GO AHEAD ADULT FOOTBALL LEAGUE DIVISION ONE ROUND-UP: APRIL 21-24

ADULT FOOTBALL LEAGUE DIVISION ONE ROUND-UP: APRIL 21-24

By Daire Walsh

Following their respective wins at the weekend, Thomas Davis and Na Fianna continue to set the pace at the summit of the Go Ahead Adult Football League Division One table.

After playing out a 2-9 to 1-12 draw with neighbours St Jude’s at the same venue nine days earlier, Davis’ were aiming for a return to winning ways against St Vincent’s at Kiltipper Road on Saturday evening. They met a stern resistance from the Marino men – who came into this contest with three successes under their belts – but Ciaran Farrelly’s charges did enough to come away with a 0-13 to 1-7 triumph.

At 12th Lock on Sunday morning, Na Fianna took on a Lucan Sarsfields side that were yet to taste defeat in this year’s top-flight. Thanks to a goal from Sean Caffrey, the Glasnevin men found themselves in the driving seat during the second half.

Lucan subsequently rallied to bring the gap back down to a bare minimum, but Na Fianna held their nerve in a frantic finale. David Quinn and Michael Day both split the uprights in the closing moments to propel the northsiders towards a 1-13 to 1-10 victory.

Both Davis’ and Na Fianna are currently on 10 points, albeit the latter have a game in hand on the former. Indeed, Na Fianna have recorded a maximum return from the five fixtures they have played to date in 2022.

Behind third-place Lucan Sarsfields in the AFL1, there are no fewer than four teams who have accumulated six points in the early stretches of the campaign. Two of these sides – Castleknock and Cuala – met in an entertaining clash at Hyde Park last Thursday.

Following a somewhat cagey opening to the action, Cuala created daylight on their home patch with a 12th-minute goal from Jamie Keenan. Luke Keating went on to add his second point of the opening half, before Castleknock rattled the net themselves through inside forward Eoin Sawyer.

Unanswered efforts by Keating (two) and marauding wing-back Eoin Kennedy helped Cuala to settle again, but a coolly-struck penalty from Roscommon native Ger McDermottroe ensured visitors Castleknock were just two points adrift (1-6 to 2-1) at the interval.

Keenan and former Dublin U21 footballer Darragh Spillane found the target for Cuala – either side of a Rob Shaw point for Castleknock – on the resumption and they remained in the ascendancy for a large chunk of the second period. However, Tom Shields and the reliable McDermottroe combined to get ‘Knock back on level terms and set-up a tense conclusion to the proceedings.

McDermottroe went on to cancel out points from Keating and Kennedy at the opposite end, but Cuala centre-forward Conor O’Brien squeezed his side back in front with the final whistle fast approaching.

McDermottroe had a chance to restore parity once again from a scoreable free, but he instead picked out the raiding Kevin Stephenson in front of the posts. The substitute maintained his composure to fire beyond the reach of opposition netminder Ryan Scollard for a third Castleknock goal.

Ex-Limerick attacker Seamus O’Carroll also found the range and even though Keating knocked over his sixth point of the tie, Castleknock held out for a 3-8 o 1-12 victory.

Meanwhile, a day earlier in Rush, Naomh Maur and Kilmacud Crokes played out a 0-14 to 0-14 draw. Following a run of four successive reversals, this result finally gets Maur’s up and running in 2022.

It was a similar scenario for St Brigid’s against Ballyboden St Enda’s on Sunday morning at Russell Park. After a couple of narrow defeats in the early weeks of the term, they eventually bagged a point courtesy of their stalemate (1-8 apiece) with ‘Boden.

2021 Dublin Senior Football Championship finalists St Jude’s produced an impressive performance against fellow southsiders Ballinteer St John’s on Saturday evening, finishing with all of 11 points to spare (3-14 to 2-6) at Tymon Park.

Elsewhere, Ballymun Kickhams registered their first win of the season against Skerries Harps (1-16 to 2-11) at Pairc Ciceam on Sunday while Clontarf were 2-15 to 0-13 victors at the expense of Naomh Mearnog in St Anne’s Park on the same day.