LOCC Solicitors Intermediate Football Championship
St Enda’s 1-16 Davitt’s 0-11
St Enda’s had eight points to spare over Davitt’s in Saturday evening’s LOCC Solicitors Intermediate Football Championship game at Corrigan Park but the win was not as plain sailing as the scoreline would suggest. The 2015 Junior Champions were in contention throughout the first half and actually lead with just four minutes of the half remaining before being hit by a barrage of scores from St Enda’s who hit six points in three minutes to turn the game around. For most of the second half the Glengormley side looked the better team but Davitt’s had their chances, and had they taken any of the three goal chances that came their way they would have been right back on contention. The most galling of the three came on forty nine minutes when left half forward Danny Largey cut through and fired the ball past St Enda’s goalkeeper Paddy Flood. As Largey raised his arm in celebration the ball somehow hit a divot in the goalmouth and instead of flying into the back of the net came straight back out to the dismay of everyone in attendance. In all my years coving games I have never seen anything like it. If proof was needed that it was notgoing to be Largey’s day it came three minutes later when his team were awarded a penalty and he stepped up to fire a low shot to towards the right corner of the St Enda’s net. It looked to be in all the way but somehow Flood got across and turned the ball around for a 45 and the chance of a late revival had gone.
As in the previous game between Lamh Dhearg and St Paul’s the swirling wind made score difficult but it was not apparent in the early stages as two sweetly struck points by Liam McGIvern gave Davitt’s a two point lead after three minutes. St Enda’s hit back with two quick points from Donal Walsh and Odhran Eastwood to level the game by the seventh minute, but incredibly there would not be a score by either team for a further twenty minutes. There were chances, plenty of chances, and both teams were guilty of some bad wides and when Davitt’s ended the drought with two quick points from Aaron Slane they looked capable of causing an upset. However the scores seemed to jolt St Enda’s into life and they responded with six points in five minutes through Walsh (3), Eastwood, Scott and McKeown to go into half time with a four point lead, something that seemed highly unlikely just minutes earlier.
Just as they had done as the start of the game Davitt’s were quick from the starting blocks and within a minute Liam McGivern and Danny Largey brought the gap back to just two. St Enda’s found a quick response and two excellent points from corner forward Ruairi Scott followed by an even better goal from the same player put them back in full control. Davitt’s never gave up the fight however and centre back Daniel Wallace came close to grabbing a goal on thirty nine minutes when he soloed through soccer style and fired a shot just inches over the bar. Two more St Enda’s points eased the pressure but Davitt’s came back again with points from McGivern, McParland and Largey to keep their hopes alive. The gap was still seven when Largey’s bizarre ‘Davitt’s divot’ incident denied him a certain goal that would certainly have made the finish interesting and when Flood denied him from the penalty soon afterwards there was no way back as St Enda’s booked their place in the quarter final.
