ACFL Division 2
Gort na Mona 3-9 Creggan 2-21
Pics and Report: Joe Rice
The boys from Staffordstown travelled to Turf Lodge for the opening Division 2 League Game against Gort Na Mona. The home side were first to register a score with a point from play after 3 minutes. Creggan responded from the puck out to level things. Both teams traded points for the first 3rd of the contest with Creggan holding a narrow 0.05 to 0.04 lead. With the visitors now settled and confident they forged ahead scoring a further 5 points and a goal to the homeside’s 4 points, leaving the score at Half Time 1.12 to 0.08 (a 7 point lead to the visitors).
Gort Na Mona were slow to come out for the 2nd Half and maybe a few words of encouragement from the management worked. As they returned to the field it looked like winning the game was the only thing on their mind. They added 3 goals within the next 10 minutes as Creggan could only respond with a number of points which levelled proceedings for the home side. Gort Na Mona scored their only point in the 2nd half to go in front heading towards the final 15 minutes. The Creggan defence were still struggling to hold the home attack who were unfortunate not to score another goal as they sent several efforts wide but it was the visitor’s experience that allowed them to remain calm and to take control of the proceedings. They finished strongly and added a further 5 points and a goal to finish up at 2.21 to 3.09.
Patrick McHugh got the Gorts’ up and running with the first point of the contest, cancelled out when Liam McCann pucked one over after four minutes. Desmond McClean added to the home side’s tally with a free in the 6th minutes on the clock and for the next 20 minutes, both teams contested the game equally, 3 further points from Desmond McClean with Creggan responding with 2 points from Oran McCann and one from Sean Duffin,
Creggan added points from Aidan McKeown, Morgan Nelson and Cormac Rice to open the gap to three but McClean was on target again from a free with Reece Coleman and Ryan Cahill narrowing the gap as the Enright Park side enjoyed a period of ascendancy.
McClean’s last puck of the game was another free that dropped over the bar on the 34th minute but the visitors finished strongly with 2 more pointed frees from McCann and points apiece from Thomas McCann and Niall McAuley and a super goal in the dying seconds of the first half by Cormac Rice.
HALF TIME SCORE: Creggan 1.12 ‘v’ Gort Na Mona 0.08
As the proceedings got underway in the 2nd Half it was a gutsy Gort Na Mona who run riot at the Creggan’s defence, scoring 3 unanswered goals through Desmond McClean who ran through giving Creggan’s keeper no chance. Darren Boyd then got on the end of a loose back pass to the Creggan keeper, pulling first time on the ground and into the back of the net. It was Ryan Cahill’s turn now dropping his 40 metre free high into the back of Creggan’s net to level proceedings once again.
The visitors remained calm and responded well picking off points, 4 more from Oran McCann – all from frees – and this gave McCann the confidence to try his luck with a 20 metre free saved on the line by Christopher Devlin.
Sean Duffin and Oran McCann increased Creggan’s total to move the visitors further ahead and Aidan McKeown increased their lead with a point on the 59th minute. The resulting puck out was won by Oran McCann 40 metres out and he advanced at speed before firing to the home side’s net as the final whistle blew.
FULL TIME SCORE: Creggan 2.21 ‘v’ Gort Na Mona 3.09.
GORT NA MONA: No.1 Christopher Devlin, No.2 Liam Dickson, No.3 Gerry Doyle, No.4 Patrick Cournane, No.5 Gavin McKenna, No.6 Patrick McHugh (0.01), No.7 David Dickson, No.9 Ryan Cahill (1.01), No.10 Niall Healy, No.11 Tiernan Cadhlaigh, No.12 Reece Coleman (0.01), No.13 Darren Boyd (1.01), No.14 Declan Hughes, No.15 Desmond McClean (1.05), No.16 Manus MacMaolain, No.17 Noah McGivern, No.18 Nathan Gibson, No.19 Christopheer Kane, No.25 Aidan McDonagh.
CREGGAN: No.1 Brendan Prenter, No.2 Aidan Maguire, No.3 Thomas McCann (0.01), No.4 Jake McAteer, No.5 Liam McCann (0.01), No.6 Aidan McKeown (0.02), No.7 Nial McAuley (0.01), No.8 Kealan McCann, No.9 Tiernan McLarnon, No.10 Morgan Nelson (0.01), No.11 Oran McCann (1.12), No.12 Sean Duffin (0.02), No.13 Dermot Carey, No.14 Cormac Rice (1.01), No.15 Michael Maguire, No.17 Danaan O’Hara, No.18 Aaron Hughes, No.19 Michael Carey Small, No.20 Oran Grant, No.21 Mark McCann, No.22 Kevin Rice, No.23 Oliver Duffin, No.25 Joseph James Smyth.
