League champions Cushendall proved too strong for Ahoghill when the sides met in the opening game of the Division 1 League at Pairc Mhuire on Tuesday evening. In their first game since winning the league title last summer Cushendall had just two much firepower for the visitors who, despite defeat, battled to the very end.
The story of the evening belonged to the attacking masterclass put on by the established star Eva McNeill and the sensational young debutant Cliodhna Thompson, who tormented the Ahoghill defence from start to finish.
Cushendall wasted no time asserting their dominance. Within three minutes, Cliodhna Thompson opened her account with a point from play, settling any pre-match nerves. She was quickly followed by Eva McNeill, setting a relentless rhythm that Ahoghill simply could not cope with.
Thompson capped off a dream opening quarter by rattling the back of the net in the 12th minute, pushing Cushendall far ahead early on. Siobhan McKillop, Kady McNeill, and Brogan Abram also added their names to the scoresheet with well-taken points from play.
Ahoghill struggled to secure possession, but briefly found some respite in the second quarter. Their corner forward Noreen Graham converted two frees, and number Maeve O’Donnell added a point from play, but it was merely a drop in the ocean. Cushendall finished the half strong, with McNeill, Lara Haughey, and McKillop tagging on further points to leave the half-time score at a daunting 1-15 to 0-3.
If Ahoghill hoped for a reprieve in the second half, those hopes were entirely dashed within the first sixty seconds of the restart. Cushendall came out of the blocks flying, with Thompson scoring her second goal of the game just 19 seconds in. Before the spectators could even settle, Kady McNeill found the net again less than a minute later, effectively ending the game as a contest.
Eva McNeill continued her clinic from both dead balls and open play, splitting the posts effortlessly. County goalkeeper Catriona Graham, who plays outfield for her club, pulled a point back for the visitors in 9th minute, their only score of the half, as the Ruairi Og defence locked down completely.
In the final ten minutes, Cushendall emptied the tank. Cara O’Boyle made her mark with a point and a clinical 27th-minute goal. Fittingly, it was Eva McNeill who had the final say, finding the back of the net in the dying moments to cap off an incredible personal tally and seal a monumental 5-23 to 0-4 victory.
Ahead of Saturday’s highly anticipated Ulster Senior Football Championship showdown at Celtic Park, the Saffron Gael’s Paddy McIlwaine sat down with Antrim Senior Football manager Mark Doran.
Coming off a strong finish to their league campaign, Doran reflects on the season’s turning points, the impact of key returning players, and the monumental task of facing a heavily decorated Derry side.
League Reflections & The Cost of Discipline
Paddy McIlwaine: Mark, Antrim ended the league campaign strongly with four wins on the bounce. Am I right in saying that it was the loss to Tipperary in Round 3 that ultimately cost us promotion, even though we were still in the fight on the final day?
Mark Doran: Yes, Paddy, though I’d say it was our defeat to Tipperary in Round 2 that probably cost us promotion. It was a game we were in total control of after 30 minutes, but a lack of discipline cost us. We ended up going down to 14 men while we were two points up. It’s incredibly hard with the new rules to win a game when you’re a man down, essentially defending 10 versus 11. To be fair to the boys, they battled away, and with four minutes left, we were only a point down before we lost another man. Finishing with 13 men was just too big a hurdle.
Paddy McIlwaine: We certainly showed improvement as the campaign progressed. Do you think it just took a new management team some time to assess our best starting fifteen, or would a longer preparation period have put us in a better position?
Mark Doran: There might be a wee bit of that to it, but the reality is we were down a lot of bodies for the first three league games. No matter what team you are or what division you’re in, you need your best players on the field. We had guys like Conor Hand, Peter Healy, Ronan Boyle, John Morgan, Adam Loughran, Tiernan McCormick, Dominic McEhill, and Ryan McQuillian all missing the start of our league.
Injury Updates & Key Returns
Paddy McIlwaine: Speaking of missing players, I spoke to Marc Jordan at the final league game against London in Toome. He was carrying an injury that kept him out. How has that progressed, and will he be available to start against Derry?
Mark Doran: Yes, Marc picked up a knock during the Waterford game which forced him to sit out against London. Thankfully, he returned to full training last week and is available for selection.
