GROUP D

WESTMEATH 5-18 MEATH 4-10

By Paul Hamilton

Westmeath were the victors in a high scoring affair in Trim in the Bank of Ireland Celtic Challenge on Wednesday night.

Initially, it was Meath who threatened in the opening minute when Shaun Donnelly put in a lovely puck from the left side of the field which fell threateningly in front of goal and was flicked home at close range by Jack Meagher for what Meath thought was the opening goal.

However, the joy was short-lived when the referee adjudged that Meagher had entered the square before the ball and disallowed the score.

Westmeath soon took control with Mark Cunningham imposing himself on the game with strong penetrating runs from midfield creating openings for the forwards and Westmeath proceeded to score 2-5 to Meath’s 0-2 in the opening quarter of the game, Aaron Ready providing the killer blows with both goals.

Meath kept fighting however and did score a goal of their own through Meagher in the 24th minute but only after Ready had picked up his hat-trick following a lovely lay-off from Mark Cully. When half time arrived Westmeath had racked up a lead of 10 points with a score of Meath 1-5 Westmeath 3-9.

Westmeath continued their good spell in the second half scoring a further 1-6 to Meath’s 0-2 in the first 15 minutes with the prolific Eamon Cuneen deadly from frees and open play.

The Meath backs fought hard to stem the tide with Harry Cottrell battling to come out with the sliotar breaking down many attacks.

Meath then rallied in the final quarter of the game and managed to find the back of the net on three occasions to reduce the deficit and secure the bonus point on offer for scoring more than two goals.

Westmeath played some impressive hurling throughout the game however there is more to come from this Meath team who are next up against a highflying Wicklow team who are undefeated in the opening two rounds.

Harry Cottrell was awarded the Best and Fairest award for Meath while and Mark Cully picked up the accolade for Westmeath.

WESTMEATH: Oisín Loughlan; Peter Dalton, Michael Lynam, Jamie Reilly; Cian McCarthy, David Weir, Aaron Fenlon; Warrick Kirby, Mark Cunningham; Oisín Murray, Michael Moffatt, Eamon Cunneen, Oliver McClair; Mark Cully; Aaron Ready.

Replacements: Michael Doherty, Tomas Turks, Brian McGrath, Ryan Boyne, Ryan Forde, Brian Gaffney, Oisin Kiernan, Liam Maxwell, Donal Mulvihill, Luke Smith.

MEATH: Ryan Douglas; Simon O’Keefe, Harry Cottrell, Eoin Donegan; Drew Hamilton, Luke Moran, Gavin Halton; Cian Smith, Matthew Cully(0-1); Sean Donnelly(0-5)(c), Jack Meagher(3-1), Joey Cole(1-2); Eoghan McCormack, Martin Campbell, Liam Callanan.

Replacements: Liam Boyle, Ciaran Rogers, Harry Smyth, Rory Fagan, Evan Cole, Sean McKenna(0-1), Evan Geoghegan.

WICKLOW 6-17 CARLOW 0-10

By Shea Hayes

Wicklow picked up an excellent victory over their near-neighbours Carlow in their second game of Group D in the Bank of Ireland Celtic Challenge.

The visitors started very quickly with a well-taken score from John Toomey with just 90 seconds on the clock. Carlow soon replied with a well taken 65 from James Doyle.

The opening exchanges were evenly contested but the game swung in the direction of Wicklow when corner forward Brian Keogh finished a beautiful move to the back of the Carlow net in the 16th minute to make it 1-1 to 0-2 in favour of the Garden County.

Carlow were soon level with a couple of quick-fire points from Dylan Townsend. Wicklow found the net for a second time on 19 minutes with a lovely groundstroke which fizzed past the Carlow keeper.

James Doyle was one of Carlow's finest performers on the day and kept them in the game with a beauty of a 65 to raise the white flag once again.

Wicklow took a commanding lead just before half-time thanks to Torna Mulconry whose quick brace left the score 4-7 to 0-7 at the break.

At the start of the second period, Wicklow continued to look strong with points as Eoin Young's ability from placed balls saw him notch up a number of scores while at the other end Dylan Townsend raised a white flag for Carlow.

On 43 minutes, Wicklow added a fifth goal with a rocket from John Toomey but to Carlow's credit, they kept fighting and battling until the very end in a game that was played in tremendous spirit.

Wicklow grabbed their last goal of the game from Brian Keogh as they picked up an excellent victory.

Carlow’s Best and Fairest player was Diego Dunne while Wicklow’s Best and Fairest player Adam Bushe set the tempo for Wicklow right from the start.

CARLOW: Ciaran Joyce, Shane Cody, Daniel Culleton, Eamon Normanly, Jamie Behan, Diego Dunne, Fionn Murphy, Oisin Kelly, Robert Stafford, Jamie Ayres, Billy Fitzpatrick, James Doyle, Dylan Townsend, Donal Murphy, James Bible.

