A few weeks back, Kickham’s Creggan lost to St. Mary’s Ahoghill in Clooney and looked in a spot of trouble. Last week we saw the first seeds of recovery when they recorded a 0-16 to 1-7 win over St. Ergnat’s Moneyglass and on Sunday that recovery continued when they travelled to Hightown and comprehensively defeated St. Enda’s
If ever there was a game of two half’s this was it. A cagey game with wides being the order of the day and the first score didn’t arrive until the 13th minute when defender Sam Maguire kicked the first point followed by 2 from Mathew Rodgers in the 14th and 19th minutes.
St Enda’s got their first point in the 20th minute from their number 14 before Mathew Rodgers replied with his third point of the half in the 27th minute. St Enda’s finished the scoring withtheir centre-half-forward converting a ‘45’ to leave the half time score 0-02 to 0-04 in favor of Kickhams.
Thankfully the second half had a bit more life in it as St Enda’s no 5 kicked off with a fine point before the lively Tiernan McAteer and Aiden Maguire replied with points for the visitors to bring their side to life.
Mathew Rodgers hit two superb goals and Dominic McAteer followed with two points as the visitors began to dominate proceedings but St. Enda’s were far from finished as they replied with a goal and a point of their own.
The hard working Sean Duffin got his name on the score card with a point on 21 minutes and Dominic McAteer followed with another before the same player fired home his side’ third goal to put the game beyond the reach of the Hightown side.
Paddy Coey then got in on the scoring act with points in the 25th and 27th minutes and Dominic McAteer concluded his scoring for the evening with a point in the 29th minute. The last score of the game went to the man who deserved it most however as Joe McAteer, who had covered every inch of the pitch finished to the back of the net for a fantastic individual goal.
This win sees the Kickham’s climb into 7th place, a point behind St Ergnat’s but with two games in hand and they still have a strong chance of a top six place when the leagues split.
A big crowd gathered at Marian Hill for the first league meeting of these two local rivals for quite a number of years and it was visitors, St. Mary’s Ahoghill who showed their intent right from the throw in as they took the lead after 23 seconds through a Colla McDonnell point.
The home side replied with a point of their own from Connladh McCann but James O’Connell fired over at the other end to restore the visitors lead.
Noel Crossey pointed a ‘45’ with only six minutes gone as Ahoghill made the early running but the home side settled and Colum Duffin, Conaill Prenter and Sheanachan Duffin hit three unanswered points to put them ahead for the first time.
Sheanachan Duffin fires home St. Ergnats’ third goal
In what was turning out to be an entertaining game, the scoring continued with the teams trading points through Ronan Graham for Ahoghill and another from play from the impressive Conaill Prenter before Moneyglass edged 3 ahead through Colum Duffin and Sheanachan Duffin after 17minutes and seemingly in a strong position.
The game was about to turn on its head however as Ahoghill struck with a goal from Colla McDonnell to draw them level and although Moneyglass would get the next score through Sheanachan Duffin it was Ahoghill with their tails up who replied through a James O’Connell double to edge ahead once more.
The home side finished the half on top and late points from Kevin McCann and the impressive Prenter saw them lead by the minimum as Kevin Parke sounded his half time whistle with all still to play for in the second half.
The start of 2nd half would be a story 2 goal chances with Ahoghill firing wide before Moneyglass netted through a fisted Colum Duffin effort to extend their lead to 4.
This was quickly followed by a Sheanachan Duffin point to move the Marian Hill side five ahead and when Dermot McErlain netted a 2nd Moneyglass goal to put 8 points between sides it wasn’t looking good for the visitors.
Ahoghill’s Eamonn Brady comes under pressure
Things would get worse for the Clooney side when they missed a penalty that would have put them right back into contention but points from James O’Connell and Ronan Graham left them trailing by seven points at the end of the third quarter.
The scores dried up for a time after this and a lengthy stoppage due to an injury to Jack McCoy disrupted matters for a time. When matters got under way again it was left to Sheanachan Duffin to put the game to bed with the 3rd Moneyglass major with Ahoghill hitting a consolation point through James O’Conell in injury time.
Another good win for St. Ergnat’s who have taken the move up to division 1 in their stride with Colum Duffin, Conaill Prenter and Sheanachan Duffin their best on view and James O’Connell, Colla McDonnell and Ronan Graham best for the losers.
Best wishes to Jack McCoy who received what looked like a bad injury and both sides wish the Moneyglass man a speedy recovery
Colum Duffin, Moneyglass and Patrick Graham, Ahoghill challenge for the dropping ball
Cuchullain’s Dunloy appear to be running out of road following this five point defeat to Davitt’s in Dunloy on Sunday. The Cuchullian’s find themselves firmly fixed at the bottom of the table with St. Patrick’s Lisburn and will need to get it together sooner rather than later with one game remaining to the split.
