Early majors kill Gusserane
Oylegate-Glenbrien triumph
OYLEGATE-G’BRIEN 3-8 GUSSERANE 0-6
TWO GOALS in the opening minutes as good as finished this contest before it started as Oylegate-Glenbrien saw off Gusserane in a lacklustre Enniscorthy Farms Junior football championship Group A tie in St. Patrick’s Park on Friday.
With both sides having already secured qualification, this encounter was lacking any real championship bite and it was evident that both sides were really just going through the motions of fulfilling the fixture.
The eventual winners did however get things going with an enthusiastic start when Pierce Murphy goaled from close range, getting on the end of a move involving Shane and Damien Reck.
Minutes later, Damien Reck turned from provider to scorer after he orchestrated a passage of play beginning when he gathered possession on his own twenty-metre line.
Reck then accelerated up the field, linking up with a number of players before eventually receiving one final pass from Eddie Mernagh, to finish to the net from close range.
And, when Eoghan Herlihy and Conor Heffernan added points shortly afterwards, it was evident at this early stage that there would be little in terms of a fight-back from Gusserane who were struggling to get the ball past midfield.
They did have a brief purple patch leading up to the break however, with Séan O’Connor kicking three well-taken points, including one spectacular effort as he fell to the ground, and with help from Eoin Codd and Tom Breen, it was the two goals that separated the sides at half-time.
There was really little to report from the second period as Séan O’Connor’s early point was outdone by points from Herlihy and Heffernan in the opening exchanges.
Oylegate were then happy to hold possession in a period that lacked a score for sixteen minutes until Mark Kavanagh hit his side’s third goal.
Oylegate-Glenbrien now remain in top-spot with Gusserane just behind them in second.
Oylegate-Glenbrien: Trevor Moulten; Fergal Doran, Damien Reck (1-0), Niall Parker; Conor Heffernan (0-4, 2 frees), Shane Reck, Daithí O’Mahoney; Mark Kavanagh (1-0), Eoghan Herlighy (0-2); Jack Reck, Séamus Casey, Pierce Murphy (1-0); Fiacre Hourihane (0-1), Peter Nolan, Eddie Mernagh. Subs: Bryan McCormack for Murphy (32), Tom White for Nolan (34), Jamie Reck (0-1) for Mernagh (36), Mike Kelly for Doran (41), Brian Doran for O’Mahoney (46).
Gusserane: Brian Hennessy; Eoghan Foran, Donal Kinsella, Stephen Whelan; Eoin Codd (0-1), Cathal Somers, Robert Browne; John Roche, Ciaran Conway; Tom Breen (0-1), Darragh Doyle, Jack Culleton; Ger Wallace, Séan O’Connor (0-4, 2 frees), Oisín Foran. Subs: Conor Cleary for Roche (HT), Tommy Cosgrave for Breen (36).
Referee: Francis Neville (Shelmaliers).