Northern Switchgear Antrim Senior Football Championship, semi-final

Portglenbone 1-17 Lámh Dhearg 0-9

Casement’s Portglenone bridged a 25 year gap when they beat Lamh Dhearg in Saturday’s Antrim Senior Football Championship semi-final to reach their first final since 2009. There appeared to be a jinx on the Portglenone men in recent years when they lost the last five semi-finals, all of them games they could, and in some cases should have won, but they made no mistake this time around, compressively beating the 2017 champions Lamh Dhearg by eleven points.

The first five minutes saw both teams suffer from nerves as they struggled to find any rhythm but things began to settle when the veteran Paddy Cunningham pointed the Hannahstown men ahead, but Portglenone hit back straight away and Niall Delargy brought his team level after good work by Niall McKeever. That score really setteled the Portglenone men and they went ahead with a Daniel McNicholl point soon afterwards before striking a telling blow with a goal seconds later, when they took advantage of a slack back pass which let Fergal O’Kane nip in to set up Stephen Kelly to finish to the net.

A very good save by Lamh Dhearg goalkeeper Gerard Smyth denied the Casements another goal soon afterwards and for a little while they looked a bit uncertain again. However they steadied the ship and the run in to half time saw then regain their momentum and two points from Hagan and one from Kelly as they scored freely in those losing minutes to go in at the break with a six point advantage, 1-08 to 0-05.

Points from Enda Lynn and Kelly in the opening minutes of the second half strengthened their confidence and you sensed there was going to be no slip ups this time around, but the Casements followers know not to get too confident and they had to endure a scare when Lamh Dhearg worked a great opening. Declan Lynch appeared to be on goal, but he passed to Conor Murray when a shot at goal appeared the best option and Murray got closed down by the Casements defence and his shot went wide of the target. There was another scare soon afterwards when a Casments kick went straight to Paddy Cunningham, but with the keeper off his line’s Cunningham’s shot towards the empty goal rose over the bar and what proved to be the last real chance was gone

Things went from bad to worse for the men from Hannahstown when they lost two players to red and black cards, which created even more space for Casements to exploit. Substitute Sean Byrne got through to send over a good point which he celebrated with gusto and soon afterwards Stephen Kelly could have had a second goal, only to be denied by Smyth in the Lamh Dhearg goal, but by this stage the result was beyond doubt and Casements had put their semi-final hoodoo to rest.

PORTGLENONE: K Mullan; R Delargy, K O’Kane, C McGhee; D McNicholl (0-1), R Hagan, F O’Kane; D McAleese, N McKeever; N Delargy (0-1), M Hagan (0-2), S Kelly (1-0); O Doherty (0-4, 2f), E Lynn (0-2), R Kelly (0-6, 4f).

Subs: A McAleese for D McAleese (HT), C Tierney for C McGhee (57), S Byrne (0-1) for E Lynn (60), C Delargy for M hagan (60+3)

LÁMH DHEARG: G Smyth; Ross Murray, M McGarry, B Rice (0-2); O McKeown (0-2), D Lynch, D Smyth (0-1); P Fitzsimmons, M Jordan; D Murray, T McCrudden, Ryan Murray; P Cunningham (0-4, 3f), M Herron, C Murray.

Subs: P Mervyn for T McCrudden (16), E Matassa for D Murray (HT), F Mervyn for McMcGarry (46), M Lowe for Ryan Murray (49)

REFEREE: Colm McDonald (St Gall’s)

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