AIB Ulster Club SFC: Efficient Kilcoo advance

AIB Ulster Club SFC Quarter-Final

Kilcoo 0-16 Loughmacrory 0-11

Last year’s beaten finalists Kilcoo negotiated a tricky pathway to another Ulster Club SFC semi-final with an efficient five points win over Loughmacrory at O’Neills Healy Park.

They were organised in defence and intense in their pursuit of turnovers as they repeatedly turned defence to attack.

Everything the Down men did was delivered with organisation as they confidently set up a last four clash with Fermanagh’s Erne Gaels.

This was a tough introduction to the unforgiving world of Ulster Club football for Tyrone’s breakthrough champions.

Defeat to Errigal Ciaran in last year’s final still raw in the Kilcoo mentality, they seized the opportunity to reassert themselves against another Tyrone opponent.

The former All-Ireland champions looked every inch the dominant provincial force they have become, having appeared in five Ulster deciders in the last 10 years, on the back of 13 of the last 14 Down county titles.

A vastly experienced Kilcoo side imposed themselves on the contest from the outset, pressing heavily on the man in possession to win turnovers that kept them going forward with purpose.

That was after going behind to a Pauraic Meenagh two-pointer and a Ruairi McCullagh free as the Tyrone champions cancelled out Anthony Morgan’s early score.

The Magpies worked the ball with control and accuracy, with centre back Darryl Branagan powering forward as he ran at the Loughmacrory defence and they shot the next five scores while defending with discipline.

A Paul Devlin’s free was followed by a couple of Shealan Johnston efforts, while Branagan added a point as well

They switched the ball with men in support, they displayed patience to create a score for Ryan Johstnon for a 0-6 to 0-4 lead after 20 minutes.

Loughmacrory struggled to get their young attacking stars Eoin McElholm and McCullagh into the game, but they had other men capable of putting the ball over the bar, and as they grew into the game in the latter stages of the half, Meenagh and Cathaoir Gallagher both found the target.

Kilcoo led by 0-7 to 0-5 at the interval, but with the wind in their backs in the second half, they eased further ahead with a sweertly struck Devlin two-pointer, and seconds later Darryl Branagan made it double sdcores, 0-10 to 0-5.

McElholm finally managed to escape the clutches of the tight-marking Niall Branagan to slot over a point, and as they began to weave patterns to unsettle the Kilcoo cover, McCullagh added another from a free.

McElholm, now finding pockets of space to pick passes, sent Cathaoir Gallagher in to close the gap, Kilcoo displayed their class to craft and execute wonderful scores, first through wing back Miceal Rooney, then a delightful Shealan Johnston two-pointer.

By the end of the third quarter, the Mourne champions led by 0-14 to 0-8, and with wing backs Rooney and Callum Rogers giving them pace along the flanks, they kept their opponents stretched.

Loughmacrory had to press hard to chisel out scores for McElholm and a Cathaoir Gallagher free, but defensively, the Down men were sound and disciplined right to the end, never allowing their focus to slip, with Ryan McEvoy and Darryl Branagan stoic in everything they did.

There were occasional scares, one of which saw Gareth Donaghy fire in a belter which stung the palms of goalkeeper Niall Kane on its way over the bar, but even then a goal would not have been enough for the Red Hand champions.

Scorers for Kilcoo: P Devlin 0-5 (1tp, 2f), S Johnston 0-4 (1tp), D Branagan 0-2, C Doherty, R Johnston, Anthony Morgan, M Rooney, S Og McCusker 0-1 each.

Scorers for Loughmacrory: P Meenagh (1tp, 1f), C Gallagher (1f) 0-3 each, E McElholm, R McCullagh (2f) 0-2 each, G Donaghy 0-1.

Kilcoo: N Kane; A Branagan, R McEvoy, N Branagan; M Rooney, D Branagan, C Rogers; Aaron Morgan, Anthony Morgan; C Doherty, R Johnston, S Johnston; P Devlin, J Johnston, E Branagan.

Subs: J Devlin for A Branagan (11), S Og McCusker for J Johnston (41), B McEvoy for Rooney (54).

Loughmacrory: O O’Kane; D Curran, N Kelly, A Macidulskas; S Dobbs, R Fox, S Conway; A Donaghy, C Donaghy; G Donaghy, E McElholm, C Gallagher; P Meenagh, R McCullagh, M McNamee.

Subs: E Donaghy for Fox (52), R Grimley for Meenagh (52).

Referee: M McNally (Monaghan).