Quinlan's controversial late penalty sends Éire Óg into SFC semi-finals
Niall Quinlan celebrates scoring for Éire Óg's late decisive penalty in the win over Mount Leinster Rangers Photo: Pat Ahern
A controversial penalty award with three minutes to go which was converted by Niall Quinlan saved the champions as Éire Óg edged out a desperately unlucky Mount Leinster Rangers in this senior football quarter-final championship at Netwatch Cullen Park on Saturday.
Both sides played a possession game and not surprisingly the reigning champions were just that little bit better with the chosen game-plan.
Éire Óg edged into a 0-3 to 0-1 tenth minute lead as Ross Dunphy, Lee Moore and Darragh O’Brien on target.
Ranger’s first half score came from an Eddie Byrne free and the same player converted another with five minutes to go to the end of the half. While Chris Nolan scored Rangers’s only point from play, Colm Hulton fired over into the O’Hanrahan end of the ground to give Éire Óg a 0-5 to 0-3 interval lead.
In a desperately disappointing second half two points from Chris Nolan and a free from Byrne looked set to cause a major surprise.
In one last Éire Óg attack, Adam McCarron was adjudged to have been fouled and Quinlan found the bottom right hand corner of the net. Benny Kavanagh added a point and the champions lived to fight another day.
N Quinlan 1-0, C Hulton, D O’Brien, Lee Moore, S Gannon, R Dunphy, B Kavanagh 0-1 each Mount Leinster Rangers: E Byrne 0-3 (3fs), C Nolan 0-3 ÉIRE ÓG: Johnny Furey; Cathal Kelly, Shane Buggy, Benny Kavanagh; Alex Delaney, Mark Furey, Paul McElligott; Sean Gannon, Kyle Nolan; Lee Moore, Darragh O’Brien, Kieran Nolan; Ross Dunphy, Murtough Ware, Colm Hulton. Subs: Diarmaid Ruth for Delaney (41), Niall Quinlan for Kyle Nolan (48), Adam McCarron for Moore (52), Josh Brady for Ware (58), Kelvin Chatten for McElligott (58).
Willie Hickey; Michael Joyce, Sean Joyce, Tim Brennan; Richard Coady, Jon Nolan, Evan Kealy; Kevin McDonald, Tony Lawlor; Robert Stafford, Eddie Byrne, Joe Dundon; Chris Nolan, Conaill Fitzpatrick, Ted Joyce. Subs: Donagh Murphy for Dundon (h/t), Joey Dalton for Stafford (44), Jack Griffith for Brennan (60).
David Hickey (Fenagh)
