Rossies still in control after late, late rally
ROSCOMMON manager Kevin McStay was thrilled with the character shown by his players after their l ate f i ghtback to secure victory over Cavan at Dr Hyde Park.
Roscommon couldn’t afford to let their opponents secure victory and gain promotion and it was Ciarain Murtagh who starred in the closing minutes with three crucial points.
This win keeps them in the hunt for a direct return to Division 1, after both sides were relegated last season.
‘There was a lot of character shown. The body language was great in the last 15 minutes when the game was in the balance. The subs that came i n made an impact. Overall, I was happy with the effort,’ said McStay.
‘We’re making it difficult for ourselves because we’re not getting a result from some of these big breaks or when we turn over opposition ball. We’re carrying it into the opposition’s half but we’re making bad errors around the D.’
Roscommon held a 0-9 to 0-6 lead at half-time but didn’t dominate with the wind at their backs and required a six-point blitz before half-time.
Murtagh scored the last point of the first half as Roscommon led by three but Cavan cancelled that out within eight minutes.
A couple of points from Gearoid McKiernan gave Cavan a twopoint lead before Raymond Galligan and Enda Smith both cleared balls of their lines.
Cavan were two clear after Galligan’s 45 in the 55th minute but three points from Murtagh in the last five minutes secured victory.
‘It’s us that dictates what happens and it’s lovely to be the masters of our own fate coming into the last game. That’s not saying we’re going to go up because it’s up to us. We have to get over Cork,’ said McStay.
‘It would be great to be promoted. I said at the beginning of this League that we wanted to be promoted. The only reason we won’t be going to Division 1 is because we’re not good enough.
‘We’ve a nice bit of work done but I feel as if we’ve a good bit more in the tank. I thought that Cavan’s extra fitness might catch us in the end but our subs bench was huge. I think i t was the strongest bench i n my time here.’
Cavan were 0-5 to 0-1 clear after 12 minutes at Dr Hyde Park and they looked set to be on their way for promotion. But they are now behind Roscommon in the Division 2 standings after they failed to t ake advantage of t heir opportunities.
Dara McVeety was through on goal, one- on- one with Enda Smith in the 54th minute but drove the ball directly at the Roscommon substitute.
The Breffni men could have had a penalty in the 42nd minute when Padraig Faulkner had a chance on goal but looked to have been pulled down by Roscommon goalkeeper James Featherston.
And Cavan manager Mattie McGleenan was also disappointed with a couple of the decisions made by Meath referee Cormac Reilly.
‘The home team got a few decisions that were questionable. That’s probably the best way of describing it,’ said McGleenan.
‘The referee had 20 per cent control of the game and we have 80 per cent.
‘ Realistically, yes he had an impact on the game because we allowed him to have an impact on the game.
‘About 15 minutes into the second half we had the opportunity to put the game to bed and we didn’t do it. We were punished.
‘I am disappointed with the result but there is a lot of pluses out of it that we can take to Tipperary.’ ROSCOMMON: J Featherston; D Murray, P Domican, F Lennon; R Daly (C Daly 44) (U Harney 63), B Stack, N Daly; T O’Rourke (E Smith 44), C Compton; C Murtagh, N Kilroy, C Devaney; D Smith, C Lennon (C Cregg 53), D Murtagh (F Cregg 65). Yellow cards: F Lennon 36, D Murtagh 52, D Smith 73. Wides: 12 (5) Frees: 15 (4) Scorers: C Murtagh 0-5 (0-3f), D Murtagh 03 (0-1f), D Smith 0-2, F Lennon 0-1, C Devaney 0-1, C Lennon 0-1, E Smith 0-1, C Cregg 0-1. CAVAN: R Galligan; J McLoughlin, P Faulkner, C Bradley (N Clerkin 65); M Reilly, C Brady, E Flanagan; K Clarke, B Magee (S Murray 72); D McVeety, C Moynagh (Mackey 26), O Kiernan; A Cole (D Brady 46), G McKiernan (C Mackey 7-9), C O’Reilly (S Johnston 59). Yellow cards: K Clarke 53. Wides: 10 (4) Frees: 18 (4) Scorers: C O’Reilly 0-3 (3f), G McKiernan 03, C Brady 0-2, A Cole 0-1, M Reilly 0-1, C Mackey 0-1, R Galligan 0-1 (0-1 45), S Johnston 0-1. Referee: C Reilly (Meath).