Dicksboro are the 2022 Kilkenny Honda Centre Minor A Hurling champions following a dramatic 3-07 to 1-12 victory against city rivals James Stephens on Saturday in UPMC Nowlan Park.
An incredible score from Billy Fitzpatrick following a missed free from the same man just moments before sealed the result.
It was the Village who started the stronger of the two sides as Stephen Manogue and Ed and Bill McDermott led the charge for their team as they took an early 0-07 to 0-02 lead.
Their opponents responded with the first of three goals as Killian Dollard found the back of the net to leave four points between the sides at the interval, 0-10 to 1-03.
The Boro reduced the deficit to a single point early in the second half when Ross Doyle grabbed a goal for last year’s champions with a big crowd getting more boisterous as a tight affair progressed.
They took the lead for the first time as the game neared its conclusion thanks to scores from Billy Fitzpatrick and Brian Moore, but their fierce foes immediately restored their lead thanks to a fantastic goal from Manogue.
The drama did not end there, however, as Fitzpatrick took centre stage.
A brilliant goal from the silky forward looked as though it would be enough to seal yet another minor title for his club, but in a breathless end that included a goal for James Stephens being ruled out for a foul in the build-up, Andy Murphy equalised before a bit of magic from Fitzpatrick secured a memorable victory.
Earlier in the day, Thomastown proved too strong for Rower Inistioge in the Minor B decider.
Coming off the back of a semi-final win over Glenmore, Thomastown were in great from throughout Saturday’s encounter as they fired in four goals on their way to a deserved 4-17 to 1-10 victory.
Despite their best efforts, Rower Inistioge could not rekindle the form of their narrow semi-final win against St Martin’s last month as Thomastown captain Jimmy Maher raised the Ted Carroll Shield after his team’s win.