McBride’s First-Half Double Seals the Points for Carey in Cushendun

thesaffrongael

7 hours ago

ACHL Division 2

Venue: CushLig an Airgid.

Referee: Fionntan McCotter

Carey Faughs secured a well-deserved 2-15 to 1-13 victory over Cushendun Emmet’s in this ACHL Division 2 clash on Wednesday evening, with a devastating four-minute spell from Conor McBride proving to be the decisive factor.

McBride was the dominant scoring figure throughout the hour. His unerring accuracy from both open play and dead balls kept the scoreboard ticking for the Carey men, ultimately proving too much for the home side to handle

The opening twenty minutes were a tight, point-for-point affair. McBride opened the scoring in the third minute, but Cushendun quickly responded through Pierce McKeegan. The sides traded blows with Dominic Sharkey, ‘Loaf’ McNeill, and Calum Kilgore raising white flags for the Emmet’s, while McBride and Conail McGlynn kept Carey right in the mix with accurate frees.

By the 19th minute, a point from Cushendun’s Fiontan McQuillan left the game finely balanced. However, the momentum shifted entirely in a decisive four-minute window. In the 22nd minute, McBride breached the Cushendun defence to rattle the net for the game’s opening goal. Before the home side could fully regroup, McBride struck again in the 26th minute, grabbing his second major to put Carey firmly in the driving seat.

Late first-half points from John McBride and another Conor McBride free sent Carey into the dressing rooms with a commanding 2-08 to 0-07 lead at the interval.

Cushendun emerged for the second half determined to eat into the deficit, with ‘Loaf’ pointing a free straight after the restart. Carey, however, quickly reasserted their dominance. McBride knocked over three consecutive frees in a three-minute purple patch, followed quickly by a score from Caolan McCaughan to stretch the lead further.

To their credit, the Emmet’s refused to throw in the towel. Conor McHugh hit a quick-fire double, and ‘Loaf’ added another free to keep the scoreboard moving. On the 16-minute mark, Donncha Laverty provided a real lifeline for Cushendun when he found the back of the net, narrowing the gap to 2-14 to 1-11 and giving the home support something to shout about.

Jack McKay followed up with a point to close the gap further, but Carey’s first-half foundation proved too solid to crack. Fiachra McVeigh and Conail McGlynn had chipped in with crucial second-half points to keep Cushendun at arm’s length. Fittingly, it was McBride who tapped over another free to help see the game out. ‘Loaf’ managed one final point for Cushendun in the closing stages, but the Faughs held firm to take the points back to Ballyvoy.