Month: October 2009

WITH senior status for 2010 at stake, a hard fought encounter was always a given. In that regard those in En- nistymon on Sunday for his high noon clash weren’t left disappointed.

It was a battle from throw-in to fin- ish. No surprise then that not all of this psyched-up aggression remained under control. Michael Rock was kept busy, flashing red twice and yel- low nine times in this fight for sur- vival in the top flight.

Ballyvaughan started this fight much the better — notching 1-1 inside five minutes that teed them up for a

1-4 to O-4 interval lead, but on the turnover it was St Joseph’s who re- ally came good on the back of Dav- id O’Brien’s 4lst minute goal that helped them turn a four-point deficit into a five-point victory.

Ballyvaughan’s dream start was the result of their renowned possession game — in almost rugby like fashion the Ballyvaughan players passed the ball across the field with John Mar- tyn finishing the move to the net when palming home from just out- side the square.

However, St Joseph’s did not lie down and responded excellently with three points in a row from Johnny

O’Brien (2) and David O’Brien to leave one between the sides after 15 minutes.

Ballyvaughan did regain control before half-time their own hat-trick of points, the pick of which was Ja- son McDonagh’s sideline effort, but it was St Joseph’s who really turned the screw in the second-half.

Cathal O’Sullivan’s point in the first minute had them on their way, while their vital score came ten minutes later. They stole the goal they desper- ately needed when David O’Brien’s shot crept under Damien McNamara in the Ballyvaughan goal.

Momentum had switched sides as

the Parish sneaked into the lead for the first time, but their good work looked to have been undermined when Keith Whelan received a red card for a striking offence, only for the game to be reduced to 14 aside five minutes later when Ray Casey got his marching orders.

The introduction of sub Colm Mul- len for Barefield was very effective as he totalled two points and created a number of other chances. This, in addition with fantastic free taking by O’Brien drove St Joseph’s to victory.

The five-point margin between the sides at the end may have been harsh but its intermediate football for Bal- lyvaughan for 2010 and another sur- vival act brought off by St Joseph’s.

WITH the intense rivalry that Kil- maley and Newmarket-on-Fergus have built up at every level in recent seasons, it was always going to be a close run affair. However, it 1s un- likely that anyone could have fore- seen the dramatic circumstances of their latest meeting.

Clarecastle GAA has become a lucky hunting ground for Kilmaley over the last fortnight, but they had to utilise every ounce of that fortune on this occasion as a last gasp Aishling D’Arcy goal denied Newmarket their fifth Under 18A title.

In truth, it was extremely cruel on Newmarket who had led for the vast majority of this tie and appeared to have done enough to see off Kilma- ley’s spirited fightback. However, unable to close out the game at any stage and only holding a precarious minimum advantage entering injury- time, there was always the danger that Kilmaley could snatch some- thing out of this game.

And so it proved as deep into injury time, a Shonagh Enright crossfield

pass eventually found it’s way to hard-working midfielder D’Arcy at the far post to finish to the net and complete the dramatic turnaround.

The preamble to this tie was based on the several big name players on show. Kilmaley had the county expe- rience of Shonagh Enright, Eimear Considine, Katie Cahill, Niamh Cahill, Ailish Considine and Sarah Reidy while Newmarket predomi- nantly looked to Roisin McMahon, Carol Kaiser, Carol O’Leary and Niki Kaiser for inspiration.

It was Enright who set the tone af- ter only 17 seconds with a point but it was to prove a while before either side really settled into their stride. Newmarket’s reply was substantial though when Roisin McMahon’s 10th minute free from just inside the ‘45 went all the way to the net.

That goal was to prove the differ- ence for the remainder of the half as Shonagh Enright’s placed balls cancelled out efforts from Gemma McInerney, Niki Kaiser and Jenny Kelly as Newmarket held a 1-4 to 0- 4 lead at the break.

The problem for Kilmaley was that

aside from Enright, they never really posed an attacking threat, especially to Newmarket’s full-back line. They corrected that for the second period by switching Katie Cahill to her more natural position at full-forward.

