Kenmare turn on the style to ease past depleted Dingle 

In the proverbial game of two halves, Kenmare Shamrocks bounced back in style from a poor opening 30 minutes to run out hugely convincing winners over a depleted Dingle in this Kerry senior club FC (Group 2) opener at Fr Breen Park.

With Conor Geaney hitting 0-6 before the break, the West Kerry side, who were missing the likes of Paul Geaney, Tom O’Sullivan, Barry Dan O’Sullivan, Niall Geaney, Conor Flannery and Conor O’Sullivan through injury, surprised the hosts in the first half.

By the interval, Dingle were five points to the good (0-10 to 0-5), despite Kenmare Shamrocks registering the first three points of the game. Veteran duo Billy O’Connor and Darragh O’Sullivan were dominating around the middle, as the home side struggled to get going.

On the resumption, everything changed. Paul O’Connor was introduced off the bench to significant effect at full-forward, Donal O’Sullivan was relocated to the ’40, Sean O’Shea went to midfield, and Kenmare Shamrocks took control all over the field.

O’Shea led the way with a brace of two-point frees, the second putting the eventual winners into the lead (0-11 to 0-10) by the 42nd minute. Indeed, Dingle only managed their first score on the changeover in the 48th minute – an orange flag boomer by Dylan Geaney.

After that two-point effort, Kenmare Shamrocks were still three points up (0-15 to 0-12) and, with Jack Tangney and O’Connor contributing 0-5 between them off the bench, there was never any danger of the hosts being reeled back in before the finish.

Donal O’Sullivan, who played a very unselfish role in the attack all afternoon, was the creator of both Kenmare Shamrocks goals. 

In the 53rd minute, he provided the assist for the lively Tom Murnane and, then in injury-time, it was full-back James McCarthy who profited from an O’Sullivan pass.

Dingle are left to reflect on a second half pummeling by a mammoth 18 points. They will need some bodies off the treatment table as soon as possible. 

Kenmare Shamrocks can look forward with optimism, with Stephen O’Brien to return from America in the upcoming weeks.

Scorers for Kenmare Shamrocks: S O’Shea 0-8 (0-3fs, 2tpf), T Murnane 1-3, P O’Connor 0-3, J McCarthy 1-0, Z O’Shea, J Tangney 0-2 each, T Cronin, D O’Sullivan 0-1 each.

Scorers for Dingle: C Geaney 0-6 (0-3fs, 1tp), D Geaney 0-3 (1tp), D O’Sullivan, C Bambury, N Ryan, T de Brún 0-1 each.

KENMARE SHAMROCKS: K Fitzgibbon; C O’Sullivan, J McCarthy, T Cronin; J O’Sullivan, D O’Shea, D O’Connor; G Wharton, D Hallissey; J Lehane, S O’Shea, Z O’Shea; E McCarthy, D O’Sullivan, T Murnane.

Subs: P O’Connor for Wharton (ht), J Tangney for McCarthy (45), D Allman for Lehane (53), J O’Regan for Z O’Shea (59), S O’Sullivan for Hallissey (59).

DINGLE: G H Curran; M Flannery, S Óg Moran, P Ryan; A O’Connor, T Leo O’Sullivan, B Devane; D O’Sullivan, Billy O’Connor; T de Brún, M Geaney, N Ryan; C Bambury, C Geaney, D Geaney.

Subs: Brian O’Connor for Devane (47), L de Brún for M Geaney (55), C Keane for P Ryan (58), M Boland for D Geaney (58), B O’Connell for Flannery (59).

Referee: B Brosnan (Glenflesk).