Carty the goal poacher

TWO POCHER’S goals from Darren Carty helped secure a semi-final spot for Taghmon-Camross in the Amber Springs/Ashdown Park Hotel Intermediate football championship, when they overcame a gallant St. Mary’s Maudlintown side in Oylegate on Saturday.

While the eventual winners always looked to be the better side, they were made earn their win as their opponents never gave up and continued to press on even when it seemed all hope was lost.

Indeed, Carty’s second goal came at the right time for his side as it gave them some room to breathe as the Wexford town side threw everything they had at them.

Carty’s first goal came after three minutes as he sneaked inside the full-back line and touched the ball past the out-rushing ‘keeper. Some fine point-taking from Darren Carty and Dermot Flood kept things interesting in the blustery conditions but Taghmon finished the half strongly thanks to Pierce Doyle and Ian Carty who gave them a six-point lead at the break.

Taghmon stretched that lead even further as they kicked three points in as many minutes of the restart, but the Wexford town side refused to lie down and pulled four back coming up to the midway point of the half all coming from Flood who was in blistering form.

But all that was undone when Séamus Mcloughlin shot a high ball across the square and Carty leaped highest to fist home his second goal and making it almost impossible for St. Mary’s to rally themselves again.

But to their credit they did just that and while points from Flood and Eddie Pitman were cancelled out by Mcloughlin, substitute Paul Dempsey found the net from close range just before full-time. But it was not enough as the final whistle signalled a deserved victory for Taghmon.

Taghmon-Camross: Seán O’Gorman; Mark O’Gorman, Alan Nolan, David O’Keefe; Shane Doyle, Barry O’Gorman, Pat Nolan; Derek O’Hanlon, Stephen O’Gorman; Darren Carty (2-0), Ian Carty (0-5, 1 free, 1 ’45), Pauric O’Gorman; Pierce Doyle (0-2), Séamus McLoughlin (0-4, 3 frees), Eoin Doyle (0-1). Subs: Stephen Stafford for O’Keefe, Luke Sinnot for O’Hanlon.

St. Mary’s Maudlintown: Willie Lambert; Alan Lynch, Christy Lane, Mark Doyle; Gavin Cullen, Alex Lynch, Gary Murphy; Graham Carty, Donal O’Leary; Eddie Pitman (0-2), Jason Swords, Ross Lynch; Pierce Dooley, Dermot Flood (0-7, 4 frees), Martin O’Connor (0-1). Subs: Roy Doyle for Dooley, Dooley for Cullen, Paul Dempsey (1-0) for Lane.

Referee: John Diskin (Bannow-Ballymitty).