This article is from page 47 of the 2009-08-11 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 47 JPG
WASN’T the most polished perform- ance but as expected Kilkee saw off the challenge of St Joseph’s with plenty to spare on Saturday.
Despite looking comfortable for long stretches, Kilkee found them- selves mired in a struggle midway through the second half when David O’Brien’s goal cut the Blues lead to just two points.
St Joseph’s had struggled to create and convert scoring opportunities all afternoon but were suddenly thrown a lifeline with O’Brien’s goal. They didn’t avail of it. Instead Kilkee re- sponded perfectly by reeling off four straight points.
Lissycasey’s destruction of Miul- town later in the day served to halt Kilkee’s progress to the knockout stages. But a positive result next time out against Miltown should see the Blues through.
They may not have been firing on all cylinders but the fact was that Kilkee didn’t need to. Barefield brought plenty of athleticism and aggression but a poor performance was marked by a recurring failure to properly execute basic skills. Too many handpasses, kick passes and decent chances went astray.
Ger Fanning was effective raid- ing forward from defence and David
O’Brien was the pick of the forwards but apart from that there was little to cheer about St Joseph’s display.
Once they had ironed out the kinks in their passing, the Blues greater class shone through. David Russell and Michael O’Shea were quietly effective while Kevin Larkin and particularly Noel O’Shea turned in assured performances.
The Blues were comfortably into their stride with points from Michael O’Shea, Chris Williamson and Noel O’Shea putting them 0-3 to 0-0 ahead by the 8th minute.
Colm Mullen converted a free for St Joseph’s first score three minutes later before Paul Dullaghan blast- ed a point from a tight angle. PG O’Donnell’s failure to convert from dead in front of the posts was com- pounded in the 24th minute when David Russell took Barry Harte’s pass and buried a goal.
Mullen hit a free but Kilkee ended the half 1-5 to O-3 ahead with points from Michael O’Shea and Barry Je Nate
Points from Mullen and David O’Brien were cancelled out by terrif- ic scores from Williamson and Noel O’Shea. Kilkee’s lead was shaved from five points to two in the 42nd minute when David O’Brien collect- ed a low pass from his brother Chris- topher to poke to the net.
But the goal served only as a prelude to Kilkee’s best spell of the game. Fitzgerald, Larkin (2) and Noel O’Shea were followed by a goal from Fitzgerald in the 58th minute. St Joseph’s hit three late points on the trot but by that stage, the game was well and truly up.