Castletown 1-11, Kilmainham 2-9

We headed for Castletown on Thursday 9th April to play this rearranged round 3 league match. The match was changed from the original fixture due to Castletown's involvement in the Coirn na Boinne final. Congratulations to them on their win. This was a match that everybody expected Castletown to win and to win with plenty to spare. Kilmainham had lost their first two league matches while Castletown are flying high with two from two. Kilmainham had other ideas. What a performance we got in Castletown.

Road blockages in Kells meant a few players came late to the match and were still looking for a goalie about 10 minutes until throw up. Up stepped sixth choice Conor Kilgallen to man the sticks. No prior experience, no practice, no problem!! We got a big boost before the match with the news that Michael Hoey would be allowed play his first match of the year with us due to his Meath U20’s involvement. The game started as expected at a blistering pace. Castletown were determined to show Kilmainham why they are one of the favourites for the intermediate with fast break outs and off the shoulder running. Kilmainham were up for this one and some very good defensive structure made it difficult for Castletown to cut through us. However, they did hit the first point of the match and then hit a goal. Kilmainham could have folded but instead they started to gain more possession around the middle of the field but were struggling to make ground up front. Michael Hoey was starting to prove a thorn in Castletown’s side. He hit two brilliant two pointers from free’s. Castletown were still getting in for scores but had to work hard for them. Both teams were guilty of some bad wides in the opening half. Mickey Newman burst through the Castletown defence and played a brilliant one two to Seanie Mahon before continuing his run and unleashing one of his trademark finishes to the top left of the Castletown net. What a finish! Kilmainham were giving as good as they got and Castletown knew that they were in a game as we approached half time with two points separating the teams.

Half-time score: Castletown 1-7, Kilmainham 1-5.

I am sure Castletown got a rollicking at half time, and that they were determined to drive for home. Kilmainham knew they were in this match, and they hit the first two points of the second half against the wind to level the match. Michael Hoey then hit another two pointer to put us ahead for the first time in the match. His influence on the match was starting to grow, and Castletown could not get to grips with him. Some constant fouling resulted in one of their players receiving a second yellow card and their marching orders. Kilmainham were on top and were playing some brilliant football. Mickey Newman and Larry Morgan were on top at midfield. Castletown lost a second player to a straight red card for a high challenge on Dylan Morgan. From here you would have thought that Kilmainham would push on for the win. Instead, it was Castletown that came roaring back into the match. They were determined to use the strong wind to their advantage and kicked some nice points from distance but also forced some shots that went wide, although the Kilmainham defence must be commended for their constant pressure on the kickers. This game was tense and you could sense that Kilmainham could win this one. Half forward Jamie O’ Sullivan got on the end of good team move to brilliantly finish to the Castletown net for our second goal of the match. Kilmainham were two points up. Both teams were guilty of giving away the ball and Castletown were unlucky not to have a goal of their own, but the ball was cleared off the line by one of the Kilmainham defenders. Kilmainham were on top of possession and were looking to put the match to bed, but they got penalised for the three-man breach with time almost up. This gave Rian McConnell the chance to level the match with a two pointer and he duly obliged to level the match with time up. Referee Kieran Olwill signalled that there would be three minutes of injury time to be played. Kilmainham went for the winner. Some clever use of possession left Michael Hoey in a scoring position, and he took on two Castletown defenders before firing over to put us one point up in injury time. Michael Hoey surely impressing the watching Meath U20’s manager Cathal O’ Bric on this performance. Kilmainham carelessly gave away possession which allowed Castleown another attack. A two-point attempt from Castletown clipped the post and went wide. Kilmainham faced an onslaught from Castletown as they looked to get something from the match, but the Kilmainham defence held firm just as they had done all night to secure a famous one-point victory for the lads. This was a fully deserved victory for the players and management team, and it sums up everything great about ‘The Big Wee Club’ Nobody in Kilmainham will be getting ahead of themselves but this first league win proves that the good work being done in training is paying off.

Thanks to the small crowd that came to Castletown to support us on a bitterly cold evening for football. Our attention now turns to our second team on Sunday 12th April as the lads take on Nobber in Round two of the Division 11 A League. Thrown is in at 11am. Please come out and cheer the lads on.

Kilmainham: Conor Kilgallen, Padraig Caffrey, Stephen Newman, Phily Mahon, Declan Mullen, Harry Newman, Seanie Mahon, Larry Morgan, Mickey Newman (1-0), Michael Hoey (0-8), Ger Morgan, Jamie O’ Sullivan (1-0), Scott Lynch, Dylan Morgan (0-1), Andy Arkins.

Subs: Mark Newman for Scott Lynch, Terence Daly for Michael Newman, Troy Flanagan, Fergal Black and Shane Butler.

 

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