SUPER SHERIFF LAY DOWN LAW
Gorey’s great run comes to an end
GOREY RANGERS SHERIFF Y.C.
GOREY RANGERS’ FAI Junior cup campaign came to a halt in disappointing fashion as they hardly raised a gallop against Sheriff on the way to a 2-0 defeat at Ramstown on Sunday.
In truth, the Dubliners rarely had to move up the gears after taking the lead, and their game managament was a particular feature as they limited the hosts to mere scraps.
An early goal from Anthony Flood laid the groundwork for the victors, and they were confident enough to pass the ball among themselves knowing that Gorey Rangers’ attacking unit was not at the races.
Early Sheriff pressure yielded a couple of half-chances before they deservedly struck ahead on five minutes when a cross from Darren Dunne found his forward partner, Flood, to connect on the run.
Before that opener, Gorey had arguably their best chance of the entire game when the ball was presented on a plate for David Behan, but he couldn’t quite steer it home as Sheriff breathed a sigh of relief.
Thereafter, Gorey were stodgy and limited in possession, and while they battled well for 50-50 balls, their lack of invention in the final third had them struggling.
Chances for parity were few and far between too, with Quinn fizzing a delightful ball across the box that wasn’t anticipated by any of the home players, while Behan attempted an acrobatic bicycle kick that trailed off target.
Behan also fired over when the ball fell into his path on 37 minutes, while centre-half Stephen Moloney had to be alert to clear a move off the line.
A teasing delivery from Dylan Grimes was well cleared by Conor Casserly soon after, but otherwise it was a tale of punts forward that Sheriff invariably dealt with.
And the visitors doubled their lead two minutes into the second-half when Josh McMahon sprung the offside trap to find himself one-on-one with Seán Allen, and the latter had no choice but to clip him down for a penalty and a red card.
Gavin Griffiths came on to man the sticks but was powerless to prevent Anthony Flood hammering the spot-kick down the centre.
Griffiths stood tall to Flood’s hat-trick chance on the hour mark, while substitute Adam Territ fired over from a rare Gorey chance two minutes later.
The game largely played out without too much incident, save for a couple of ambitious Rangers attempts from distance, and now they may focus their minds on defending the Wexford Cup and making a good fist at the Premier Division title.