My boys did County Antrim proud, says Gary Chisholm after ‘rollercoaster' Final win against Armagh

Belfast Telegraph

4 days ago

The Antrim players emulated some famous names of the recent past who have gone on to earn senior international caps after winning the tournament with their county.
Trai Hume, Brodie Spencer, Dale Taylor and Ross McCausland were involved in triumphs back in 2017 and 2018, and now Antrim are champions again after a 2-1 win over County Armagh.
Michael Mulholland and Jordan Bradley Camlin hit the Antrim goals before Alfie Davidson gave Armagh hope – and Antrim a scare – but a first defeat of the week confined the Orchard County boys to the runners-up spot.
'It was an emotional roller-coaster,' said Chisholm.
'Three years we have been doing this and every year we have given everything to the squad in front of us, and this year, the squad has given us what we were looking for and made Co Antrim proud.
'I am so pleased to get over the line. We've been beaten in the Semi-Final, beaten in the Final, now here we are, we've won the Final, so I'm very pleased. We know what this squad is capable of and I think they've proved it.'
Davidson had a goal ruled out for offside midway through the first-half, as did Antrim's Fionbharr Stiobhard, who had only been on the pitch a matter of seconds, at the start of the second-half.
Antrim did, however, build on that momentum, and Stiobhard was involved again when they took the lead nine minutes after the break.
His super through ball found Mulholland and he showed the finishing prowess that has attracted a host of big-name clubs as he shot across the goalkeeper and into the net.
Armagh tried to respond and Eoghan Mallon sent a shot over the bar.
Just nine minutes after the first goal, however, Antrim tightened their grip on the game when the ball was squared across the six-yard box and Bradley Camlin finished.
Armagh still had something to give, though.
Ethan Connolly's heavy touch allowed the ball to get away from him in a good shooting position just a couple of minutes before Davidson headed home at a corner with nine minutes to go.
But they just couldn't muster up an equaliser to send the game to extra-time.
Third place went to St Patrick's Athletic after a dominant 5-2 win over Celtic.
Bohemians beat Tottenham Hotspur 2-1 to win the Globe, Blackburn Rovers were 4-1 winners against County Down in the Vase Final while Crewe Alexandra took the Bowl, winning 4-1 against Charlton Athletic.
Kieran O'Connor's joy as son Keegan tees up a piece of Cliftonville history in Minor triumph
The kid named after a famous golfer showed all the calmness and composure of a top pro on the 18th green at a Major Championship to deliver SuperCup NI Minor glory for Cliftonville.
Keegan O'Connor's thunderous penalty kick, which looked all the more impressive as the ball crashed off the underside of the crossbar, midway through the second-half gave the Reds a 1-0 win over Linfield.
Blues goalkeeper Jonas Henderson had been the hero in the Semi-Final, making the only save in a 7-6 shoot-out win over Blackburn Rovers.
There was nothing he could do to stop the strike by O'Connor, whose name is taken from American golf star Keegan Bradley, or in the incident that led to the penalty as he was already committed to going for the ball before colliding with Aidan Green.
Given that Cliftonville had also reached the Final by virtue of a shoot-out win in the last-four, it was perhaps inevitable that a penalty would decide the destination of the trophy, particularly as a tight and tense game progressed.
'Heart and desire won that game,' said Cliftonville coach Kieran O'Connor.
'Aidan Green showed his heart and desire just to get onto the ball to win the penalty and a fantastic finish from Mr Composure in front of goal, Keegan O'Connor, wins the Cup.
'We've made history for our club as the first Cliftonville team to win the SuperCup.'
While Keegan was nerveless when put on the spot, his coach too had full belief that he would deliver – and few know him better as Kieran, who played for Cliftonville in the Irish League, is also his father.
'It's difficult because Keegan is my son, but I have every faith in him. He is very cool and calm and collected when it comes to those areas,' said Kieran.
'He has shown all week, he's got five goals this week so he has a good eye for goal.'
The SuperCup NI Third/Fourth place Play-Off was won by Shamrock Rovers, defeating Blackburn Rovers 4-2.
Leeds United won the Globe decider with a 2-0 win over Coleraine, while Loughgall were victorious in the Vase decider, beating Al Jazira Club 3-0. The Bowl was won by Ross County as they won 3-2 against IDA Bermuda.