St Oliver Plunkett's GAC, Greenlough Club Notes
August 11, 2014After their Championship win over Drumsurn last Saturday, Greenlough's Seniors returned to league action when they travelled to Slaughtmanus on Sunday, 10th August.
Despite the heavy rain earlier in the day and in South Derry, the sun even made a brief appearance at the North Derry venue, with the pitch in immaculate condition and hardly a drop of rain sight as Slaughtmanus made the brighter start to the game.
The hosts had already dropped the ball short into Christopher Bradley's hands even before they opened the scoring with a point after 48 seconds; and the Christopher pulled off a good save less than 30 seconds later, pushing the ball behind for a '45.
The resulting kick went wide, but less than a minute later and they doubled their lead with a second point.
Greenlough then opened their scoring in the fourth minute when John Og McPeake's cross-field ball was collected by Enda Lynn and slotted between the posts.
A minute later and the visitors took the lead for the first time when Niall Loughlin and Connor Madden combined to set up Stefan Lynn who put the ball low past the keeper and into the back of the Slaughtmanus net.
The hosts dropped the ball short again, before Enda Lynn's shot cannoned off the cross bar, only for Niall Loughlin to collect and fire over.
Three wides in a minute were shared between the sides before the scoring resumed with a pointed free from Enda Lynn in the 11th minute.
Slaughtmanus replied with a free of their own in the 17th. Then a minute later Enda Lynn was dragged down in the Slaughtmanus large rectangle.
From the resulting penalty Enda placed the ball in the back of the net, just beyond the reach of the 'keeper.
Directly from the kick-out Niall Bradley broke the ball to John Og McPeake who in turn fed Stefan Lynn, who made no mistake returning the ball back over the bar.
Greenlough increased their lead in the 19th minute when Niall Loughlin fired over a great point from the corner off his weaker foot.
Greenlough failed to add to their tally for the remainder of the half, despite three chances which all went wide.
But thanks to some good defending, including two great tackles from Brian McCallion and Justin Madden, Slaughtmanus were restricted to a single point in the final 11 minutes of the half, to leave seven in it at the break.
Half-Time: Slaughtmanus 0-04 Greenlough 2-05
The second half started like the first with a flurry of activity in the opening minute. This time however it was Greenlough who opened the scoring, when Brian O'Neill's shot drifted away from the posts, only for Ryan Tohill to gather and fire over.
A mistake in the Greenlough defence saw Slaughtmanus reply with a point within seconds, to leave the gap as it was at half time.
Both sides dropped an effort short before Slaughtmanus pointed from a free in the 34th minute.
Another Greenlough chance dropped short and was cleared a minute later, before at the third time of asking, Brian O'Neill was on hand to volley the ball into the net after Enda Lynn's shot was only dropped by the home 'keeper.
Slaughtmanus refused to give up, and hit back with three points in two minutes, the third from a free. Niall Loughlin kept the Greenlough scores going in the 46th minute after Connor Madden's shot was saved and he fisted over the bar.
The hosts replied with another point of their own two minutes later, to put six between the sides; but when Brian O'Neill took a quick free to Connor Madden, and Connor's shot, which rebounded of the cross bar, was fisted to the back of the net by Niall Loughlin, the game was as good as over with ten minutes remaining.
Slaughtmanus continued to create chances, and managed to point in the 54th minute, only for Niall Loughlin to register again, this time a point, for his and his side's final score of the game.
There was still time for Slaughtmanus to register two more pointed frees to leave the gap at seven at the full time whistle.
Full-Time: Slaughtmanus 0-13 Greenlough 4-08
The win keeps alive Greenlough's hopes of a promotion play-off place, most likely against Craigbane, with their destination in their own hands, knowing a win against Lissan in their final league game will secure the play-off spot.
