Heaney Cup/FL Div 1: O'Mahonys claim points and silverware
May 19, 2018
O'Mahonys captain Marcus Brennan receives the Heaney Cup from members of the Heaney family. Pic courtesy Simonstown GAA.
A late flourish saw O'Mahonys claim the points and the Seamus Heaney Cup with victory over local rivals Simonstown on Friday night.
Navan O'Mahonys ...... 2-8
Simonstown Gaels ..... 0-7
Just a score separated the sides entering stoppage time at the end of the game. Sub Cathal Smyth capped his cameo appearance with his second point before Dylan Regan closed the scoring with an expertly taken penalty in the last act of the game.
The outcome was harsh on Simonstown who kept the home side in their sights having fallen into arrears after 18 minutes.
A brilliantly struck Stephen Bray goal - with assistance from the hard-working Daragh Maguire - made it 1-2 to 0-3. Kevin Reilly's side kept the lead to the finish despite the sterling efforts of Simonstown who were never more than a goal in arrears until the aforementioned stoppage time scores.
The work rate of both defences, in particular O'Mahonys, was a positive feature of the fixture that honours the memory of a man who served both clubs with distinction.
On a generally overcast night, the teams posted 28 wides between them, with the the visitors registering 15.
It was O'Mahonys fourth win from eight league outings. Had Simonstown won they would have overtaken the hosts on the table. The outcome was the north Navan team's fifth loss of the campaign.
Nathan O'Brien's trio of points from play was the highlight of the evening from the SFC holders perspective. Two of those came in the first-half which ended with the board reading 1-3 to 0-3.
He completed his tally in the in the 35th minute. That score was followed by a Sean Tobin effort from play that trimmed the visitors' deficit to the minimum, 1-3 to 0-5.
Ciaran Kenny's charges got to within a point of O'Mahonys on one further occasion. Staunch defending by Kevin Reilly's side kept the visitors at bay.
O'Mahonys are away to Summerhill in their ninth league outing next Friday (7.45) when Simonstown host Moynalvey on the same competition.
O'Mahonys - Marcus Brennan; James O'Malley, Shane Crosby, Eimhin Power; John Rogers, Gary O'Brien, Ross Geraghty; Evan Coffey (0-1), Paul Whelehan; Daragh Maguire, Stephen Bray (1-0), Dylan Regan (1-1, 1-0 pen); Shane Gillespie (0-2, 1f), Jake Regan, Robbie Keeleghan (0-1f). Subs - David Bray (0-1) for J Regan (ht), Cathal Smyth (0-2) for Keeleghan (43), Doyle for J Rogers (49), Cormac Reilly for Geraghty (59),.Conor Doyle for Rogers (59), Henry Finnegan for S Bray (59)/
Simonstown - Robert Burlingham; Mark Devlin, Stephen Moran, Stephen O'Reilly; Brian McGrath, Rory O'Connor (0-1), Mark Gardiner; Sean Tobin (0-2, 1f), Mark McCabe; Nicky O'Brien, Ben Hoey, Chris O'Neill; Eanna Donoghue, Padraig McKeever, Nathan O'Brien (0-3). Subs - Shane Barry for McKeever (18), James Kilcullen for Hoey (ht), Andy Kearney (0-1) for Nicky O'Brien (36), Mickey Brennan for Moran (48), Jimmy Heaney for O'Neill (48).
Referee - Liam Reddy (Duleek-Bellewstown)
