Celtic 'B' Mark the occasion with Rattigan winner
Seamus Hughes, Mayo Football League chairman, presents the Tuohy Cup to Ciaran Gavin captain Castlebar Celtic 'B' after defeating Westport United 'B' in the Tuohy Cup Final.
Westport United 'B' had the better of the first half, Castlebar Celtic 'B' the better of the second and in the end, Celtic had just a little bit more luck to get the goal that secured them the victory – a fair assessment on a closely fought game.
For the third season in-a-row, Celtic 'B' have claimed silverware and while their drive for three league titles in three years will certainly be thwarted by Glenhest Rovers, they have laid claim to the divisional cup, the Tuohy Cup.
This victory also marks the continuation of one of the county’s finest winning runs; Celtic 'B' have now won their last 11 games, a run stretching back to May 2 when they beat Ballyheane 'B' in the first round of this competition on penalties having gone 2-0 behind and had a man sent off. That same man, Mark Rattigan, who could have been the villain of Celtic B's cup run had they been eliminated that day, ended up the hero who scored the winning goal in the final.
It was a poor game for the usually prolific strikers on both teams but Celtic 'B' needed just a moment to win it. It was a momentary lapse of goalkeeping from the otherwise solid Patrick O’Malley that allowed Rattigan a free swipe at the ball just millimetres from goal with 51 minutes played. They held out held for the remaining 40 minutes and captain Ciaran Gavin was immense in defence, performing the feats that would earn him the man of the match award.
Celtic had been slowly making their way into the game having been second-best in the first half. Westport were on top in the first half but lacked a cutting edge in front of goal, a recurring theme for both teams throughout the game.
Their best chance came through Dan O’Malley off a quick Coveys breakaway. Evan Durkan was the main threat going forward and he carried possession into the Celtic half. He found Jack Murphy in the middle and he dinked the ball into space for O’Malley to chase. The flag stayed down and he unleashed a volley with the left boot that flew wide of the goalpost.
Celtic were getting swarmed in midfield by the likes of John and Jack Murphy and Cillian McGing and desperately needed to change things up. Shortly into the second half, Matthew Lydon made way for Ruairi Nevin and now Gerry Hunt dropped deeper into midfield, having started playing behind the striker. He brought strength and steel and, most importantly, leadership to the centre of the park.
Nevin played higher up and had an instant impact. Adam Diamond-Keane did well to win a corner, darting into the Westport box before Joe Sweet swept it behind for the set piece. Nevin’s corner delivery went deep into Westport territory and though Patrick O’Malley got hands to the ball, he spilled it and that allowed Rattigan to pounce. Advantage Celtic.
Westport United made some changes to try and alter the course of the game. Luke Dawson and Simeon Popov looked lively when they came on as a part of a triple substitution with Sean Heaney but Westport still lacked the killer, final pass to break the Celtic lines, which were marshalled superbly by Ciaran Gavin.
Losing a cup final by such narrow margins can make a team feel like they left a game behind them but a perusal through their sparse highlight reel shows that Westport did not conjure up nearly enough chances to call it a game they should have won. The same could have been said of Celtic if they ended the final as the losing side but that moment of luck benefitting Rattigan got them over the line come full-time.