Team and Scorers: Christopher Bradley, Paul Quinn, Justin Madden, James McCallion, Christopher Kearney, Brian McCallion, Joseph Kearney, Niall Bradley, Brian O'Neill 1-0, Stefan Lynn 1-1, John Og McPeake, Connor Madden, Ryan Tohill 0-1, Niall Loughlin 1-4, Enda Lynn 1-2 (1 pen, 1f). Subs: Christopher Lagan for S Lynn (54 min), Christopher Maguire, Michael Clarke, Cormac O'Neill, Caolan Diamond, Ciaran Cassidy, Niall Kearney, Eoin Connolly.
ACIRFC: Greenlough 5-20 Lissan 1-09 (08/08/14) - Reserves start championship with big home win
Greenlough's Reserves started their Intermediate Reserve Championship on Friday night, 8th August, when they hosted Lissan in the first round at St Oliver Plunkett Park.
When the sides met at the same venue back in the first week of April in the league, Greenlough had five points to spare; but the team that lined out that day and the team that lined out on Friday showed eight changes from the starting line up, and eleven different players in the squad overall.
Despite the thunder storm and heavy rain earlier in the day, the sun was out by 7.15pm when the game began, and the pitch well dried from what it had been.
It took less than a minute after throw in for that sun to shine on Greenlough when a shot across the face of the Lissan goal was met by a combination of a defender and the fist of Breandan McNally to see the ball in the back of the net.
Two wides quickly followed for Greenlough, before Lissan responded with their first score of the day in the third minute, a point from a twenty meter free. Michael Clarke hit the hosts first point of the game within thirty seconds, when his low shot skimmed the cross bar on the way over; before Christopher Maguire opened his account a minute later.
After an effort dropping short and a third wide of the game for Greenlough, Lissan responded with their best spell of the game as they hit three unanswered points in two minutes, the second of the three just dropping over the cross bar and no more; leaving just one in it after ten minutes.
Christopher Maguire then hit form, shooting over three consecutive points, the first over his shoulder, the third after a good pass from captain Thomas McCann; before Lissan responded with their fifth of the contest to keep them in touch and leave three in it at the mid point of the opening half.
However, Greenlough then stepped it up a gear as the two man full forward line of Christopher Maguire and Breandan McNally caused havoc for the Lissan defence; scoring four between them in the next three minutes.
Breandan pointed first from close in, before Christopher shot over from a free after he himself had been fouled, followed by a monster free seconds later from over forty meters; before completing the scoring again after another good pass from the effervescent Thomas McCann.
The scoring cooled for the next seven minutes as the sides shared five wides between them, before Kevin McDonnell resumed the scoring with a point after a good run in the 25th minute. Lissan had a goal chance a few seconds later when a shot rattled of the joints, but Gary O'Neill then thumped over a long range effort two minutes later, before Lissan completed the scoring for the half in injury time to close the gap to eight at the break.
Half-Time: Greenlough 1-11 Lissan 0-06
Lissan pointed within a minute of resumption of play to close the gap to seven; but unfortunately for the visitors that only spurred Greenlough on, as the hosts began a ten minute scoring burst that would result in them moving ten points further ahead.
That ten minute of scoring, which also included three wides, began when Brian O'Neill pointed in the second minute, before Leo Madden and Christopher Maguire combined to set the ball up for Michael Clarke to coolly side-foot into the net.
Brian O'Neill then grabbed a second point, quickly followed by a great point by Christopher Maguire from a free at almost the sideline. The gap widened further when Brian found the back of the net for the first time when he soloed with one foot and blasted past the keeper with the other.
The scoring burst came to an end in the 41st minute, when Christopher Maguire pointed yet again to bring his tally for the game to nine, this time with his left; before Lissan finally got back on the score sheet a minute later with a point, with the game all but over as a contest.
Sub 'keeper Darren Brown made a great save just after his introduction, but could do nothing about a follow up shot, which looked suspiciously like it had come through the side net, but was awarded as a goal anyway.
From the resulting kick-out Greenlough responded with another goal of their own, when Liam Quinn caught a ball at the edge of the Lissan square, before laying off to that man Thomas McCann to stroke the ball into the net for a well taken goal.
