Samphires 3 Herbertstown 3 a.e.t. Samphires win 3-1 on penalties – A game that had nearly everything. Two sporting teams going at it from the start and no favours asked. A beautiful day, not a puff of wind, the sea a sheet of glass in the background and an occasion that all those involved won’t soon forget. Our team has come a long way since they started out all those years ago and are now can match most teams. Our last match was a narrow defeat away to previous league winners Listowel and last Saturday we played Herbertstown in the third round of the National Cup. This Herbertstown team is packed with players who contested the Under 14 National Cup final last season and have a number of international trialists. The standard of play on show was of a very high order and we had to be at our very best to even compete. Starting in goals Eoghan O’Brien did what we expect of a top keeper and kept us in the game when our defence creaked. In front of him we had Jamie Hogan and Padraig O’Connor on the flanks and both had very tough opponents. Neither ever gave up even when beaten with the result that Herbertstown rarely had a shot unopposed. In the middle we introduced Jack Kelliher to partner captain David Murphy and both had great games. In midfield, under 15s Jack McCarthy and Sean Higgins out wide and Thomas Lenihan in the middle were very creative offensively and are now also starting to understand more the defensive side of things. The pairing of Jimmy Shanahan and David Egan in the centre gave us a physical presence and allowed us to compete at this level. Up front we started initially with ‘only’ Cian MacGarry but what a thorn he was. The game throughout was fairly even with both teams having periods of dominance. We fell behind after a defensive mix-up midway through the first half but we were on level terms with 10 minutes to go after Jack Mac and Jamie robbed an opponent just inside their half and fed Thomas who played a quick one two with David Egan and then slipped Cian in to finish. As good a goal as you’d ever see. We then came under a period of pressure until the interval and we nearly braved it out but finally succumbed to leave it 2-1 at the half. We came back into it in the second half and looked dangerous at times despite dogged resistance by Herbertstown who were themselves dangerous on the break especially down the wings. Both sets of midfielders were running miles trying to keep up with the play and we introduced Darren Bastible and Louis Ryle into our midfield during this half. With 10 to go we scored after a mix-up in their defence left Cian with a tap in.In the last minute of ordinary time Thomas floated a great ball in to Cian who headed over from 3 yards so it went to extra time. Both teams were very tired but as all through the game it was pedal to the metal by both teams. We went behind in the first period and Herbertstown were on top, but we kept the deficit to a minimum until the final few minutes when we took a chance and started to push players forward. We introduced Antoin Stanton for the injured David Murphy at centre back near the end and he combined well with Jack Kelliher to continue the good defensive display. In the final passage of the game Cian took a ball from David Egan in midfield and played a clever reverse pass to the onrushing Louis who squeezed it past their giant custodian to level it again. Then to the dreaded penalties. We missed, Eoghan saved, then we scored and they missed again. We both scored our next penalty each, they scored their next one so it was down to Eoghan to finish it off. The Kerry keeper made no mistake and it was tremendous celebrations all round for the Samphires. Great credit is due to our opponents and their manager who were very sporting throughout even at the end when their heads were down. Also thanks to the ref who kept things going in an unfussy manner. A big thank you to all our supporters on the day who cheered us on and and of course most importantly míle buíchos to the parents who contributed and helped out with the teas, coffees and refereshments. It all added to the occasion and the lads appreciate it. Finally plaudits go to all the boys both on and off the pitch-it is great to have such a big panel to call upon. Keep up the good work.
Squad: Eoghan O’Brien, David Murphy, Jamie Hogan, Antóin Stanton, John O’Shea, Bobby O’Regan, Jack McCarthy, Padraig O’Connor, Thomas Lenihan,David Egan, Cian MacGarry, Sean Higgins, Oisin O’Brien,Thomas Dwyer, Jimmy Shanahan,Darren Bastible,Louis Ryle,Luke Dalton.