O’Doherty leads by example as unbeaten Derry target a step up
On song: Cormac O’Doherty scored freely for Derry
DERRY maintained their unbeaten record in Division 2B of the Allianz Hurling League yesterday when they proved too strong for Roscommon by winning 0-16 to 0-10 to take a step closer to the divisional title.
Once again the mercurial Cormac O’Doherty proved a rich source of scores and had already made his presence felt by halftime when John McEvoy’s side led by 0-8 to 0-4.
O’Doherty continued to find the target after the break and along with Paul Cleary and Eoghan Cassidy in particular helped to ease his side into a 0-13 to 0-5 lead by the 53rd minute.
Despite a mixture of driving rain and snow, the Oak Leafs kept their shape and held out to land another valuable brace of league points.
Down, too, were in fine fettle in overcoming Kildare by 0-19 to 1-14 also in Division 2B with the vastly experienced Conor Woods rifling over the last two points of an absorbing contest after Kildare had led by 0-9 to 0-8 early in the second half before being overtaken by their hosts.
And Armagh booked their place in the Division 3A final courtesy of a hard-earned high-scoring draw against Tyrone at the Athletic Grounds.
Danny Magee (2) and Dean Gaffney scored Armagh’s goals as they posted a fine 3-16 total overall but the impressive Damien Casey was once again the figurehead in Tyrone’s gallant display as he bagged the lion’s share of their 0-25 total.
Nathan Curry also played a big part in Armagh’s diligent effort to secure a division of the spoils which provided further evidence that manager Padraig O’Connor’s amendments to his side are bearing fruit as the league reaches what could prove an intriguing climax.
Donegal made it another win for Ulster teams by getting the better of Longford by 0-19 to 0-13 with former Armagh player Declan Coulter playing a big part.
Monaghan also claimed their share of the plaudits on what was a good day for hurling in the province by beating Louth by 1-11 to 1-9.