Derrylaughan Edge Game for the Ages

Saturday 09.11.2024

Club

Ulster Intermediate Football Championship Quarter Final
Derrylaughan 3-21 All Saints 6-12 (Derrylaughan win 5 – 4 on penalties)

How?  How did Derrylaughan find the resolve to come back from a dark place mid way through the second half.  How did All Saints score six goals and lose?  In fact how did they score a total of 10 goals and lose? How did two teams manage to share 9-33 and not produce a winner after 80 plus minutes of football?  How are we going to do this game justice in a match report?

All Saints opened the scoring in the first minute of the game through a Paddy McAleer goal.  James Donnelly responded with a point for the Kevin Barry’s in the 5th minute ahead of a second All Saints goal in the 8th minute.  Sean McVeigh palming a fist pass across the small square to the Derrylaughan net.  As is their way in this year’s Intermediate Championship Derrylaughan clipped over the next five points in the game to level the contest by the 23rd minute.   James Donnelly firing over two points either side of three Tomas Carney points from the dead ball.  Two frees and a 45.  A Paddy McAleer free in the 24th minute was cancelled out at minute later by another Tomas Carney free.  That levelled the game again but that was about to change.  A speculative long ball into the box from All Saints Ronan McKillop was completely lost in flight and made its way into the Derrylaughan net to leave the Ballymena men three ahead.  By the 28th minute that lead was four thanks to a 13 metre free from Paddy McAleer.  Derrylaughan did land the last point of the half. Tomas Carney launching over his fifth point from a free.

Half Time – Derrylaughan 0-8 All Saints 3-3

The first half produced 13 scores and the second half would go one better, The Kevin Barry.s had another poor start to it conceding a Paddy McAllen goal inside 23 seconds of the throw in.  Fergal McAliskey and All Saints Shaun O’Callaghan shared the next two points and by the 45th minute a Colm O’Hagan point reduced the deficit to six points.  Cometh the hour Cometh the man.  Derrylaughan’s Brian Kennedy moved into full forward and it reaped dividends immediately.  A long ball into the square was collected and hammered to the bottom left hand corner of the net.  Gap down to three points.  Within sixty seconds it was six again.  All Saints Conor Stewart firing the ball low and hard to the net with twelve minutes to go.  Derrylaughan playing into a stiff breeze looked dead and buried.  Their body language painted a different picture.  Back they came again.  First three quick fire points from Tomas Carney, Fergal McAliskey and substitute Darragh Carney.  Three point game with one minute of normal time to go.  Step forward Brian Kennedy once again.  He jumped onto another long ball into the inside forward line and somehow kicked the ball to the corner of the net through a crowd of All Saints defenders.  There was more to come.  A 60th minute Conall Lemon point for All Saints was cancelled out by a superb Liam Cushnahan point in the 61st.   Conor Stewart might well have thought he won the game in the 62nd minute when he hammered over a long range point from play only for James Donnelly to kick over a 64th minute point to send the side to extra time.  Full Time – Derrylaughan 2-15 All Saints 5-6.

The opening period of extra time wasn’t any less dramatic.  Brian Kennedy punched the throw in forward ran onto it and clipped over a classy point inside ten seconds to put Derrylaughan into the lead.  All Saints responded brilliantly.  Brendan McDonnell hammering home a sixth All Saints goal in the 2nd minute.  Another point from Paddy McAleer eased the Ballymena side out to a three point lead.  That lasted less than 45 seconds.  Derrylaughan’s Ciaran Gervin turning the ball to the net after an excellent fast sideline ball.  Gervin again was on hand in the 69th minute to stretch up and turn over another score for Derrylaughan.  This time a point to leave them one up at the short whistle.

The second period of extra time produced an incredible nine scores, the first three coming from All Saints.  Michael McCarry, Conall Lemon and James McDonnell all on target.  Tomas Carney scored again in the 76th minute but Brendan McDonnell responded almost immediately.  Two point game.  Another two Tomas Carney points in the 78th and 80th minute levelled the game once again.  Game over?  Not a chance.  Conor Stewart launched another long range shot in the 82nd minute for what looked like the winner.  It wasn’t to be.  James Donnelly keeping his nerve to curl over an 83rd minute equaliser from a free.  Penalties.

With about ten minutes left of light the penalty shootout produced five excellent penalties from the Derrylaughan men.  Conor Hughes, Fergal McAliskey, Tomas Carney, James Donnelly and Colm O’Hagan all finding the net.  For All Saints they couldn’t replicate the perfect shootout.  They did convert four of their penalties but James Kennedy got down low to deny their second spot kick.  Leaving Colm O’Hagan to send the Kevin Barry’s into the last four of the Ulster Intermediate Championship.

Referee – Diarmuid Boylan (Monaghan)