Derrynoose 2-14 Lissummon 0-7
Derrynoose ended their long wait for championship gold when they saw off Lissummon in yesterday’s decider.
It’s 37-years since Derrynoose were last crowned Junior champions and they’ve been knocking on the door for a few years.
Two late goals from substitutes Stephen Keenan and Conor McNally were the icing on the cake for Paul Doyle’s men, who dominated the second period.
Lissummon give them their fill of it during the opening period, but Derrynoose opened up a four-point lead by the short whistle.
David McCreesh and Tom O’Hagan cancelled each other out early on while Shea and Pauric McNaughton put Derrynoose ahead.
Michael McCaffery and Steven Matthews (free) got the underdogs back on level terms with two in a row.
Derrynoose took control for the remainder of the half. Pearse Lennon (2), Conall McNally, and man of the match McCreesh gave Derrynoose a 7-3 half time lead.
The eventual winners dominated the opening ten minutes of the second period, stretching their advantage to eight.
McCreesh traded scores with McCaffrey while Pauric McNaughton, McCreesh (2) and Conor McNally all raised white flags.
Shea Trainor and O’Hagan pulled two back for Lissummon, but they were matched by Sean McGuigan and Dylan Mone.
Damian O’Hagan kept Seamus Loughran’s side ticking over, but Derrynoose’s first goal put the game to bed.
And they hit two in two minutes from Keenan and McNally, just as they did in the semi-final, to see out a 13-point victory.
It’s Ulster next for them and they’ll take on Donegal winners, Carndonagh or Letterkenny Gaels. But they’ll enjoy the celebrations for a wee while longer before thinking of that.