It gave Kilmaley a target and more importantly a better balance to their side. With Eimear O’Connor and Aishling D’Arcy foraging well around the centre, Kilmaley improved as the game progressed. However, Newmar- ket also had an ace in the hole in Car- ol Kaiser, whose running game was better suited to centre-forward and it was her threat in particular that kept Kilmaley at bay in the early stages. The county player earned her side three frees in the opening five min- utes, two of which were converted by her sister Niki with only a Shonagh Enright free in reply to open up a 1-6 to 0-5 lead.

However, Kilmaley’s luck turned in the 39th minute when Aishling D’Arcy’s effort from distance went through a crowd of players, leaving goalkeeper Laura McMahon unsight- ed as the ball reached the net and now brimming with renewed confidence,

Kilmaley actually gained parity four minutes later when Shonagh Enright cut inside her marker and pointed.

Niki Kaiser and Katie Cahill traded points soon afterwards but Newmar- ket dug deep and found another gear to pull two points clear once more by the 53rd minute through a brace of Niki Kaiser frees.

Newmarket appeared destined to take the title when they kept out a Shonagh Enright penalty only two minutes later but crucially, Kilma- ley didn’t die and the Cahill-Enright combination cut the deficit to the bare minimum with only four min- utes remaining to set up a grandstand aU OF

GUE A daa omnis ane market in order to grab an equaliser but frustratingly saw a Shonagh En- right effort batted away by goalkeep- er McMahon before Katie Cahill’s rebound drifted wide. That appeared to be their last chance but Aishling D’Arcy had other ideas.

Although Zelica Brown produced a driving solo run at the heart of the Kilmaley defence in search of a win- ning goal, her effort was kept out by

goalkeeper Ailish Considine and it was enough to earn Kilmaley their third minor title in three years.

IT had been 29 years since Corofin last won the Junior A championship and that hunger and determination to bridge that long gap certainly had a major bearing on Saturday’s result.

Put simply, Corofin wanted this ti- tle more and with that added drive, they certainly earned a bit of fortune along the way before finally claim- ing the title. The perfectly timed goals were the sucker-punches that decided the tie, with the two second- half efforts in particular of the ‘soft’ variety.

Inagh/Kilnamona can’t really ar- gue with the overall result as frus- tratingly, they never really reached the heights of previous performances in their bid to bounce straight back up to the intermediate grade.

Essentially, Corofin had numerous leaders in their side willing to take up the challenge while in contrast, Inagh/Kilnamona appeared appre- hensive for the majority, fumbling possession and giving away too many frees that Stephen Heagney was only too willing to punish.

The first significant blow came in the 23rd minute, with Corofin hold- ing a slender 0-6 to 0-4 advantage after a relatively evenly matched opening. An Inagh/Kilnamona puck- out was gathered by defensive anchor Eoin Malone whose clearance found David Daly. As the centre-forward attracted the Combo defence, he of- floaded to Fiachra Daly who was met by onrushing goalkeeper Stephen Toomey for a penalty.

Stephen Heagney, who had _ al- ready secured four of Corofin’s total, stepped up to accurately drive his ef- fort to the right corner of the net, an advantage they would hold until the break at 1-7 to 0-5.

A five point deficit was far from insurmountable but if Inagh/Kilna- mona had planned to hit the ground running in the second period, they were knocked back on their heels right from the throw-in as a Heag- ney free from half-way caused con-

sternation in the Inagh/Kilnamona full-back line and the ball broke to kindly for Fiachra Daly to pull to an empty net.

Inagh/Kilnamona took the blow on the chin and proceeded to pick off a brace of points through Dam- ien O’Shaughnessy and Joe Griffin to reduce the lead to six. However, they were once again floored only a minute later by a third hammer blow, this time an own goal. Goalkeeper Stephen Toomey batted a Michael

O’Dell delivery off the heel of his own player and could only watch in horror as the ball trickled over the line.

Credit the Combo for not panicking though as three successive Damien O’Shaughnessy frees cut the deficit to six by the turn of the final quarter. Sensing the backlash, Corofin went on the defensive, pulling midfielder Diarmuid Daly back as a sweeper behind the half-back line and using a two-man full-forward line as Heag-

ney secured two more frees.

That tactic frustrated Inagh/Kilna- mona even more and although Joe Griffin’s 60th minute goal put only four between the sides, Corofin had invested far too much in this game to let it slip at that stage.

