Antrim ACHL Div 1
May 29th, 2024
Loughgiel 3-14 Cushendall 0-23
Pics and report by Michael Corcoran
Wednesday evening’s penultimate Antrim ACHL senior division 1 league game between Loughgiel and Cushendall had everything spectators wanted from a summer’s evening game, where the rain stayed away but the breeze was a predominant feature of the evening and would play a part in tonight’s match. Goals, high soaring points, intensity and a nail-biting finish into extra time would have everyone lining the pitch entertained to the final whistle. Fr. Healy Park was freshly cut by the robotic mowers, lined out and ready for a championship never mind a league game. The venue was a fitting tribute to the game as it could easily have passed as a round robin championship match.
Loughgiel won the toss and decided to take the roadside nets with the wind on their backs. Colum Cunning was the match referee and rolled the sliotar in promptly at 7pm.
Within the first minute of the game, Loughgiel picked up a free and Christie McGarry cruised that over Cushendall’s bar for the opening point. The Shamrocks would score four more points before Cunning blew for a heavy tackle from Loughgiel’s Daniel McPeake, leaving Neil McManus to successfully open ‘the Dalls’ score on the board. Another two points, one from a wide and play brought Cushendall to within two points of Loughgiel before Christie McGarry tucked another free over the bar. The score at this early point in the game was Loughgiel 0-06 Cushendall 0-03.
At approx. 13 minutes on the clock, Loughgiel’s Christie McGarry was busy moving with the sliotar towards the Dall’s net and a neat pass to a waiting Rian McMullan deep on the right-hand side ended in the back of Conor McAlister’s net for the first goal of the game.
Cushendall’s Francis McCurry limited the goal damage with a fine point from a narrow angle on the dugout side after a McManus offload.
Loughgiel’s Declan McCloskey took a sideline cut that found the hand of Jack McCloskey, and managing to leave his marker, Ryan McCambridge, a step behind, fired across McAlister’s net for the Shamrock’s second goal.
Cushendall responded with six more points, three of those from frees but Christie McGarry was busy at the other end with two frees and a point from Rian McMullan running in from the low side of the pitch, closed the game in the first half Loughgiel 2-09 Cushendall 0-10.
Cushendall started the second half with a straight run of seven points and six of those were from play before Maol Connelly halted the run when he received a ball from Dan McCloskey and split the Dall’s uprights.
Both sides literally traded point for point up to Loughgiel 2-14 Cushendall 0-22 when the Shamrocks were offered a chance to take the match at around 29 minutes on the clock. An intense goalmouth scramble around McAlister was diffused and cleared away, much to the relief of the Dall supporters. Neil McManus had a free at short range, which had him gambling for a goal but Declan McCloskey got his stick to the sliotar and the goal line ran out to smother any opportunity of a comeback.
Ronan McAteer pointed for the Dall, and it felt at this point the game was Cushendall’s but when Rian McMullan raced for a ball on the low side of the pitch at the road end, he slipped past his marker Liam Gillan and spotted Loughgiel’s Tiago McGarry running at pace towards the net. A perfectly placed ball into McGarry was volleyed mid-air in the 32nd minute to draw the game as Cunning blew for time after McAlister’s puck out.
On Sunday, Cushendall play Dunloy and Loughgiel play St. John’s, currently sitting at the top of the table. There’s still life left in the league and Sunday’s last game before the league splits should prove to be entertaining if not exciting.
Scorers for Loughgiel
Christie McGarry 5f, Rian McMullan 1-01, Jack McCloskey 1-00, Maol Connolly 0-02, Declan McCloskey 0-01, James McNaughton 0-01, 3f, Tiago McGarry 1-00
Scorers for Cushendall
Joseph McLaughlin 0-03, Neil McManus 0-02, 1w, 6f, Ciaran Neeson 0-03, Dominic Delargy 0-01, Andrew Delargy 0-01, Francis McCurry 0-04, Scott Walsh 0-01, Ronan McAteer 0-01
Photos for tonight’s match can be found in the album here…
https://myalbum.com/album/tYbobn8Zkr2drL/?invite=38fa1ea9-e09b-4369-ae33-e675f2f96bdd