Intermediate Hurling Championship 1st Round

Super-sub McCarthy’s last gasp goal wins Caherlag thriller for Cobh By Michael Ellard for the Irish Examiner, at Caherlag

A dramatic last-gasp goal from substitute Dave McCarthy turned the tide in favour of Cobh after a close battle with St Vincent’s in the first round of the Evening Echo Cork County IHC at Caherlag on Saturday.

McCarthy pounced a minute into added time when he flicked home the match-winning score following a goalmouth melee.

Both sides had long periods of dominance, with, with corner forward Cian Barry scoring two goals and midfielder Anthony Buckley adding nine points from frees for St Vincent’s. Cobh responded with Jer Meaney hitting 1 -6 from frees and midfielder Derek Barrett scoring three great points from play.

St Vincent's jumped into the lead with Anthony Buckley and corner forward Denver Murphy on target.

A cracking goal from right-corner forward Brian Aherne in the ninth minute steadied the ship for Cobh however, and with Barrett, Meaney, Pat Sloane and Stephen Kear¬ney performing well, the East Cork side opened up a 1-6 to 0-3 lead after 18-min¬utes of play.

But St Vincent's, sparked by a brilliant goal from Cian Barry, thundered back to gain equality at the break. Barry's second goal in, the 39th minute edged St Vincent's two points in front. But a goal from a 25-metre free by Meaney gave Cobh a brief advantage again. A succession of wides cost St Vincent's dearly and when a draw seemed the likely outcome, McCarthy struck at the death to plunder the spoils for Cobh.

Scorers for Cobh: J. Meaney 1-6 (1-6 from frees); B. Aherne 1-2; D. McCarthy 1-0; D. Barrett 0-3; P. Sloane 0-1.

St, Vincent's: C. Barry 2-0; A. Buckley 0-9 (0-9 from frees); J. Buckley, D. Murphy and A. Long 0-1 each.

COBH: P. Looney;.W. Drake, T. Anderson, R. O'Connell; M. O'Connor. D. O'Rourke, S. Kearney; L. Greaney, D. Barrett; P. Sloane, T. Byrne, J. Meaney; B. Aherne, B. Meaney, A. Stack.
Subs: D. McCarthy for Stack.

ST. VINCENT'S: J. O'Callaghan, C. Kenneally, K. Goulding, T. O'Connell, T. O'Mahony, P. Cullinane, W. Murphy, A. Buckley, A. Fenton, T. Hornibrook, A. Long, J. Buckley, D. Murphy, J. Daly, C. Barry. Subs: J. P. Murphy for D. Murphy.
Referee: D. Farrell (Mitchelstown).

Super-sub McCarthy puts Cobh through By John Coughlan, Echo Sport.

A GOAL in added time from substitute Daye McCarthy was sufficient to give Cobh a place in round three of the Evening Echo Intermediate Hurling Championship hard fought encounter at Caherlag on Saturday.

In a game that swung to and fro for almost the entire 60 minutes Cobh were fortunate in the end to see off the Saints challenge.

In a game that was dominated by frees and missed opportunities (22 wides) both sides will be aware that a major improvement will be needed if they are to play a significant part in this championship.

Vincents looked the better side in the opening exchanges and points from Anthony Buckley and Denver Murphy gave them the perfect start. The harbour side bounced back and raised the opening green flag in the ninth minute when Brian Aherne pounced on a pinpoint Trevor Byrne assist.

Persistent fouling on both sides kept the scoring flowing but Vincent's Cian Barry scored a goal of sheer class in the 25th minute when he drilled an unstop¬pable shot past the bewildered keeper.

The teams were level at the break at 1-6 apiece but Cobh had the better start when scoring three unanswered points. Once again the pendulum swung in Vincent's favour when Barry drilled in a cracking second goal that gave them a 2-8 to1-9 lead in the 40th minute.

A minute later Vincent's defence were caught napping when Jer Meaney fooled them when hitting a 21-yard free directly to the roof of the net.

The final 10 minutes saw both teams go for the jugular and when the prolific striking of Anthony Buckley levelled the game with two frees in the 58th and 59th minutes a replay looked on the cards.

Cobh however had one last throw of the dice when a goalmouth scramble deep into added time was directed to the net by substitute McCarthy.

Time, had finally caught up on Vincents as Cobh players and mentors were ecstatic at the final whistle