Paddy McIlwaine: Having Peter Healy back for the final two league games felt like a massive boost to the squad. I’ve watched him for years in a Saffron shirt, and he’s a born leader. What has his return brought to the side?
Mark Doran: It’s a massive boost having a fully fit Peter Healy back. Everyone can see the sheer quality he brings. The same can be said for getting Conor Hand back. I go back to my earlier point: to compete, everyone needs their best players on the pitch.
Facing the Oak Leafers
Paddy McIlwaine: I was at the McKenna Cup game against Derry at Eoghan Ruadh. It was early days, and both sides were missing players. We did okay in the opening half, but Derry seemed to find another gear and finished strong. What did you learn from that encounter?
Mark Doran: I’m a big believer in the phrase “you win or you learn.” In that regard, there were definitely learnings for us to take from that McKenna Cup game, particularly regarding the sheer pace they bring to their transitions and general play.
Paddy McIlwaine: Last year, we met Armagh in the opening championship game at Corrigan Park and were brilliant for over 40 minutes before they pulled away at the end. Can the squad take inspiration from that performance?
Mark Doran: You’d certainly hope so. While it is a new team and a new management setup this year, we absolutely hope the boys who were involved last year will take that bit of championship experience into Saturday.
Paddy McIlwaine: Are there specific Derry players we need to keep a special eye on—though you’ll probably say all of them! Or is the approach to simply focus on our own game, play without fear against a higher-division opponent, and see where it takes us?
Mark Doran: There is no doubt that Derry is a serious outfit. They are still one of the top five teams in Ireland. You’re looking at a squad where probably 13 of their starting 15 have two Ulster Championship medals in their pockets, Division 1 and Division 2 league medals, and seven or eight All-Stars among them. It’s a massive challenge, but it’s one we are really looking forward to.
At the end of the day, we have to focus on our own game and control the controllables. Hopefully, we can produce a massive performance for the full 70-odd minutes. All we can ask of the boys is that they give absolutely everything they have for that duration and see where it takes us.
Squad News for Saturday
Paddy McIlwaine: You know your panel inside out now, and the team has been on a steady upward trajectory since week three of the league. Can you give us an idea of the starting team for Saturday, and your final thoughts on facing the odds-on favorites?
Mark Doran: Unfortunately, we have picked up a few injuries during the league. As it stands, Kevin McCann, Sean O’Neill, Ronan Quinn, and Conor Johnston won’t be available for the Derry game. That’s four really good young players out.
However, it’s a massive opportunity for the boys who do step up and start on Saturday. These are the exact challenges you want in sport. Days like Saturday in Celtic Park are the very reason the players put in the hard slog through the dark nights of December and January. Our full focus will be entirely on us—what we can bring to the game, bringing a serious level of energy, and putting our best foot forward.
The Antrim team to face Derry in the Ulster Senior Football Championship on Saturday
Delayed for half an hour to allow rainwater to subside, Brendan Toland declared O Kelly Park pitch playable, but when the game was eventually up and running it took twelve full minutes before Aidan McAleese opened the scoring for the hosts. Three excellent Ronan Kelly points extended that lead until Josh Higgins stopped that sequence with a superb long-range effort to open the visitor’s account. Dermot McAleese replied almost immediately, and Ronan Kelly tapped over his fourth of the opening twenty minutes to open up an early six point gap.
For a brief few minutes it looked like the hosts were about to run away with this fourth round league contest, but Big Darragh Fegan knocked over an excellent point to reduce the gap, and just as the half time whistle was due Aidan Tolan fired from distance to add to the tally of the men in blue, reducing the differential at the break to just three points in favour of Casements.
Upon the resumption it was the hosts who broke quickest out of traps, Ronan Kelly and Dermot McAleese the men who applied the finishing touches. The contest was spirited but played in good sporting manner as Brendan Toland allowed the game to flow despite the slippery underfoot conditions. Randalstown signalled intent with a couple of scores of their own, first from Ciaran O`Neill followed by another from Darragh Fegan who was impressive throughout, to remain within touching distance and keep this entertaining contest competitive.
With the halfway point of the second half emerging, there was still only three points to separate the clubs on the scoreboard. Then Casements hit a ten minute purple patch.