It was Davitt’s who raced into attack right from the throw in and Conor McGilligan was forced to get down sharp to deny Sean O’Neill after 45 seconds with the ball cleared to safety.
Michael Og Rowntree pointed the visitors ahead after 5 minutes but Declan McGarry replied with the equaliser, two minutes later and the same player edged them ahead with another in the 9th minute.
Playing with the wind at their back, Barry McCloskey replied to a point from Padraig McParland to keep the home side one ahead at the end of the opening quarter but the visitors were beginning to get on top with Anthony Rowntree and the deep lying Sean O’Neill dictating matters at mid-field.
Davitt’s Christoir Browne is dispossessed by Conor McGilligan and James Scally of Dunloy but the ball broke to Daniel Wallace who first timed to the net for Davitt’s second goal \(See featured photograph above)
Davitt’s produced a decisive move in the 16th minute with several players involved in the build-up and Anton Hargan placed Michael Og Rowntree who blasted to the net to give his side a lead they would not again lose.
This score seemed to lift the visitors and Gerard Slane soloed through for a fine individual point and added another after being placed by Sean O’Neill to move the visitors four in front.
The momentum was very much with the Falls Road side as Padraig McParland split the posts following good work from substitute CJ Sullivan and then Dunloy lost Peter McQuillan to injury to be replaced by Kevin McQuillan.
Kevin ‘Red’ McAllister replied with Dunloy’s first point for 15 minutes but the final score of the half fell to the visitors with Jay Maguire splitting the posts to leave Davitt’s 1-6 to 0-4 ahead at the break and with the wind to face in the second half, it wasn’t looking good for the home side.
CJ Sullivan increased the Davitt’s lead as he raced forty yards with the ball before firing over after 40 seconds but Dunloy settled after this and began to move the ball around through the hands and keep possession.
OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAKevin ‘Red’ McAllister, Dunloy is closed down by Davitt’s Sean O’Neill
Kevin McQuillan replied from a free, Declan McGarry added another from play and another converted free from substitute McQuillan had the Cuchullian’s back into contention and trailing by three with five minutes of the new half gone.
The visitors replied immediately with a point from Daniel Wallace but Dunloy were now playing with a bit of belief and McQuillan pointed his third free of the half to keep their hopes of a comeback very much alive.
Gerard Slane for Davitt’s and Kevin McQuillan for Dunloy exchanged further points to keep the gap at three with 13 minutes of the half gone and Davitt’s had been forced onto the back foot for a time but they broke at pace from defence with the ball breaking to Daniel Wallace who‘s first time volley ended in the net.
Once again it was the home side’s captain, Kevin McQuillan who struck his fifth point from a free in the 21st minute but Dunloy needed a goal and they could find no way through the visitors defence though they did have one attempt cleared off the line.
Daniel Wallace fires over a Davitt’s point despite the best efforts of Eoin McFerran, Dunloy
The closing stages saw Davitt’s back in control with Gerard Slane moving them six ahead once more and Declan McGarry replying with a consolation point for the Cuchullian’s but it was too little, too late.
Dunloy now find themselves on 1 point from 10 starts with St. Patrick’s Lisburn on the same total but having played a game more. Dunloy entertain Con Magee’s, Glenravel on Thursday night in the final game before the split.
The night before Davitt’s host unbeaten St. James’ Aldergrove at Davitt’s Park and a win over the Crumlin side would see them climb above Sarsfield’s who have the same number of points but have a superior score difference.
Sarsfields have also one game to play against Aldergrove. The previous meeting between the sides was abandoned owing to a serious injury to a Sarsfield’s player but whether this game can be re-arranged before the split remains to be seen
Dunloy: 1 Conor McGilligan, 2 Cathair McCloskey, 3 Adrian Scullion, 4 Oisin McErlain, 5 Tom McFerran, 6 James Scally, 7 Sean Scullion, 8 Peter McQuillan, 9 Eoin McFerran, 10 Anthony Smith, 11 Eoin Gillan, 12 Rory Smyth, 13 Kevin McAllister, 14 Declan McGarry, 15 Barry McCloskey.
Subs: Kevin McQuillan for Peter McQuillan, Michael Traynor for Oisin McErlaine, Darragh Waterson for Sean Scullion
Davitt’s: 1 Liam McGivern, 2 Nathan Maginn, 3 Caomhin Rainey, 4 Christoir Browne, 5 Caoimhin Slane, 6 Anton Hargan, 7 Deaglan Mooney, 8 Niall McParland, 9 Anthony Rowntree, 10 Padraig McParland, 11 Gerard Slane, 12 Jay Maguire, 13 Daniel Wallace, 14 Michael Og Rowntree, 15 Sean Og O’Neill. Subs: CJ Sullivan for Declan Mooney, Anto McGrattan for Jay Maguire
Con Magees will look back on a game of too many missed chances. They only converted nine scores from twenty three attempts and that effectively is the story of the game. Combined with too many frees conceded by the visitors when the opposition’s sharp shooting freetaker Fergal Henry was in fine form gave Con Magees a mountain to climb – a mountain that proved just too much on the day. This defeat seriously dents the Glenravel men’s promotion hopes, and as the league nears the half way stage they fall further behind both All Saints and Aldergrove, both of whom had good wins today.
