OB Construction Intermediate Football Championship – Group 4
Gort na Móna 1-8 Glenavy 0-11
At Páirc Mhic Ionnrachtaigh
A point from a free in injury time by Gort na Mona full forward Padraig McHugh booked his team’s passage to the quarter finals of the Intermediate Football Championship and ended Glenavy’s interest in the competition. Five minutes earlier it had all looked so promising for the Glenavy men when they held a four point lead, after apparently weathering the storm as they played up the slope and into a strong wind.
However a moment of genius by Gorts midfielder Dessie McClean created a goal out of nothing and from then on the visitors were treading water. That goal cut the deficit back to just a point, and the Turf Lodge men had chances from to level but corner forward Darron Boyd and goalkeeper Thomas McCaffrey were off target from difficult frees and it appeared Glenavy would hold on. However with the game in injury time a good move saw centre forward Christopher Carson cut in from the left, where he was fouled by the visitors defence and McHugh stepped up to deliver the killer blow from the resultant free.
Glenavy had started like a house on fire and appeared to have adjusted right away to the difficult conditions, playing down the slope with a strong diagonal wind blowing down into the bottom left hand corner. Three points in the first four minutes from Ciaran Loney, Fergal Henry and Darragh Armstrong, each one taken with aplomb, appeared have given them the perfect platform, but the Gorts were level five minutes later as McHugh, Aidan McDonagh and McHugh again found the target at the other end.
However McHugh’s point would not be added to until the full forward found the target again eighteen minutes later, while in the meantime Glenavy got to grips with the conditions and added another five points through Darragh Armstrong, Fergan Henry (2), Patrick Gallagher and Niall McCann to stretch their lead to 0-8 to 0-3, before McHugh closed the gap to four a minute before the break.
The visitors’ half time lead looked far from convincing, considering the conditions, but when they held that lead during the opening eight minutes of the new half things looked a little brighter. However when the Gorts got going they hit three points in as many minutes with Darron Boyd starting the comeback with a pointed free from 40 meters. Goalkeeper Thomas McCaffrey added one from a 45 a minute later and Boyd grabbed one from play and suddenly the gap was back to a single point.
To their credit Glenavy never panicked and slowly but surely they regained control of the game and they restored their half time advantage of four points as Patrick Gallagher, Liam Henry and Darragh Armstrong all sent over points.
The Gorts were now rushing the chances and as the clock ticked past the 55 minute mark it appeared their opportunity had gone. That was until Dessie McLean turned the game on its head by steering a shot through a packed goalmouth and into the net to leave just a point between the sides. With normal time up, and a couple of good chances of the equaliser missed, it looked Glenavy might hold on, but one final Gorts attack brought a free and McHugh took the chance that was presented to send his team through to the knock out stages along with group winners Sarsfields, by virtue of a better score difference than Saturday’s opponents
GORT NA MÓNA
Thomas McCaffrey, Darren Cahill, Conor Conneely, Ciaran Donnelly, Brendan Burns, Michael Savage, Sean Campbell, Tiernan Morton, Dessie McClean, Aidan McDonagh, Christopher Carson, Caoimhinn Beck, Darron Boyd, Padraigh McHugh, Gavin McKenna.
GLENAVY
Fergal Greene, Timmy Honeyford, Conor Hamill, Matthew Hamill, Liam Henry, Charles Gallagher, Ruairi Forrester, Michael Johnston, Ryan Malley, Patrick Gallagher, Niall McCann, Ciaran Loney, Fergal Henry, Thomas Gallagher, Darragh Armstrong.
REFEREE – Cathal McDermott (Tir na nOg)
