Kildare secured their first ever EirGrid U20 All-Ireland title with a 1-18 to 1-16 win over Mayo in Croke Park today as Jimmy Hyland once again produced, finishing with 0-10 in a Man of the Match performance.
Mayo had started brightly but Kildare quickly went to work and at one point their lead was six. A late rally faltered for Mayo when midfielder Jordan Flynn was sent off in explosive circumstances. The Crossmolina Deel Rovers club man became involved in an altercation with Darragh Ryan. After he was shown a red card, Flynn then pushed the referee before a selector escorted him off the field.
It was a disappointing end to an impressive year for Flynn and his team-mates. It was a monumental loss of composure and in the same manner as Kevin McStay and Diarmuid Connolly before him, a long ban will be forthcoming. However, he is not the first player to lose the head and won't be the last.
The incident provoked quite a reaction online.
The Mayo no 9, I hope he gets a good suspension for trying to choke the kildare player and then pushes the ref...He must have got a melt down
— DeeJPJ. (@OPjocarroll) August 5, 2018
Red card for Jordan Flynn and unfortunately he's pushed the referee on his way off. That is not what we want to see at all. Jimmy Hyland punishes Mayo with another point. 1-14 1-18 #MayoGAA
Listen live ➡️https://t.co/Jp9hV1BY1U— Mid West Radio (@radiomidwest) August 5, 2018
Nobody but nobody is going to defend what Jordan Flynn did today but if you're giving him grief today on social media have a word with yourself and imagine how you would feel if it was yourself or a member of your family. He's young, he'll regret it and learn from it.
— Cormac O'Malley (@cormacpro) August 5, 2018
Hard luck to our #mayogaa u20s. Jordan Flynn doesn’t need me to tell him that he let himself and his teammates down with that rush of blood. He’s young, he’ll learn, but I think he’ll see a long ban in which to reflect.
— Richie Heneghan (@RichieHeneghan) August 5, 2018
hahah that mayo lad pushing the ref cause war in some chipper tonight
— Fij (@ElephantStone93) August 5, 2018
