First defeat in league campaign
WICKLOW 1-15 SLIGO 1-10
Allianz League Division 4
SLIGO’S bid for promotion from Division Four was blown off course at windy Aughrim on Sunday after a superior second half display saw Wicklow claim the two points on offer – and leave Sligo with little wriggle room with four games remaining.
The Yeats County now find themselves in third position in the bottom tier, but level on four points with Antrim, Wicklow and Wexford, and two points behind unbeaten Limerick at the summit.
This encounter – postponed the week previously due to Storm Ciara – went ahead in the midst of the Storm Dennis and conditions were incredibly difficult, with a gale force breeze blowing into the dressing room end.
Sligo played with the elements in the second half, but only managed five points with the aid of the breeze as opposed to the 1-10 Wicklow amassed in the first half.
It was a disappointing finish to what was a good first-half performance from Sligo. Despite playing into the wind, Paul Taylor’s side actually led a one stage in the opening 35 minutes by 1-5 to 1-3 and looked in control for long stages.
Sligo – coming into the match having beaten London and Antrim in the first two rounds – took time to settle with Wicklow scoring an early goal through Seanie Furlong after he waited in behind to collect a long ball into the danger area
Cian Lally had opened Sligo’s account in the first minute with a decent team effort, but Wicklow led by 1-3 to 0-2 after ten minutes.
Then Sligo kicked into gear. Liam Gaughan kicked his second point – both of his first half efforts excellent – and then superb linkup play involving Paul McNamara, Stephen Coen and Cian Lally ended with Sean Carrabine netting a marvellous goal to leave the side locked together at 1-3 apiece after 15 minutes.
On top at this stage, Sligo further asserted their dominance with frees from Aidan Devaney and Patrick O’Connor to leave themselves in front at 1-5 to 1-3 playing into the breeze. Things were looking rosy for the visitors at this stage, but Sligo failed to register another score for the remaining 16 minutes of the half.
Wicklow popped over seven points without reply – team captain Dean Healy to the fore during this productive spell – and went in at the break leading by five, 1-10 to 1-5. Still, though, this was a satisfactory situation for Sligo to be in given the wind would be at their backs in the second half.
However, they were never able to claw themselves back in front, with Wicklow battling hard buoyed on by the home support.
The introduction of Pat Hughes gave Sligo more firepower up front, but they only managed 0-5 in the second half, the same total that Wicklow would score into the breeze at the other end.
Sligo had trimmed the deficit to three points by the midway point of the second half with Hughes, Gaughan and O’Connor the men on target. Wicklow, though, were holding their own and ill-discipline on the part of Sligo on several occasions saw referee Kevin Faloon bring at least half a dozen frees up 13 or more metres, turning difficult opportunities into scorable ones.
Such was the ferocity of the breeze at Aughrim that Wicklow opted to bring forward their goalkeeper Mark Jackson to kick frees from just 21 metres out – he fired over two second half points to help them keep the scoreboard ticking over.
Though things were not going Sligo’s way, two points from O’Connor, one from a free and one from play, kept them within three as the game entered the closing stages.
With the score at 1-13 to 1-10 in favour of Wicklow with just under four minutes to go, the game’s crucial chance fell the way of Sligo.
Substitute David Quinn found himself inside the cover, and a pass from Paul McNamara set him free; while the Shamrock Gaels player did everything right his side-footed effort went inches wide of the right-hand post.
There was a sense that this was Sligo’s big chance to get something from the game, and so it proved.
Stephen Coen received a late black card, and Wicklow scored two points in the five minutes of added time to end as five-point winners – and dent Sligo’s bid to regain their Division Three status. WICKLOW: M Jackson (0-2, 2fs); A Maher (0-1), J Snell, J Hamilton; P O’Kane, N Donnelly, D Devereux; P O’Toole, D Healy (0-3); R Finn, M Kenny (0-2), D Hayden (0-1); S Furlong (1-3), C O’Brien (0-2), C Byrne. Subs used: E Darcy (0-1), P O’Rourke, O Manning, T Kearns, G Murphy.
SLIGO: A Devaney (0-2, 1f, 1 45’); JF Carr, E McGuinness, M Gordon; N Mullen, P McNamara, S Carrabine (10); P O’Connor (0-3, 2fs), P Kilcoyne; G O’Kelly-Lynch, D Cummins, N Ewing; L Gaughan (0-3, 1f), C Lally (0-1), S Coen. Subs used: P Hughes (0-1), R Óg Murphy, K Cawley, D Quinn REFEREE: K Faloon (Armagh).