Carlow booked their place in the O’Byrne Shield semi-final with a hard-fought 1-13 to 0-13 victory over Wexford at St Patrick’s GAA Club in Tullow, with Colm Hulton leading the scoring and a memorable home debut moment providing the highlight of the night.
Hulton finished with 1-3 to his name as Joe Murphy’s side edged a tight quarter-final contest, making the most of their chances in front of goal to secure the three-point win.
However, the story of the evening belonged to St Pat’s man Paddy Doyle. Introduced from the bench, Doyle marked his senior debut by scoring the second-last point of the game in front of a home crowd packed with family, friends, and clubmates.
Speaking afterwards to match commentator Brendan Henessy, an emotional Doyle reflected on the moment.
“To have my family and friends, people who have trained me all up through the years on the sideline cheer me on, meant the world to me. Definitely one of the proudest days I ever had playing in Tullow, and playing football. The ball came to my hand and I had more time than I could have hoped for. I thought it was going wide at first but then it curled in, and it was definitely the icing on the cake.”
The victory moves Carlow into the semi-finals of the O’Byrne Shield, where Murphy’s side will now face Laois.
