Boden men make an early statement
By Daire Walsh
BALLYBODEN St Enda’s made a strong start to their Go-Ahead Adult Football League Division Five campaign with an emphatic 3-16 to 0-5 victory over Na Gaeil Óga at Páirc Uí Mhurchú on Sunday.
Thanks in no small part to the scoring prowess of Daire Sweeney (1-5) and Daniel Lynch (2-1) ‘Boden had far too much in the end for their Gaeilgoir counterparts in the end.
That said, the visitors, who play a lot of their games out of St Catherine’s Park in Lucan as well as the Phoenix Park, were well in the match for much of the opening period and trailed by only two points (1-3 to 0-4) at the break.
However, ‘Boden turned on the style after the resumption and were ultimately full value for the two points on offer.
For the first time since 2019 – if you exclude the single round of fixtures that took place the following year before the Covid-19 pandemic brought a halt to the competition – Gaelic football has returned to the normal format that was readily associated with adult league action in the past.
Whereas there was a split between south and north during 2021, ‘Boden and NGO will be facing teams from across the county in the coming months.
Given both sides had been operating in different divisions in recent years, there was a sense of the unknown in advance of this game.
There had been little to separate the teams during the early exchanges and, with adverse weather conditions descending upon Dublin throughout Saturday evening and in the early hours of Sunday morning, it was difficult at times for players to develop a steady rhythm.
Nevertheless, a Sweeney goal for ‘Boden broke the deadlock and the hosts brought a slender cushion into the second half.
Although this match appeared poised to go down to the wire at the break, the Firhouse Road outfit started to attack with greater confidence and expertly put their opponents to the sword.
In total, ‘Boden had 10 different scorers over the course of the contest. In addition to Lynch’s brace of goals, Liam Flaherty chipped in with three points as Tony Duffy’s men set down a marker early on in this campaign.