Ronan Kelly is playing some football at the minute, and two further scores from him brought his individual total for the evening to eight points. Two more from lively Michael Hagan, busy Paddy Kelly, and the always hardworking captain Dermot McAleese effectively put the contest beyond the visitors. To their credit they remained competitive until the end, finishing strongly with several terrific long range efforts from rangy Darragh Fegan, but when Casements Stephen Kelly blasted to the net after the best move of the game, this game was effectively over as a contest, and in the end the hosts ran out convincing nine point winners to extend their impressive start to the season.
Darragh Fegan, Emmet Murray, Aodhan Tolan and Oliver McAtamney stood out amongst the blue, and on the night Casements defence stood tall, whilst Niall McKeever, Aidan McAleese, Dermot McAleese, and particularly in form Ronan Kelly caught the eye.
Scorers:
Casements; Ronan Kelly 0 – 08, Stephen Kelly 1 – 01, Dermot McAleese 0 – 03, Michael Hagan 0 – 02, Paddy Kelly 0 – 01 Aidan McAleese 0 – 01.
It’s been a while since these two South West rivals met in competitive action with St. Mary’s having made the drop from division 1 at the end of last year and Naomh Comhghall in their second season in division 2.
Both sides have made contrasting starts to the season with St. Mary’s winning one and losing one going into Wednesday night’s meeting at Cloney and Naomh Comhghall with a win and a draw under their belts.
So there was a fair deal of interest as they took the field in Ahoghill on Wednesday night and that interest was well founded as they went on to serve up an excellent game of attacking football.
It was the Antrim town side who got off to a blistering start as Kian Smith found the net in the second minute and points from Tiernan Floyd and Caolan O’Loan had them 1-2 to 0-0 ahead by the third minute.
Naomh Muire looked shocked but gradually they began to get their own game together and Ronan Graham put them right back in it with a goal in the 7th minute.
Dan O’Neill added a point to leave just one in it after only 8 minutes of a blistering opening period but a lively Naomh Comhghall were edging the opening exchanges and they moved further ahead again through a Tom Hodkinson double.
The hosts kept in touch however with Donal Graham firing over two points and it remained nip and tuck in the period leading up to half time with Tom Hodgkinson 0-2 and Caolan O’Loan hitting points for the Antrim town men and Dan O’Neill and Colla McDonnell replying for the men from Cloney.
Hodkinson was certainly playing his part in keeping the Naomh Comhghall noses in front as he added two more points by the 4th minute of the second half to move his side three in front and they looked on their way to lifting a major scalp.
Points are never easy gained in Cloney however and Ahoghill responded with points from Dan O’Neill 0-2 and James O’Connell in response to one from O’Loan for the visitors.
The turning point in the game arrived at the end of the third quarter when Patrick Dougan finished to the net for Naomh Muire’s second goal and that score seemed to lift his colleagues.
Diarmaid Graham for the home side and Conor McAuley for the visitors exchanged further scores but it was the Ahoghill side who ensured there would be no way back for the ‘Town’ going down the finishing straight.
Dan O’Neill, James O’Connell and Donal Graham all raised white flags and despite a late double from Tom Hodkinson for the visitors it was Naomh Muire who held on for their second win in three outings.
An entertaining game of football with both sides deserving great credit for the football they served up but in the end it was probably Ahoghill’s greater experience that saw them through.
Naomh Muire Ahoghill: 1 Noel Crossey, 2 Shea Neeson, 3 James Magee, 4 Harry O’Donnell, 5 Fionnbar O’Neill, 6 Martin Graham, 7 Eamonn Brady, 8 Ronan Graham, 9 Patrick Graham, 10 Dan O’Neill, 11 Donal Graham, 12 Patrick Dougan, 13 Colla McDonnell, 14 Donal Graham, 15 Noah Friel, 18 Rian Martin, 21 James O’Connell, 22 Seamus McKeever
Naomh Comhghall: 1 Peter McAuley, 2 Leo McAleer, 3 Cathal Donnelly, 4 Eoin Lynott, 5 Ruairi Griffin, 6 James McCabe, 7 Danaan O’Hara, 8 Michael McCabe, 9 Caolan O’Loan, 10 Aaron McGaw, 11 Miles Devine, 12 Dylan Murdock, 13 Tom Hodgkinson, 14 Kian Smith, 15 Tiernan Floyd, 17 Balle1gh Close, 18 Aaron McHugh, 19 Aidan Short, 23 Conor McAuley
Cardinal O’Donnell’s and Laochra Loch Lao served up a full blooded encounter in terrible underfoot conditions at MacRory Park on Wednesday evening in one of the few games that survived the weather.
