Portlaoise 1-11 Stradbally Parish Gaels 1-8
2001 – Laois U-21 FC Final
This week’s Remember the Game looks back on the Laois U-21 football county final from this time 18 years ago.
Portlaoise claimed their fifth U-21 title in a row in November 2001 when they had three points to spare over Stradbally Parish Gaels in the final in Timahoe.
Two very talented teams did battle in a great game – with Portlaoise scoring a couple of points late on to seal the win, though the game was remembered for a free-for-all that developed near the end.
Portlaoise would claim a sixth title the following year before Stradbally Parish Gaels beat them in the 2003 semi-final and 2004 final – before Portlaoise came back to win another three-in-a-row from 2005 to 2007.
SCORERS – Portlaoise: Cathal Murphy 1-4, Brian McCormack 0-5, Joe Phelan 0-1, Peter O’Sullivan 0-1. Stradbally Parish Gaels: Benny O’Connell 0-4, Colm Kelly 1-0, Daragh McEvoy 0-2, Derek Beale 0-2
PORTLAOISE: Michael Nolan; John Delaney, Colm Byrne, David Hughes; Malachy McNulty, Brian Gaynor, Pauric Phelan; Aidan Fennelly, Brian McCormack; Eoin Browne, Joe Phelan, Brian Mulligan; Cathal Murphy, Brian Fitzpatrick, Peter Sullivan. Sub: Tadhg Murphy for Fitzpatrick
STRADBALLY PARISH GAELS: Anthony Brady; Dan Dunne, Martin Bergin, Dan Larkin; Billy Murphy, Donal Miller, Joe Begley; Daragh McEvoy, Padraig Clancy; John Donohue, Benny O’Connell, Colm Kelly; Brendan Quigley, Derek Beale, James Miller. Subs: David Kinsella for Larkin, Willie Lalor for J Miller
SEE ALSO – See more stories and photos from 2001
