Kerry withstand late Cavan surge to book semi spot

All-Ireland MFC quarter-final

Kerry 0-14

Cavan 1-9

Damien Donohoe at O’Moore Park

Kerry advanced to the All-Ireland Minor Football Championship semi-final after edging out  Cavan in a thrilling encounter at O’Moore Park, Portlaoise. Despite dominating large spells of the game and twice opening up five-point leads, the Munster champions were made to sweat right to the final whistle as Cavan fought back superbly in both halves, ultimately falling just short.

Cavan entered the quarter-final off the back of a six point defeat in the Ulster final against Tyrone, and their resilience was once again on show here as they refused to fold in the face of sustained Kerry pressure. Despite a heart-stopping finale that nearly saw Cavan force extra time, Kerry were just about the better team on the day.

With a number of questionable decisions by the referee Niall Quinn from Clare, Cavan could count themselves unlucky but they still had the chances to win the game. Poor starts to both halves were ultimately Cavan’s downfall as they allowed Kerry to dictate the play which put the boys in blue on the back foot.

Kerry began the game with the wind at their backs and wasted no time in asserting their authority. Wing-forward Danny Murphy opened the scoring with a point from play, followed by a score from their powerful full-forward Kevin Griffin. Gearóid White then converted a free after John Curtin was tackled when he caught a Cavan kick-out, pushing Kerry 0-3 to 0-0 ahead after seven minutes.

Cavan, under the pump in the early exchanges registered their first shot ten minutes into the game but it dropped short into the goal mouth. Midway through the first half, Griffin capitalised on the breeze by sending over a beautifully struck two-point free as Cavan were punished for not handing the ball to a Kerry player. Trailing by five, it looked ominous for Cavan at that stage, as they had yet to register a score and were struggling to retain primary possession from kickouts.

However, once they managed to gain a foothold in the middle third, Cavan began to turn the tide. A foul on Jake Brady presented Jay Graham with an opportunity from a free, which he converted to get his side on the board. But Kerry responded quickly through Ben Kelliher to restore their five-point cushion.

As the half wore on, Cavan settled more into the contest. Faolán Graham slalomed past his marker and clipped over an excellent point, and another foul on Jake Brady led to a second converted free from Jay Graham. Then, just before the break, Graham landed a superb two-point free from the ground into a stiff breeze to narrow the gap to a single point. It capped a strong spell for Cavan, who had wrestled back control of the kick-out battle and were building momentum.

At the break, Kerry led 0-6 to 0-5, but the shift in balance was clear.

Despite now playing into the breeze, Kerry came flying out of the traps in the second half. Top scorer, Ben Kelliher opened the scoring with a point from play after a neat assist from Alex Tuohy. He then added another from a free after a controversial three-up infraction was called against Cavan.

Moments later, Gearóid White broke from deep with a powerful solo run, was fouled, and Kelliher converted once more. White, who was being well marshalled by Fionan McIntyre, then got in on the scoring act himself, pushing Kerry’s lead out to 0-10 to 0-5 with 11 minutes played in the second half.

Cavan looked in real trouble, struggling to break through the middle third of the field and starved of clear chances. But they struck gold through an unlikely source. Defender Matthew Duffy made a lung-bursting run from the back and was picked out by Nathan Quigley with a clever ball. Duffy made no mistake and rattled the net with a calm finish to breathe fresh life into the contest.

That goal reduced the margin to two, but Kerry regrouped impressively. Kelliher knocked over his fifth of the day before substitutes Tadhg O’Connell and Pádraig Ó Mainnín added their names to the scoresheet. It looked like Kerry had weathered the storm and re-asserted control, leading by 0-13 to 1-6 entering the closing stages.

However, Cavan weren’t finished. They began to push up aggressively and deployed goalkeeper Cian McConnell in an outfield role. Substitute Gary McCabe surged through a gap and looked to have fashioned a goal chance, but he opted to fist the ball over the bar to keep Cavan ticking.

Moments later, McConnell himself played a sharp one-two before striking a fine point off his left boot. Cavan were within three and building a head of steam. Quigley then added his first of the day with a well-taken point, and suddenly just two points separated the sides with three minutes to play.

With Kerry retreating, Cavan launched a high ball into the danger zone. Goalkeeper Ruairí Kennedy appeared to have gathered it cleanly, but Jay Graham’s persistence paid off. He harried and chased the loose ball before stabbing it over the bar, narrowing the margin to just one point with time nearly up.

The game was delicately poised, and the atmosphere in the stadium electric. However, Cavan's push for an equaliser was thwarted in the dying moments. After a couple of promising attacks were broken down, and some calls for frees were ignored before Kerry hit on the counter. Substitute Liam O’Brien, introduced late on, found space and split the posts to give Kerry a two-point cushion.

That would prove the final act of a dramatic game, as the referee’s whistle brought a gripping contest to an end shortly after. While Kerry march on to the last four, Cavan were left to reflect on what might have been. Their ability to battle back was impressive throughout but they left just too much ground to make up in the final sprint on this occasion.

Cavan: Cian McConnell (Butlersbridge, 0-1); Danny Brady (Laragh United), Christopher Bough (Munterconnaught), Matthew Duffy(Mountnugent, 1-0); Michael Smith (Crosserlough), Harry McMullen (Cootehill Celtic), John Donohoe (Mullahoran); Sam Maguire (Templeport), Faolán Graham (Butlersbridge, 0-1); CJ Fitzpatrick (Ballinagh), Jake Brady (Gowna), Cathal Smith (Lavey); Fionan McIntyre (Templeport), Nathan Quigley (Denn, 0-1), Jay Graham (Lavey, 0-5, 2f, tpf)

Subs used: Donagh Lynch (Cuchulainns) for CJ Fitzpatrick, Senan Smith (Denn) for C Smith, Gary McCabe (Killygarry, 0-1) for M Smith, Kevin Heery (Templeport) for H McMullen

Kerry: Ruairí Kennedy; Ronan Sheridan, Eoghan Joy, Tadhg Ó Slatara; Danny Murphy(0-1), David Sargent, Marcus Clifford; Maidhc Ó Sé, John Curtin; Mark O’Carroll, Gearóid White(0-2,1f), Alex Tuohy; Nick Lacey, Kevin Griffin(0-3,1tpf), Ben Kelliher(0-5,2f). Subs: Tadhg O’Connell(0-1) for N Lacey, Padraig Ó Mainnín(0-1) for K Griffin, Liam O’Brien(0-1) for B Kelliher, Conor McGibney for M Clifford.