Achill pushed all the way by gutsy Moygownagh
Tiorlach Devr of Achill tries to break away from Moygownagh’s Oisin Carolan and Oran Gallagher. Picture: David Farrell Photography
Moygownagh’s first championship match of the season was unfortunately also their last, as the North Mayo outfit came up four points short of the visiting Achill side in Sunday’s Mayo Junior ‘B’ quarter-final.
Moygownagh didn’t take part in this year’s ‘A’ championship but gave a very good account of themselves here against an Achill team whose three outings in that ‘A’ competition certainly stood to them. But the Islanders could perhaps do with sharpening their shooting given they kicked eleven wides, dropped two more shots short and could easily have added three more goals to the two they scored.
They did, however, line out without a number of regulars, with Eddie Doran and Jonathan Fadian the most notable of their five changes from the side that had lost its final group game to Swinford by an agonising one point.
Moygownagh had bounced into life with an early two point free by Barry Gaughan followed by a hard-earned point from play by centre-back Michael Gallagher, formerly of Crossmolina Deel Rovers. Indeed the hosts were unfortunate not to double that lead as Barry Gaughan had also been superbly picked out by Gallagher whose long ball left the wing-forward one-on-one with Achill goalkeeper Sean McNamara in the eleventh minute. With options also to his left however, Gaughan shot wide off his left boot.
Achill had themselves kicked six wides before John Joyce opened their account in the 13th minute with the first of his four first-half points, two of which came from frees.
Oisin Carolan restored Moygownagh’s three points advantage when firing over off the back of Kevin Murray and Oran Gallagher’s build-up play, but the decisive moments of the opening half – and probably the game – were the scoring of two Achill goals, the first of which arrived on the quarter hour.
Michael Darragh Sweeney managed to win possession at top of the left and after a give-and-go with John Joyce, Sweeney passed across the square where Ronan Kilbane was on hand to palm the ball home.
Joyce then kicked Achill in front for the first time with back to back points from play and while Barry Gaughan countered with a free, Joyce’s fourth point of the half saw Achill hold a 1-4 to 0-5 lead after 26 minutes.
The lead exchanged hands again when Gaughan’s second two-point free was added to by Carolan’s second point from play, but Barry Gaughan dropped an easier free short before Achill delivered a sucker punch in the very last play of the opening half.
Centrally involved in the first, Michael Darragh Sweeney was key to Achill’s second goal too, holding off his marker Darragh McDonnell and offloading to Conor English who popped the ball across the goalmouth for Peter Gallagher to punch home, in a move so very similar to what had yielded the earlier green flag. The West Mayo visitors now held a 2-4 to 0-8 advantage.
Maybe it was something to do with shooting into the clubhouse end but Moygownagh experienced the same sort of difficulties that Achill had at the beginning of the first-half, when substitute Shane McKinley, midfielder John McDonnell and Barry Gaughan, from a free, each missed decent scoring chances shortly after the restart.
Gaughan did punish a three-up breach by Achill with a pointed free, however, by the 43rd minute Achill had opened up a four points lead thanks to singles by Brian Lavelle, Michael Darragh Sweeney and Sean Dever, while David Grealis also dragged an excellent goal chance to the left of the target after some smart build-up involving English, Kilbane and Peter Gallagher.
Cormac Blehein of Moygownagh traded a point with Brian Lavelle before Barry Gaughan’s free made it a three point game with ten minutes remaining.
Achill had chances to kill off the home side but Peter Gallagher’s goal attempt drew an excellent save from Shane Gallagher while it was Moygownagh full-back Thomas Birrane who came to his goalkeeper’s rescue soon after when managing to block another Achill goal effort, this one by substitute James Gallagher.
But points by Michael Darragh Sweeney and another sub, James O’Hara, had pushed the margin out to five points by the time Gaughan saw his late goal chance for Moygownagh skim back into play off the woodwork, as Achill held on to book their place in the last four.
Scorers – Achill: John Joyce 0-0-4 (2f), Ronan Kilbane and Peter Gallagher 1-0-0 each, Brian Lavelle and Michael Darragh Sweeney 0-0-2 each, Sean Dever and James O’Hara 0-0-1 each.
Moygownagh: Barry Gaughan 0-2-3 (2tpf, 3f), Oisin Carolan 0-0-2, Michael Gallagher and Cormac Blehein 0-0-1 each.
Moygownagh: Shane Gallagher; Declan Gilroy, Thomas Birrane, Darragh McDonnell; Brian Dyra, Michael Gallagher, Mark Gaughan; Kevin Murray, John McDonnell; Rory Staunton, Oisin Carolan, Barry Gaughan; Paul Gallagher, Oran Gallagher, Cormac Blehein. Subs: Shane McKinley (for P Gallagher ht), Tiernan Gallagher (for Staunton 40), Lorcan Finnerty (for J McDonnell 48), McDonnell (for Blehein 60+2).
Achill: Sean McNamara; Chris Dever, Eugene Doran, Tiernan Cooney; Cian McCarthy, Fionnbarr Gallagher, David Grealis; Conor English, Tiorlach Dever; Brian Lavelle, Peter Gallagher, John Joyce; Michael Darragh Sweeney, Ronan Kilbane, Sean Dever. Subs: James O’Hara (for Joyce 41), Thomas Grealis (for D Grealis 56), James Gallagher (for Kilbane 59).
REF: Michael Daly (Ballyhaunis)
