Antrim Football League – Division 1
Casements 2 – 17 v 1 – 08 St Johns.
St Johns raced into a four point lead in the early stages of this division one football league encounter with an opening season league score from Conall Quinn and two scores from evergreen Paddy McBride, including a two pointer, gave the visitors an early four point cushion. It took a point blank save from keeper Kevin Mullan after eight minutes to deny Johnnies full forward Ronan Quinn an almost certain goal and extend that lead to seven!
It was nine minutes before the hosts chalked up their own first score of the season, through a well worked move finished off by Michael Kelly, but after that the floodgates opened and that was the first of eight scores in a row which saw the Bannsiders go from four down to four up. Although Mc Bride added a short free to stop that sequence, a brilliant quick handed moving weave resulted in Aidan McAleese palming across the St Johns goalmouth for the marauding Kevin O’Kane to palm into the St Johns net, to send the home side seven points up at the interval.
The opening quarter of the second half saw St Johns stage a mini resurgence as the teams went toe to toe for a period, and with the help of a well taken penalty St Johns reduced the deficit to a manageable five point margin and it was all to play for. Sensing the danger, Casements new manager Mattie McGleenan went to the bench and introduced Ruairi Hagan and Odhran Doherty, both who went on to have a significant impact on how the game finished.
Ruairi Hagan made several interceptions before energising the home support with a superb score from wide on the left, and minor debutant Tom Duffin lifted the crowd even further with an inspiring tackle of his own to claim back the only ball of the evening he had misplaced, before racing fifty yards to knock it over the bar.
If minors are supposed to ease their way onto a senior set up someone forgot to tell Tom. Despite his tender age took the game to his illustrious opponents from the throw in, scoring two points and setting up several more, including Stephen Kelly for the goal that finished the game off.
Except for an involvement with St Pats Maghera hurling team there is the possibility Odhran Doherty would have been handed hi senior debut – the tall midfielder settling for a fifteen minute role at the end where he too caught the eye and got amongst the scorers.
For St Johns, the Quinn trio looked more than lively, aided by Paddy Mc Bride and big Simon Mc Donagh who battled hard throughout.
Casements look like a team that will take a bit of stopping though. Mattie McGleenan has them moving the ball much quicker and the forward play is looking joined up, with lots of interactive link up play the feature of the evening. Nine different scorers is also a stat that will please the new management.
In a solid team performance Dermot McAleese led from the front as usual and there were excellent performances from Ronan Kelly, Aidan Mc Aleese and Conor McGhee.
Long after the result is forgotten this match may be remembered as the evening Tom Duffin and Odhran Doherty made their senior debuts – two very bright lights indeed have arrived on the Antrim senior football club scene.
Referee – Mark O`Neill