AIB Ulster Club Junior Football Championship Final

Derrytresk 2-5 Cremartin 0-10                                 27/11/11

Cremartin’s bid to win the Ulster Club JFC fell short by the narrowest of margins against Tyrone’s Derrytresk at the Athletic Grounds in Armagh on Sunday. Cremartin’s ability to score goals had been key in their run through the Monaghan and Ulster campaigns, but they failed to find the net for the first time in eight championship matches and majors by Caolán Corr and Michael Rea won it for Derrytresk. Both those scores came at key stages of the game, as Corr’s strike came just as Cremartin had put some daylight between the teams with three unanswered points towards the end of the first half and Rea produced a stylish finish ten minutes from time. Cremartin played more than half of the game with 14 men after Niall Flanagan was sent off before the interval. Derrytresk goal-scorers Rea and Corr had good support from Cathal O’Neill, Kevin Campbell and Seán Slater, while Jonathan McGuigan, Gary Boyd, Fergal Mulligan and Liam McVicar led Cremartin’s challenge.

Cremartin opened the scoring in the third minute when a long ball from Niall Flanagan ran through for Liam McVicar who first-timed it over the bar, though there had been a goal for the taking. Niall Gavin won and scored a 20-metre free to get Derrytresk off the mark after eight minutes, but Barry Carragher responded with a similar effort after a foul on Kevin Brennan. Eoin Rea tapped over a 13-metre free for a foul on Mickey Rea, but Christopher Farrell made a quick impact four minutes after his introduction when he kicked a good point after he had been well-placed by Declan Farrell. Gary Boyd added a fine point after good approach play by Niall Flanagan and Fergal Mulligan, before Farrell sent over another nice score following a pass from Darren Bishop. Cremartin’s good work was undone on 26 minutes, however, when Michael Rae and Michael Robinson combined to release Caolán Corr to fire home the opening goal. Cremartin suffered another blow almost immediately when Flanagan was shown a second yellow card on the advice of a linesman. Michael Rae had a great effort at goal two minutes later when he was released by Robinson, but Cremartin keeper Damien Lavelle made an excellent full-length save to keep the Monaghan side on level terms at half-time: 0-5 to 1-2.

Derrytresk missed a couple of chances in the opening minutes of the second half, as Eoin Rea sent a scoreable free wide and Ronan O’Neill hit the upright after a Niall Gavin free dropped short, but they edged ahead when Declan Farrell was adjudged to have thrown the ball, allowing Michael Rea to tap over the resulting 20-metre free. A strong run by Bishop set up McVicar to equalise for Cremartin, who were indebted to Jonathan McGuigan for a superb goal-line clearance to deny Ronan O’Neill, who had latched onto a Michael Rea cross. Bishop sent over a 30-metre free after Conor Gavin had been penalised for touching the ball on the ground, before Niall Gavin and Michael Rea were both off-target from 30-metre frees. Gavin found his range from a 30-metre free after a foul on Michael Rea, but Kevin Brennan landed a fine score to edge Cremartin ahead at the end of a well-worked move involving Boyd, Jonathan McGuigan and Farrell. Bishop doubled the Shamrocks’ lead from a 30-metre free, but Derrytresk once again struck for a goal at an opportune time when Michael Rea got on the end of a long free from Conor O’Neill to produce a cool finish which left Lavelle with no chance. The Tyrone men almost struck again within a minute when Cathal O’Neill released Joseph McKee, only for Lavelle to come to the rescue for Cremartin, who were unlucky not to draw level when a Darren Bishop effort tailed in the wind and dropped just short into the hands of Derrytresk keeper Aidan Quinn. A controversial decision allowed Niall Gavin to convert a 35-metre free and put two points between the teams, but Carragher replied from a similar distance after a foul on Bishop. Derrytresk had Conor O’Neill sent off in the dying minutes for a kick on Bishop, who went close to equalising yet again with a shot that hit the post. Quinn sent the resulting kick-out straight to McVicar, but his pass intended for Bishop was over-hit and with it went Cremartin’s chances of salvaging the game and lifting the much-coveted Paul Kerr Cup, as Derrytresk hung on. It was a second one-point Ulster final defeat for Cremartin, seven years after they lost to Stewartstown.

Derrytresk: A Quinn; K Campbell, S Slater, J Dillon; E Rea (0-1f), Cathal O’Neill (Capt.), C Corr (1-0); C Gavin, R O’Neill; Conor O’Neill, J McKee, M Robinson; N Gavin (0-3f), K Quinn, M Rea (1-1, 0-1f).

Subs: P Kilpatrick for R O’Neill (46 mins), L Slater for Robinson (54).

Cremartin: D Lavelle; P McGuigan, C Mulligan, J McGuigan; É Atkinson, F Mulligan, D Farrell; N Flanagan, G Boyd (0-1); D Mulligan, D Bishop (Capt., 0-2f), R Burke; K Brennan (0-1), L McVicar (0-2), B Carragher (0-2f).

Subs: C Farrell (0-2) for Atkinson (19), P McMahon for D Mulligan (H-T), Mark Bishop for McMahon (49).

Referee: G Walsh (Antrim).