Lissan hit back with a point two minutes later, but that would prove to be their final score of the game; and with over twelve minutes to go, and fifteen Greenlough were still not done.
Christopher Maguire took his tally into double figures with another point from a free after Michael Clarke had been fouled in the 48th minute, before Brian O'Neill found the Lissan net for a second time when his dropping shot landed in the top corner.
Brian had a chance to complete his hat-trick in the 51st minute, but chose to fist over to complete his second half tally of 2-3.
The scores kept coming for Greenlough as the game entered the final stages, with Gary Loughlin, making his first appearance since May, playing in the unfamiliar corner-forward role, and having covered nearly every blade of grass on the field, even managing to point from just over ten meters out.
Then the highlight of the game occurred; forgetting the high scoring from Christopher Maguire and second-half tally of Brian O'Neill; the crowd were on their feet in the 54th minute when; after ankle surgery just eight weeks previously, having not graced a football field since April 2013, and sporting a beard which looked like it hadn't been shaved since then, former Reserve captain Fergal Clarke made his way onto the field of play.
It didn't matter that he ran away from a ball when clean through on goal, kicked the ball away with his one touch, and failed to complete three tackles, it was good to see the team's former leader return.
While Fergal didn't contribute to the game at all or to the final two scores while he was on the pitch, it was enough to inspire Christopher Maguire to another point, which brought his total for the game to a magnificent eleven points, before Christopher Lagan completed the game's scoring with a trademark side footed point in the final minute, to leave Greenlough's winning margin at twenty three.
Full-Time: Greenlough 5-20 Lissan 1-09
Well done to the players and management on their win. They now progress to a quarter-final meeting on the 20th August at home to Glen who had a big win over Limavady in their first round game, and who defeated Greenlough last month to claim the league.
Team and Scorers: Vincent McDonnell, Christopher Lagan 0-1, Ciaran Cassidy, Eoin Connolly, Michael P Henry, Niall Kearney 0-4, Liam Quinn 0-4, Thomas McCann (capt) 1-0, Gary O'Neill 0-1, Michael Clarke 1-1, Brian O'Neill 2-03, Kevin McDonnell 0-1, Breandan McNally 1-01, Christopher Maguire 0-4 (4f), Gary Loughlin 0-1. Subs: Michael Taggart for M Henry (HT), Leo Madden for B McNally (HT), Darren Brown for V McDonnell (42 min), Robert Kelly for E Connolly (47 min), Fergal Clarke for G Loughlin (54 min), Diarmuid Clarke.
U16 B Championship: Greenlough 6-06 Glen 15-05 (07/08/14) - Goals Galore as Under 16s exit championship to Glen
When Greenlough and Glen's Under 16s met in the league back in June, there was only a point separating the sides, so the hosts were hopeful of a competitive game in the first round of the U16 B Championship on Thursday 7th August at St Oliver Plunkett Park, after a tough 2014 league campaign.
The early stages looked as though the game would follow the same pattern as the league encounter, with both recording wides in the opening minute, before Stephen Bradley from a free after he himself had been fouled, opened the games scoring in the fourth minute.
Stephen was causing trouble for the Glen defence and after a third foul and deliberate pull down, his Glen marker received a black card. Unfortunately the resulting free went wide, and Glen opened their account with a point a minute later.
The sides then shared three wides between them before Glen hit the game's first of an amazing 21 goals in the tenth minute. Greenlough levelled matters within three minutes when Stephen Bradley kept the ball on the ground, and took on three players before putting the ball passed the keeper.
Having looked like an evenly matched contest up until that point, Greenlough then failed to score again in the remaining seventeen minutes of the opening half, while the visitors couldn't miss.
A goal a minute later started the Glen scoring, before two more followed along with two points in the next five minutes. Greenlough battled on, but the five minutes before half time saw five goals for the visitors as the St Oliver Plunkett's boys were unable to get out of their own half and the ball kept returning to the net; ending the game as a contest with thirty minutes remaining.