There were some nervy moments though, particularly when Eugene Cullinan’s pull flashed just over the crossbar but Corofin held out. In- evitably it was Heagney who con- verted the injury-time point in the 63rd minute to sink the Combo and hand Corofin the coveted title that they have waited so long to get their hands on.

CLONDEGAD kicked off a super Sunday for themselves and neigh- bouring club Lissycasey with a strong and emphatic win over Coora- clare. For the opening period nobody sitting in the stand at Kilmihil could have predicted a 15 point winning margin, though.

When the sides broke for half-time, only a single point had separated them after an entertaining 30 min- utes that saw both sides kick some impressive scores. Trailing by one point on a scoreline of 1-5 to O-9, it was difficult to visualise Cooraclare being dominated so much at the turn around that they managed only a single point during the latter 30 min- utes.

With 20 minutes on the clock, Clondegad had pulled away slightly and led by three but Cooraclare struck back. After some confusion in the Clondegad defence, Jason Lillis picked up possession and fed the ball to Joey Martin who rattled home.

The game was wide open but the door was closed during the first five minutes of the second-half. Clonde- gad simply provided a blitz of scores and pressed forward with intent and this was the defining period of the game.

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THE Avenue United steamtrain left a hapless Burren United in their wake on Sunday as they maintained their perfect start to the season with a sixth successive victory. The ‘Galacticos’ of the Clare league have put together an enviable squad this year that ap- pears to have seamlessly blended and they demonstrated that increasing confidence on Sunday morning with a strong display of passing and ruth- less scoring prowess.

Granted, the visitors Burren were severely understrength but in all honesty, the way the league leaders performed, it is unlikely that even Burren’s normally spirited full line- up would have taken anything out of this game.

At times, some of Avenue’s move- ment and one-touch passing was a joy to watch and really a lacklustre Burren side were only chasing shad- ows for the majority.

Realising the gravity of their trip to the league leaders, a threadbare Bur- ren side needed a good start to settle them down but instead they found themselves 3-0 behind by the 16th minute. From that point on, it was merely a damage limitation exercise.

All three goals stemmed from Dav- id Smyth crosses with the first com- ing after only seven minutes through Sean O’Meara who flicked a near

post header past the Lifford goal- keeper. Three minutes later, Smyth raided from the left wing where his cross was headed on by O’Meara to the waiting Declan Field to volley to the net at the back post. Everything Avenue created seemed to be goal- bound and in the 16th minute Declan Field was fouled on the right wing. Smyth floated the resulant free into the box where O’Meara again rose highest to deftly nestle his header to the left corner.

By this stage, Avenue were rampant

and probably should have added to their tally with efforts from the pacy Adrian McDonagh and centre-half David Russell who had three chances each spurned.

Burren’s best chance of the half fell to Ghiat Marine who was un- lucky to see a clever lob drift past the right hand post in the 27th minute and it would get infinitely worse for the north Clare side when defender Michael Keating received a straight red for an impulsive slap on the back of Anthony Whyte right on the stroke

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The gradient of Burren’s_ uphill climb declined significantly just af- ter the breakthough when Avenue were hit with the double whammy of conceding a penalty and losing a man after Evan Talty beat goal- keeper Killian Culligan to the ball just inside the box and was subse- quently tripped. Culligan received a red; midfielder Gary Flynn went into goal and when Mark McCarthy duly converted the spot kick, the whole complexion of the game seemed to have altered.

Instead though, Avenue just altered their formation to 3-4-2 and within five minutes, had restored their three goal lead when the lively Adrian Mc- Donagh burnt the north Clare side’s defence for pace and flicked past Shannon for 4-1.

That was the killer blow for Burren who appeared to drop their heads af- ter that as Avenue laid siege in their half and with fresh legs on board, the goals soon followed. Substitutes David Herlihy and Mikey Mahoney (2) added to Burren’s woes before Declan Field, now the midfield an- chor, completed the rout in the 87th minute by taking on the defence and slipping the ball to the right corner of the net.

In one game, the leaders had al- most doubled their score difference, increased their advatage at the top to

eight points and more importantly, delivered a clear message of intent to their rivals that they certainly mean business this year.

THE backbone of Sunday’s victory was laid in the weeks and months of the earlier part of the year. Back in Quilty, half an army trudged regu- larly to Pairc Naomh Mhuire to take part in training. Strength in num- bers.

