Pádraig Pearses withstand Roscommon Gaels comeback

Pádraig Pearses 1-11 Roscommon Gaels 1-9

Pádraig Pearses overcame Storm Ashley and a brave second-half comeback from Roscommon Gaels to win their third Fahey Cup in six seasons at Dr. Hyde Park.

Frank Canning's side, led by Eoin Colleran who pitched in with 1-03 over the hour, were in control for the bulk of the contest but Roscommon Gaels never threw in the towel, coming with a late scoring burst that turned a comfortable advantage into a potentially precarious one.

But they held their nerve as late points from Paul Carey (free) and substitute Jack Nevin got them over the line in the Hyde Park wind and rain.

While it eventually turned into a gripping contest, Pádraig Pearses had one hand on the Fahey Cup at half-time.

Despite the worsening conditions, Canning’s men used all their experience to control the tempo and, more importantly, possession.

With Niall Daly and Niall Carty pulling the strings, Pearses slowly went about putting a buffer between the teams.

Niall Daly and Peter Gillooly, from a free, swapped early points but from there, Pearses took over.

Ronan Daly split the posts after being picked out by Colleran before the latter exchanged passes with David Murray to push his side 0-03 to 0-01 ahead after 12 minutes.

Pearses’ dominance continued as a big turnover on Senan Lambe by Declan Kenny ignited a move that resulted in a fisted point for Adam McGreal.

In the 16th minute, Pearses were really in the box seat when Carey did brilliantly to gather possession and set sail for goal. His shot was saved by Roscommon Gaels goalkeeper, James Fetherstone, but Colleran was on hand to fire the rebound into an empty net.

Just when it looked like Roscommon Gaels might be cast adrift, they were handed a lifeline in the 20th minute