daingean Uí Chúis, but Armind Heinrich’s two-pointer in the second minute gave Stacks a lead they wouldn’t relinquish for 50 minutes.
Daingean Uí Chúis' Mark O’Connor received a black card in the third minute, and when he returned Stacks were 0-6 to 0-1 ahead, Paddy Lane, Ben Murphy and Joe O’Connor (two-pointer) doing the scoring.
It took until the 18th minute for Daingean Uí Chúis to get their second score, from Conor Geaney, but another from him, and a fourth on the hooter from Paul Geaney, left them a manageable four adrift at the break, 0-8 to 0-4.
Stacks had the first point of the second half but Daingean Uí Chúis remained composed, and as the game hit the 50-minute mark they were just one behind, 0-10 to 0-9.
And then Paul Geaney made this final his own.
Austin Stacks: Michael Tansley; Colin Griffin, Joey Nagle, Niall Fitzmaurice; Eoghan Carroll, Armin Heinrich (0-02, 1tp), Ronan Shanahan; Joe O’Connor (0-02, 1tp), Ben Murphy (0-03); Michael O’Donnell, Conor Horan, Daniel Kirby; Paddy Lane (0-03, 0-01f), Cian Purcell (1-00, pen), Jordan Kissane (0-01).
Subs: J O’Shea for Carroll (ht), D Casey for Fitzmaurice (37), G Horan (0-1f) for Horan (42), R Carroll for Kissane, C Browne for O’Donnell, J Murphy for Griffin (temp, 56-ft).
Daingean Uí Chúis: Gavin H Curran; Padraig O’Connor, Aidan O’Connor, Tom O’Sullivan (0-02); Tom Leo O’Sullivan, Conor Flannery, Brian O’Connor (0-01); Billy O’Connor, Niall Geaney; Tadhg de Brún (0-01), Paul Geaney (2-02), Mark O’Connor; Conor Geaney (0-04, 1 tpf, 1f), Matthew Flaherty, Dylan Geaney (0-03, 0-01 tpf).
Subs: D O’Sullivan for P Geaney (temp, 7-13), N Ryan for O’Connor (51), M Geaney for De Brun (51), C Bambury for C Geaney (57), S Óg Moran for T Leo O’Sullivan (58).
Referee: Sean Joy.