The Saffron Gael had three photographers in Belfast to cover games but I arrived at Davitt’s where a late call by the referee deemed the pitch unplayable.
Curly suffered a similar fate at Milltown and again both sides were on the field when the decision to call off was taken while Bert had a similar experience at the Bear Pit with the Sarsfields v St. Brigid’s game called off.
A chance meeting with a fellow Gael at Colaiste Feirste informed me that he had seen Laochra Loch Lao making their way into MacRory Park and I arrived just in time to witness 30 hardy souls take the field as the rain that had been falling heavily earlier abated.
Things got underway under the guidance of referee, Anthony Carleton and despite water on the surface these division 3 rivals went on to serve up a game of championship intensity.
Playing away into the pavilion end it was visitors Laochra Loch Lao who took an early lead through Oisin Crawford with a point in the 8th minute but hosts O’Donnell were soon back on terms from a Padraig McKissock free with 11 minutes gone.
Fergal McNerny, wearing 34 put O’Donnell’s ahead for the first time as they began to control the exchanges with some excellent build up play and two more from McKissock (1f) had the lower Whiterock men 3 ahead after 22 minutes
The visitors were enjoying a fair deal of possession but wayward shooting and some strong defending by the O’D’s defence, where Stephen Seawright, Conor Walsh and Jonathan McKenna were giving nothing away, kept Laochra in check.
Fionnbar McKernan extended the home lead and the industrious Fergal McNerney moved them five ahead after 24 minutes and Laochra looked in a spot of bother.
They were handed a lifeline however when a long distance free from Conor McGucken appeared to take a deflection and ended in Conor Murphy’s net to leave it 0-6 to 1-1 at the break.
It was still all to play for as the sides emerged from the dressing rooms for the second half with McGucken splitting the uprights in the opening minute to leave the minimum between the sides.
Padraig McKissock replied for O’Donnell’s as he converted a free following a breech with Conor McGucken replying at the other end to again leave just one between two very competitive sides.
Fergal McNery continued to impress around mid-field and he once again moved O’Donnell’s two ahead but the hosts suffered a blow when they had a player Red carded in the 10th minute.
The excellent McGucken pointed the resulting free to again reduce the gap to one and it looked like being a long evening for the home side.
They had to be thankful to their keeper, Conor Murphy who came off his line to make an excellent blocking save from Kevin Devine and the home side countered with their halftime substitute (29) racing in for a goal.
It gave O’Donnell’s a cushion but Laochra were now enjoying a lot of possession and pushing forward in numbers and a point from Kevin Devine and a goal from the penalty spot by sharp shooter McGucken had it back to one with time almost up.
O’Donnell’s refused to panic and countered from the kick-out with a point from Richard McAvoy before running down the clock as they held possession, affording Laochra no further opportunity.
O’Donnell’s: 1 Conor Murphy, 2 Joseph Rafferty, 3 Stephen Seawright, 4 Sean Smylie, 5 Kevin Kennedy, 6 Conor Walsh, 7 Jonathan McKenna, 8 Patrick Matthews, 9 Joseph Rafferty, 10 Ciaran McKissock, 11 Scott Thompson, 12 Paul Moore, 13 Richard McAvoy, 14 Padraig McKissock, 15 Fionnbar McKernan, 34 Fergal McNerny,
Laochra Loch Lao: 1 Sean O’hEachain, 26 Deaglan McComb, 3 Conor McCaffery, 4 Michael Nolan, 5 Gearoid McShane, 6 Connla O’Coinn, 7 Dubhaltach MacCrabhagain, 8 Tomkas Tolan, 9 Cathal O’Ceallaigh, 10 Conor McGucken, 11 Kevin Devine, 12 Tiarnan Mac Siacais, 13 Oisin Crawford, 24 Michael O’Dalaigh, 15 PJ O’Prey,
Referee: Anthony Carleton (St. Brigid’s)
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