ACFL 1:
Loughinisland 0-12 Rostrevor
1-11
By Colm Fitzpatrick
ACL 1
GIBNEY SAVES BLUES
Loughinisland 0-12 Rostrevor 0-11
An acrobatic penalty save by
Loughinisland goalkeeper, John Gibney,
turned out to be the difference between
victory and defeat for Bundy Masons men
in McCartan Park on Monday evening.
Gibney’s golden moment came early in the
second half, when Brian Cole knocked a
Conor Daly free back across the
goalmouth, and Alan Molloy had to foul
the ball on the ground to forestall a
major score for Reds. Shaun Parrs
penalty was beautifully placed just
inside Gibney’s left hand upright, but
the Island keeper guessed correctly and
flung himself full length across the
goal to parry the shot! A goal at that
stage, with Rostrevor trailing 0-5 to
0-9, would have provided the visitors
with the ideal early platform from which
to go on and dominate the second half,
but , instead, it was not until the
final ten minutes that Rostrevor got to
build that platform, and eventually they
just ran out of time, with Loughinisland
clinging on desperately at the finish.
ON TOP
Rostrevor will feel they ought to have
taken something from this game, and they
certainly were the better team in the
second half; but over the hour, Blues
looked superior for more of the time
than their visitors and just about
deserved their win.
They were particularly good in the first
half, when early ball to a lively full
forward line of Ben O’Reilly, Mark
Valentine was reaping dividends. Blues
were 0-5 to 0-1 up by the end of the
opening fifteen minutes. Two of those
had come from the impish Ben O’Reilly.
Another was scored by the impressive
Mark Valentine. Midfielders Dan Gordon
and Ryan Stranney had contributed the
other two.
Reds, despite the promise of a fine
early point from Patrick McGreevey were
finding the road to goal barred
comprehensively by the totally dominant
Alan Molloy. They did raise their
work-rate in the second quarter,
however, and were rewarded by two points
from Eamon McConville and Colm Clerkin,
soon followed by one by enterprising
young midfielder, Shaun Parr. But the
amount of work which Rostrevor had to
put into those scores was in contrast to
the ease with which Loughinisland were
picking off points at the far end, and
Ryan Stranney[2] and Seamus O’Hare[1]
punished them from frees to leave the
home team a comfortable 0-8 tp 0-4 up at
the break.
SPICED
Reds spiced up their attack with the
inclusion of martin Doran and Brian Cole
at the start of the second half, but
this was balanced by Brendan Masons
introduction of Joe Doran into the heart
of his defence. So that, even though
Reds were winning more possession now,
there seemed no easy way back into this
game for them, especially after John
Gibney foiled Shaun Parrs penalty effort
in the 34th minute. Frees
from Ryan Stranney and Seamus O’H are
matched third quarter pointsfrom Lloyd
Parr and Jarlath Austin and when Jamie
O’reilly outpaced the Reds defence to
increase their lead to five points in
the 48th minute, it looked
really bleak for the visitors, who must
have been further discouraged Seamus
O’hares immediate reply to Lloyd Parrs
free a minute later.
RALLY
But Reds did dig out a compelling rally
over the final ten minutes. Jarlath
Austin and Shaun parr were playing
tremendous football at midfield, and the
game was set alight by two marvellous
points direct from line balls by Conor
daly. Two Lloyd Parr frees then left
only a point between the sides after 58
minutes and the visitors almost got the
score they were looking for in the final
minute when Shaun Parr worked his way
through a packed Loughinisland defence
only to shoot wide under pressure.
TOO LATE
Reds had found their urgency too late in
the game, however, and overall, Brendan
Mason can be pleased with his sides
shape and application, though any
satisfaction with the result must be set
against the disappointment of losing Ben
O’Reilly to a red card in the closing
minutes. Alan Molloy had a great first
half, though he was more seriously
tested by Brian Cole’s ability in the
air after the interval. Conor O’Toole
also shone in defence while Ryan
Stranney had a useful game around
midfield. Up front, there was much to
admire in the pace of Jamie O’Reilly,
and the liveliness of all three full
forwards.
GENUINE
Colm Murney continues to develop into a
genuine prospect in the middle of the
Rostrevor defence, and Eamon McConville
also showed well. The narrow pitch
suited a player of Jarlath Austin’s vast
experience down to the ground, and he
came out on top in his duel with Dan
Gordon. The best of the four
midfielders, however, was Shaun Parr, so
comfortable and constructive in
possession. Up front, both Patrick
McGreevey and Conor Mackin got through a
lot of work in the first half, while
Brian Cole definitely made a difference
in the second. The key attacking
contribution, however, was made by Conor
Daly’s two majestic sideline kicks in
the 53rd and 54th
minutes. They left the visitors with a
very achievable target over the final
six minutes, but it was one they were
unable to attain.
Loughinisland scorers; Ryan Stranney
[0-4] 4 frees; Seamus O’Hare [0-3] 3
frees; Ben O’Reilly [0-2] 1 free; Dan
Gordon [0-1]; Mark Valentine [0-1];
Jamie O’Reilly [0-1].
Rostrevor scorers; Lloyd Parr [0-4] 4
frees; Conor Daly [0-2] 2 sideline
frees; Patrick McGreevey [0-1]; Eamon
McConville, Colm Clerkin; Shaun Parr
[0-1]; Jarlath Austin [0-1]
Loughinisland team; John Gibney ; Ryan
Carville, Conor O’Toole, Alan Molloy;
Gareth Doran, John McCarthy, Aaron
Mulholland; Dan Gordon, Jamie O’Reilly,
Seamus O’Hare; Ben O’Reilly, Mark
Valentine, John Turley;
Subs used; Joe Doran; Cormac O’Toole;
Jimmy McClements
Rostrevor team; Padraig Mulholland;
Eddie Magee, Gary Farrell, Jarlath
Farrell; Eamon McConville, Colm Murney,
Tulough Murphy; Jarlath Austin, Shaun
Parr; Conor Mackin, Conor Daly, Sean
Farrell; Lloyd Parr, Patrick McGreevey,
Colm Clerkin.
Subs used; Martin Doran; Brian Cole;
Kevin McGrath; Dermot Mackin.
Referee; Gavin Corrigan
