Con Magees and St James’ Aldergrove got their U21 Football championship kicked off last Sunday in glorious sunshine at Portglenone’s new facilities. After a very slow start, the first score coming 14 minutes into the game, both teams played some fine flowing football with the Glensmen eventually winning on a 1-12 to 1-09 score line.
Con Magees had the better chances in a first half where the scoreboard lay blank for almost 15 minutes. It took a 14 metre free right in front of the posts to break the deadlock. Eoin Hynds the provider. That seemed to relax the Glenravel lads who quickly followed up with a goal after a good passing movement found S P McKenna alone in front of goals and the umpire was soon reaching for the green flag. At this stage, Con Magee’s were dominating all over the field and between the 16th and 23rd minutes they increased their lead through a free from centre forward Aiden O’Donnell followed by good long range scores from Hynds, Conleth O’Loan and another fine effort from O’Donnell. That put Con Magee’s in a commanding 1-05 to 0-00 lead. In the final 5 minutes of the first half the Airport men managed two scores of their own but the Glensmen finished strongly with points from Eoin Hynds and the score of the game coming from half back Charley Henry after a long solo run carved open the Aldergrove defence. Half time saw Glenravel in a commanding 1-07 to 0-02 lead.
Aldergrove used the half-time break to re-group and get themselves back into the game as they returned 5 unanswered points in the opening 10 minutes to reduce the gap to 3 points and now we had a real game on our hands. Eoin Hynds steadied the Glensmen’s ship with a free on 42 minutes but Aldergrove again narrowed the gap to 3 with a well taken point from play to leave the score 1-08 to 0-08 in favour of Con Magee’s. Aiden O’Donnell followed with a brace of points, the first from a free and the second a great long range effort and when Conleth O’Loan followed up with a point to stretch the Glenravel lead to 6 points (1-11 to 0-08) the game looked to be over. However an Aldergrove penalty was dispatched to the net in the final minute and again we had a 3 point game. Adam Neeson was sprung from the Glenravel bench and marked his introduction with a good score from a tight angle to add the “insurance” point before Aldergrove recorded the final score of the game deep into injury time but it was too late for them as Sean McAtamney brought the game to an end with Glenravel victorious on the right side of a 1-12 to 1-09 score line.
Aldergrove used the half-time break to re-group and get themselves back into the game as they returned 5 unanswered points in the opening 10 minutes to reduce the gap to 3 points and now we had a real game on our hands. Eoin Hynds steadied the Glensmen’s ship with a free on 42 minutes but Aldergrove again narrowed the gap to 3 with a well taken point from play to leave the score 1-08 to 0-08 in favour of Con Magee’s. Aiden O’Donnell followed with a brace of points, the first from a free and the second a great long range effort and when Conleth O’Loan followed up with a point to stretch the Glenravel lead to 6 points (1-11 to 0-08) the game looked to be over. However an Aldergrove penalty was dispatched to the net in the final minute and again we had a 3 point game. Adam Neeson was sprung from the Glenravel bench and marked his introduction with a good score from a tight angle to add the “insurance” point before Aldergrove recorded the final score of the game deep into injury time but it was too late for them as Sean McAtamney brought the game to an end with Glenravel victorious on the right side of a 1-12 to 1-09 score line.