“There’s been great competition at training,’ says Dermot O’Brien. ‘“There’s a dozen players you could pick our forwards from. Even against Doonbeg we brought on five subs and they made the difference. It was the same thing again today.

“Over the last few years we lacked a deep panel. We seemed to have only 15 players and that was it. It’s different now. We have 33 lads train- ing every night and it’s so intense at training. Before, maybe you could only manage a game of backs and forwards. This year we can have 13 or 15-a-side at training every night and that pushes everybody along.”

O’Brien was involved in two of the most important incidents in the opening half, Kilkee’s two goals.

“The first goal, I caught a high ball and I saw two lads outside me. I went to hand pass it and I’m not sure if I slipped, but I fell down, the ball slipped out and it seemed to re- bound into the net. I can’t make any excuse. I caught the ball, so it wasn’t the sun.

‘For the second, I came out against him [Geardid Lynch] and thought

he was going to round me, which is what he did. I just spread myself and blocked it and for a split second I lost where the ball was. Then, I just saw the ball going past me and into the goal.”

O’Brien’s initial save from Lynch was one of the few highlights of the game and like the first goal, consid- ering where the ball dropped, luck wasn’t on the goalkeeper’s side.

In the end, it didn’t matter though.

“T still think we haven’t reached our peak this year. We reached our peak for ten minutes against Doonbeg and ten minutes against Kilkee. It’s been a long year and it can get to lads but we Il have no excuses.”

O’Brien described the game as both mentally and physically tough, made difficult by Kilkee’s insistence that Kilmurry Ibrickane wouldn’t have Omer aan E

“We had a game plan going out but we never stuck to it. We had planned to drive the ball in long and hit our two or three men inside but any time you looked up there seemed to be lots of Kilkee players up there and we seemed to drift up there with them instead of staying back. So, instead of kicking ball into four or five lads, you were then kicking it into to ten or twenty lads. So the game plan went O) ULM aTomy Yau eLeCO)\ ee mm Melo On acl must.) Fame

Even when the now back-to-back champions went three up near the end, O’Brien wasn’t taking the result for granted.

“T didn’t figure we had won until the final whistle to be honest. I never thought we had the game won. When we went up two, we pushed on to three but they had a free in the last few seconds of the game. If a high ball went in from that, anything could have happened. They could have got a goal.

“Before, we might have been com- placent but that’s not the case any- more. Little things like that can make a huge difference.”

THE celebrations were far from wild, but when Kilmihil manager Mick Darby took a few minutes out to reflect on some more silverware heading out the Kilrush Road, be- fore hanging a right at Downes’ pub, skirting by Knockalough and on its way to Declan’s Bar, he was keen to reflect on what had been another mission accomplished for his emerg- ing side.

“We are a couple of years away from being a real force at senior lev- el,” he admitted, “because we have a lot of young lads coming through but I believe that it will happen for us in due course, so it’s about trying to improve with every year and this win is part of that.

“The lads themselves made the de-

cision that they wanted to stay train- ing. We had two games to play to try and win this Senior B title and we did that. It’s about keeping up the momentum for this Kilmihil team after winning the intermediate title last year and winning the Senior B was important.”

Just as important was being part of county senior final afternoon for the first time in nearly two decades. “It’s a long time, 19 years since the Kilmi- hil club has been here in Cusack Park on county senior final day,’ reflected Darby, who was manager back in 1990 when they were beaten by St Joseph’s Miltown.

“It meant this was a big day for the club and an occasion for the players. They needed to settle in and they did that in the first-half when get- ting those points near the end of the

half to go in with a good lead at half- time.

“The two Ryans caught great ball and kicked great scores, but I wouldn’t be one for singling out in- dividual players because everyone on the panel has worked hard. It was a panel effort, just like it has been all year.

“Mark O’Connell had a problem with a groin injury, but that wasn’t the reason he was moved in. He was moved in for a different reason and he’s a hard player to stop when he’s on form and going forward.”

Kilmihil are going forward them- selves.

TO say this was pedestrian stuff is putting it very mildly to say the very least. A senior county final of sorts, but in name only such was the tame nature of the spectacle that unfolded over an hour of largely forgettable football.

There were the exceptions though — little nuggets that lifted the dross from a tepid encounter, the fielding ability of Timmy and David Ryan, the industry of Mark O’Connell in the full-forward line and six of their points that came from play.

