Promising start for Down as UUJ students go under

Promising start for Down as UUJ students go under

8 January 2014

DOWN made the perfect start to 2014 when they opened their campaign with a relatively easy victory over UUJ.

The students were missing a number of high profile stars and this dented their hopes. On the other hand, Down put out a relatively strong team who out muscled and out fought the Shore Road lads.

The opening passages of play were scrappy as both teams got used to the slippery surface. Niall McKeever was first to convert on seven minutes, The former AFL man glided past a few Down defenders before shooting over.

Clonduff club man Paul McPolin then raced through on five minutes and kicked a fine score to put UUJ into a 0-2 to 0-0 lead. Down soon managed to get their act together and it was big midfielder Gary McArdle who opened their account.

Eoin McCartan then drew the game level on the quarter hour mark as the homesters sprang to life. Two Mark Poland frees either side of rare effort from Kalum King lifted Down into the ascendancy.

In the 23rd minute King came to prominence again, but this time for all the wrong reasons. In what looked like quite an innocuous challenge, Cavan referee Joe McQuillan deemed it to be a black card offence as he ordered King off.

Danny Savage hit back for UUJ with a free before Mark Poland pointed before adding a free to make it 0-7 to 0-3 for Down with nine minutes remaining to half-time.

There was plenty of incidents in the last strands of play. Firstly, Down ‘keeper Shane Harrison pulled off a fantastic save from Killian Clarke.

Darragh O’Hanlon then became the second Down player to receive a black card as he was unfairly punished for what was a legitimate shoulder charge.

Mark Poland spurned a great chance for the home side’s first major when he was brilliantly denied by Mark McReynolds in the UUJ goal.

While the first half had plenty of incident, the remainder of the game resembled a stroll in the park for Down.

Within three minutes of the restart they had the ball in the UUJ net as Peter Fitzpatrick put the finishing touches to a well worked team move.

Eoin McCartan dispossessed the UUJ corner back in the top left corner. He took possession of the ball and then fed it through to Connaire Harrison who was bearing down on goal. Unselfishly, Harrison popped the ball across to Fitzpatrick who confidently tapped home from close range.

Liam Devlin, who had come on for King in the first half, scored his first ever point for the county in the 42nd minute before debutant Conleth O’Hare did the same a minute later.

UUJ made a couple substitutions in these early stages one of which was enforced due to a black card being given to Pearse Casey. Shane Harrison was called into action again ten minutes in when he deflected a rasping effort from midfielder Niall McKeever.

Another Mark Poland free and an open play contribution from Conleth O’Hare further extended Down’s advantage. UUJ finally got their tally operating again in the 53rd minute as Cailean O’Boyle popped over a free.

Danny Savage then did similar as the gap was cut to nine points.

A rare Dan McCartan score got Down back on track, but Danny Savage kept up UUJ’s faint hope with a well taken free.

Down played some accomplished football in the last five minutes and this resulted in them outscoring the students 0-3 to 0-1. Conleth O’Hare and Connaire Harrison bagged two clinkers from difficult angles while Niall Madine got a free.

Danny McKay got a late reply for UUJ, Down were very comfortable in the end as their mix of eagerness and experience proved to be too much for a weakened UUJ side.

Down: S. Harrison, D. McCartan (0-1), P. Turley, D. O’Hagan, B. McArdle, A. Carr, M. Lively, K. King (0-1), G. McArdle (0-1), P. Fitzpatrick (1-0), C. O’Hare (0-3), D. O’Hanlon, M. Poland (0-5, 4F), E. McCartan (0-1), C. Harrison (0-1). Subs: L. Devlin (0-1), R. Boyle, D. Turley, S. McNamee, N. Madine (0-1, 1F), J. McCarthy. Black cards: K. King (23rd minute), D. O’Hanlon (31st minute).

UUJ: M. McReynolds, K. McKaigue, C. McKaigue, D. McNally, P. McPolin (0-1), L. Keaney, K. Clarke, C. Duggan, N. McKeever (0-1), C. Gough, P. Hughes, P. Casey, D. Savage (0-3, 3F), C. O’Boyle (0-1, 1F), A. Burns. Subs: R. McAleenan, D. McKay (0-1), C. McClean, N. O’Neill, R. Donnelly. Black card: P. Casey (41st minute).

Down 1-15

UUJ 0-7

DR McKENNA CUP SECTION C