AHL 3: Round Tower 1-14 v St Vincent’s 3-10, 3rd October, Monastery Road
Niall Connaughton & Tommy Keogh pictures of the game can be viewed here.
Round Tower Intermediate Hurlers look on the brink on relegation after losing what was effectively a relegation play-off v St Vincents’s last Sunday morning at Monastery Road, writes Mick McGlynn.
It has proven a difficult season for the hurlers with injuries hampering their campaign and during a first-half in which they were the better team throughout, it looked like they would finish it by effectively retaining their status in Division 3. But St Vincent’s tagged on scores when their opportunities arose and they trailed by just five points at the end of the opening 30 minutes, 1-7 v 0-5, with a strong wind to play with behind them for the second half.
In a two minute period from the 37th minute, the game took a dramatic turn when two goals for the visitors left the Towers side that had been commanding throughout chasing the win against a strong wind. The first goal arrived when the Vincent’s full-forward picked up a breaking ball on the right and he angled his shot beyond keeper Stephen Chapman to the corner. This was quickly followed with another goal. A long-range free from the sideline deceived Towers defenders with sun facing into their eyes. The game had changed dramatically and Towers six point lead at that stage had been quashed. Vincent’s pointed another two without response before Dublin minor Gary Quinlivan pointed a free from 50 metres. Minor starlet Micheál Walsh was a constant threat throughout in the corner-forward role and midway thru the half he broke inside with pace. Being forced away from goal he tried an audacious pass inside to full forward Brian McLaughlin but a defender just about flicked away. However McLaughlin was onto the rebound and his return pass to Walsh was converted to level the game, 1-11 v 2-8. Vincent’s edged ahead before Walsh again proved instrumental in winning a break on the 40 and a push on his back brought a free that Quinlivan again pointed.
But we found ourselves three behind again with nine minutes remaining when a deflected clearance was driven to the net to leave it 1-12 v 3-9. Towers responded instantly through a point from sub Shane Boland, when he gathered well on the right and turned inside to point. With time running out Walsh almost netted when his ground strike went past the keeper but a backtracking defender pushed it away. Quinlivan gathered the clearance to point and leave one between the sides but a free conceded at the sideline was converted by the visitors to bring them a two point winning margin.
The deflation at full-time was in contrast to Towers optimism at half-time after a commanding, authoritative opening 30 minutes. Alex Darbey pointed two frees within the opening four minutes and his crossfield pass was converted by midfielder Eoghan Young to leave us 0-3 v 0-1 ahead after six minutes. Jack Whelan then pointed long-range from the sideline in the half-backs and the visitors had few opportunities to strike for points, with Towers and Young in particular commanding.
Half-forward Eric Finn was forced off thru injury midway thru the half but Towers responded to the setback and his loss two minutes later when they netted the game’s first goal. A Darbey 65 dropped at the edge of the square and minor hurler Walsh lept with two feet of the ground to ‘double’ it into the net. Fergal McDonagh struck an excellent score from long-range after Padraic ‘Podge’ McKeever won possession back in the half-backs and flicked to Young. His low ball was gathered under pressure in the half-forwards by Walsh and his flick back to McDonagh was converted. A Vincent’s free minutes before had doubled the visitors tally and a flicked point left them trailing by six, 1-6 v 0-3. Young was being dominant in midfield and sweeping in the half-backs and he found Quinlivan in space on the 40 and he converted. Shane Byrne won a50/50 in the full-back line and his pass found Young who had created space for the pass and he played into the corner to Brian McLaughlin, who found space to turn and point. But the visitors tagged on two points before half-time that were to prove crucial in their second-half fightback. Towers lie second from bottom with one game remaining against third place St Peregine’s.
Round Tower: Stephen Chapman, Shane Byrne, Craig Curtis, Kevin O’Neill, Jack Whelan, Eoin Walsh, Padraic ‘Podge’ McKeever, Eoghan Young, Luke Currivan, Eric Finn, Fergal McDonagh, Gary Quinlivan, Micheál Walsh, Brian McLaughlin, Alex Darbey. Used subs Aaron Wynne, Graham Bolger, Shane Boland,
