Kelly goals take the heat off Davidstown
D’TOWN-C’CUDDY CLONGEEN
TWO QUICKFIRE goals from James Kelly midway through the second-half drove Davidstown-Courtnacuddy to a priceless victory over Clongeen in Group B of the Permanent TSB Junior hurling championship in Killurin on Saturday.
The Enniscorthy District men could have dropped their heads when they were reduced to 14 men five minutes after the interval and when Clongeen, playing with the aid of a stiff enough breeze, got back to within a point the tide looked to have turned firmly in their favour.
However, Kelly’s two majors in the space of 90 seconds put Davidstown-Courtnacuddy very much back in the driving seat and Clongeen weren’t able to reduce that seven-point deficit by the finish.
Davidstown-Courtnacuddy had much the better of it in the early stages, scoring six points without reply by the 20th minute, although their opponents were guilty of some wayward shooting.
James Doyle opened the scoring, the lively David O’Dwyer added a double, while Mark Byrne stroked over three frees in that period of dominance.
Clongeen were right back in the game in the 24th minute though, when a Ricky Rochford ‘65 dropped into the danger zone and the lurking Paul Curtis got a touch to divert the ball past Seán Cooper.
Seconds later Curtis fired over a point, followed by a Ricky Rochford free, and Clongeen were back in the hunt.
Davidstown-Courtnacuddy took a three-point lead into the interval (0-9 to 1-3), but after Ricky Rochford opened the second-half scoring they suffered a real blow when Daryl Freeman was shown a red card.
When Rochford pointed again in the 43rd minute it left the minimum between the sides, but after David O’Dwyer had knocked over his fifth score, two goals from James Kelly in the space of a minute decided the contest.
First Kelly gathered a pass from O’Dwyer, burst through on goal and drilled a shot to the net, and moments later he cut inside and powered another effort past netminder Collie Byrne to give his side a seven-point advantage and Clongeen weren’t able to reduce the gap.
The result preserved Davidstown-Courtnacuddy’s Junior status, while Clongeen have to dust themselves down and prepare for a relegation final against local rivals Bannow-Ballymitty.
Davidstown-Courtnacuddy: Seán Cooper; Daryl Freeman, Darragh Cooper, Kevin Keane; Mark Murphy, Barry Nolan, Daniel Delaney; Mick Murphy, James Doyle (0-1); James Kelly (2-0), David O’Dwyer (0-5), Stephen Dunbar; Stephen Kennedy, Mark Byrne (0-6 frees), Johnny Delaney. Subs. - Mick Power for Keane, Paddy Kennedy for Kennedy.
Clongeen: Collie Byrne; Danny O’Grady, Anton Stafford, Richard Rochford; Tom Donovan, Donal Murphy, Enda Murphy; Shane Cahill (0-1 free), Ger Foxe; Jim Bennett, Paul Curtis (1-1), Paudie Cahill (0-1); Barry Foxe, Ricky Rochford (0-5, 3 frees), Jamesie Rochford. Subs. - Cian O’Grady for J. Rochford, Robert Farrell for R. Rochford, Jamie Keating for O’Grady.
Referee:
Harriers). Seán Slaven (Faythe