Moy tide keeps rising as McHale settles clash of the Davitts’
Moy Davitts midfielder Anthony Jordan beats Cian Naughton of Davitts to the catch during the Egan Jewellers Mayo Intermediate Football Championship semi-final at Fr O’Hara Park, Charlestown, last Saturday. Picture: David Farrell Photography
Coming from five points behind, it was by the skin of their teeth at windswept Charlestown that Moy Davitts booked their place in this year’s final of the county intermediate football championship.
Their opponents Davitts were left to rue kicking seven wides but only three points when having the assistance of a stiff first-half breeze, and despite making an exceptionally bright start to the second-half, scoring a goal and point inside three minutes, they were unable to hold back the Moy tide. So while the two namesakes both celebrate their 50th anniversaries this year, only one still has the opportunity to plonk the Sweeney Cup upon the top table at its dinner dance.
The fare of the second-half was a major improvement on the first, as both sets of players seemed to finally come to terms with Saturday’s inclement weather conditions. Compare, however, the nine points kicked by Moy Davitts with the breeze to Davitts’ first-half return, and it’s not difficult to understand how this game was won and lost.
The South Mayo side did have a stoppage-time chance to force extra-time but Dylan Gallagher’s 25-metre free dropped short and referee Jerome Henry awarded a free-out for a square ball infringement. It was tough on Gallagher, being one of only two Davitts players to score from play, while Moy Davitts themselves had only three. Such a little thing made a very big difference in a game of such fine margins.
It took some exceptional kicking by Cian McHale and Ronan Clarke, who each finished with five points, and a point by Sean Kelly, Moy Davitts’ only other scorer, to get James Mulderrig’s side over the line. Former Mayo attacker Brian Reape defied an ankle injury to play the entire game for the Red and White and while held scoreless, his menacing presence kept the Davitts full-back line on high alert throughout and he was particularly unlucky to see a punched goal effort smash against the crossbar just two minutes after the opposition had struck the game’s only goal.
Niall Treacy’s 33rd minute finish to the Moy Davitts net had seemed the perfect antidote to a disappointing first-half by Liam Nyland’s side. It’s not that they had played particularly badly, in fact there was a lot to admire, especially how Colm Boyle’s role as a sweeper was hindering Moy Davitts’ efforts to fully engage Reape at full-forward, but with five different players all off target from shots, the 0-3 to 0-2 lead Davitts held at the halfway stage didn’t feel as though it was going to be enough. And that’s how it ultimately proved.
It had taken the men in black 11 minutes to open their account, when Colm Boyle’s long ball saw Ciaran Treacy offload to brother Niall who popped over. But Moy Davitts, for whom Brian Reape had already clipped a post and sent a goal chance whizzing across the square, soon equalised when a push on Brian Heneghan allowed Ronan Clarke to open his account from a free.
Dylan Gallagher, twice, and Jack Melvin both hit wides before Niall Treacy doubled his and his side’s account from a self-won free, and Melvin hit a beauty of a long-range free from the off-the-ground to send Davitts two points clear in the 27th minute. But that was Davitts done from a scoring perspective in the first-half, which allowed the left-footed Cian McHale, after a marauding run by Conor Reid was unfairly ended, to halve the arrears from a 25-metre free.
Melvin scored another free from off the carpet just after the restart and after Jerome Henry overruled an umpire to disallow Cian McHale a point at the other end, Davitts pounced for their major. Boyle broke forward and offloaded to Fenton Kelly who made 20 yards before launching a ball into the top right corner where Niall Treacy slipped by his marker Oisin McHugh and buried the ball inside keeper Chris McGlynn’s near post.
Davitts now led 1-4 to 0-2 but by the 40th minute their East Mayo opponents had already rallied to within a point thanks to a brace apiece by Ronan Clarke and Cian McHale, the latter scoring one from play. And Mulderrig’s men could easily have had a goal too as Brian Heneghan, after Reape’s punch off the crossbar, had his rebound smothered by a defender.
But Davitts remained dangerous on the break and it took a tactical foul by Jack Dunleavy just outside the 13-metre line to deny Stephen Nyland a shot for a second Davitts goal, but with Niall Treacy converting the free, the Ballindine-Irishtown outfit ended the third quarter with a 1-5 to 0-6 advantage – at which stage they introduced the fresh legs of Liam Kearns and Darragh McGale. But Moy Davitts, the wind at their backs, were growing in confidence and by the 48th minute had drawn level. Cian McHale worked a sideline ball short from which Jamie Clarke and Anthony Jordan combined to set-up Sean Kelly who whipped over the bar from the right wing and shortly after, the Moysiders forced a turnover and Ronan Clarke curled over his first point from play.
Clarke had another within three minutes, this one a skyscraper from long range, but that came in reply to Dylan Gallagher rounding off an excellent Davitts surge upfield with a point from the left wing, and so with 10 minutes left on the clock, the sides remained all-square, 1-6 to 0-9.
Moy Davitts hit the front for the first time in the 54th minute and while Neil Murphy, Brian Heneghan and scorer Cian McHale were the final links, the move had begun down at the other end with McGlynn’s dash from his line to intercept a dangerous ball into the goalmouth. An even better Davitts goal chance occurred when Ciaran Treacy sped through the cover and although spilling the ball, still managed to rifle a shot that flew just past the bottom right corner.
A converted free by Niall Treacy meant the teams were in deadlock again but it was bang on 60 minutes when came what turned out the match-winning point. Ciaran Treacy, under pressure from several Moy Davitts players, touched the ball on the ground which presented the opportunity for Cian McHale, from all of 49-metres, to boot his side into their first intermediate final since 2017.
“At half-time we thought we were in a good position and then Davitts came out and got a goal early, it put us under pressure,” admitted Man-of-the-Match McHale afterwards.
“It was a strong wind to play with so it suited some of our forwards, we fancy ourselves as good forwards, so we started tipping over the points. They started fouling us a bit more, we looked to drive on and tapped over a few frees, so we’re happy with that,” he added.
The final on Sunday October 27 at 2.30pm in Hastings Insurance MacHale Park will be a repeat of the group clash that saw Moy Davitts move from nine points behind to eight points in front before eventually beating Crossmolina Deel Rovers by five points. It’ll be a cracker if the drama is only half as good.
Scorers – Moy Davitts: Ronan Clarke and Cian McHale 0-5 (3f) each, Sean Kelly 0-1.
Davitts: Niall Treacy 1-4 (0-3f), Jack Melvin 0-2f, Dylan Gallagher 0-1.
Moy Davitts: Chris McGlynn; Neil Murphy, Oisin McHugh, Fiachra Cruise; Cathal Clarke, Jack Dunleavy, Jamie Clarke; Conor Reid, Anthony Jordan; Cian McHale, Colm McHale, Sean Kelly; Brian Heneghan, Brian Reape, Ronan Clarke. Subs: Padraig Ruane (for J Clarke 46), Oisin Quinn (for Dunleavy 50), Alan Bourke (for Cruise 60+3).
Davitts: Dylan O’Brien; Brian Birmingham, Cathal Higgins, Kieran Fahy; Brian Og McTigue, Colm Boyle, Mark Birmingham; Fenton Kelly, Jack Melvin; Ciaran Treacy, Cian Naughton, Stephen Nyland; Dylan Gallagher, Niall Treacy, Shane Treacy. Subs: Sean Keadin (for M Birmingham 13-15, blood), Darragh McGale and Liam Kearns (for McTigue and Naughton 44), Ronan McNamara (for B Birmingham 48).
REF: Jerome Henry (Castlebar)
