Meath U-16 Spring League Division 2 Semi-Final
Seneschalstown 1-11 Trim 2-10
Meath U-16 Spring League Division 2 Semi-Final
Seneschalstown 1-11 Trim 2-10
Seneschalstown’s ambitions of reaching the Spring League Final and with it promotion to Division 1 of the Summer League came undone in Fr. Tully Park on Tuesday evening when despite staging a brilliant fightback during the second half they just came up short against a very good Trim side. Trailing at half time by six points they would have been rueing mistakes made which ultimately lead to Trim’s two goals but in the second thirty they knuckled down and bit by bit kept chipping away at the lead before ultimately running out of time at the death.
With players like centre back Richard McKeown who impressed greatly at centre back, goalkeeper Joseph Moore and full back Brian Maguire having brilliant games, the latter in particular in the second half when he drove his side on relentlessly, Seneschalstown battled very hard throughout but were left to rue some wayward shooting and a few sloppy errors over the course of the hour.
In a game played in a very sporting manner both sides deserve great credit for the quality of football on display in what was their first League game since the completion of the Junior Cert. The very nature of summer football is that sides are likely to be minus some key players and while Seneschalstown were shorn of a couple some of their central players those who came into the side in their stead performed creditably, including two members of the U-14 side who are off to Féile this weekend – Joseph Moore and Cathal Hickey.
Seneschalstown were first off the mark in the game when Cathal Finnegan sent over from play but this effort was soon cancelled out by a riposte from Trim. Robert Wogan edged his side back in front when pointing a fifth minute effort but Seneschalstown were soon rocked when conceding the game’s opening goal. As Trim capitalised on a loose ball forty metres out they quickly launched an attack before a forward was placed for a close range shot and he made no mistake as he shot past Moore into the railway goals.
Dylan Keating sought to settle his side when pointing after ten minutes but for the next thirteen minutes Trim took charge of proceedings as they rarely let the home side out of defence and piling on the pressure they racked up a goal and four points in this spell, two of the points coming from play and the goal a corker of an effort into the roof of the net. Eventually Seneschalstown managed to register a score and break the Trim momentum when Robert Wogan pointed from a free after Cathal Finnegan was fouled. The same double act teamed up for their side’s next score as well when after Finnegan was once more brought to ground Wogan knocked over the resultant free. This proved to be the last scoring action of the half and soon after Liam O’Brien sounded his half time whistle to leave six points between the sides on the scoreboard, 2-05 to 0-05 and Seneschalstown with work to do although they would be confident that once their play sharpened up and if they took a few more of their chances that they could still record a victory.
Upon the resumption of play Trim appeared to be looking to put any thoughts of a comeback out of the Seneschalstown players heads as soon as possible when they kicked the opening three points of the half, before Seneschalstown suffered a further blow when losing Alan Mulvany to injury. Mulvany had barely been off the field when his side registered their sixth point of the game courtesy of a Robert Wogan free after Brian Maguire who had now pushed outfield from his full back berth was fouled, reducing the margin between the sides to seven. Next though came a passage of play which will live long in the memory of those who witnessed it. With a Trim effort on goal seemingly destined for the top corner Joseph Moore flung himself acrobatically to his right before pulling off a quite magnificent save as not only did he prevent the goal from being scored but he knocked it out towards the sideline. When the loose ball was picked up it was worked downfield to Dylan Keating who in turn laid it off to Brian Maguire. With plenty of work to do when he gathered possession Maguire drove at the Trim defence and with his left foot scored an exquisite goal.
Momentum suddenly appeared to switch in favour of Seneschalstown and buoyed up by scoring the goal they went on to record the next three scores. Firstly Robert Wogan slotted over a free after James Commons was fouled before he pointed from out on the right. The third of these scores came from the trusty left boot of Dylan Keating who was placed for his score by Brian Maguire following good play be Éanna McLarney. Trim, needing a score to break the Seneschalstown run were relieved to notch a free in the fiftieth minute but when brilliant work in defence from Sean Carey resulted in a Wogan point the home side’s comeback still appeared to be on course.
In search of the goal which would push them ahead Seneschalstown thought they were about to see the green flag raised only for the Trim goalkeeper to pull off a fine save with his foot to deny Cathal Finnegan. Within seconds up the other end Trim very nearly came even closer to nabbing a goal which would have secured their victory but with goalkeeper Moore beaten his U-14 colleague Cathal Hickey was the right player in the right place as he caught the ball on his own line to prevent an almost certain major. Robert Wogan did manage to reduce the deficit to a solitary point as the clock struck sixty minutes but when Trim brought it back to two courtesy of a sixty first minute point Seneschalstown’s race was run as the final whistle sounded immediately after.
While devastated not to have secured their place in the final Seneschalstown’s young players can hold their heads up high and know that while they lost out they put in a sterling performance and on another day might have had the rub of the green which is necessary to win tight games. Throughout this League campaign their players have improved and in particular their half back line on Tuesday can hold their heads high as Eoin Traynor, Richard McKeown and Brian Boyd each worked tirelessly and ran themselves into the ground as they looked to provide the platform for their side to launch a winning performance.
Seneschalstown Scorers: Robert Wogan 0-08 (0-04 Frees), Brian Maguire 1-00, Dylan Keating 0-02, Cathal Finnegan 0-01.
Seneschalstown: Joseph Moore, Cathal Hickey, Brian Maguire, Christian McAuley, Eoin Traynor, Richard McKeown, Brian Boyd, Robert Wogan, Adam O’Mara, Alan Mulvany, Dylan Keating, Cillian Gormley, Andre Norton, Cathal Finnegan, Sean Carey.
Seneschalstown Substitutions: Éanna McLarney for A. Norton, James Commons for A. Mulvany (inj.).
