Classy Kilcoo put in five-star show to reach Ulster decider

27 November 2024

CLASSY Kilcoo blew Scotstown out of the water as they cruised to yet another Ulster final and continued the hunt for their third provincial title.

The Magpies were supposed to have been facing juggernaut opposition in the form of the Monaghan champions – the side that ended their provincial campaign last season.

Instead, they made it look like men against boys as they stunned their opponents with early jabs in the first half and continued to deliver a series of knockout blows throughout the contest.

Goals from Miceal Rooney (2), Chris Rooney and Ceilum Doherty proved to be the difference as the 22-time Down champs romped to victory by a margin of 11 points.

Scotstown grabbed early points through Darragh Murray and Shane Carey but this was not a sign of things to come.

Anthony Morgan, Ryan Johnston, Niall Kane and Sheelan Johnston each converted points to send the Magpies into a 0-4 to 0-2 lead.

The Monaghan side soon levelled and despite the game looking set to become a back-and-forth encounter, the tit-for-tat nature would quickly be put to bed.

Kilcoo took control in the latter stages of the first period, hitting 2-1 through a Carey own goal, a Chris Rooney finish and a point from Jerome Johnston to enter the break with a commanding lead.

Scotstown had a mountain to climb if they were to mount any form of comeback and sensing their vulnerabilities, Kilcoo went for the jugular at the beginning of the second half.

Miceal Rooney opened his account with a thunderous goal before Doherty got in on the act with one of his own, putting Kilcoo in pole position.

To the credit of Scotstown, they were not going to accept defeat lying down as they picked themselves up, dusted themselves down and continued with their efforts to reduce the deficit.

The two sides soon began to exchange points and although Scotstown racked up multiple points in several periods of the half, Kilcoo were doing enough to maintain a healthy advantage.

Jack McCarron got the Monaghan men back on the scoresheet with a point from a free and was joined by Michael McCarville, who hit two points in the space of two minutes.

Their rejuvenation was short lived however, as Chris Rooney and Morgan put them back under the cosh with two points in quick succession.

Nonetheless, they were determined to fight to the end and, while they found joy with three more scores, they were seriously lacking in goals.

Kilcoo knew their work was done in the closing stages, but that did not stop them from wanting to inflict further damage on their opponents.

Jerome Johnston picked up his second point of the evening when he capitalised on a mistake to carve open the defence and fire over the bar.

Scotstown’s Murray, Mark McPhillips and Emmett Caulfield managed to find what could only be described as three consolation points, as Miceal Rooney found the back of the net once more for Kilcoo, hammering home the final nail.

There was a late black card for both teams in the dying moments, but although Kilcoo’s Sheelan Johnston and Scotstown captain Damien McArdle were dismissed, it made no impact on the outcome of the game.

Kilcoo will now look to clinch their third Ulster senior title in five years as they travel to face Tyrone champions Errigal

Ciaran at the Armagh Athletic Grounds on Sunday, December 8.

Kilcoo: N Kane, N Branagan, R McEvoy, C Rogers, M Rooney, D Branagan, E Branagan, A Morgan, R Johnston, C Rooney, A Morgan, S Johnston, C Doherty, J Johnston, J Devline. Subs: C Laverty, N Rodgers, M Hynes.

Scotstown: R Beggan, D Murray, D McArdle, J McKevitt, R O’Toole, K Hughes, C McCarthy, M McCarville, G McPhillips, J Carey, S Carey, J Hamill, F Maguire, D Hughes, J McCarron. Subs: M Maguire, N Sherlock, R McKenna, M McPhillips, E Caulfield.

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