A CHRISTMAS TREAT
Rathnew see off Hollywood to claim 1916 crown
RATHNEW put in a commanding performance in the bitterly cold surrounds of Roundwood last Wednesday night to claim the 1916 Commemoration Cup with a 4-17 to 0-10 victory over a young Hollywood outfit.
Early misses by the men from the west and the switching of Leighton Glynn to full-forward were the massive turning points in the game that sees the end of a poorly supported competition but one that may well give the Villagers a timely boost ahead of early season training next month.
In accepting the cup from County Chairman Martin Coleman, Rathnew captain Paul Merrigan said that it wasn’t long until January and that his side would be back fighting for success again.
“I’d just like to thank Hollywood for the game. It’s not a great night for it; coming up to Christmas, but thanks for coming down and it was a great game,” he said.
“To the lads (Rathnew), thanks for everything for the year. It’s been a hard year, we didn’t get everything we wanted but I know it’s not too long until January and we’ll be back fighting for everything. So, thanks to Deccie, Alvin and the lads and everyone in the club, the supporters, everyone who follows us everywhere, thanks a million,” he added.
It was something of a shaky start from the Rathnew men. They were facing a young Hollywood side who were full of running early on and they took the lead through corner-forward Matthew Kelly after a earlier wide from Brian Flynn.
Rathnew’s James Stafford pulled a shot badly wide shortly after before Eddie Doyle dropped over a wicked score off the left after good work from Jodie Merrigan and Theo Smyth.
And then came a fairly significant moment in the game. It may not have changed the eventual outcome of the game but it may well have altered the path of proceedings.
A clever ball over the top of the Rathnew defence by Eoin Burke to Matthew Kelly saw the Hollywood attacker in on goal with only Peter Dignam and a retreated Paul Merrigan to beat. Burke rounded Dignam and pulled the trigger with his left but his shot went high and Marrigan manged to get a finger to the ball and direct it on to the crossbar and the danger was cleared.
Hollywood kept pressing and Patrick O’Keeffe bagged a fine point while Robert Kelly clocked up another wide for the west men with 12 on the clock.
Then the Rathnew men clicked into gear and a long ball from Leighton Glynn was tapped down to himself by Jodie Merrigan and the full-forward slotted home past Colin Tutty for the game’s opening goal.
A super burst from Jamie Snell provided Jordan Graham with the opportunity to score and the corner-forward dod so with ease and then Eddie Doyle added to his account with a lovely ball after Leighton Glynn had picked him out with a quick free and suddenly Rathnew led by 1-03 to 0-02 with 19 minutes on the clock.
Deccie Byrne switched Leighton Glynn and Jodie Merrigan around this time and suddenly Rathnew were like a different team.
A ball from Stafford to Glynn saw the former county star fire over and he followed this with a wide and then Glynn showed lovely patience to hold possession and feed Theo Smyth who fired home low past Tutty.
Eddie Doyle from a free, Jodie Merrigan with two sweet scores and James Stafford with a clinical goal sent the sides into the half-time break with Rathnew in a commanding lead of 3-07 to 0-02.
Hollywood did rally for periods in the second half but their main problem was the ineffectiveness of their supply to the inside men with multiple moves breaking down on the Rathnew half-back line with Jamie Snell, John Manley and Chris Healy in very efficient form throughout.
Garrett Bell added three points from frees and Harry Wilson, Patrick O’Keeffe, Niall Clarke, and Conor Burke weighed in with points but Rathnew were far too good to be caught at this stage and their fourth goal from Seamus Cosgrove with his first touch after coming on as a substitute put the icing on the cake.
This was a very decent game considering the time of year and, as Paul Merrigan suggested in his speech, it will probably inspire the Rathnew men to knuckle down and return to the summit in 2017.
Hollywood can take huge positives from the performances of their young side and had that goal went in early on this may have been a closer affair.
Scorers – Rathnew: Eddie Doyle 0-06, Jodie Merrigan 1-02, Jordan Graham 0-01, Leighton Glynn 0-03, Theo Smyth 1-01, James Stafford 1-01, Ross O’Brien 0-01, Seamus Cosgrove 1-00, Ronan Doyle 0-01.
Hollywood: Garrett Bell 0-03 (3f); Harry Wilson 0-02; Niall Clarke 0-02; Matthew Kelly 0-01; Conor Burke 0-01, Patrick O’Keeffe 0-01.
Rathnew: Peter Dignam; Alan Clarke, Ross O’ Brien, Paul Merrigan (captain); Chris Healy, Jamie Snell, John Manley; James Stafford, Theo Smyth; Enan Glynn, Leighton Glynn, Eddie Doyle; Jordan Graham, Jody Merrigan, Ronan Manley. Subs Used: Paul Ellis, Andrew O’ Brien, Seamus Cosgrove, Mark Doyle, Dale Franey, Ronan Doyle.
Hollywood: Colin Tutty; Robert Houlihan, Shane Kelly, Kevin Cullen; Conor Burke, Robert Kelly, Sean O’Keeffe; Ciaran Tyrell, Harry Wilson; Patrick O’Keeffe, Eoin Burke, Thomas Kelly; Brian Flynn, Garrett Bell, Matthew Kelly. Subs: Ross Tyrell for Kevin Cullen; James Mooney for Thomas Kelly; Alan Ruddy for Harry Wilson; Niall Clarke for Brian Flynn, Dan Coyle for Sean O’Keeffe.
Referee: Eugene O’Brien (Aughrim)