Replacements: Conor Bolger, Colm Beck, Donal Quirke, Mark Dermody, Mark Fitzgerald, Kevin Cullen, Stephen Lawlor, Shane Cowman, Jack Dunne.

WICKLOW: Meitheal Cleary, John Young, Oisin Brogan, Darren Reilly, Eoin Kavanagh, Shane Browne, Adam Bushe, Jake O'Kelly, John Toomey, Pj O'Connor, Owen Young, James McGing, Torna Mulconry, Liam Somers, Brian Keogh

Replacements: Brandon Ryan, Paddy Dunne, Rory Mulcahy, Jack Reid, Ben Burke.

GROUP F AND G

LOUTH 6-12 CAVAN 5-14

By Francie McMullen

Louth and Cavan shared eleven goals between them in a tense tussle at Pairc Clan na Gael in Dundalk.

Cavan’s Dylan Greenan got the nod at corner-forward in what was their only change to the team that lost to Kildare Cadets the week previous. Whilst injury prevented Louth goalkeeper, Josh Murtagh, from lining out between the sticks, Pearse Óg’s Aidan O’Brien who lined out at half forward against Monaghan in Round 1, deputising in goal for the night.

Cavan started the brighter of the two sides with early points from midfielder Brían O'Rourke and James Smith before Louth registered their first score through Brandon Johnson. The next 15 mins allowed Louth to steal a march on their opponents, racing into a 2-8 to 1-4 lead thanks to goals from the impressive Conor Murphy and Jake McNamara, whilst Cormac Smith responded with a goal on his own for Cavan, kicking the sliotar out of a ruck and into space to fire past Aidan O’Brien in the Louth goal. Both teams traded points in the lead up to half time to leave the score Louth 2-9 Cavan 1-7.

Cavan started the second half brightly registering 1-2 in the first five minutes. Once again, Smith with the Cavan goal from some distance, following some good build up play from Odhran Keating in the Cavan defence.

However, Connor Geraghty, just on as a sub, then found the back of the Cavan net. This was followed by another Louth major, this time from Conor Murphy. The difference between the sides had widened to six points heading into the final stretch of the game.

Then came the goal fest, four goals in four minutes, firstly from Louth’s Tiernan McKenna then Cavan’s Brían O’Rourke powered one home before another Louth major from Conor Murphy following a superb solo run from the wing. In injury time, with one final play in the game, James Smith steadied himself to fire a free to the back of the Louth net to leave just one score between the teams. Fortunately for the home side, the final whistle went, and they recorded a first win of the year. 

Best and Fairest Awards went to Louth No. 11 Conor Murphy who finished with 3-6 to his name and Cavan No. 9 Brían O’Rourke who was outstanding in the middle of the park for the visiting side.

LOUTH: Aidan O’Brien, Fionnán Mc Gurk, Seamus Birch, Niall Quigley, Zac Lennon, Brendan Prendergast, Seán Magill, Conor Byrne, Jake Mc Namara (1-1), Brandon Johnson (0-3), Conor Murphy (3-6), Cillian Mc Kenna, Connor Geraghty (1-0), Ronan Reid, Fionn Cumiskey (0-1), Tiernan Mckenna (1-1), Robert McCaughey, Jack McCaughey, Paddy Wehrly.

CAVAN: Shea Denning, Dwayne Mulvey, Jack Dunne, Cormac Clarke, Tadhg Larkin, Odhran Keating (0-1), Sean McMahon, Ross O'Gorman (0-2), Brían O'Rourke (1-1),Cillian Boyle (0-3), Jamie Masterson, James Smith (1-6), Dylan Greenan, Cormac Smith (2-0), Gavin Fitzpatrick (1-0), Josh McKiernan, Conor Bannon (0-1), Colm Brady, Michael Wall, Colin McCauley, Ryan Galligan, Declan Mernagh, Andrew Harten, Fionn Keating, Gary Tully, Aaron Crowe, Daniel Harten, Jack Kelly, Piaras McManus, Caelum Faughnan.

WICKLOW GOLD 5-12 MONAGHAN 1-10

By Mary McEneaney

Wicklow Gold maintained their winning streak in the BOI Celtic Challenge with a strong victory over Monaghan in round two.

Played in far from seasonal weather conditions, this was an intense physical meeting from the throw-in. Wicklow Gold opened the scoring in the second minute before following it up with a goal by Tom O’Brien which set the pace of the game.

Monaghan settled into the game soon afterwards through a number of frees by Mikey Carville and a point from Conal McHugh. Monaghan, only too aware of Wicklow’s goal-scoring abilities, defended bravely but Wicklow Gold were now on a goal-scoring blitz with Tom O’Brien and Charlie Cruise on fire. By the interval, Wicklow Gold had scored three goals on a scoreline of 0-5 to 3-09.

