Seamus Connolly Catering Meath Junior B Football Championship Group C Round 5
Seneschalstown 0-15 Gaeil Colmcille 2-12
Seamus Connolly Catering Meath Junior B Football Championship Group C Round 5
Seneschalstown 0-15 Gaeil Colmcille 2-12
Castletown was the venue on Sunday lunchtime for the fourth meeting in two seasons of the Junior B sides from Seneschalstown and Gaeil Colmcille in what was a crucial encounter to decide the final placings in Group C of the Seamus Connolly Catering Junior B Football Championship. Seneschalstown went into this game in pole position in the group thanks to their unbeaten run thus far this year while Gaeil Colmcille needed a victory if they were to climb into the top two places and consequently advance directly into the quarter final.
As events transpired this result coupled with the outcome from the Navan O’Mahonys v Slane game in Athboy meant that Slane topped the group by virtue of a one point superior score difference to Seneschalstown while even though they won out in Castletown, Gaeil Colmcille must face into the preliminary quarter final. Ahead of the throw in Seneschalstown were boosted by the availability for selection of Andrew Collins who was full back on the club’s Keegan Cup winning sides of 2007 and 2009. Collins was to go on to have a fine game and his availability for the remainder of the campaign will be a major boon to their ambitions of going one step further than 2014 and win the Fr. Tully Cup outright.
When referee Peter Downey got the match underway it was the Kells men who were quickest from the blocks as in the first four minutes they picked off three points while all Seneschalstown could muster in response were two wides. Shane Clarke did get his side off the mark on seven minutes before the Gaeil Colmcille full forward who was reaping a rich harvest in the opening stage hit two more points to bring his own and his sides total up to five with only ten minutes on the clock. Jonathan Gilsenan replied with his opening score of the match when getting on the end of a move started off by a quickly taken line ball by Niall McCabe before Ciaran Macken placed the full forward for his score. Five minutes later Gilsenan then added his second when benefitting from a surging run from Ross Howard after Aled Ingman had won a ball at midfield. This score coming in reply to the sixth point of the day for Gaeil Colmcille.
The returning Collins then had an integral role to play in the next score when after he had displayed all his defensive nous to strip a Kells forward of the ball and stop a close range goal attempt Gilsenan got on the end of the subsequent counter attack to hit another point. Seneschalstown were now getting into their groove a bit better and over the next three minutes they hit a trio of points. Firstly Brendan Lynch bisected the posts before Gilsenan and then Shane Clarke pointed from play, Clarke’s effort coming after excellent play from Colin Gleeson and Ross Howard.
Gaeil Colmcille drew back onto level terms when their lively corner forward sent over a lovely point but Seneschalstown hit back immediately when Minor sharpshooter from 2014 Daire Geraghty sent over before Brendan Lynch added his second. Gaeil Colmcille were to hit the last score of the half when pointing with a minute of the half hour remaining to leave the score at half time reading Seneschalstown 0-09 Gaeil Colmcille 0-08.
Upon the resumption Gaeil Colmcille got off to a flying start when rocking Seneschalstown with a goal and a point in the opening stages of the half. Firstly their full forward knocked over a free before their corner forward found himself in acres of space inside the full back line and gave goalkeeper Shane Corbally no chance when burying his shot into the back of the net. Joe Cowley sought to steady his side two minutes later when firing over a rare point before the Kells outfit hit two points on the trot to extend their advantage out to four.
Seneschalstown were now in need of a score to prevent the gap growing too big and they soon added two to their account when firstly Brendan Lynch and then James Conlon, into the fray as a half time substitute, kicked over. This momentum for the side in blue was then halted abruptly when they were rocked by the concession of a goal and a point in just over sixty seconds. After their cumber thirteen had raised a white flag Gaeil Colmcille saw a green one waved when their left half forward saw his shot clip the underside of the crossbar and bounce over the goal line.
This left Seneschalstown up against it with a six point deficit with eight minutes of the hour remaining. Shane Clarke narrowed the gap to five when pointing a free following a foul on Daire Geraghty which saw him having to leave the fray injured. Then on fifty nine minutes they received a boost when being awarded a penalty after corner back Colin Gleeson was fouled when inside the Gaeil Colmcille small parallelogram. Ross Howard stepped up to take responsibility but the normally very accurate Howard saw his effort saved. The side kept chipping away at the five point margin as Shane Clarke knocked over two further points, one from a free but try as they did were unable to find the goal which would have levelled affairs.
On a day when they will be disappointed with the result but relieved to have avoided the extra match of the preliminary quarter final Seneschalstown were well served by Aled Ingman who was a colossus at midfield as well as Colin Gleeson at the back and Shane Clarke up front.
Seneschalstown: Shane Corbally, Andrew Collins, Adam Gargan, Colin Gleeson, Niall McCabe, Joe Cowley (0-01), Ross Howard, Darragh Keogh, Aled Ingman, Brendan Lynch (0-03), Shane Clarke(0-05, 0-03 Frees), Daire Geraghty (0-01), Ciaran Macken, Jonathan Gilsenan (0-04), Rob Darby.
Seneschalstown Substitutions: James Conlon 0-01 for D. Geraghty, Daire Geraghty for C. Macken, Ruairí Keogh for R. Darby, Hugh Maguire for D. Geraghty, Peter Tierney for R. Howard.
