Gorey, Gorey, Hallelujah!
Rangers sink brave seasiders to complete the double
GOREY RANGERS completed the league and cup double when they eventually wore down the brave challenge of Curracloe in a wet and dismal Ferrycarrig Park on Saturday.
The Premier Division winners got their hands on the coveted Wexford Youths Cup thanks to second-half goals from Jordan Redmond and Cillian Gilligan.
Redmond’s opener came just a minute after the re-start, and when Gilligan blasted home a penalty with 64 minutes on the clock the seasiders were really swimming against the tide.
Curracloe were going for a double also, having won the Division 2 title, and the underdogs certainly weren’t overawed, particularly in the first-half when they more than held their own.
However, they really needed to make their possession pay when they had the wind at their backs in the opening period.
Curracloe certainly didn’t let the occasion get to them and were quick to settle, with Kyle Roche latching on to a long punt forward from goalkeeper Jack Waters and firing over the bar inside three minutes.
The north county side didn’t have their first sight of goal until the 16th minute, when Derick Woods fizzed a shot over the bar from outside the area.
Two minutes later Jordan Redmond controlled a Woods cross at the back post and curled an effort wide of the far upright.
It was Curracloe’s turn to bring a few oohs and aahs from the crowd in the 23rd minute when Chris Cowman’s well-struck 25-yard shot rose narrowly over Darragh Brooks’ bar.
Rangers again looked menacing a minute later when Woods and Gilligan linked up well, but Jordan Redmond couldn’t get on the end of the latter’s delivery.
On 34 minutes Curracloe came close to creating a clear opening when the imposing Seán Keane-Carroll attempted to wriggle free in the box, but the ball just wouldn’t come down quickly enough for him to unleash a shot as the Gorey Rangers defence closed in.
The favourites looked to be in a good position, turning around with a significant wind at their backs, and their odds shortened further when they plundered the lead just over a minute into the new half.
The ball fell to Jordan Redmond at the back post and he confidently steered it into the net. The Gorey outfit were seeing much more of the ball and Dillon Dixon arrowed an effort over the bar after Redmond’s strike was blocked.
They didn’t have too long to wait to double their advantage though, when Cillian Gilligan played a onetwo with Jordan Redmond and was bundled over by Jack Waters.
Referee Damian Donovan had no hesitation in pointing to the spot and Gilligan dusted himself off and blasted the penalty to the left-hand corner of the net.
To their credit, Curracloe continued to battle and on 67 minutes Kyle Roche’s volley deflected out for a corner and Chris Cowman curled a free inches over the crossbar in the 90th minute.
However, it was Gorey Rangers’ day as they won the Youth Cup for a second time, with the other triumph coming in 2010, when they saw off Shamrock Rovers in the decider. GOREY RANGERS: Darragh Brooks, Seán Murphy, Dylan Fleming, Conor McDermott, David Christie, Ethan Vickers, Derick Woods, Rory Heffernan, Cillian Gilligan, Dillon Dixon, Jordan Redmond. Subs. - Jordan Kennedy for Woods, Corey Meyler for Redmond, Matthew McCabe for Murphy, Tiernan Doyle for Gilligan, also Matthew O’Brien, Adam Boukhima, Eoin Buckley.