Cahill’s calypso
Bective 1-11
Drumconrath 1-6
It is one of the ironies of Meath club championship football that games in the senior competition which should provide plenty of entertainment seldom do, while matches in the lower grades often turn out to be thrillers, writes Tom Mooney.
That was the case at Navan’s Pairc Tailteann last Sunday when Bective and Drumconrath served up a thriller in the final of the 1982 Division 3 F.C.
Victory is always sweet, particularly when it’s the first championship triumph in a club’s history, and Bective celebrated their breakthrough suitably. But when success is achieved with style and panache the taste is all the more satisfying.
Good start
If a good start is half the battle, Bective were well on the road to victory when they netted in the first 20 seconds. Des Cahill passed to Brian Dunne, who blasted a great shot to the roof of the net from 25 metres.
But Stephen McDonald set the scene for a close and thrilling encounter by replying with a point almost immediately and Pat Dunne reduced the leeway further when he slotted over.
Paddy Cahill put Bective two points ahead again and, though the scoring rate decreased subsequently, the standard of play and the rapid exchanges did not.
Bective then took a clear if slight edge and the Cahill brothers, Davy (2) and John, added points to put Bective 1-4 to 0-2 ahead after 12 minutes.
Reduced
Drumconrath reduced the leeway to four points (0-4 to 1-5) by the interval after Sean Reilly, with a fine effort and then from a 20-metre free, had countered a good shot from John Cahill.
It was a tribute to the training and coaching of Jim Keating and Alan Burns that Bective had looked so sharp in that first half.
Although they were overall the smaller team, they were sharper, more decisive and they played very economically as they made intelligent and constructive use of almost every ball.
Their passing was a delight to watch and was best exemplified by the move involving Padraig Kane and John Cahill which led to Davy Cahill’s second point.
Top marksman Davy Cahill, who scored 0-6, was Bective’s best player, but his brother John was not far behind him in ability and effectiveness.
Lovely efforts
He scored three fine points, two of them lovely snap efforts in the first half and generally was so busy around the field that he caused innumerable problems for the Drumconrath defence.
Bective had built up a 1-10 to 0-5 lead in the 54th minute with points from Davy Cahill (3), John Cahill and Brian Dunne. The second of Davy’s points was a gem and involved Dunne, Davy, John and Davy again.
Revived
However, Drumconrath were not finished yet and their hopes were revived when Patsy Reilly crashed a great shot to the net from 25 metres.
Pat Dunne added a fine point to leave only four between the sides with as many minutes remaining, but Bective steadied and had the final say when their best two players were involved in their last point.
John Cahill was fouled and Davy slotted over in the 60th minute to ensure the end of the long, frustrating and agonising exile in the trophy-less wilderness.
Though the two Cahills grabbed most of the glory, this was a fine team performance to which Gerry Moore and Dom Cahill in the full back line, Kieran Dunne at left half back and Jim Kane and Paddy Cahill at midfield also contributed enormously.
Towards the end of the game Bective introduced their captain, Joe Lynch, as a sub, and after the match Colum Cromwell, County Board Vice-Chairman, presented the Royal Meath Association Cup to Lynch.
Bective: D. Carroll; G. Moore, Dom Cahill, T. Geraghty; Kevin Dunne, E. Dunne, Kieran Dunne; J. Kane, P. Cahill (0-1); J. Cahill (0-3), B. Dunne (1-1), Des Cahill; P. Kane, Davy Cahill (0-6), F. Keating. Substitute: J. Lynch for Geraghty.