By Tony Tighe

A perplexing, niggling, bad-tempered yet engrossing contest, which had the potential to erupt were the scores not level at the final whistle. But level they were, somehow, and both will now go back into hiding ahead of a second date while we try to catch our breath.

When these sides met in last year’s decider there was only a point separating them at the finish, but that was more down to a late Neasden flurry rather than a game that was level pegging throughout.

Well no late fightback was required by Neasden this time, although there probably should have been. Their opponents had at best a mixed day in front of goal, firing seven wides and relying heavily on scores from frees; had they been more accurate, they could have been out of sight before half-time.

Bidding here for a three-in-a-row of senior titles, Tir Chonaill will feel they should have clinched that feat at Ruislip last Sunday, but then Neasden will argue they were worthy of a first championship since 1999, and can point out a number of incidents that went against them.

The amount of soft frees given against them around the danger zone was one contentious point, allowing Kevin Downes to convert and ease the pressure on his fellow forwards.

Then, to really put the boot in on Neasden, an attempt from the superb Gary McCloskey that looked to have shot past the left upright was given as a point, much to the bemusement and disgust of the Neasden bench. One linesman stepped in on their behalf but it fell on deaf ears.

To say Tir Chonaill rode their luck however would do them a disservice. Bar the final 10 minutes of the first half they were well on top here. Niall Quinn was an absolute pest, even though sometimes on the border of legality, Conor Beirne was busy as ever, and captain Stephen Boyle as immense in attack as in defence.

It was Tir Chonaill’s rearguard in particular that shone, suffocating the Neasden attack while committing few fouls in and around goal. The loss of Paddy Callaghan at half-time was a blow, as was Stephen Lynch’s superb goal minutes before the break, but Dave Cannon’s showing when introduced outlines the strength in depth they possess.

But while they were stingy at the back, chances continued to be spurned by their forwards, and as the game progressed the frustration levels rose, with skirmishes taking place all over the field. How both teams finished with 15 men is anyone’s guess.

For the supporters who picked up a programme en route to taking up their position on the bank, step one would be to completely disregard the starting positions on either side. There were switches all over the field, with the returning Gary Kane moving straight into midfield and Johnny Hughes switching onto Neasden dangerman Padraig Duffy.

Indeed for the majority of this game normal field positions looked a thing of the past, with the midfield a mosh pit and players resembling kids in a playground chasing after the ball.

That ball belonged to Tir Chonaill in the early exchanges as they threatened to kill this game off as quickly as possible. Half-forward Quinn had registered the first point of the day inside 10 seconds, and he had a second shortly afterwards following Downes’ first free of the day.

Neasden were being made work incredibly hard for their scores, but they did get off the mark on 10 minutes through a Lynch point, and they could have had a goal moments later when David Carty barged through, only for Boyle to pull off two stunning last-gasp blocks.

That was a brief foray into the Tir Chonaill area for Neasden however, with most of the action back in their own half, but they stayed in contention as four decent scoring chances for the champions went to waste.

Late in the first half Neasden produced the quality that got them to a second consecutive final. John Raftery and Duffy reduced arrears to a single point, before Lynch stole through on goal in stoppage time and calmly slotted past Brian McBrearty.

An even later Carty point had Neasden in dreamland, a 1-5 to 0-5 interval lead despite being second best for large spells, but they had few chances to extend that after the restart as the champions came into their own.

An enforced double substitution as half-time didn’t knock Tir Chonaill’s rhythm, and by the midway point of the second half the sides were level, McCloskey’s dubious effort sandwiched by two further frees from Downes.

Neasden hit back through Lynch and Duffy, but their indiscipline at the back allowed Downes and McMenamin to muster instant replies to leave the sides deadlocked at full-time.

Improvement is required from both sides for the replay on Sunday week, but at the same time both will fancy their chances of landing the Martin Diggins Memorial Cup. Roll on round two.

Man of the match: Stephen Boyle (Tir Chonaill Gaels)

Tir Chonaill Gaels: B McBrearty; H Cunningham, P Callaghan, R Walsh; J Hughes, S Campbell (0-1), S Boyle; C Beirne, G McCloskey (0-1); G Kane, M Sweeney, N Quinn (0-2); L Gavaghan, K Downes (0-5f), K McMenamin (0-1f).

Subs: D Cannon for P Callaghan (ht); D Alcorn for Sweeney (ht); M Alcorn for Gavaghan (45).

Neasden Gaels: C McGann; K Geraghty, J Feeney, B Comer; P McCone, B McDonagh, T Dougan; J Raftery (0-1), P Geraghty; P Friel (0-1), P Duffy (0-2), M Duffy; T Hughes, S Lynch (1-2), D Carty (0-1).

Subs: M Geraghty for Hughes (39); D Donnellan for Feeney (45); R O’Loan for Carty (55).

Referee: J Doyle