UL 0-23 DCU 1-15
UL are Fitzgibbon Cup champions for the third time in four years after they overpowered and overwhelmed DCU in this afternoon's final in Bekan, moving nine points clear before a late 1-01 for the Dublin college reduced the deficit.
Upset victories over Mary I and UCC raised hopes in DCU - Sigerson Cup winners midweek - that they might become the first side from outside Munster to win this famous trophy since NUI Galway in 2010, but an explosive start to the second half that saw UL rattle off five points in as many minutes left the Dublin university with a mountain that they never looked like climbing.
It felt as if DCU hit their ceiling as UL played with a level of intensity they couldn’t match in the early stages of the game, working the ball through the lines and picking off some fantastic points from John Conneally, Mark Fitzgerald and Gearóid O’Connor, among others.
With a lateral breeze offering no real advantage to either side, it was 0-05 to 0-01 in favour of the Limerick college with nine minutes played, and the gap in terms of physical size and power was in evidence all across the pitch.
Cian Boran, Paddy Langton and Donal Shirley were the exceptions as they looked to offer leadership for DCU in key positions along the spine of the team, and points from Boran and Cathal Beirne helped drag them back into the game.
UL always looked stronger as they dominated possession, but eight first-half wides and two shots dropped short meant that they didn’t pull clear in a contest that featured a lot of rucks and clusters on heavy ground.
Sam Bourke, Colin Spain and Billy Reid combined to set up a point for Peter Clarke that briefly levelled the game at 0-07 each, and while UL got their noses back in front by half-time, 0-09 to 0-08, the underdogs had every reason to believe that another shock win was there for the taking.
However, UL were a transformed side after half-time.
Jack Leahy hit the target twice in the space of two minutes with another point for O’Connor sandwiched in between, and by the time Adam English sent over a majestic strike from distance in the fifth minute of the half, UL were now six clear and in control.
Even at that early stage, DCU could sense that they needed a goal to inject life back into their challenge but that backfired as Beirne turned down a free advantage and drove towards goal, attempting to link up with Boran. Conneally was able to intercept and before DCU got the ball back, Seán O’Hanlon had fired the ball over the crossbar at the other end.
The Dublin side’s tactic of trying to use their pace to break tackles and create overlaps did yield a handful of opportunities from dead balls and Denis Walsh’s accuracy prevented the lead from extended any further, but UL’s ability to spring inter-county quality from the bench in the shape of Seán Rynne, Cathal O’Neill, Seán O’Hanlon and Diarmuid Hanniffy ensured the lead never dropped below five points, even when Beirne whipped in a late goal for DCU.
UL: Darach Fahy; Aaron Morgan, John Conneally (0-01), Michael Corcoran; Killian Doyle (0-01); Mark Fitzgerald (0-01), Colin Coughlan; Brian O'Sullivan (0-01), Adam English (0-02); Patrick Crotty, Colm O'Meara, Gearóid O'Connor (0-10, 0-06fs); Jack Leahy (0-02), Aidan O'Connor (0-01), Paddy O'Donovan.
Subs: Seán O’Hanlon (0-02) for O’Donovan (ht), Cathal O’Neill (0-01) for Leahy (40), Seán Rynne for O’Sullivan (48), Diarmuid Hanniffy (0-01) for Crotty (54).
DCU: Cian Byrne; Ivan Bolger, Pádraic Moylan, Pádraig Lennon; Billy Reid, Paddy Langton, Sam Bourke; Donal Shirley, Colin Spain; Cathal Beirne (1-01), Cian Boran (0-02), Darragh Carley (0-01); Joe Flanagan (0-01), Denis Walsh (0-08, 0-07fs), Peter Clarke (0-02).
Subs: Conor Kehoe for Carley (48), Cillian Dunne for Walsh (52).
Referee: Johnny Murphy (Limerick)
