Brackens hold their nerve to claim Mid football honours after Upperchurch battle

Munster Construction Mid U21A Football Championship Final

JK Brackens 1-19

Upperchurch Drombane 2-14

JK Brackens just edged out Upperchurch Drombane in a highly entertaining Mid U21A Football Final played in cool conditions at The Ragg on Sunday.

These two sides have provided plenty of exciting encounters in Minor and U21 football over the past decade, and this final was no different, with plenty of scores and no little skill and commitment on display throughout a game that went right down to the wire.

Upperchurch had the better of the early exchanges when Philip O’Dwyer opened the scoring in the 3rd minute with a superb two-point effort after Pádraig Griffin in the Upperchurch goal had made an excellent save from Jack Marnell to deny Brackens an early goal.

This was followed up with a well-taken point from Jim O’Dwyer to put Upperchurch into a three-point lead before Jamie Ormond opened Brackens’ account with an excellent point from a tight angle in the 5th minute.

Points from Niall Delaney and Ciarán O’Shea drew Brackens level after eight minutes before Seán Griffin, who was a towering presence at midfield right throughout the game, put Upperchurch back in the lead with a well-taken point.

The pendulum swung back in Brackens’ favour, and they scored the next three points, Jamie Ormond with a free and a fine individual effort after good work from Ned Delaney to break down an Upperchurch kick-out, along with a well-taken score from Dayle Hogan.

Just when it seemed like Brackens were taking control, Jim O’Dwyer put two points on the board for Upperchurch with a monster free kick from well outside the arc.

The response from Brackens was instant when Seán Burke caught the kick-out and linked very well with Jamie Ormond before being on the end of the move to put over a great score.

The scores were coming thick and fast at this stage, and Toby Corbett drifted forward from the half-back line to slot over a point to put the minimum between the sides again.

Both sides exchanged rare wides as the frenetic early pace slowed a little before Tom Corcoran spotted Jamie Ormond on the edge of the arc and slipped a pinpoint pass for Ormond to kick JK Brackens’ first two-pointer of the game.

This was quickly followed up by another JK Brackens point, this time from the boot of Billy Collier, Tom Corcoran once again the provider.

By this time, Michael Quinlan had pushed forward from the full-back line and linked up well with Paddy Phelan, who kicked a good score for Upperchurch.

The final action of the half saw Tommy Burke bursting forward from the Brackens full-back line, and it seemed his attempt at a point had been batted away by Upperchurch keeper Pádraig Griffin.

After a scramble, the ball ended up in the Upperchurch net, but after some deliberation, referee Paddy Kenny and his umpires deemed that the initial shot had in fact gone over the bar before the keeper got to it, and Brackens were awarded a white flag instead of a green to give them a 4-point half-time lead, 0-12 to 0-8.

The second half started at a hectic pace; Pádraig Griffin once again called into action to deny JK Brackens a goal, but Dayle Hogan slotted over the rebound.

Upperchurch then went on the attack and could have had a goal themselves but for the good work of Jamie Bergin and Niall Delaney in the Brackens defence, who turned over the ball and released Michael Cahill, who surged forward to score a point and extend Brackens’ lead to six points.

From here, though, Upperchurch Drombane took control, starting with an excellent point from Philip O’Dwyer from a tight angle that was quickly followed up by another superb score from Seán Griffin.

It was all Upperchurch now, and they were piling on the pressure, having gotten to grips with Brackens’ movement of the ball.

Quick thinking from Paddy Phelan after Upperchurch were awarded a free led to the game’s first goal when James Griffin slotted home after putting pressure on Brackens keeper Cian Sheedy, putting the minimum between the sides again.

Jamie Ormond and Jim O’Dwyer exchanged points from placed balls, and Ormond added one from play before two points from Philip O’Dwyer, one from a free following a foul on the hardworking Paddy Ryan, and a brilliant effort from play that levelled the game.

With 15 minutes to go, we were set up for an exciting finish when Seán Burke stepped up to slot over a brilliant two-point effort from the wing to regain JK Brackens’ lead.

The next few minutes were decisive as the Brackens defence, led by Jamie Bergin, stood strong to deny an Upperchurch goal, and Upperchurch missed two frees before Brackens substitute Seán Purcell took a pass from Dayle Hogan and kicked over a relieving point with his first touch of the ball.

The newly introduced Pádraic O’Shea in the Brackens forward line was also causing problems for the Upperchurch defence and won a penalty in the 53rd minute when he was fouled by Seán Shanahan, who received a black card for his troubles.

Jamie Ormond calmly slotted home the spot kick, but the six-point lead lasted only seconds as once again a quick free and good movement from the Upperchurch forward line saw full-forward Tomás Ryan at the end of the move to fire past the onrushing Cian Sheedy for Upperchurch’s second goal.

As the game edged into injury time, Brackens were defending frantically, and Tommy Burke found himself black-carded after a tangle with Philip O’Dwyer.

The resulting free found its way to substitute Hugh Purcell in space, and he duly kicked it over to reduce the deficit to two points.

Upperchurch had one more chance and tried hard to work a two-pointer from a free deep into injury time, but JK Brackens defended patiently, and time ran out on Upperchurch’s valiant effort, the game ending on a scoreline of 1-19 to 2-14 and a two-point win for JK Brackens, who go on to face the South winners in a County semi-final in the coming weeks.

In the end, it was Brackens’ superior movement on the ball and solid defensive shape that was the marginal difference between two very committed sides who served up an excellent and thoroughly enjoyable final.

Jamie Bergin and Tom Corcoran led the Brackens defence throughout, with Ned Delaney and Michael Cahill working tirelessly at midfield. Jamie Ormond, Seán Burke and Dayle Hogan heaped constant pressure on the Upperchurch defence, and substitutes Pádraic O’Shea and Seán Purcell both made important contributions when introduced.

For Upperchurch, Pádraig Griffin was rock solid in goals, Toby Corbett worked hard, and the midfield pairing of Dylan Cotter and Seán Griffin caused a lot of problems. The O’Dwyer brothers, Jim and Philip, along with Paddy Phelan, were a constant threat up front.

Upperchurch Drombane: Philip O’Dwyer (0-5, 0-1f), Jim O’Dwyer (0-4, 0-2f), Seán Griffin 0-2, Tomás Ryan, James Griffin 1-0 each, Toby Corbett, Paddy Phelan, Hugh Purcell all 0-1 each.

JK Brackens: Cian Sheedy; Tommy Burke, Jamie Bergin, Jack Burke; Niall Delaney, Tom Corcoran, Cian Broderick; Ned Delaney, Michael Cahill; Dayle Hogan, Jamie Ormond, Billy Collier; Ciarán O’Shea, Seán Burke, Jack Marnell.

Subs used: Pádraic O’Shea for J Marnell; Seán Purcell for C Broderick.

Upperchurch Drombane: Pádraig Griffin; Conor Brett, Michael Quinlan, Seán Shanahan; Rian Treacy, Toby Corbett, James Woodlock; Dylan Cotter, Seán Griffin; Jim O’Dwyer, Paddy Phelan, Paddy Ryan; Philip O’Dwyer, Tomás Ryan, James Griffin.

Sub used: Hugh Purcell for J Griffin.

Referee: Paddy Kenny (Durlas Óg)

Scorers: JK Brackens: Jamie Ormond (1-7, 1-0 pen, 0-2f), Seán Burke 0-3, Dayle Hogan, Billy Collier 0-2 each, Tommy Burke, Niall Delaney, Michael Cahill, Ciarán O’Shea, Seán Purcell all 0-1 each.