THERE WERE only two games in the Jackie Crossan Premier Division yesterday with Greencastle defeating Culdaff and QPS and Carn playing out a draw.
Greencastle FC 3 Culdaff FC 2
IN A lively match where play swung from end to end the home side prevailed as the visitors finished the match with nine players following two dismissals.
Greencastle moved in front on 34 minutes when Christy Hegarty’s initial shot was parried by Darragh McLaughlin out to Shaun Cavanagh and he scored from 10 yards.
Play was evenly balanced then and it was not until the 55th minute that Greencastle increased their lead.
Michael Henry crossed into the centre and Hegarty volleyed home from 15 yards.
Culdaff dragged themselves back into the game and reduced the deficit when Brendan Fildara found the net when he shot from outside the area.
However, Greencastle restored their two goal advantage when Danny Murphy accepted a pass from Kevin McLaughlin and with the visitors appealing for offside he raced clear and fired home.
Brendan Fildara scored an opportunistic goal from 10 yards with five minutes remaining but the home side held out to claim all three points.
Quigley’s Point Swifts 2-2 Carndonagh
BRANDON Brown’s last-gasp equaliser earned ten-man Carndonagh a hard-earned point and denied Quigley’s Point Swifts a second straight league victory in Muff on Sunday.
The home side started the match well. Colm Deery, who was making his debut for the Muff side, shot just over after three minutes from a Chris Montieth cross.
On fifteen minutes Deery shot wide from sixteen yards after good home pressure in the Carn half.
The Swifts went in front on eighteen minutes. A lovely weighted ball from Joe McKinney on the left found Deery at the back post, and the debutant bundled the ball home from six yards.
Quigley’s Point continued to press the visitors, although a defensive mix-up almost gifted Carn an equaliser on 20 minutes. Matthew McLaughlin shot well wide when one-on-one with Point keeper Oisin Burke.
At the other end, Mickey Nicholas had two half-chances dealt with by Carn goalkeeper Daniel Houghton.
The home side made it 2-0 three minutes before the break. Nicholas’s well-struck free kick was pushed away low by Houghton.
Odhran McColgan picked the ball up on the right byline and squared a low pass to an oncoming DJ Canavan, who shot into the roof of the net at the near post.
The visitors started the second half more positively, but their task was made harder on fifty-two minutes when Darragh Brown was sent-off for a second bookable offence.
This seemed to galvanise the visitors, however, and they were back in the game on 60 minutes.
Ronan Doherty’s thunderbolt free-kick from twenty yards found the top left corner, giving Oisin Burke no chance.
The home side tried to slow the pace of the game with the extra man advantage. On 67 minutes, Jordan McLaughlin went close with a twenty-five yard effort after a neat lay-off from Colm Deery.
Carn continued to work hard, with Ryan Kelly shooting wide from outside the box. Carn’s resilient second-half performance would pay dividends right at the death.
In the fourth minute of injury time, a long goal kick from Houghton was well controlled by substitute Declan McGonagle.
His cross from the right flank seemed to heading goal-wards but was tipped onto the bar by Oisin Burke. Brandon Brown pounced on the loose ball, heading into the net to secure a 2-2 draw and leave Quigley’s Point to rue a wasteful second-half performance.
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