No Island’ paradise as Davitts have the Cian edge
Cian Naughton is of Davitts is outnumbered by Islandeady's Peter Collins and Mark Kirby during the Mayo GAA Intermediate Championship semi-final at Páirc Naomh Muire, Tourmakeady, last Saturday afternoon. Picture: Conor McKeown
It might be too simplistic to suggest it was just a case of tired legs catching up on Islandeady, but playing their third game in 13 days – the other two having gone to extra-time – against a Davitts side for whom this was their first match in three weeks, certainly looked to have an impact on the latter stages ofSaturday’s highly entertaining intermediate semi-final.
After Darragh Joyce missed a glorious chance to haul Islandeady level with 46 minutes on the clock, when dropping a 20 metre free short against the wind, the underdogs found themselves outscored by 2-5 to 0-4 between there and the finish. But even at that, Davitts’ goals didn’t arrive until stoppage time, meaning the scoreboard at full-time painted something of a false image about just how fiercely contested this game had been until then.
All that said, Davitts are most deserving of their place in this season’s final, a first appearance since 2011. They had finished the first-half two points in front despite playing into the teeth of a stiff Tourmakeady breeze, and would have led by more had the crossbar not denied Fenton Kelly from a scoring a sensational individual goal into the clubhouse end on 22 minutes, or if Islandeady goalkeeper Bryan O’Flaherty had not produced a brilliant save to deny Jack Ronayne from smashing home the rebound.
But as tricky as the Davitts attack had looked throughout the match, it’s interesting to note that the Islandeady forward line scored 15 points from play compared to 1-6 by the front six of Davitts, as the winners turned out more reliant on the heroic efforts of a former goalkeeper for scores.
With a solitary point to his name in Davitts’ four championship outings heretofore, Cian Naughan scored two goals and two points while operating alongside Fenton Kelly at midfield on Saturday, in an outstanding display by the club’s ex-netminder.
Early Islandeady points by Ryan McNamara and Sean Collins, the latter after Davitts goalkeeper Dylan O’Brien had blocked Darragh Joyce’s shot at goal, had been cancelled out by Niall Treacy at the other end, one of his points from a free won by his brother Ciaran, when Cian Naughton struck for the game’s first goal in the ninth minute. Naughton punched home at the back post after Niall Treacy had cut in from the left along the endline and hand-passed over goalkeeper Bryan O’Flaherty.
The Davitts lead was reduced to a point by the end of the first quarter as Joyce and Zac Collins kicked a point apiece, the former benefitting from a wonderfully smart flick by Darragh O’Malley, and while Ciaran Treacy fisted over his first point of the afternoon, the game was levelled in the 20th minute after Brendan Gibbons kicked two points in under 30 seconds for Islandeady.
Davitts pushed ahead again, as Shane Treacy and Fenton Kelly raised white flags either side of Kelly and Ronayne’s aforementioned failed shots for goal, but back came their opponents who nudged into a 0-9 to 1-5 lead after 27 minutes courtesy of three points on the spin by Ryan McNamara, Zac Collins and Darragh Joyce.
McNamara and Collins, at times, were unmarkable, and given their youth, Islandeady look to have something very solid and exciting upon which to build for the future.
The White and Green could have been further ahead but Diarmuid Gibbons and Seamie Lally were among those guilty of rushing and missing opportunities, as the West Mayo outfit tried – sometimes too eagerly – to capitalise on the breeze behind them. Ironically, however, for a game so massively impacted by the wind, neither side was to score a single two-pointer on the day.
Davitts did, however, close out the first-half with three crucial points from frees, two of them struck off-the-ground by Jack Melvin, either side of one by Niall Treacy after another foul on his brother Ciaran. That left Davitts 1-8 to 0-9 in front at the change of ends, with the elements in their favour from hereon.
There seemed then an air of inevitability about the game when Cian Naughton needed only 10 seconds to kick the first point of the second-half which was swiftly followed by Jack Melvin combining with Tom Waldron and Jack Ronayne to fire over his third point, and first from play, giving Davitts a four points advantage.
A trading of frees between Joyce and Melvin followed, before Islandeady reeled off consecutive points by Bryan O’Flaherty, a ’45, and Ryan McNamara, two, to cut the gap to the minimum by the 44th minute. It had also taken a strong hand from Davitts goalkeeper Dylan O’Brien to deny half-time substitute Cillian Joyce from scoring a goal, as Islandeady began to make light work of playing into the breeze.
McNamara’s latter point had a touch of sorcery about it, with his marker several times looking like he had his opponent wrapped up only for McNamara’s wand of a left boot to curl the ball over majestically.
Had Darragh Joyce been able to equalise from a close range free, who’s to know how far the momentum could have carried Islandeady, but the wind was whipped from their sails when a foul on Fenton Kelly allowed Jack Melvin to drive over another free before points by Naughton and Niall Treacy made it 1-14 to 0-13 with 52 minutes on the clock.
The introduction of former All-Star Colm Boyle had a positive impact on Davitts for all of the final quarter but still they struggled to shake off Islandeady, as the excellent Zac Collins hit two more points for the chasers. But those were negated by Ronan Kelly and Ciaran Treacy before Jack Melvin delivered the fatal blow of a second Davitts goal on the hour mark, drilling home at the end of a counterattack to put six points between the sides. A third goal arrived in between consolation points by Joyce and Collins, as Cian Naughton, just as did for his first, arrived at the back post to palm to the net, after Fenton Kelly’s electric burst of pace had carved open the defence.
The result confirmed an all-South Mayo county intermediate final between Davitts and Ballinrobe to be played on Saturday week.
Scorers – Davitts: Cian Naughton 2-0-2, Jack Melvin 1-0-5 (4f), Niall Treacy 0-0-4 (3f), Ciaran Treacy 0-0-2, Fenton Kelly, Ronan Kelly and Shane Treacy 0-0-1 each.
Islandeady: Zac Collins 0-0-5, Ryan McNamara and Darragh Joyce (1f) 0-0-4 each, Brendan Gibbons 0-0-2, Sean Collins and Bryan O’Flaherty (’45) 0-0-1 each.
Davitts: Dylan O’Brien; Tom Ronayne, Patrick Keadin, Brian Birmingham; Tom Waldron, Charlie Phillips, Cathal Corless; Cian Naughton, Fenton Kelly; Shane Treacy, Jack Ronayne, Jack Melvin; Ronan Kelly, Niall Treacy, Ciaran Treacy. Subs: Cathal Higgins (for Keadin 34), Colm Boyle (for Waldron 42), Liam Kearns (for S Treacy 48), Dylan Burke (for R Kelly 60+1).
Islandeady: Bryan O’Flaherty; Jack Carney, Peter Gordon, Ciaran Burke; Seamie Lally, Diarmuid Gibbons, Andrew Gallagher; Peter Collins, Darragh O’Malley; Ryan McNamara, Zac Collins, Levi Barrett; Sean Collins, Darragh Joyce, Brendan Gibbons. Subs: Cillian Joyce (for S Collins ht), Mark Kirby (for O’Malley 36).
REF: Vincent Neary (Bonniconlon)