It was just as well that these lit- tle moments of magic came from

Kilmihil, because Ennistymon were truly awful, save a semi-circling of the wagons in the last 20 mintues when they put a scoreless first 40 behind them by putting four points on the board. The wonder is how En- nistymon were able to peg it back to a three-point game with five minutes remaining.

That they ultimately came up short had nothing to do with great defen- sive work on the part of a Kilmihil team, but more to do with Ennisty- mon’s wide tally of the second-half that numbered six.

Two of those bad wides came in the final five minutes when only a goal separated the sides — had they been

converted to bring this game right down to the wire, and had they some- how grabbed a remarkable victory it would have marked this one down as a travesty of football justice.

It never happened, but still it was much too close for comfort for a Kilmihil side that dominated this game for the first 50 minutes. The 2008 intermediate champions led by O-4 to no score at half-time, having taken up where they left off against Lissycasey when they held them scoreless for the hour.

A brilliant opening point from left- half-back Rory Mohally after good work in the build up by David Ryan and Declan Downes had Kilmihil on

their way in the seventh minute.

Nineteen minutes passed before there was another score, but Kilm1- hil then finished the half with a flourish of fine points from play by David Ryan and Karl Downes before Timmy Ryan floated a free over in the 30th minute to give them a com- manding lead.

After Timmy Ryan thumped over the score of the game off his left a minute after the re-start and David followed up with another six minutes later, captain Mark O’Connell could safely start rehearsing his cupla fo- cail in his head.

Maybe that’s what happened, be- cause from there Kilmihil suddenly let their guard down and a point from Joe Dowling from a 40-yard free in the 40th minute broke Ennistymon’s duck and was the cue for a spirited display in the final 20 minutes.

Shane Mangan’s point in the 46th minute had Kilmihil 0-7 to O-1 ahead but from their the backed off into de- fensive and flirted with throwing this game away. Three Brian Conway points between the 52nd and 55th minutes brought it back to three.

Then there were Ennistymon’s wides, before Laurence Healy and

Timmy Ryan were red-carded before the end.

TENSION filled the air in Tulla on Saturday evening but in an evenly matched battle of endurance that saw the sides level on seven occasions, as late as the 55th minute, it eventu- ally came down to which side really wanted it more in the final moments. Ruan had been the ones who looked most likely to get over the line after taking the lead six times during the opening three-quarters of the match but unable to shake off Feakle at any stage, it was the east Clare men who eventually displayed the greater hun- ger and momentum when it mattered most.

A repeat of the 1988 county sen-

ior final, one that also went Feakle’s way, those halcyon days have been merely a distant memory in recent times as both clubs looked to rebuild after an interminably long period of transition. There was also the added ingredient of John Punch taking on his native club with always an under- lying fear permeating amongst the Feakle support that the script was written for the forward to score the winning point. What made this such a unique oc- casion though was the carrot of an intermediate final appearance, com- ing about after the quarter-final draw pooled all three champion- ship favourites Whitegate, Eire Og and Killanena on the one side of the draw. With neither Feakle nor Ruan expected to be in the shake up for championship honours this year, this was a huge opportunity to make the last two and as a result, a pressure cooker atmosphere magnified every touch of the ball.

It was Ruan who settled into their stride the quicker, bouncing back from a Gary Guilfoyle free to erab a fourth minute goal. Killian Ryan played a neat pass to Michael

Vaughan down the left wing and his high delivery broke off Aiden Lynch to the waiting O’ Regan to scrable the ball over the line.

Feakle meanwhile, despite having numerous chances, were guilty of some poor misses and Ruan added to their woes with a sixth minute point through Michael Vaughan.

Slowly Feakle got back into the game and after a superb lineball by Gary Guilfoyle was cancelled out by

a Punch free, the east Clare side hit the next three points to gain parity by the 24th minute. Three more times Ruan edged ahead before the break only to be dragged back by a stub- born Feakle challenge as the sides went into the interval at 1-5 to 0-8. The tables quickly turned on the resumption as again Feakle earned a free from the throw-in that Tommy Moroney converted before taking a two point advantage for the first time

in the game three minutes later when a good passing move involving Ray- mond Bane and Stevie Moloney re- leased Colin Nelson to fire over from the left wing.

