Slaughtneil 3-23 Kevin Lynch's 1-9
Far from finding it harder with every passing year, Derry’s hurling supremos Slaughtneil had 20 points to spare when putting an outclassed Kevin Lynch’s to the sword as they annexed their 11th successive county senior title in Owenbeg on Sunday.
Neutral fans turning up in the hope of witnessing a real contest hadn’t long to wait before disappointment set in as the holders were 0-7 to no score to the good after 20 minutes and by the interval had extended their own scoring to 0-13 while somehow allowing their opponents a solitary white flag to show for all their efforts in that half-hour’s hurling.
You just knew that with the game decided as a contest, there would be a concentration on raising green flags and again the winners didn’t disappoint as outstanding county dual star Brendan Rogers weighed in with a hefty personal tally of 3-2 as the winners went from strength to strength.
Indeed but for a great goalkeeping display by the losers Liam Hinphey, there would have been many more green flags waving - with Rogers one of those deprived by the excellent netminder.
The efforts of the losers to gamely keep fighting was rewarded when Ronan Mullan found the net for the Dungiven outfit - a consolation in the context of the way the game had unfurled.
The Derry side will now aim to keep themselves active as they wait to play in the provincial decider at the end of next month.
