MC GUIGAN BUILDERS INTERMEDIATE FOOTBALL CHAMPIONSHIP.
Drumhowan 2-9, Aghabog 0-7.
Tow goals in the opening seven minutes effectively sealed the outcome in this hard-hitting and at times fairly scrappy encounter in Gavan Duffy Park, Monaghan on Sunday evening last. Those two early strikes saw Drumhowan establish a strong foothold in the match while Aghabog found scores hard to come by although in the early stages they too could have had a couple of goals but for some excellent work by Drumhowan keeper Michael Mooney. Drumhowan were forced to field without the services of Kieran Deery and James McElroy and they struggled at times to translate their superiority into scorers. Despite that they always held a slight edge against an Aghabog side for whom very little went right on the night. Prior to the game there was a minutes silence as a mark of respect to Sean Brennan, a former chairman of the Drumhowan club. Drumhowan were on the offensive right from the start but kicked three wides in quick succession before Ciaran McElroy opened their account in the best possible way when he finished off a lightning move involving Darren Duffy and Niall Mooney to the Aghabog net. Aghabog to their credit responded with an immediate offensive that saw Sean O’Brien in for a one-on-one on keeper Michael Mooney but the Drumhowan custodian was up to the task and not for the only time in the match. Seven minutes had just elapsed when Drumhowan struck again, this time Colm Lambe finishing to the net after Kieran Mooney had created the chance to put last year’s double winners six points in front. Sean O’Brien opened Aghabog’s account in the 10th minute and he was to prove their main scoring threat but too often the service in to him was not of the quality or quantity that was needed and later when he moved further outfield his scoring threat was diminished. By the end of the first quarter Aghabog could well have been level but for further exploits from Michael Mooney and a couple of bad wides, one from a ‘45 that could have seen them close the gap. Ciaran McElroy extended Drumhowan’s lead to six points in the 16th minute and again goalkeepers were in action, Michael Mooney getting down for a good block on Michael Dolan while Aghabog keeper Sean McBride was also in action as he fly kicked to safety at the end of another good Drumhowan build up. The final 10 minutes of the first half saw a period of high activity that saw Drumhowan awarded a penalty in the 27th minute following a foul on Patrick Duffy by Mark McBride but Dermot McDermott blasted wide of the target to help keep Aghabog in the hunt. Prior to the penalty the sides exchanged points through Sean O’Brien and Colm Lambe and entering the final minutes Aghabog reduced the deficit to four points, Shane Mulligan and Sean O’Brien from frees with Drumhowan having the last word of the first half when Enda McElroy hit a point in injury time to leave the half-time score Drumhowan 2-3, Aghabog 0-4.
Aghabog made a raft of changes for the start of the second half introducing four substitutes in an effort to generate further momentum and it looked to be paying dividends as they began to establish a grip on proceedings. Derek McCarville pulled back a point in the 8th minute and but more good work by Drumhowan keeper Michael Mooney and some erratic finishing saw the game scoreless until the 19th minute when Aghabog pulled back another point through Paddy McCabe. Three points now separated the sides with Drumhowan not having scored in the third quarter but when they really needed to respond and the questions were asked they were able to lift their game and by the 22nd minute they had hit three points without reply to open a six points gap. Further pressure should have seen them ease further in front but they too were somewhat errant in their finishing. Derek McCarville with a long-range free against the wind kept Aghabog in touch but they never looked like getting the goal they needed to get meaningfully into the game and it was Drumhowan who finished with a flourish for three unanswered points between the 27th and the 32nd minutes to wrap up victory. Colm Lambe hit the first from a difficult angle out on the right wing, he then followed that with a good free kick conversion with the final score going to substitute Paul McGuirk to leave eight points between the sides at the finish.
Teams and Scorers: Drumhowan: Michael Mooney, Dermot Mooney, Liam McGuirk, Damien Mooney, Gavin Sheridan, Patrick Duffy 0-1, Stephen Connolly, Dermot McDermott, Damien Duffy, Enda McElroy 0-1, Niall Mooney, Darren Duffy 0-1, Ciaran McElroy 1-1, Kieran Mooney, Colm Lambe 1-4. Subs: Paddy Mulligan for E McElroy, Paul McGuirk 0-1 for K Mooney.
Aghabog: Sean McBride, Paddy O’Brien, Mark McBride, Padraig McPhillips, Declan Dolan, Shane Mulligan 0-1, Gregory Treanor, Francis Dolan, Derek McCarville 0-2, Martin Fox, Stephen Greenan, Paddy McCabe 0-1, Michael Dolan, Sean O’Brien 0-3, John Smyth. Subs: Peadar Kelly for J Smyth, Gary McBride for M Fox, Shane Brady for D Dolan, Barry McCarron for M Dolan. Referee: Sean Kerley (Magheracloone).
