Naomh Comhghall hosted Laochra Loch Lao at Dunsilly, on Sunday evening. The home side came into the game on the back of 9 consecutive wins, hoping to make it double figures. Laochra boasted a strong record themselves, winning 6 of their 9 fixtures this campaign.
It was the visitors who started strongly, with a ball floated in from a free kick, and with no clear winner of high ball, it found its way into the Comgall’s net. The Antrim men responded well, scores from Tom Patchett and Miles Devine helped the home side find their rhythm before Dylan Murdock struck a delightful score with the outside of his right boot to put St Comgall’s into the lead.
Further scores from Aaron McGaw and Patchett added to St Comgall’s lead, however the Belfast side responded with a brace of their own to leave 3 between the sides at the interval. These were to be the last of scores from the visitors.
The Antrim men flew out of the traps in the second half, launching attack after attack, with Paddy O’Connor, Ryan Clarke and Ruairi Griff getting in on the action. The game was all but dead and buried when corner forward Patchett, with the visitors all out in attack, was able to pick the ball up on the opposing 45 and charge towards goal, adding 2 goals to his haul. Another mention must be given to the St Comgall’s back line with a clean sheet in the second half.
Naomh Comhghall’s relentless drive towards promotion to division 2 continues and with their nearesr rivals, O’Donnell’s and Pearses both losing on Wednesday night their fate is very much in their own hands.
St Comgall’s came into the game as red hot favourites with maximum points from 8 league fixtures to their name. The Antrim men found it difficult to build any sort of rhythm early on, with the Deriaghy side deploying a defensive set up. With two “sweepers” within their own 45.
The home side were finding joy with keeping possession, making the Comgalls work tirelessly to get a share of the play. Eire Og took an early 0-3 to 0-1 lead, with the Antrim men playing against a strong breeze.
A Tom Patchett goal midway through the first half proved to be the catalyst for St Comgall’s taking the lead for the first time in the game – a lead in which they ensured to keep.
Further scores from Tom Patchett, and a goal apiece for Aaron McGraw and Josh Henry ensured a commanding 3-5 to 0-3 half time lead for the visitors.
The half time break did little to wane the attacking intent of the Antrim men, it was very much ‘as you were’ with the visitors piling on the pressure from the 2nd throw in.
Tom Patchett capped a fine performance with a number of well struck scores and Dylan Murdock, Paddy O’Connor and Ruairi Griffin joined in on the action with a score apiece, Griffin grabbing a major to add to his haul.
The introduction of James McCabe and Danaan O’Hara bolstered the Antrim defence but Eire Og, to their credit, continued to carry the ball into the opposing half, only to be met with the well marshalled Antrim rearguard.
With a number of wides, Naomh Comhghall were able to launch quick counter attacks through the precision of Anto Watson’s kick outs, picking out forward players in green and white anywhere within 80 yards.
The visitors could have added another two majors to their tally, but for the athletic Eire Og netminder, Colly Morgan, making 2 fantastic saves.
Naomh Comhghall senior men hosted Wolfe Tones of Greencastle at Dunsilly on Sunday afternoon.
Both teams came in to the game with contrasting form – the visitors searching for their 2nd win of the campaign, whilst the hosts were aiming to add to their untarnished form record.
The Comgall’s started like a house on fire, piling the pressure on the Wolfe Tone’s defence, with the full forward line of Clarke, Devine and Patchett proving a real handful, hitting a score a piece within the first few minutes.
The Greencastle men found it extremely difficult to find a man in a hooped jersey from their resulting kick outs; midfielders Josh Henry and Louis Higgins, in combination with centre half back James McCabe, mopped up every high ball.
The Comgall’s looked well on their way when Miles Devine found the bottom corner early on in the first half, however the Greencastle men had other ideas – pouncing on a loose ball to launch a counter attack on the Antrim defence, which the visitors made no mistake to raise the green flag.
The home side responded well; Josh Henry charged forward from midfield, declining all assistance offered to him before coolly fisting the ball over the bar.
His midfield partner Higgins joined in on the action shortly after, raising a white flag of his own from a well worked score.
With the Comgall’s in a commanding lead, the visitors to their credit continued to press forward. They got their rewards when a long range effort caught goalkeeper Caolan McKeown unaware, ending up in the back of the net.
Half time score 1:11 – 2:1
Despite a comfortable half time lead, the Antrim men were determined to maintain the intensity in the second half.
Dylan Murdock, Ruairi Griffin and Paddy O’Connor got in on the action, running from deep to each convert a score of their own.
Mid way through the half, manager Barry Burns introduced young Liam Phinn, before breaking the glass to release Colm Griffin on to the field of play.
Young Phinn, to his credit after an earlier miss, maintained his composure as he was played through on goal shortly after his introduction, rolling the ball delightfully out of the goalkeepers reach to find the bottom corner.
In a season which Colm Griffin has been injured for the most part; he ensured to make up for lost time. A hattrick of goals in a 15 minutes provoked a massive roar from the Comgall’s faithful. Sealing an emphatic victory.
