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Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Brian bags the winner
By David Tuohy
CLAREMORRIS AFC 4 IORRAS AOINTAITHE B 3 (AET)
WITH four cup finals in as many weeks being decided in extratime, spectators in Milebush have been getting value for money lately, and this most recent encounter was arguably the best of them all.
Iorras’ early two-goal lead was eventually eroded to nothing, and Brian Gallagher put Claremorris ahead for the first time in the whole match with a minute of extra-time remaining, completing an extraordinary comeback on Sunday afternoon.
Iorras were by far the brighter side in the early stages, and took advantage of their opponents’ listless start to go ahead after 13 minutes. Slack Claremorris marking allowed Thomas McAndrew enough space to curl a shot out of reach of Shane Macken and into the top corner from 15 yards. It was no more than McAndrew’s side had deserved, after Sean O’Donnell and Jason Boylan had put the Claremorris defence under pressure from the very first whistle.
Iorras dominated the midfield, with Boylan and John Noel Flannery keeping the ball well, and frustrating their opponents.
Iorras doubled their advantage after only 17 minutes, when Thomas McAndrew’s corner found Jason Boylan, who guided a header into the bottom corner. Claremorris had been punished for their listless start to the game, and although they only allowed their opponents two clear chances, both were put away.
Things began to look slightly more encouraging for the Greens after this nightmare start; Kevin Butler fired a powerful effort just over the bar, and it was apparent that they had not abandoned all hope. Butler had an even better chance in the 26th minute, when Kevin Costello slipped a clever ball behind the Iorras defence, but Butler could not keep his shot down.
As the half wore on, Iorras’ early dominance made way for a resurgent Claremorris side, with Danny Broderick, Kevin Costello and Kevin Butler forming a dynamic attacking system. Butler forged another opportunity after 33 minutes, but shot wide from 12 yards under pressure from two Iorras defenders. For all their attacking promise, Claremorris were still trailing by two at the halfway mark. Iorras still held the upper hand in terms of possession, but were doing very little with it, and were happy to defend their advantage.
The leaders were put to the test in the second half, as Claremorris took the game to them with some intense, attacking football. Brian Gallagher pulled a goal back for Claremorris in the 57th minute, heading home a Danny Broderick cross. These two players would prove to be instrumental in the Claremorris comeback. Gallagher had another chance four minutes later, but fired tamely at Harry Reilly.
Kevin Butler, who had been guilty of missing some fine chances in the first half, was now a vital contributor on the right wing, and put in several dangerous crosses which caused panic for the Iorras rearguard.
Iorras continued to defend their lead under mounting pressure as full time approached, and it looked as if they would hold out. Their resolve was strongly tested four minutes from time when Padraig Gaughan conceded a penalty. The defender could not compete with the pace of Danny Broderick who raced into the box and was brought down.
Dermot Costello stepped up to take the kick, but Harry Reilly made a superb stop to keep Iorras in front.
Having averted this crisis, it seemed likely that Iorras would hold out for the win, but Danny Broderick had other ideas. The Claremorris winger produced a truly special goal to force extratime.
Brian Gallagher’s ball found Broderick on the edge of the area, whose overhead kick was perfectly placed in the bottom corner to make it 2-2 in injury time. It was little more than Claremorris deserved after a superb second half performance which had Iorras pushed deep into their own half for long spells.
Iorras, however, looked by far the more composed in the early stages of extra-time and regained the lead in only the second minute. Kenny O’Connor’s long ball fell to Jason Boylan inside the box, and the midfielder was left with an easy finish from close range.
Having worked so hard to come from two goals down, Claremorris were in no mood to surrender. Substitutes Andrew Shally and Jan Rada had both made a very positive impression, and it was Rada who restored parity early in the second half of extra-time when his speculative shot from 22 yards managed to creep underneath Harry Reilly and into the net. It was Reilly’s only mistake all afternoon.
Having used all their substitutes, both sides ended with 10 men through injury, as Danny Broderick and Robert Carey had to be taken off after picking up knocks. This created a lot of extra space on the pitch for tiring players to cover, and Claremorris striker Brian Gallagher made the most of it when firing home the winning goal with one minute of extratime remaining. He latched on to a long ball before Harry Reilly could come out and claim, and rounded the goalkeeper to finish into the empty net.
CLAREMORRIS: Shane Macken, Conor Whittle, Fergal O’Connor, Mark Sullivan, James Kavanagh, Paul Maloney, Kevin Butler, Dermot Costello, Brian Gallagher, Kevin Costello, Danny Broderick. Subs: Andrew Shally (for O’Connor), Jan Rada (for Maloney), Christy Heffernan (for Whittle).
IORRAS AONTAITHE B: Harry Reilly, Thomas Duffy, Seamus O’Malley, Robert Carey, Padraig Gaughan, Kenny O’Connor, John Noel Flannery, Jason Boylan, Sean O’Donnell, Stephen Cawley, Thomas McAndrew. Subs: Brendan McIntyre (for McAndrew), Damian Farrell (for O’Donnell), Patrick Geoghegan (for Duffy).
Referee: Pat Foley.
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