LUKE’S GOAL VITAL
Forth Celtic claim extra-time winner
LUKE KAVANAGH slotted home an extra-time winner to give Forth Celtic a Wexford and District Schoolboys Soccer Under-16 League and Cup double in Grove Park, Kilmuckridge, on Saturday.
The Murrintown side had been made to battle through 80 gruelling minutes in the mid-afternoon heat against a spirited Division 5 opponent in Shamrock Rovers.
As time expired they were really huffing and puffing and rarely looked like making the breakthrough.
However, everything changed within a minute of extra-time kicking off. Kavanagh picked up position and had plenty to do out on the left wing.
He cut inside with pace and linked up superbly with Justin Moran.
The weight on the ball back to Kavanagh was perfect, a facet of play missing on a hard pitch for much of the previous 80 minutes.
He didn’t have to break stride, and instead he cut across the face of goal and calmly side-footed past the onrushing Jamie Fitzpatrick.
It was a moment of sheer quality to pierce through a real struggle. Undoubtedly the Division 1 champions were the stronger side, the better footballing team, but they were probably caught a little by surprise with the quality Shamrock Rovers possessed.
Forth did plenty of the early probing, with Kieran Morris coming as close as anyone to opening the scoring.
Callum Gondard was a source of threat down the left flank but his injury midway through the half blunted that outlet, and much of the second quarter was played in the middle third of the field.
Goal-less at the break, Celtic went close after the resumption when Cian Byrne’s 30-yard freekick took a wicked deflection and spun the wrong side of the left post.
Joe Akinyemi was just blocked off at the last second when he almost sprung through for Rovers in the 56th minute.
As well as teaming up for the eventual winner, Moran and Kavanagh linked up for their side’s best chance of the second-half too.
Again it was the latter who got the shot away but he missed the target from the left side of the area to ensure extra-time was needed.
It didn’t take long for Kavanagh to make his mark in extra-time. His side could have gone two up moments later when Moran flashed over the crossbar with only the ‘keeper to beat from ten yards out.
Shamrock Rovers had a late rally as the final moved into the last few minutes. The closest they came was when Sam O’Brien shot just over the crossbar in added time, but there was no denying Celtic their double success.
Forth Celtic: Jack O’Leary; Darragh Collins, Joe Barrett, Cian Byrne, Luke Quirke; Cathal Dowd, Francis Dempsey, Justin Moran, Luke Kavanagh (capt.); Kieran Morris, Callum Gondard. Subs. (rolling) - Michael Sheil, Liam Crowley, Ryan Cashin, Cathal Murphy.
Shamrock Rovers: Jamie Fitzpatrick; Kyle Clifford, Mikey Webster, Killian Murphy, Oisín Murphy; Kian Breslin, Joe Akinyemi, Jamie Donnelly, Ronan O’Leary; Sam O’Brien, Aaron Wallace (capt.). Subs. (rolling) - Mikey Fortune, Jack Kearney, David Doyle, Dean McDonald, Conor Murphy, Lekan Ojuolape, Maxwell Shoyeju, also Bartek Walkowiak, Adrian Murphy, Conor Foley-O’Rourke, Daniel Carton, Eoin McGran, Jeff Buckley.
Referee: Derek Campion.