Credit must be given to the Comgall’s back line of the McCabe brothers, Donnelly, Close, Murdock and Lynott, conceding only 1 point in the second half.
Naomh Comhghall entertained familiar foe Saint Malachy’s on Wednesday night at Dunsilly having taken maximum points from their opening four games. Despite the notable absence from the starting line-up of star performers Louis Higgins, James Mc Cabe and Josh Henry the Comgalls would begin the game as red hot favourites to overcome the challenge of the men from the Markets.
The Malachy’s men had different ideas however and, having spent the first half hour frustrating the men in white they got their reward with a penalty on the stroke of half time which was smartly dispatched past Antrim net-minder Anto Watson leaving the sides all square 1-03 to 0-06 at the short whistle.
Strong words and some sage advice from Comgalls manager Barry Burns helped drive the Antrim men on in the second half. The determination and work-rate of make-shift midfielders Eoin Lynott and Paddy O’Connor would see enough ball overturned to supply Comgalls sharp shooters Tom Patchet and Miles Devine with the required service they needed to punish the opposition and when Devine found himself one-on-one with his man on the 45th minute the Comgalls talisman found the necessary twists, turns and accuracy to stretch the deficit to 2 points, a lead that Saint Comgalls never looked like relinquishing. The introduction of experienced duo James Mc Cabe and Danaan O’Hara early in the second half would later prove to be the combination that sealed Saint Malachy’s fate.
An attempt at a point from Mc Cabe appeared to be dropping short but was soon turned into a speculative ball into the danger area when Ryan Clarke applied enough pressure on the Mal’s full back to break the ball down to Danaan O’Hara on the edge of the small rectangle. O’Hara, notoriously ruthless from this range was not to miss and the Antrim men finally had some breathing space. The Markets men did apply some pressure in the last 5 minutes of the game but tenacious defending from Michael Mc Cabe and Aaron Mc Gaw as well as some excellent goalkeeping from Anto Watson kept the Belfast men at bay. When pressure was relieved Saint Comgalls were able to break with the athleticism of Diarmad Hanna, Jack Moore and captain Ruairí Griffin.
Tom Patchet supplied the finishing touches to a game where Naomh Comhghall had to dig deep to carve out a win. Manager Barry Burns expressed his delight at taking maximum points from the first 5 games and believes his team showed great character to overcome such a tough, physical challenge.
O’Neill’s Sportswear Antrim Football League Division Three
Éire Óg 1-13 St Malachy’s 3-3
PJ Toal was the difference in the end as Eire Og pipped St. Malachy’s in an entertaining and keenly contested game to deny the ‘Mals’ their first points in division 3 this year.
Mid-fielder Toal hit 0-7 on the evening as his side won by the minimum in this Belfast derby at Woodlands on Wednesday evening.
Both sides had early chances but it took a few minutes for the opening score to arrive and it proved to be a huge boost for the visitors as a long ball was broken down to James McGivern who burst in on the left and thumped high into the net.
Éire Óg responded well as PJ Toal opened his account for the night from a free and Ronan Donnelly sent a long range effort between the uprights.
It was end to end at this stage as Patrick McDiarmid guided over for the South Belfast men, but Eire Og were growing into the game as as PJ Toal landed another free and then Stephen Erskine intercepted a pass before feeding Conor McKenna who shrugged off a challenge and finished to the net.
Toal added a point from play, but on 17 minutes the sides were level once more as Anthony Dobbin was tripped inside the area when trying to get onto a long ball and a penalty was awarded that was well finished to the corner by team captain Ciaran Vernon.
St Malachy’s failed to build on it however as Éire Óg came strong in the period leading up to the break as Mark Graham and Conall Smyth found their range in-between a pair of PJ Toal frees to put their side into a 1-8 to 2-1 lead at the break.
St Malachy’s made a good start to the second half as Anton McGreevy got his hand to a dropping Vernon free to guide the ball over, but Conor McKenna hit back and then with his first touch since being introduced, Conor Erskine clipped over to push the gap to five.
That remained the difference after Vernon and Toal swapped points as the game was becoming disjointed with plenty of hits going in but little by way of flowing play.
It appeared to suit St Malachy’s who were pressing up in numbers in an attempt to get themselves back into the game and they were rewarded in the 55th minute from a turnover as Vernon put McDiarmid away to finish low to the corner of the net and leave two between them.
This was as close as they would get as late points from Ronan Donnelly and Toal’s seventh of the night sealed the points for Éire Óg as St Malachy’s continue their search for their opening points of the season.
ÉIRE ÓG: C McMenamin; C Rice, P Loughran, R Clarke; J Devlin, C McKenna (1-1), S McEvoy; C Smyth (0-1), PJ Toal (0-7, 5f); D Campbell, R Donnelly (0-2), E McNulty; S Erskine, M Graham (0-1), C Carberry.
Subs: C Erskine (0-1) for C Carberry (36), E Holmes for E McNulty (44), D Doonan for S McEvoy (58)
