Clogher Win D2 Relegation Playoff

Sunday 02.10.2022

All County League

Clogher 2-14 Cookstown 0-12

Clogher retained their intermediate status and in the process condemned Cookstown to junior football in 2023, after Saturday’s relegation play off in Clogher.

Despite playing against the breeze it was Cookstown who started better, early points from Connor O’Hare, John Gilmore and Matthew Carberry gave the visitors a 3-1 lead, Ryan McCaughey getting Clogher’s opener.  By the tenth minute the sides were level following a long delivery from Bogue which bounced over the bar and a free from Ciaran Bogue.

The game’s first goal was to arrive on 12 minutes, Mark McConnell initially lost control of the ball but showed composure to finish into Philip Kelly’s net. Shea O’Driscoll and Barry McKenna exchanged points before scores from Shields and Bogue nudged Clogher further in front. Cookstown staged a bit of revival in the latter stages of the half, a brace of points from Carberry and an excellent Ryan Pickering saw the half time score read 1-7 0-7, Mark Bogue getting Clogher’s final point of the half.

On the resumption Matthew Carberry narrowed the deficit before Sean Bogue and Conor Shields edged Clogher further clear. As the game reached the midpoint of the second half, two Carberry frees left two between them. Ultimately the contest was decided in the next 5 minutes.  Firstly Cookstown’s Connor O’Neill picked up a black card and things got worse for the visitors minutes later when Ryan Pickering picked up two yellow cards in quick succession.  Using the numerical advantages Clogher put the result beyond doubt with scores from Ryan McCaughey, Sean Bogue and Michael McCaughey.

In the final ten minutes another Ryan McCaughey score was sandwiched between Cookstown points from Matthew Carberry and Conor Donnelly.  As the game entered injury time, Ciaran Bogue added the icing on the cake as he fired home to the delight of the Clogher support. The Eire Ogs now await the winner of the Division three promotion playoffs in a final winner takes all encounter.

Clogher: Rory McElroy, Rory McCaughey, Sean McCaffrey, Mattie Callaghan, Jamie Callaghan, Conor Shields(0-3), Mark Bogue (0-1) Sean Bogue (0-2) Dara Mellon, Michael McCaughey (0-1) Ciaran Bogue (1-2) Mark McConnell (1-0), Ryan McCaughey (0-4) Barry McKenna (0-1) Cillian Barkley

Cookstown: Philip Kelly, Connor Foley, Luke Cullen, Ronan Donnelly, John McIvor, Ryan Pickering(0-1), Connor Donnelly(0-1), Matthew McNeill, Connor O’Neill, Martin Murray, Callan Kelly, Shea O’Driscoll (0-1), Matthew Carberry(0-7), John Gilmore(0-1), Connor O’Hare(0-1)

Referee: Brian McCallion, Castlederg