SFC Quarter-Final
Roger Casements 1 – 10 St Galls 0 – 11
Pre match, most followers of Antrim club football had ringfenced this particular quarter final as potentially the closest to call. Casements have been cruising along winning most of their matches with relative ease, whilst St Galls were impressive in both their qualifying campaign, and more recently when they looked completely home and hosed against Creggan…eight points up with ten minutes left on the clock!
And correct were those callers who forecast a close encounter. This contest was in doubt right up to the second Brendan Toland blew his final whistle. Casements going down the stretch with two point leads in Dunsilly have not produced good outcomes in recent years, the fact they hung on to see this one out another sign of their maturity as they go through now to contest their sixth county semi-final in succession.
The conditions were messy, a constant drizzle throughout aided by a strong wind that blew right down the middle of the pitch, favouring the team that was playing into the Dunsilly hotel end. In the first half that was the Milltown men, and livewire full forward Michael Pollock wasn’t looking for a second invitation to dispatch two opening points for the Milltown men, in minutes four and seven.
Daniel Quinn and Niall Burns added another pair to leave St Galls four up as the game reached the quarter stage. Casements were largely in containment mode, but still probing for their first score, which took a full twenty minutes to arrive.
A Dermot McAleese catch found Michael Hagan off the shoulder, and when Hagan in turn supplied oncoming Aidan McAleese who left three St galls defenders in his wake and show composure of a top finisher to fire the ball low into the corner of Kevin Niblocks net. St Galls may have dominated proceedings, but despite the wind advantage they were now back to just a one point advantage.
To their credit the city men found a way to finish the half with a flourish. Impressive Daniel Quinn fired over a huge score from wide on the wing offering a boost of energy to his colleagues, and a minute later Niall Burns stepped up to thump over a massive two pointer, and suddenly it was all blue.
Could Casements hold out another minute to half time, that was the question amongst supporters. Their anxiety was heightened when Gary O’Neill got on the end of an excellent St Galls weave and fired a rocket that looked like it was goal bound, and they had their superb keeper Kevin Mullan to thank for a fingertip save that pushed the ball over the bar, resulting in a white flag that that could so easily have been green.
That brought the first half action to a close with the scoreboard reading five points in favour to a well organised and well drilled St Galls team. The big question though, was this going to be enough when Casements returned with a sizeable wind at their backs.
Enda Lynn had the first say on that discussion when he split the posts after one minute. With many now expecting a yellow and black wave the next main talking point was exactly the opposite. Exciting St Galls corner forward Daniel Quinn was well contained throughout, but when he did manage to finally slip the attentions of Ronan Delargy and headed goalward, it took yet another superb fingertip save from the Portglenone custodian to push the ball round his post and out for a forty five. Had Quinn converted it would have suddenly increased St Galls lead to seven, and the likelihood that his hard working team might have managed out a lead of this size.
The anticipated response from Portglenone arrived, albeit eventually, although stats will show that in the first forty minutes of the contest, Casements had only produced two flags. Then it began to happen. Enda Lynn finished off a trademark solo with a fine tap over score to ease the nerves and the lead was down to three. Within five minutes the sides were level, frees from Paddy Kelly and Michael Hagan each side of a superb effort from Oisin Doherty, and all of a sudden it was all square. It looked that Casements had weathered the storm and all they had to do was manage the game out.
St Galls had other ideas though. In the 18th minute a terrific Naill Burns free put his team in front once again, and for three or four minutes they managed to slow the game down by keeping possession, a trait they have always been associated with.
The game was spicey at times, that heightening by the minute as this contest was truly in the balance. There were lots of getting to know each other moments, often from kick outs or frees, with runs being blocked and the durability of those new skin fits jerseys on both sides being well tested.
Caolan Tierney replaced the hard working Paddy Graffin in Casements colours and made an immediate impression, sweeping up two loose balls in succession, but it was John McKeevers next throw of the dice that was to prove pivotal. There are not many better left feet in Antrim football than Ronan Kelly, and the big man made his first touch count large when he let loose from over fifty yards out for a two pointer that had the effect of dragging his team from one point down, to one point up. The energy it gave to Casements was tangible. Enda Lynn knocked over his third a minute later and then just after, when team stalwart and recent returnee Niall McKeever rose highest to claim around the a hugely contested middle third, and fouled as he hit the ground, Brendan Toland raised his arm. Up stepped Paddy Kelly for a long range orange flag for two points to provide an ounce of breathing space for anxious Casement supporters.
Casements were now four up, with a similar amount of minutes remaining plus injury time, and some may have been forgiven for heading to the car park for a quick getaway. That’s wasn’t what St Galls were thinking though, for in a three minute spell they wreaked havoc on a Casements team who may have thought they had done enough.
Recent recruit Gareth ONeill lobbed a dangerous ball into the Portglenone goalmouth and Kevin Mullan in goals rose highest to punch the ball clear, but in an almighty goalmouth scramble somehow a quick thinking fingertip clearance off the line and round the post from full back Kevin OKane saved the day for Casements. St Galls other recent recruit, the excellent Daniel Quinn easily dispatched the resultant forty and it was back to a one score game and familiar territory for a backs to the wall Portglenone. With two minutes remaining Gareth ONeill raised a further flag to magnify the nerves of a Portglenone support who have seen it all in recent seasons, but this time they managed to show that they have learned from heart breaking collapses and found a way to close the game out to the relief of management and supporters.
This game was not a classic, but will be recalled as a good honest championship clash between two clubs with genuine championship aspirations. Its probably fair to say that at this point Portglenone are a bit further down the road in terms of experience at this level, although it is most obvious that St Galls have seriously regrouped from their transitional years and if they continue this progress curve will at some point find their way back to the top tables in the very near future.
Casements might just have needed a battle at this stage, and have plenty to ponder on their display, which whilst good in parts, will possibly require some improvement in two weeks when they are paired with an old nemesis from two years ago, a resurgent Dunloy.
It was a dejected Aodhan Gallagher who left the pitch yesterday, his lingering for several minutes behind his already departed teammates, most obviously having a moment of reflection, perhaps signalling the end of his days in his beloved dark blue shirt to which he has devoted almost a quarter of a century. His individual battle with Niall McKeever the particular highlight of this intriguing contest. If so, its farewell to a county legend and one of St Galls most decorated players.
There were numerous good contests going on across the pitch, the one of club captains and two Nialls, Delargy and Burns was always competitive, both men sticking to their jobs.
For St Galls Daniel Quinn, Brendan Bradley, Gareth O Neill and Brendan Bradley shone brightest along with stalwart Gallagher. In yellow and black it was their keeper Kevin Mullan who shone brightest, his trio of saves were the outstanding feature of the day.
Oisin Doherty Conor McGhee and Kevin OKane all had excellent games, whilst the experience of Dermot Mc Aleese and Niall Delargy towards the end helped to see the job through. Enda Lynn and Niall McKeever both got a good run into their legs and will strip fitter in a fortnight as the championship season reaches its penultimate stage.
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