David Clifford kicked 10 points and Paudie Clifford 1-4 as Fossa pulled away to a Munster junior football title despite playing the final 22 minutes with 14 men.
David Clifford was the man they all came to see and he did his most decorative work in the first half with three points from play before older brother and captain Paudie added a stoppage-time goal with an imaginative back-heel finish from close range.
Even leaving aside the Clifford factor for a moment, this was always expected to be the outcome. Kerry clubs have now won 16 of the 19 editions of this competition. The vagaries of local championship design made this a match between the 25th best team in Kerry and Cork’s 53rd-ranked side.
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This curtain-raiser not only overshadowed the intermediate final to follow, the crowd far outnumbered the attendance at Saturday afternoon’s senior final. It filled the main stand, spilled onto the terracing either side, and fanned around the perimeter of the pitch.
Many stationed themselves at the Town End goal which Clifford attacking into in the first half and switched ends at the break.
The senior final didn’t attract the hats, flags, and headbands merchant that had the red and black of Fossa and green and gold of Kilmurry on sale on Sunday.
The throw-in was delayed half an hour in zero-degree temperatures but there was no danger of Clifford freezing on the big occasion. In time, Kevin Barrett may tell his grandkids he marked one of the greats. Maybe the greatest. He even held him scoreless for 13 minutes in either half.
The only trouble was Clifford clipped 10 points either side of those spells when the supply dried up.
His fifth of the day made it 0-6 to 0-2 but Kilmurry had a purple patch, with two fine Liam Wall points. However, they missed with six attempts at goal and their danger man
Pádraic Berhanu got, if anything, even more close attention than Clifford owing to the lack of numbers in support.
Fossa went without a wide until David and Paudie kicked two in quick succession after 27 minutes but that duo, Paudie (0-2) and David (0-1), stamped their class on the occasion to make it 0-9 to 0-4 at the break.
Kilmurry changed it up on the restart. They replaced sweeper Daniel Cahalane and committed more bodies to attack. After Matt Rennie pointed for Fossa on the restart,
Kilmurry worked the ball up field and Wall twisted, turned, and got off a low shot that skidded in off the post. Berhanu added a point (both scores set up by David McCarthy) and the gap was two.
But while David Clifford popped his next free, Wall and Tomás Collins hit the post with their dead-ball efforts.
Those were the fine margins; Kilmurry enjoying just as much of the play as their illustrious opponents but with neither the same efficient class in front of goal nor the same gears to motor through when the gap narrowed.
Eoin Talbot was sent off after 38 minutes for a second yellow card but the 14 men scored five of the next six points; three David Clifford frees and a point each from
Paudie Clifford and Emmett O’Shea. Clifford looked to end it when setting up Cian O’Shea but Clifford’s marker Barrett scrambled back to make the goal-line block.
Still, older brother Paudie had the final say to seal an 11-point win.
FOSSA: Shane O’Sullivan; Brian Myers, Fintan Coffey, Kevin McCarthy; Daniel O’Keeffe, Paddy Sheehan, Daniel O’Connell; Paudie Clifford (1-4), Cian O’Shea; Harry Buckley, Eoin Talbot, Matt Rennie (0-1); Tadhg O’Shea, David Clifford (0-10, 7f), Emmett O’Shea (0-2, 1f).
Subs: Ruairí Doyle for McCarthy (37), Rian Colleran for T O’Shea (45), Anthony Wharton for O’Keeffe (53), Harry Kelly for E O’Shea (56).
KILMURRY: Jason McDonald; Fionn Warren, Kevin Barrett, Gearóid O’Mahony; Brian Hinchion, William Ronan, Tomás Collins (0-1); Kyle Kelleher, James O’Mullane; Laurence Ashling, Liam Wall (1-2), Rory Duggan; Pádraic Berhanu (0-1), David McCarthy (0-1), Daniel Cahalane (0-1).
Subs: John O’Mullane for Cahalane (h-t), Ryan Leahy for Berhanu (45), Greg Barrett for Duggan (56).
REFEREE: Niall Quinn (Clare).
