Thrilling finale to Drogheda derby ends in stalemate

MONEYMORE CHORD CELTIC 1 1

TWO of the promoted teams from last season’s Division 4 shared the spoils in a competitive Division 3 encounter at DIFE last Friday evening.

Although home side Moneymore had the lion’s share of possession for the majority of the game, they would have been the happier of the two sides at the final whistle as their equaliser came in the 89th minute.

The sides were deadlocked for the first 35 minutes, with no notable scoring opportunities, but that all changed one minute later when Niall Gates struck an excellent volley to make it 1 -0 to Chord, a lead they held until the interval break.

Following the resumption of play Moneymore pressed hard for an equaliser, but Chord’s defence remained disciplined and organised.

On the hour Keith Smith went close for Moneymore when his powerful drive from just outside the box sailed narrowly over the bar, but despite territorial dominance they failed to register a score right up to the last minute.

It was then that Dean O’Neill levelled when his drop volley from 25 yards smashed into the top corner, giving Chord keeper Keith Fox no chance. One minute later Moneymore almost stole a winner when neat inter-passing on the edge of the area put John McEneaney through, but in his efforts to side-step the keeper the ball went away from him and across the line for a goal kick.