The second-half opened as the first one finished and immediately after the restart Wicklow Gold took control again, dominating all positions on the field and extending their lead. Monaghan, though struggling, kept their work rate up throughout. Wicklow were once again guilty of another series of wides in the third quarter. Monaghan introduced fresh legs and in the last 10 minutes of the match stepped up to the mark and saw the match out on a positive note as super sub Darragh Walters netted their only goal of the game. By the final whistle, Monaghan had narrowed Wicklow Gold’s winning margin with a final scoreline of 1-10 to 5-12.

So, Wicklow Gold’s perfect start to the BOI Celtic Challenge continues as they face Louth in Round 3 while Monaghan will regroup taking many positives from this encounter as the face Kildare Cadets next week.

WICKLOW GOLD: Daniel O’Reilly, Aaron O’Rourke, Conor Wafer, Dillion Byrne, Shane Arthur, Tommy Collins, Ciaran Harmon, TJ O’Neill, Jack Byrne (0-01), Tom O’Brien(2-02), Fionn Doogan (0-02), Brian Nesbit (0-01), Bill O’Brien (0-01), Charlie Cruise (3-03), Cormac Redmond (0-01)

Replacements: Matt Curran (0-01) Casey Doyle, John McElhinny, Luan Ruddy, Rian Mac Maolain, Seosamh Kelly, Tadgh McCarty, Oscar Harty, Jamie Ryan.

MONAGHAN: Niall Berminghan, Zach McArdle, Caleb McArdle, Paudie Heavin, Senan O’Brien, Daniel Boyle, Darragh O’Callaghan, Ronan Boyle, Shane Slevin, Leo Maloney, Conal McHugh (0-02), James Slevin (0-02), Mikey Carville (0-05), David Moorehead, Cillian Hanratty.

Replacements: Thomas Keenan, Conor Brennan, Cathal McCooey, Mark Cassidy, Darragh Walters (1-01) Jack Mohan, Tristan Moyna, Kieran Martin, Aiden McKenna, Padraig Treanor, Jack Cassidy, Pauric Bolger.

MAY0 2-14 SLIGO 2-9

By Pierce O'Reilly

Mayo had to dig deep at the finish to stave off a mammoth Sligo revival in round two of this hugely entertaining Bank of Ireland Celtic Challenge.

Sligo struggled to contain a rampant Mayo sextet up front who landed some marvellous points from play in the opening half. Captain Paddy Dozio hit five magnificent frees, Tommy Scahill and the industrious Tom Fahy landed two apiece from play with Mayo corner-back Declan Henry meandering upfield to land Mayo’s tenth and best point in the opening half. Sligo worked tirelessly to keep in touch but apart from Tommy Cawley’s two frees they got little exchange out of a teak tough Mayo rearguard in the opening thirty minutes. 

Mayo drove for home early in the second half with Mark Gibbons striking an early point from play before they were gifted a fortuitous goal. Ronan Tracey was first to react and bundled the sliotar over the line. To their credit, Sligo never wilted and the deadly accurate Tommy Cawley kept the scoreboard ticking over with some brilliant frees from all angles. Mayo looked home and hosed when Tom Fahy pounced to send a pile driver to the Sligo net with ten minutes still to play.

In a Lazarus like comeback, Sligo found their rhythm when all seemed lost and reeled off 2-03 without reply in the dying minutes. Fionn Connolly started the revival with a brilliant point from play before wing-forward Liam O’Kelly Lynch drove in from the right side to send a rocket into the roof of the Mayo net. The Yeats County men weren’t finished yet and with one minute to play Thomas Cawley wriggled his way past three Mayo defenders to find the net with a glorious individual goal to leave just six points between the sides 2-14 to 2-8. In the dying seconds, it was all Sligo as they tried desperately to snatch something from the game but a late, close in Cawley free went sailing over the bar when another goal beckoned.

Thomas Cawley was presented with the ‘Best and Fairest Award’ for Sligo with the Mayo ‘Best and Fairest Award’ going to Ciaran Treacy.

MAYO: Niall Fleming, Declan Henry (0-1), Tom Rushe, Ciaran Treacy, Ruairí Haran, Padraic Murphy, Aaron Ketterick, Cian Mulchrone, Paddy Dozio (0-7), Mark Gibbons (0-1), Tom Fahy (1-3), Oisin Farrell, Ronan Treacy, Tommy Scahill (0-3), Kevin Gannon.

SLIGO: Ronan Lane, Harry O’Donnell, Paul Gallagher, Senan O’Rourke, Eoin Kerrigan, Shane Molloy, Keelan Davey, Ethan Scully, Fionn Moylan, Anthony Fogeon, Thomas Cawley (1-8), Liam O’Kelly Lynch (1-0), Fionn Connolly (0-1), Ciaran O’Reilly, Eoghan Donagh.

REFEREE: Paul Fahy (Galway).

Elsewhere in Group G, Roscommon had a narrow 1-14 to 1-12 win over Donegal.