Victory at Third Time of Asking against Cappy

Post date: Oct 18, 2011 6:42:39 PM

Moycullen erased the bitter Championship defeats of 2008 and 2010 by overcoming Cappataggle in the Finnerty Plant Hire Intermediate Championship and by doing so landed a place in their first County Intermediate Final since 1964. There were many that may have thought it was going to be the same old story when Cappy raced into a 5pts to no score all but one from placed balls start particularly as Moycullen's freetaking appeared to be misfiring. Cappataggle were winning all the first time possession and breaks and Moycullen were struggling to get a foothold in the game. A Mark Lydon surge into enemy territory got Moycullen off the mark. Then although James Skehill saved well from a Conor Bohan shot set up by Chris Hurney and Vinnie Faherty, he had no answer when after good work by Niall Mannion and Tomás Higgins, Philip Lydon drifting onto a high ball from Eanna Noone, pulled it down on the hurl and fired a close range ground shot into the roof of the net. Moycullen were back within a point.

Moycullen continued to concede frees however and fine points from play by Conor Bohan, Eanna Noone, Niall Mannion and Philip Lydon only served to maintain the one point deficit. The half ended on a low note as Damien Joyce won possession outside the 20m one on one with Sean Rossa McDermott. Although unable to round Rossa, Joyce managed to step away and rocket the ball into the roof of the net. The halftime score was now 1-09 to 1-05 in favour of Cappataggle.

Whatever happened at halftime, whether fired by the halftime team talk or the long wait for Cappy to re-emerge, Moycullen were straight out the traps. An Eanna Noone point from play was followed by a second for Niall Mannion. Moycullen then won there first free of the game inside 65m and Eanna Noone left all his first half problems aside and duly slotted it. Cappataggle were unable to break out of their own half as now Moycullen were winning the first time possession and the breaking ball. Niall Mannion added another point almost immediately to level the game and when Philip Lydon popped over another, Moycullen were ahead with less than nine minutes of the second half gone. The diffculties of scoring frees at the Mart end were emphasised when Alan Dolan missed his first having converted seven in the first half. As Philip Lydon won the ball and then watched Niall Mannion solo away with it, he was struck by a Cappataggle player in full view of the linesman. A red card resulted and Eanna Noone converted the resultant free from an acute angle near the sideline. Only ten minutes of the half had elapsed and the game had been turned on its head. A point from Christopher Hurney and a free from Eanna Noone stretched the Moycullen lead to four points.

Having struggled for most of the half with some long range efforts, Alan Dolan finally converted a free to register Cappataggle's first second half score after 21 minutes. Moycullen threaten to run riot but after Conor Bohan's kicked goal effort found the side netting and a late tackle saw goalkeeper Skehill yellow carded, a point from Vinnie Faherty was all there was to show on the scoreboard. A number of other chances fell short or wide. A heavy shower of rain had made striking unreliable,but three minutes from the end of normal time, Alan Dolan did find the target with another free to set-up a nervous finish with only one score between the sides. With the towels out, Eanna Noone could not repeat a score from a free in the same acute postion as earlier. Morgan Darcy and Ritchie Devaney were now in the game and Morgan looked certain to score when put through on goal. His pass to Vinnie Faherty in front of goal seemed to go astray but Vinnie did well to retrieve only to blaze his shot wide from eight yards. In the end, Moycullen held firm and there were not further scores before end of three agonising extra minutes. Final score 1-14 to 1-11.

Moycullen: Michael Darcy, Sean Rossa McDermott, Matt Donohue, Barry Faherty, Tomás Higgins, Mark Lydon, Seosamh O'Faharta, Eanna Noone, Pat Lydon, Dan Kelly, Vinnie Faherty, Niall Mannion, Conor Bohan, Philip Lydon, Chris Hurney. Subs: Morgan Darcy for Dan Kelly (52 min) Ritchie Devaney for Sean Rossa McDermott (55 min)

Eric Fox, Henry Lydon, Seamus Conneely, Michael Hurney, Gary Bohan, David Faherty, Paul Burke, Eanna Malone, David Bohan, John Faherty, Caoimh Davoren, Robert Molloy