Glenravel opened well with a brace of points from Eoin Hynds but Fergal Henry was running riot up front for the men in Orange and he would score five on the trot in an impressive ten minute spell to nudge his side ahead by three. However Glenravel would then take back control with a run of points from Daniel McQuillan (3) and Eoin Hynds to leave the half time score 0-06 to 0-05 in favour of Glenravel.
Glenavy started very strongly in the second half with three consecutive frees from Fergal Henry (2) and Malachi Doherty to put the home side two in front ten minutes into the second half. Two minutes later we saw the pivotal moment of the game when Glenavy keeper Stephen Daly made a great point blank save from Charlie Henry denying him a goal and twenty seconds later Glenavy had a goal of their own when Fergal Henry converted from short range, effectively opening a five point lead for the home side, when they could have been a point in arrears had it not been for the agility of Daly. Both teams would trade scores to the end of the game but Glenravel couldn’t make inroads on the deficit and ultimately declared six points short. They will look back despairingly on their poor return from twenty three efforts – albeit three of them came off the woodwork and were cleared.
A 59th minute point by their hard grafting centre forward David Johnston earned Cargin a share of the spoils with their hosts St John’s in a close fought encounter at Corrigan Park on Saturday.
A close game from start to finish kept the good attendance well entertained throughout, and in the end the sides could not be separated with Johnston’s late finish tying matters at the final whistle.
The penultimate games in the first phase of the league competition saw St John’s play hosts to their country cousins from Cargin on Saturday morning and the good crowd in attendance were to be treated to an entertaining game.
Cargin took the game to the opposition right from the start but spurned a couple of gilt edged opportunities and it was the home side’s Loughlan McCurdy who made no such error, grabbing a goal in his side’s first attack.
The home side’s keeper Stephen Mc Guinness made a smart save to deny David Johnston in the 3rd minute but the Toome men were on par shortly thereafter as Justin Crozier’s precise lay off opened the way for Tom Shivers to find the net.
Conor Adams pointed a free to restore the home side’s lead but it was the visitors who responded and points from James Laverty and Pat Shivers saw them take an early 1-2 to 1-1 lead.
Back came the Johnnies at the end of the opening quarter and a strong run by mid fielder Conor Hand concluded with a precision based finish to the Cargin net and the home side were back in front.
The Johnnies lead didn’t last long however as their visitors gained supremacy in the vital central zone through Gerard McCann and John Carron and Carron sent Pat Shivers in to raise white before adding a point himself.
The restored their lead when Michael McCann placed Kevin Mc Shane to raise white but it was the home side who were to finish the half on as the accurate Conor Adams despatched back to back frees between the posts to see the Corrigan side 2-03 to 1-04 ahead at the break.
St. John’s started the second half as they had finished the first and back to back pointed frees from the impressive Conor Adams moved the four ahead but Cargin were quick to reply and points from Michael McCann and Pat Shivers (2) saw them on back on level terms.
The Toome men were flexing their proverbial muscles as the second half progressed and a positive approach opened the way for Mark Kelly to fire to the back of the net to put them three ahead.
Cargin looked to be taking control as the game moved into the final quarter when replacement Conan Johnston fired between the posts to negate another fine point by Conor Adams.
The Whiterock side were far from finished however and a three unanswered points from Conor Adams, Ciaran Garland and Conall Mc Glade ensured parity 2-08 apiece as full time approached.
The visitors regained the lead when Justin Crozier, found Tom Shivers in space with the youngster firing straight and true between the posts.
A 56th minute Conaill Mc Glade point followed but the last score was to belong to the Toome men as David Johnston split the posts to earn his side a share of the spoils.
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St Johns: Stephen McGuinness, Ciaran Garland (0-01), Padraig Nugent, Conor Dyson, Conaill Mc Glade (0-02), Conor Johnston, Luke Peden, Conor Hand (1-00), Simon Mc Donagh, Sean Wilson, Andy Mc Gowan, Loughlin Mc Curdy (1-00), Conor Adams (0-06) Stephen Tierney
Subs
Conall Quinn
Ronan Quinn
Darragh Mc Callan
Cargin: John Mc Nabb, Sean og Quinn, Kevin Mc Shane (0-01), Paudie Mc Laughlin, Justin Crozier (0-01), James Laverty (0-01), Ronan Grbbin, Gerard Mc Cann, John Carron, Mark Kelly (1-00), David Johnston (0-01),Pat Shivers (0-03), Tom Shivers (1-01), Michael Mc Cann (0-01), Ciaran Bradley
