AFL DIV. 2 ROUND-UP: MARCH 31
ADULT FOOTBALL LEAGUE DIVISION TWO ROUND-UP: MARCH 31
By Daire Walsh
Following another action-packed weekend of club action, St Sylvester’s, Castleknock and Na Fianna ‘B’ lead the way in Division Two of the Adult Football League.
Having dropped out of the top-flight at the end of 2018, Syls’ quest for an automatic return is currently gathering pace. They produced a goal-laden display to edge past Kilmacud Crokes ‘B’ on the opening weekend, before recording an emphatic 3-17 to 0-3 win over Whitehall Colmcille at Collins Avenue.
This placed them in fine spirits for a trip to the Clontarf Road on Sunday. Scoil Ui Chonaill had suffered consecutive defeats to Clontarf and the aforementioned Crokes in advance of this contest and struggled to maintain the formidable challenge of their Malahide counterparts.
With Alex Wright registering three points from play, Syls largely dominated the opening half proceedings. Scoil grabbed a ninth-minute goal through Neil O’Flynn, but breathed a sigh of relief when Dublin senior panelist Andy Bunyan twice denied Wright at the opposite end.
The visitors were 0-11 to 1-4 ahead during the interval and immediately extended their lead when the action resumed. The towering Jack Hazley diverted Seán Daly’s delivery beyond the reach of Bunyan as Syls continued to make hay inside the Scoil ’45’.
Wright, Ross Hazley and Paudie White impressed throughout, though it was Micheál McCarthy who proved to be their stand-out performer on the day. He ended the game with an exceptional of tally of 1-6 (0-2f) – his goal helping Syls to create an insurmountable cushion of 2-15 to 1-4 on the third-quarter mark.
To Scoil’s credit, they persevered in the closing stages of the tie. Conor Dixon and Ruairi Coady found the target in clinical fashion, while they also claimed a second goal deep into stoppage-time.
Having already split the posts off a long-distance free, Bunyan (Dublin’s substitute goalkeeper in last year’s Leinster SFC decider against Laois) converted a penalty to leave their final deficit at six points (2-17 to 2-11).
Sylvester’s were relegated to the second-tier along with Castleknock – who enjoyed a 1-12 to 1-8 victory at the expense of Crokes. This extends their unbeaten run for 2019, with Naomh Mearnog and Clontarf coming off second best to the Somerton Park outfit in the previous rounds.
Just behind Syls and ‘Knock on score difference are Na Fianna ‘B’, after they preserved their 100% success rate in a 2-18 to 1-9 triumph over St Patrick’s, Palmerstown at Glenaulin Park. Just behind the front trio on five points are Round Tower Lusk – 1-10 to 1-9 conquerors of St Mary’s, Saggart on their home turf.
Newly-promoted from Division Three, Lusk have so far defied expectations. They overcame Whitehall Colmcille in mid-February and a hard-earned draw with Naomh Olaf then followed at Pairc Ui Bhriain.
They faced a Mary’s side that had endured a mixed start to their campaign, but they broke the deadlock courtesy of a point by former Sky Blues player Blaine Kelly. Lusk fired back with the opening goal of the contest and despite Kelly and James Timmins holding their own for Mary’s, it was the hosts who brought a four-point cushion into the dressing rooms.
However, Carl Finn grabbed a goal for Mary’s straight from the throw-in to give themselves a realistic chance of success. While Lusk initially responded positively to this set-back, the twin threat of Kelly and Timmins propelled Mary’s back into the ascendancy.
They struggled to push on in the closing stages, though, and Lusk rallied to eventually take maximum points. Elsewhere, Ballyboughal and Naomh Olaf maintained their own unbeaten starts to this year’s league.
Ballyboughal – who still have a game in hand on those above them in the table – were 3-12 to 0-5 victors against Naomh Fionnbarra at Pope John Paul II Park. For the second time in succession, Naomh Olaf had to settle for a share of the spoils at Sandyford – themselves and Whitehall Colmcille proving inseparable (2-13 each).
Following the blow of a heavy opening day reversal to Castleknock, Naomh Mearnog have bounced back in commendable style. A gritty 0-11 to 0-8 win over Raheny showed what they are capable of and they had the measure of Round Tower Clondalkin at Monastery Road last weekend.
Having fallen five points adrift in the early exchanges (1-2 to 0-0), Mearnog rallied to bring a 1-6 to 1-5 buffer into the interval. They pushed forward again after the restart and ultimately ended on the right side of a 2-12 to 2-9 scoreline.
Jamie Walsh (top-scorer with 1-3) and Michael Gibbs bagged the all-important goals for the Portmarnock men, although they were ably-assisted on the day by Shane Kavanagh (0-4), Sean Hawkshaw (0-3) and Alan Doyle (0-2).
In an intriguing derby at St Anne’s Park, Raheny had seven points to spare – 1-10 to 0-6 – over Clontarf.