Half-Time: Greenlough 1-01 Glen 9-04
There was no let up from the visitors at the start of the second half, signalling their intent to carry on where they left off in the first half with a goal after thirty seconds of the throw-in. A point followed in the fifth minute before Stephen Bradley responded with Greenlough's first of the second half, a point from a free after Connor Mullan had been fouled.
That was only a temporary rest in Glen scoring, as the visitors then hit three further goals in as many minutes. Again Greenlough kept battling on, and again Stephen Bradley led the charge, with a goal in the 42nd minute and a point from a free a minute later. Kevin Mullan then became only Greenlough's second scorer of the day in the 45th minute when he took his point well.
Glen found the net yet again two minutes later, but Connor Mullan was on hand to give an instant reply with a great goal after a strong run through the Glen defence. Stephen Bradley found got another point from play with ten minutes remaining, only for Glen to get their final goal and score of the game a minute later.
From then on until the end Greenlough continued to battle to close the gap; and managed to add three more goals to surely the biggest combined goals tally seen at St Oliver Plunkett Park. Stephen Bradley was the scorer of all three and a point in the final five minutes of the game. The first from a penalty after a foot block, before goals either side of a point, to leave him with a personal tally of 5-5 for the day.
Unfortunately it was a case of too little, too late, with Glen having done enough earlier in the game to confirm their passage to the next round of the championship, while Greenlough's season was brought to a close for 2014.
Full-Time: Greenlough 6-06 Glen 15-05
Thanks to the players and management team of Henry Lynn, Dominic Lynn and Brendan Henry for their efforts and commitment during the year in what proved to be a difficult season. Our Under 16s had ten games this year, with nine league games and one championship game, stretching from the 10th April to 7th August. Having been unable to field at Under 16s in 2013, it was good to see the club represented at this level again this year, despite having a very young team, hopefully the players won't be too disheartened and use their experiences from this year to drive them on in the future. Thanks also to those supporters who came along and supported the players during the year and on Thursday night.
Team and Scorers: Christopher Lynn, Shea McDonnell, Martin McPeake, Michael McDonnell, James McPeake (capt), James Henry, Sean Kinoulty, Jack McCann, Stephen Bradley (5-5 1pen, 3f), Kevin Mullan 0-1, Joe McErlean, Connor Mullan 1-0, Caolan Tohill. Subs: Ryan Carey for S McDonnell (black card 22 min), Sammy John Marron for C Tohill (44 min), Cormac Mackle for J McErlean (47 min), Thomas McDonnell for K Mullan (47 min), Ruairi Henry.
Greenlough Fight Night - Greenlough GAC are proposing organising a Fight Night to take place on the 8th November 2014. There will be a minimum of 10 bouts, each one will be 3 by 1 minute rounds. Therefore we need a minimum of 20 people to take part. If you volunteer to fight there will be an 8 week training programme which will be 2 nights a week in Toome at a cost of £2.00 per session. This will commence at the end of August/start of September. Also each fighter will have to get a certain amount of sponsorship which is still to be determined. Anyone interested please contact Connor Madden(07866671491) by the 30th June to determine if it is feasible to run the event.
Clapping at the Lough - Can you pin the Square and win £1000 cash. The club are holding a unique fundraiser, where the club's pitch will be divided into squares, and the square where the 'Cow claps' will win £1000. Tickets are now on sale at £5 each for each square. The event will take place on Sunday 24th August at the pavilion. Please buy a ticket/square and support the club. Thanks.
Lotto Results 04/08/14 - Letters: I L O X. Jackpot £2800 - not won. £25 Winners - Katieann Gauigan, c/o Moyagney Rd & Mary Marron, Clady. Jackpot for 11/08/14: £2850. NB: Please buy a ticket from any of the sellers or local outlets, or return your lotto envelopes to the box provided or sellers. Thank you for your support.
More club details: www.greenloughgac.com or GreenloughGAC on Facebook, or @GreenloughGAC on Twitter. Tweet
