50 years ago today: Nemo defeat Dohenys to win their 3rd senior football county title

NEMO TAKE COUNTY TITLE

Four Goal Rush Crushes Resistance

Peadar O'Brien's article in The Irish Press after the county final on Monday, September 22, 1975.

NEMO RANGERS ............ 4-12
DOHENYS .................... 0-7

A tremendous four-goal rush in the last eight minutes helped the titleholders Nemo Rangers to their second successive Cork senior football title and their third in all in this county decider at the Mardyke yesterday. The score slightly flatters Nemo, even though one could never doubt their superiority, but they will be the first to admit that they were hardly 17 points the better side.

For 52 minutes the comparatively inexperienced Dohenys, who were contesting their first final in this grade since 1898, stayed with the champions, but the signs were always there that Nemo would make the breakthrough. When they did, it was with devastating effectiveness to such an extent that Dohenys had nothing left to offer in the way of resistance.

Nemo won because they never looked in danger after an all-out first-half onslaught. They were better at midfield in that opening 30 minutes but their half-forwards, Seamus Leyden and Jimmy Barrett, lay back down the field as they faced the Cork men’s wind.

Nemo stayed in the game because of two great saves by county goalkeeper Billy Morgan—from Denis Crowley in the 9th minute and from John Collins in the 15th.

Had Dohenys scored from these chances who knows what might have happened but county finals are never decided on ifs and buts.

It was the Nemo defence which bore the brunt of that tremendous Dohenys onslaught in the opening half, but Morgan in goal, Frank Cogan at right half, Denis Lenahan at right half and Kieran Murphy at centre-half were rarely beaten.

It must have been galling to Dohenys to see every point they scored equalled almost immediately by the outplayed Nemo side. This was a case where Nemo took their limited first half chances and they were only one point down 0-6 to 0-5 at half time.

Further disaster hit Dohenys five minutes after the interval when they were awarded a penalty after a Nemo defender chose to argue with referee Jim Dennihan, but midfielder Colman O’Rourke saw his rising shot tipped over the bar by Morgan who had an outstanding game.

At that stage the scores were level 0-6 each, and Nemo took the lead for the first time in the game. They never lost it when Kieran Collins pointed a free. Thereafter they never looked back and it is perhaps a tribute to their discipline that Dohenys could only manage to score three points from play.

The goal rush was dramatic. Nemo had crept into a 0-10 to 0-7 lead with 11 minutes left to play. With eight minutes to go corner forward Noel Morgan, a brother of Billy, took a long pass from Seamus Coughlan and, even though Dermot Mawe in the Dohenys’ goal stopped his first shot, he was unable to stop Morgan from running in to score from the rebound.

Sixty seconds later Morgan was again in position. He grabbed a high centre and lashed the ball to the net as the flabbergasted Dohenys’ defence looked on. Jimmy Barrett added a point and then a dreadful mistake by Mawe let a shot from Colm Murphy slip through his fingers.

Seconds from the end Lenahan was fouled in the Dohenys’ square and Jimmy Allen completed the scoring from the penalty spot.

Outstanding in this latest Nemo success were goalkeeper Morgan, defenders Cogan, Lenahan, and Murphy. Midfield recover came into it only in the second half when Kieran Collins played some good football. And in the attack, Denny Allen, Seamus Coughlan, Seamus Leyden and Noel Morgan were most impressive.

Dohenys lost this match because of their inexperience. They played some tremendous football especially in the opening half, but got nowhere because of the Nemo defence. Goalkeeper Mawe could only be faulted for one goal.

Centre half-back Seamus O’Sullivan and left full John Crowley, until he retired three minutes from the finish, played extremely well. Colman O’Rourke had a tremendous game at midfield but faded in the last 10 minutes and in an attack which rarely made any headway against the superb Nemo defence, Vincent O’Donovan, James Collins and Johnny Carroll tried extremely hard.

Scorers — Nemo: N. Morgan (2-3), S. Coughlan (0-4), K. Collins (0-3), C. Murphy and D. Allen (a goal each), S. Leyden and J. Barrett (0-1 each).
Dohenys: C. O’Rourke (0-3), one 50 and one free, D. Collins (0-2), both frees, J. Carroll, J. Collins (0-1 each).

NEMO: B. Morgan; F. Cogan, B. Murphy, J. Weldon; D. Lenahan, K. Murphy, D. O’Driscoll; D. Cogan, K. Collins; J. Barrett, S. Coughlan, S. Leyden; N. Morgan, D. Allen, C. Murphy
DOHENYS: D. Mawe; P. McCarthy, J. Young, J. Crowley; D. Carroll, S. O’Sullivan, S. Crowley; C. O’Rourke, M. Carney; V. O’Donovan, B. O’Rourke, J. Collins; D. Collins, D. Crowley, J. Carroll. Sub—E. Cagney for J. Crowley

Referee: J. Dennigan (Fermoy)