GO AHEAD ADULT FOOTBALL LEAGUE DIVISION ONE ROUND-UP: JUNE 26TH
GO AHEAD ADULT FOOTBALL LEAGUE DIVISION ONE ROUND-UP: JUNE 26
By Daire Walsh
In their first competitive home game of 2021, Ballyboden St Enda’s secured an emphatic 3-16 to 1-11 victory against Castleknock to bolster their Go Ahead Adult Football League Division One South campaign.
Having shared the spoils with Lucan Sarsfields on the opening weekend at 12th Lock, ‘Boden were eager to stamp their authority on their long-awaited return to Pairc Ui Murchu. Thanks in no small part to goals from Warren Egan, Conor Dooley and Ciarán O’Reilly, they managed to do just that.
As ever, ‘Boden manager Anthony Rainbow was able to field a team that was stacked full of experience. In addition to Michael Darragh Macauley – who brought the curtain down on his glittering inter-county career at the beginning of the year – former Dublin senior footballers Darragh Nelson and Declan O’Mahony also featured in their starting line-up.
Ex-Sky Blues hurling goalkeeper Dooley provided considerable physical heft to a ‘Boden full-forward that also included the McGarry brothers – Ross and Barra. The siblings shone brightly during the early exchanges, with Barra’s two-point salvo supplementing a score apiece from Ross and Cathal Flaherty inside the opening seven minutes of the contest.
Castleknock were doing their utmost to remain in contention, but a superb Warren Egan goal widened the gap on the scoreboard. The McGarry’s evenly-shared four points in the second quarter, during which Dooley found the net from close-range.
Egan also added a free to offer ‘Boden a seemingly insurmountable 2-9 to 0-3 interval buffer. The dismissal of Macauley upon the resumption threw a potential spanner into the works, however, and a Castleknock major raised the possibility of a dramatic fightback.
Yet, ‘Boden didn’t panic and – having raised a white flag at the beginning of the second period – O’Reilly expertly finished off a rebound after Ross McGarry had an initial effort turned away. This served to reinforce the home team’s challenge and with Ross McGarry (three) and Luke O’Donoghue knocking over a series of points, ‘Boden were easing their way towards their first win of the term.
Egan and Ross McGarry enhanced their already impressive tallies in the closing moments to leave the 2016 All-Ireland champions in high spirits ahead of their short trip to St Jude’s on July 7.
Their forthcoming opponents got their season up and running at 12th Lock on Saturday, squeezing past Lucan Sarsfields with just two points to spare (3-12 to 2-13).
Thomas Davis and Kilmacud Crokes are the teams that are currently leading the way at the summit of Division One South, with the former holding a slight advantage on score difference. Davis enjoyed a comprehensive victory against Ballinteer St John’s on June 12 and followed it up with a convincing 2-16 to 2-9 weekend triumph at the expense of Cuala in Hyde Park.
Crokes are also building early momentum in this section of the top-tier, with a 3-10 to 0-9 success over Ballinteer St John’s at Silver Park giving them maximum points from their two games to date.
In Division One North, Ballymun Kickhams, Na Fianna and Naomh Mearnog have four points apiece at the end of the opening two rounds of fixtures. Ballymun Kickhams were the victors at the end of a high-scoring clash with St Vincent’s at Pairc Ciceam on Saturday (5-17 to 3-15), while Na Fianna had an emphatic 3-12 to 0-8 away win over Skerries Harps.
At Portmarnock, Tom Cosgrave and Shane Kavanagh were at their inspirational best as Naomh Mearnog recorded a 3-10 to 2-2 victory against Naomh Maur.
This dynamic duo conjured two points apiece, before Cosgrave rattled the Maur’s net on the stroke of 40 minutes. Moving into the final-quarter, Kavanagh registered 1-2 without reply as Mearnog continued to turn on the style.
Their Rush counterparts did persist with their challenge and bagged two goals in the closing minutes of the action. Still, Mearnog maintained their midas touch at the opposite end and a third major ensured the sides were separated by 11 points in the end.
Rounding off the weekend’s Division One North programme was the meeting between Clontarf and St Brigid’s. Both sides had lost their first games of the season, but opened their account at St Anne’s Park after playing out a 0-12 to 0-12 draw.