Dominant Dublin swat Laois aside to make it two wins from two in Leinster Minor Championship

Conor Gorman's Laois Minor footballers began their Leinster Championship campaign with a fine victory two weeks ago against Westmeath, but the squad knew that a tougher task lay ahead. A trip to the capital against Dublin  was on the horizon in the second round of the group phase.

Dublin had decimated Louth in their first-round clash, scoring 5-14 in one end whilst only conceding 1-1 down the other. Laois were very much underdogs coming into this one, and the match played out in that fashion. Dublin dominated throughout, as Laois struggled to get to grips with their physicality and power. Laois only managed a single point from play throughout, as Dublin finished seventeen-point victors at the full-time whistle.

Conor Gorman’s side can not afford to drop their head though, as they still have to play the last group game against Louth where a win will see them through to the quarter-finals     

DUBLIN 2-15

LAOIS 0-4

It was the home team who opened the scoring in Parnell Park, with Joe Quigley showing a turn of pace before fisting over the bar. Laois equalised shortly after though, as David Costello kicked a free between the uprights.

Dublin took the lead once more though through points from Ciaran Donovan (free) and David Mulqueen, as the pressure they put on the Laois backline was relentless. Laois struggled to win their own kick-outs during the opening quarter, and that resulted in Dublin dominating possession.

Joe Quigley was firing on all cylinders up front for Dublin, as he knocked over two more points to his name. The first one was a free, while the second was a beautiful score from distance.

David Mulqueen stretched Dublin’s lead out to five points, and it could have gotten worse for the Laois men if it wasn’t for Brochan O’Reilly in goals. Joe Quigley played a swift handpass to Paul Reynolds Hand, but his powerful shot was excellently stopped by Portlaoise man Brochan O’Reilly.

Dublin corner-back Ryan Mitchell landed their seventh point after he found a gap through the defence and slotted over. Laois managed to reply with only their second point of the half after Ryan Little was fouled inside and Jeremy Kelly converted the close-range free.

Dublin would finish the half on top though, as they kept turning Laois over in their own half. Midfielder Clyde Burke kicked a booming score following a turnover near the sideline, and then Joe Quigley continued his ruthlessness in front of the posts by adding two more frees to his name.

The half-time score had Dublin leading by 0-10 to 0-2, but it could have been worse for Conor Gorman’s side had it not been for Brochan O’Reilly pulling off a sublime save.

Dublin picked up where they left off at the beginning of the second half, with Joe Quigley (free) and David Mulqueen stretching the lead out to eleven points. Laois grabbed their first score of the second half through another placed ball, with David Costello curling over the free.

Laois were given a slight boost in the 42nd minute, as Dublin corner-back Ryan Mitchell received a black card following an off-the-ball incident. Substitute Eoin Cawley landed Laois’ first score from play, as he turned onto his right foot and split the posts.

However, Laois failed to make much headway despite Dublin being reduced to fourteen men. Dublin’s workrate was tremendous during the spell of play. Joe Quigley converted another free for Dublin, and then there was a fifteen-minute period where both sides went scoreless.

Luke O’Boyle struck the crossbar for Dublin, as they looked goal-hungry. Laois’ man advantage was wiped out when full-forward Ryan Little, who had received little ball all game, picked up a second yellow card for a late challenge on Dublin keeper David Leonard.

 Dublin did finally get their goal in injury time, and they actually managed to grab two of them to put some gloss on the final scoreline. For the first goal, Brochan O’Reilly deliberately brought down a Dublin forward running through on goal and was subsequently black-carded.

 Wing-back Michael Gaffney stepped into the Laois goal for the penalty, and he actually made a decent save at the first attempt. However, Joe Quigley tucked in the rebound. Dublin substitute Shane Mullarkey scored the second goal, as he deflected Quigley’s shot on the line.

LAOIS 

Scorers: David Costello 0-2 frees, Jeremy Kelly 0-1 free, Eoin Cawley 0-1

Team: Brochan O'Reilly (Portlaoise); Jake Darcy (Annanough), Tadgh Dineen (St Joseph's), Danny McGrath (Graiguecullen); Michael Gaffney (Killeshin), Darragh Loughman (VC) (Ballylinan), Conor Raggett (Portlaoise); Hugo Emerson (Portarlington), Aaron Tarpey (Kilcavan); Kevin Byrne (Camross), David Costello (C) (Emo), Eoin Johnston; Jeremy Kelly (Portarlington), Ryan Little (Courtwood), Adam Hunt (Kilcavan). Subs: Corey Geoghegan (Portarlington) for Brennan (HT), Eoin Cawley (Killeshin) for Johnston (37 mins), David Miller (Annanough) for McGrath (38 mins), Tom Bride (Ballylinan) for Hunt (46 mins), James Devoy (Stradbally), Cathal Casey (Ballylinan) for Kelly (54 mins), Niall Lawlor (Kilcavan) for Byrne (56 mins)

DUBLIN

Scorers: Joe Quigley 1-8 (1-0 pen, 0-5 frees), David Mulqueen 0-4, Shane Mullarkey 1-0, Ciaran Donovan 0-1 free, Ryan Mitchell 0-1, Clyde Burke 0-1

Team: David Leonard; Emmet Brady, Daniel McCarthy, Ryan Mitchell; James Brady, David Lucey, Tim Deering; Dylan Clark, Clyde Burke; Paul Reynolds Hand, Conal O'Riain, Luke O'Boyle; Joe Quigley, Ciaran O'Donovan, David Mulqueen. Subs: Leon Murphy for Clark (38 mins), Jamie Smith for Lucey (40 mins), Shane Mullarkey for O'Riain (54 mins), Mark McGlynn for Hand (56 mins), Pierce Donohue for Burke (61 mins)

REFEREE: Fintan Pierce (Offaly)