Kilcoo needed extra time to find away past a resolute St Finbarr's to reach back-to-back All-Ireland Club Championship finals.
It was fascinating contest played at full flight and it had everything, with top scores, red cards, dramatic decisions, and either side could have won in normal time.
The Magpies could and should have wrapped up the game in normal time but indiscipline cost them in the short term, but in extra time they owned the contest by outscoring the Cork side eight points to three.
St Finbarr’s only scored one point from play after the first half, which shows that the Ulster side have something to work on. But Kilcoo will take a lot from the physical battle they had on Saturday and the hard battle should bode well ahead of the final on 13 February.
It was an open contest with both teams playing with conviction in attack and not afraid to make the hits when needed.
Eoin McGreevy and Ryan Johnston had traded points in the opening minutes and this set the tone for an excellent battle in O’Moore Park.
It was the Magpies who got off to a dream start as, with only four minutes on the clock, the unmarked Ryan Johnston couldn’t believe the time he had in front of goal before choosing the roof of the net, after brother Jerome picked him out with the pass.
Corner-back Aaron Branagan scored a beautiful point, with Conor Laverty key in the build-up and Paul Devlin converted a free, but three converted frees from the steady Steven Sherlock meant that St Finbarr’s were only a whisker behind.
And then came the breakthrough as St Finbarr’s grabbed a great goal only two minutes before half-time.
Steven Sherlock pickpocketed the ball from Kilcoo’s Daryl Branagan before releasing Eoin Coymns and he speed forward and made a swift pass to Eoin McGreevy and he blasted home from close range. It gave the Munster champions the lead for the first time and they maintained their two-point advantage at the break.
It was the first time Kilcoo trailed at the break since coming out of the Down Club Championship, but there was no one thinking they couldn’t find a way back. St Finbarr’s had ruled the roost at midfield and Kilcoo weren’t getting everything their own way.
Sherlock’s fourth converted free extended St Finbarr’s lead but Kilcoo hit back points from the lively Eugene Branagan and Shealan Johnston and Paul Devlin’s second converted free cut the gap to a point with 40 minutes played.
The sides were level on four occasions in the last 15 minutes, including after Kilcoo goalkeeper Niall Kane steered over his 42-metre free. And then the Ulstermen took the lead with Eugene Branagan firing over a stunning point, but only briefly.
Sherlock levelled at his second attempt of a free on 45 minutes and probably neither side would have complained had a water break been called on, but with that rule abolished it meant for an intense final quarter. How little did we know what we were in for.
Daryl Branagan and Paul Devlin thought they had done enough but Kilcoo’s discipline let them down and Sherlock’s eighth converted free forced the game down to the wire.
Kilcoo had a wonderful chance to win the game having been awarded a soft free in the last seconds of additional time but a silly challenge by Aidan Branagan on Adam Lyne, saw the Kilcoo joint-captain pick up a red card and the ball thrown up and full-time whistle to force the game into extra time with scores 0-10 apiece.
It was in this period that the Magpies started to move the ball at pace and St Finbarr’s couldn’t live with them.
Kilcoo led 1-15 to 1-12 at the turnaround, with Devlin and substitute Anthony Morgan on target for the Magpies, while Sherlock replied from frees.
Colm Barrett became St Finbar’s second player to score from play with a point but keeper Niall Kane (free) and the lively Doherty responded with fine points.
St Finbarr’s finished with 13 men as Jamie Burns and Micheal Shields picked up late reds, while Kilcoo’s Ward received a black card, but it mattered little to the Ulster champions as they had booked their place in the All-Ireland decider.
St Finbarr's: J Kerins, S Ryan, J Burns, C Scully, C Lyons, B Hennessy, A O’Connor, I Maguire, Eoin Comyms, D O’Brien, S Sherlock, B Hayes, C Myers Murray, E McGreevy, C McCrickard
Subs: E Dennehy for Murray 41, C Barrett for O’Brien 41, M Shields for E McGreevy 50, A Lyne for McCrickard 58
St Finbarr’s scorers: E McGreevy 1-01, 0–1-mark, S Sherlock 0-10, 10 f, C Crowley 0-01, C Barrett 0-01
Kilcoo: N Kane, N Branagan, R McEvoy, Aaron Branagan, M Rooney, D Branagan, E Branagan, D Ward, Aaron Morgan, C Doherty, J Johnston, S Johnston, C Laverty, R Johnston, P Devlin.
Subs: Anthony Morgan for Laverty 43’, Aidan Branagan for Aaron Morgan 57’, C Laverty for Aidan Branagan 60. T Fettes for R Johnston 68, J Clarke for Rooney 70
Kilcoo scorers: R Johnston 1-01, P Devlin 0-06, 0-3f, D Branagan 0-2, N Kane 0-03, 2f, E Branagan 0-1, Aaron Branagan 0-01, Anthony Morgan 0-01, C Doherty 0-02
Referee: Brendan Cawley (Kildare)
