Penalty goal crucial as Ballymore get the better of Killashee
A goal from a penalty converted by Damien Monaghan with nine minutes gone in the game proved crucial as Ballymore got the better of Killashee to reach the Intermediate Football Championship decider and the north Longford side were full value for their fairly convincing six-point win at Pearse Park on Saturday evening last.
Ballymore could afford the luxury of kicking a total of 12 wides (8 in the second half) but it would have been a much closer contest had Killashee not missed a penalty with nine minutes of normal time remaining at a stage when they trailed by 1-7 to 0-6. Up stepped defender Ger Evans to take the spot kick but his shot was saved in fine fashion by the opposing keeper Mark Tighe.
That was a lucky escape for Ballymore who were finding it difficult to convert their second half superiority into scores. A powerful performance by Bernard McElvaney gave the eventual winners a decisive edge at centrefield on the changeover but the fact that they failed to register a score for a total of 19 minutes is certainly a cause for concern and they will need to improve on their finishing for the final.
St. Brigid's were also guilty of a number of missed chances (eight wides) during the course of this scrappy encounter and their hopes of a surprise victory suffered a severe setback when midfielder Michael Farrell was forced to retire injured (ankle) midway through the first half. Nothing really went right for Killashee and their tale of woe was complete when central defender Tony Dooner was sent-off in the closing stages of the game after receiving a straight red card.
After getting off to a bright start with a cracking point from Michael Farrell in the 2nd minute, St. Brigid's struggled for a while and after Damien Monaghan fired over the equalising score in the 4th minute Cathal Monaghan done well to keep the ball in play and was subsequently fouled in the square as Ballymore were awarded a penalty by referee Aidan Dowler.
Damien Monaghan, always a threat at full-forward, made no mistake in finding the back of the net and a point followed from Noel Boyle to leave Ballymore leading by 1-2 to 0-1 at the end of the first quarter. But St. Brigid's battled back to close the gap with a fine point from their most dangerous attacker Darren Reilly, the end result of a great move that was started by wing back Darren Cosgrove.
John Murphy was then on target for Ballymore in landing a mighty score but they faded out of the game for the remainder of the first half as Killashee worked really hard to keep in touch and their perseverance was rewarded with a point apiece from Ronan Skelly and Anthony Farrell, both excellent efforts which gave the St. Brigid's supporters something to shout about.
In the second minute of stoppage time, Damien Monaghan fired over a free to leave Ballymore leading by 1-4 to 0-4 at the break and Bernard McElvaney eventually began to click into top gear as the second half progressed. Influential centre-half-forward John Murphy kicked another great score with two minutes gone on the changeover before Darren Reilly pulled a point back for St.Brigid's.
Further scores from Noel Boyle (36 mins) and Damien Monaghan (40 mins) consolidated Ballymore's firm grip on the game and while Killashee defender Darren Cosgrove raced through to fist the ball over the bar in the 45th minute that was as good as it got for the losers and the penalty miss in the 51st minute proved to be a killer blow.
While Ballymore were completely on top thereafter they had to wait until the 59th minute for their next score as midfielder Padraig McNerney found the space to shoot over the bar and a cracking point followed from Bernard McElvaney deep into stoppage time. Killashee were fortunate not to concede a second goal in the closing stages when their keeper Pat Farrell produced a terrific point-blank save to deny Damien Monaghan.
BALLYMORE: Mark Tighe; Philip Dawson, Michael Flynn, John Kavanagh; Vinny Walker, Sean Brady, Sean Corr; Bernard McElvaney (0-1), Padraig McNerney (0-1); Noel Boyle (0-2), John Murphy (0-2), Padraig Kavanagh; John Gorman, Damien Monaghan (1-3, goal from penalty and one point from free), Cathal Monaghan.
Subs:- John Brennan for V Walker (injured, 44 mins); John McElvaney for P McNerney (61 mins).
KILLASHEE: Pat Farrell; Michael Magan, Ger Evans, Eamon Farrell; Darren Cosgrove (0-1), Tony Dooner, Enda McPartland; Emmet Skelly, Michael Farrell (0-1); Ronan Skelly (0-1), Enda McKiernan, Anthony Farrell (0-1); Johnny Casey, Darren Reilly (0-2), James Willis.
Subs:- Derek Steele for M Farrell (injured, 15 mins); Michael Skelly for E McPartland (half-time); Bobby Farrell for E McKiernan (39 mins); Alan Milton for M Magan (55 mins).
Referee: Aidan Dowler (Moydow Harpers).
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Weather for Longford, Ireland
Sunday 05 February 2012
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