Castlewellan hit a goal and four points in five minutes to sink Lorcha na Farriage - 23/02/03

East Down MFL Section A Round 4

Castlewellan 2-14 Lorcha na Farriage 0-04

By Marc MacSiomoin, Dundrum

The "Town" were first off the mark after five minutes and then doubled their advantage six minutes later. Lorcha found a response a minute later when Paul McComiskey tapped over a rare Lorcha free. A minute later the "Town" kickstarted their offence. Four points and a goal within five minutes give Castlewellan a numerical advantage which Lorcha couldn't hit back at. The "Towns" goal came courtesy of the inventive Cahal Crilly who proved to be a thorn in Lorcha's side all afternoon. However, this contributed to a Lorcha mini revival which saw Paul McComiskey score his first from play. It was to be short lived as Lorcha's momentum was halted when midfielder Arran Doyle received a blow to the head. This was the first of many unsavoury incidents which marred the game.

The half finished with two more Castlewellan points coutesy of Rory McArdle and Conor Kelly. Half-Time: Castlewellan 1-08 Lorcha na Farriage 0-02

In the second half Lorcha seemed dejected and found it hard to sustain a rythmn to their game because of the constant fouling which they were subjected to. The first score of a violent second half came from Gareth Keown. The nifty "Town" forward was one of the brighter aspects of the game and proved this six minutes later when he pointed again from close range. However, just as the game started to pick up, another scuffle broke out with a Lorcha player on the receiving end. It took about five minutes for tensions to cool down before the referee issued the "Town" offender with a yellow card.

Lorcha looked on with dismay as the perpetraitor remained on the field. This infuriated Lorcha and spared them on for the remainder of the second half. This showed after forty one minutes of action as Paul McComiskey pointed a free and then scored Lorcha's last of the game a minute later. Another scuffle broke out, but was shorter lived and only two minutes later, Castlewellan pointed through McVeigh.

The main playmaker for the "Town" during this period was Conor Kelly. The influential midfielder was creating all sorts of bother. He was ably assisted by Crilly and Keown who were extremely thankful for what was being laid on.

The lull never arrived and on forty six minutes Keown pointed again to leave an un-closable gap between the sides. The last fifteen minutes were frantic with tenacious defending by Lorcha, especially from Neil McComiskey, McKibben and the sprightly Hugh Robb. Then the last chance for Lorcha to close the gap went amiss. Paul McComiskey, who had the better of the "Town" defence the whole game was vicously tripped by McAuley when clean through. The resulting kick by McComiskey screeched inches wide to the delight of Castlewellan.

The game by now turned into a damp squib. At every chance Lorcha pushed forward but to no avail as they were stopped in their tracks either by a kick or a trip. Lorcha did have their chances though with Conor Kearney twice coming close and Fitzsimons missing an easy free. The dying minutes were scrappy with Castlewellan finding time for a late goal and point on the stroke of full time.

Violence fuelled melees marred what could have been a good game. However, during the interludes some fine play was evident. Keown, Kelly, Crilly, McArdle and Hardy were best for the "Town". Lorcha were best served by McKibben, Hugh Robb and Neil McComiskey in defence. Doyle and Mageean stuck to their task admirably at midfield despite being the victims of most of the "Town's" dirty tactics. Up front, Kearney, McShane and Mc Comiskey were the pick of the bunch. Yet, individual praise has to be awarded to Paul McComiskey. Despite being hit, repeatedly forced to the ground, tripped and the victim of numerous high tackles, he never waivered from his task.

Lorcha na Farriage: King, Rooney, McKibben, Melville, C.Robb, N.McComiskey, H.Robb, Mageean, Doyle, McShane, Hogg, Fitzsimons, McComiskey (0-04), Kearney, M.Robb. Sub: Grant for M.Robb

Referee: G.P Mulholland.




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