Senior Football Reserve Championship 2013 Glenravel 1-16 v 3-09 Aghagallon 26 Jun 2013 Wednesday night past seen the Preliminary Round fixture of this years Reserve Shield where we were drawn against Aghagallon. With only a few days notice of the fixture it wasn’t ideal preparations but all eligible players were given the call of duty and mostly affirmative replies meant we had a strong panel of 21 players to work with. Conditions on the night were almost perfect for a game of football and with a good crowd out to support the team took to the field ready for the task ahead, knowing that Aghagallon would be a strong physical team. Straight from the throw-in the players showed their intent and although the first attack didn’t bring any reward it wasn’t long before the first white flag was raised in the home sides favour. Possession was won by Paddy Bell in our own half and a quick ball in to the forward line was worked through to the onrushing Micky McQuillan who wasted no time dispatching the ball over the bar. With the confidence up we started moving the ball well and another quick ball in was gathered by Conor Higgins who turned his man well only to be held back though the referee was on top of it and awarded the free around the 40m mark. Up stepped Caolan McCambridge to double our advantage with a well taken kick from the ground. At this stage we were really dominating possession but unfortunately hit a couple of wides and were to be punished by Aghagallon who, after firing a warning with a narrowly wide shot, scored two quick points which brought the game level . Undeterred our lads kept playing with the same intent that they had started the game and hit a real purple patch during which Aghagallon could only watch as we hit point after point – mostly from distance to open up a 6 point lead. The first of these was a fine point from Decky Diamond after good build up play and this was followed almost immediately with another from Caolan after he hit another free from the ground around the 45. Decky double his tally for the night on the next attack with another long range effort before Aghagallon managed to get possession and work it up the field only to hit a wide from around 35m out. The next 3 attacks brought another 3 points to our tally and opened up a 6 point gap with all 3 points coming from good build up play and a shoot on sight approach which was deployed throughout the first half to great success – these were scored by Micky, Gareth McKeown and another for Decky who it seemed couldn’t miss. As we entered the last 10 minutes of the half it looked like it was all one way traffic but then, with Glenravel down to 14 men as Paddy was receiving attention off the field after a ‘shoulder’ to the chest Aghagallon added their 3rd point of the night. This gave the visitors a bit of belief and the soon added a 4th point of the night though the ease with which they were getting to run through and get the shot away was of concern. Still, we kept moving the ball in quick to the forwards and Gareth and Micky added two more points to leave 6 in it again with the short whistle nearing. The final action of the half saw Aghagallon drive through our defence and although it seemed the forward had firstly taken too many steps and then threw the ball it was deemed he was fouled and the penalty was awarded which was expertly dispatched to our net allowing Paul no chance to get near it. Half Time: Glenravel 0-11 Aghagallon 1-5 After a short half time break the second half was started and it was Aghagallon who won possession from the throw-in though their attack brought no gain. The ball was then played in to our forward line and a free was won out wide just over 40m from goal but unfortunately Deckys shot drifted just wide of the uprights. However, a minute or so later the same player made no mistake from distance to stretch the lead a bit more. It was obvious what the Aghagallon tactics were from the start of the second half as they targeted their Full Forward in most attacks but ironically it was an solo effort where the player seemed to run half the pitch in possession that got the next score for Aghagallon. We had won possession around the middle but somehow just fumbled it when we had 2 men in support and this was snatched on by the Aghagallon midfielder who played the ball to a team mate who took off on a mazy run, ghosting round our players before firing to the net. This really raised the spirits of the Aghagallon players though we still managed to get the next score with an excellent point from Paddy which was struck from outside the 45 and went high over the black spot. We also had a goal disallowed for a square ball after a sideline kick was fisted to the back of the net though the referee was quick to signal for the free out (a quick check of the new rules that night showed that the ref was spot on in his call). Back came Aghagallon and hit their own purple patch getting 1-4 in a sequence of attacks. The goal was disappointing to concede as it was a 45 which dropped in to the square and was fisted unchallenged to our net in a crowded box – also the fact that the player was inside the square before the ball came in from the 45 should have meant it was also disallowed and given that we had the call made against us a few minutes earlier added to the frustration. It also meant that Aghagallon had turned a 6 point deficit just before half time in to a 5 point lead though as it happened this was to be their last score of the night. Realising the severity of the situation our players composed themselves and started to dominate the game again coming in to the last 10 minutes. Ronan Higgins started the fight back with a point from an acute angle before the same player scored arguably one of the best goals seen in football on Fr Maginn park in a long time. A long quick ball was played in to the corner and picked up by Gareth who firstly side stepped his man before playing the ball out beyond the 21. Another quick pass and the ball made its way to an onrushing Ronan who let fly from around 25m and a slight angle with a thunderbolt of a shot which flew past a number of Aghagallon defenders and a helpless keeper who could only watch as it smashed right in to the far top corner of the net. This spurred the guys on even more and when Caolan added another fine point from play the sides were back level. It was entering squeaky bum time as the clock was running down when the ball was played to Fergal Higgins who remained cool under pressure to slot over what turned out to be the winning point from around 35m out. There was still a few minutes left and in the next attack we were awarded a penalty but unfortunately Ronan couldn’t add to our lead as a mishit was easily saved by the keeper and suddenly they were on the attack in search of the equalising or winning score. They made their way to our 20m line but with our defence standing up and not fouling the ball the Aghagallon forward soon found himself with nowhere to go and blown up for over carrying. It seemed like this would be the final play but a moment of madness where the ball was kicked away to waste time was noticed by the referee and suddenly a free to us was turned in to a hop ball on our 20m line. There was a scramble again and although the ball made its way to an Aghagallon player the shot went wide and before Paul could take the resulting kick-out the referee called for the ball and called time to see us progress to the ¼ final. This is a game which provided much excitement for the supporters in that it had a bit of everything. Some great flowing moves and scores from distance, couple of penalties, lots of hard hits and a comeback after throwing away a comfortable lead. The players themselves showed great character to grab control of the game again when it looked like Aghagallon were going to press on and snatch the match from us. However, if we are to progress beyond the next game we need to knuckle down and get bodies out to training so that we can work as a unit on the field for the full 60 minutes. With a growing squad of players and more to come in now that the exams have finished it means there will be genuine competition for places. From a management perspective we had a bit of a headache picking the team for this game and we have no doubt it won’t be any easier in the ¼ final so we have already stocked up on the Ibuprofen in anticipation. We just ask the players to do their bit now and get out on a Tuesday and Friday night at the pitch. With a bit of belief and hard work there is no reason why this group of can’t go far in this competition but like everything in life, you don’t get it handed to you (unless you are born in to Royalty). Finally, a big thank you to all who came out to support – even with the midges!! Having a decent crowd there to get behind the lads definitely helps and I have no doubt the vocal support helped push the lads over the line when things got tough. The ¼ final is against Aldergrove reserves which is going to be another tough game as they ply their trade in the Division 1 Reserve league. From looking at the draw it should be a home tie so we would ask as many people to come out and be that 16th man and make sure we progress to the semi. No dates announced yet and if this round is anything to go by we might only know a day or two in advance so keep an eye on the Club website or Facebook page for further info. Squad: P Reynolds, D O’Hagan, K McKinley, P Mulholland, R O’Dornan, F Higgins, D Reid, M McQuillan, D Birt, C McCambridge, C Higgins, P Bell, G McKeown, R Higgins, D Diamond, G O’Callaghan, C Higgins, B Lynas, J Fyfe, M Rae, A McLarnon
Posted on: Sat, 29 Jun 2013 10:35:00 +0000
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