Geoghegan and Murphy Lead Naomh Moninne to Final

Naomh Moninne secured their place in the Louth Senior Hurling Championship Final with an impressive 2-23 to 1-19 victory over St Fechin’s in Dowdallshill on Thursday evening.

The contest was a tremendous advertisement for Louth hurling, with both sides contributing to an open, free-flowing encounter that kept spectators entertained from start to finish. Scores flowed throughout the hour as three of the county’s finest forwards, Darren Geoghegan, Paddy Lynch and Conor Murphy, delivered outstanding individual performances. Geoghegan and Murphy were exceptional for Naomh Moninne, finishing with 0-14 and 2-3 respectively, Geoghegan was deadly accurate from placed balls with important scores from play. At the other end, Lynch amassed 0-11 for St Fechin’s through a mixture of superbly struck frees, an excellent sideline cut and scores from open play to keep his side in contention throughout. The quality of the game was further enhanced by excellent refereeing, with the official allowing play to flow whenever possible while maintaining firm control, ensuring a fast-paced and highly entertaining championship match.

Naomh Moninne settled quickly when Darren Geoghegan opened the scoring from a 65 after just two minutes, but St Fechin’s responded immediately as Paddy Lynch split the posts with an excellent sideline cut.

The game’s first major moment arrived in the fourth minute when Conor Murphy finished expertly to the net after a well-worked attack, giving Naomh Moninne an early advantage. David Stephenson and Paddy Lynch kept St Fechin’s in touch with fine points before Darragh Stone also found the target.

Naomh Moninne began to take control through the accuracy of Darren Geoghegan from placed balls, while Mark Gahan, Sean Magill, Thomas O’Dwyer and Conor Murphy all contributed excellent scores from play. St Fechin’s refused to let the game slip away, with Lynch continuing to punish any indiscretions from frees, Sean Kerrisk adding a point from play and Ronan Hackett finding the target.

Hackett then gave St Fechin’s renewed hope just before the interval when he finished brilliantly to the net, but Naomh Moninne responded immediately through Geoghegan to take a deserved 1-15 to 1-10 lead into the break.

The second half followed a similar pattern. Geoghegan continued to be deadly accurate from frees, while Paddy Lynch kept the scoreboard moving for St Fechin’s. Ciaran Brennan and Ryan Walsh both added important scores as St Fechin’s attempted to close the gap, but Naomh Moninne always looked capable of finding another score.

Mark Gahan chipped in with another fine point before Geoghegan struck from play to extend the advantage. Conor Murphy also continued to impress, adding another point before producing the decisive moment of the contest.

With the game entering its closing stages, Darren Geoghegan cleverly took a quick free and slipped the ball to Murphy, who burst through the defence before blasting an unstoppable finish to the net. It was a superbly worked goal that effectively ended St Fechin’s hopes of a comeback.

Paddy Lynch continued to convert frees for St Fechin’s until the final whistle, but Naomh Moninne remained composed, with Geoghegan adding the final score from another placed ball to complete a deserved seven-point victory.

Naomh Moninne’s balance throughout the field, combined with the outstanding scoring exploits of Darren Geoghegan and Conor Murphy, proved decisive as they advanced to another county final. St Fechin’s can take pride from a determined display, with Paddy Lynch once again demonstrating his quality from both play and placed balls, but on the night Naomh Moninne had too much firepower.

The sides will meet again in the Louth Senior Hurling Championship Final on Sunday, August 9, where St Fechin’s will have the opportunity to avenge this defeat and Naomh Moninne will bid to reclaim the county title in what promises to be another enthralling contest.

Final Score:
Naomh Moninne 2-23 St Fechin’s 1-19

Scorers

Naomh Moninne: Darren Geoghegan 0-14 (10 frees, 2 x 65s), Conor Murphy 2-3, Mark Gahan 0-3, Sean Magill 0-1, Thomas O’Dwyer 0-1, Sam Phelan 0-1

St Fechins: Paddy Lynch 0-11, Ronan Hackett 1-1, David Stephenson 0-2, Ciaran Brennan 0-2, Ryan Walsh 0-2, Darragh Stone 0-1, Sean Kerrisk 0-1.

Naomh Moninne: Conor Whyte, Kyle Rafferty, Darren O’Hanrahan, James Murphy, Sean Magill, Michael O’Shea, Aaron McGuinness, Darren Geoghegan, Finn Carter, Ciaran McKelvey, Tom O’Dwyer, John Casey, Mark Gahan, Conor Murphy, Sam Phelan.

Subs: Matthew Fee for James Murphy (HT), Coran Trainor (38), Gavin Baxter for Darren O’Hanrahan (44), Ultan McEneaney for Conor Murphy (64), James Murphy for Michael O’Shea (64).

St Fechins: Ruairi Morrissey, Ryan McGinlay, Cathal Moynagh, Cathal Ryan, Conor Higgins, Peter Fortune, Sean Hodgins, Donal Ryan, David Stephenson, Danny Morgan, Sean Kerrisk, Ciaran Brennan, Paddy Lynch, Darragh Stone, Ronan Hackett.

Subs: Ian Connor for Danny Morgan (25), Ryan Walsh for Sean Hodgins (37), Darragh O’Gorman for Sean Kerrisk (56).

Referee: PJ Murray (Áth Cliath)