This time it was Ruan’s turn to react and they did so through their inspira- tional leader Jonathan Clohessy who grabbed the first of three unanswered points by the turn of the final quarter to edge Ruan in front once more.

The seesaw battle for supremacy

continued as twice in the next seven minutes, Feakle equalised to set up a grandstand finish. It appeared to be heading for a draw but somehow Feakle found an extra gear, with sub- stitute Ronan Harrington and Tom- my Moroney scoring a point apeice in the 57th minute to push their side Q-14 to 1-09 ahead.

Cigarettes were smoked to the butts and fingernails was gnawed to the bone as John Punch cut the deficit to only the minimum with two min- utes remaining. However, a monster Gary Guilfoyle free from his own ’65 in the final minute raised a huge roar of approval from the Feakle support and it inspired them to battle admi- rably in the dying seconds before se- curing their first final appearance in SIX years.

SIXMILEBRIDGE continued their impressive stranglehold on Clare un- derage hurling on Saturday to add a second successive Under I5A title to the Under 12, 14, 16 and 21 equiva- lents already captured this year. However, they certainly made hard work of their latest acquisition as from a position of total dominance, they were almost caught napping by a determined second half fightback from age old rivals Clarecastle.

Leading by ten points at the break, Sixmilebridge appeared to have the game wrapped up but two goals in four minutes from Mikie Casey and Joe Barry around the turn of the final quarter cut Sixmilebridge’s ten point half-time advantage to just four and with plenty of time as well as mo- mentum on their side, Clarecastle threw everything at the Bridge for the remainder.

Decisively though, instead of pick- ing off points, the Magpies went for the jugular and put all their efforts into obtaining a fifth goal but suc- cessive efforts from Gearoid Ryan, Cian Crimmins, Jonathan Griffey and Mikie Casey were all repelled by the inspired Dylan Flemming in the Sixmilebridge goal. In saying that, holders Sixmilebridge also had ampel goal chances to kill off Clare- castle with Paul Finnan in particular unlucky to see a few efforts hit the side netting but as the Magpies con- centrated in vain on hitting the net, the Bridge clung on to eventually see out the win.

It was a totally different story in the first half though as backed by the wind, Sixmilebridge settled quickest to open up a 1-5 to 0-1 advantage by the end of the first quarter. The key to the Bridge’s early advantage was

the strength of Jamie Shanahan and Brian Carey as well as an added bit of guile in front of the posts that saw the lively Brian Corry seize on a de- fensive lapse to grab his 12th minute goal.

The Magpies were visibly nervous but improved as the half went on, eventually getting their reward in the 21st minute when a Stephen Ward run Vuo nO elommacnCe(ed(omcolbnsle Mm Gur-Dem@smnenuenuners whose shot was saved by Flemming and Mikie Casey was the first to re- act to pull to the net. At 1-7 to 1-2,

it should have inspired the Magpies but crucially Sixmilebridge’s reply was immediate as from the puck-out, Corry again gathered possession and played in a ball for Stephen Mulready to flick to the net.

That see-saw pattern was to repeat itself again before the break as Ca- sey caught a Stephen Ward free and rifled a shot to the net only to see it cancelled out again when Brian Cor- ry was fouled in front of the posts and Jamie Shanahan produced an un- stoppable effort from 20 metres to

give the ‘Bridge a comfortable 3-9 to 2-2 half-time lead.

The second period started tenta- tively, with only a point apiece on the scoreboard after ten minutes of the restart but as Sixmilebridge began to misfire in front of the posts, the Mag- pies grew in confidence. In the 40th minute, impact substitute Jack Mc- Dermott set off on a solo run and was eventually fouled before Mikie Casey completed his hat-trick of goals from the resulting 20 metre free. This time though, there was no instantaneous

reply from the Bridge as a Stephen Mulready shot was saved by goal- keeper Conor Liddy and Clarecastle took full advantage by turning up the heat with a Joseph Barry goal at the back post after receiving a pass from Bobby Duggan.

Duggan and Finnan swapped points soon afterwards but having assumed the ascendency, Clarecastle’s over- eagerness to go for goal was to prove very costly. The Bridge’s wide tally was now hitting double figures but Clarecastle were unable to punish them with points and although they eventually realised their error, time was not on their side as the Bridge deservedly held on to collect their ninth underage title in two years.