U18 Boys Div1: Colemanstown 5-0 Craughwell. Our U18 lads got their new league campaign off to another flying start with a comprehensive 5-0 victory over Craughwell on Thursday night. We opted to play with the breeze in the first half. However, despite having the elements in our favour, it was a somewhat mediocre opening half as both sides cancelled each other out for much of the half. It was nip & tuck for the opening 30mins before Patrick Gavin finally broke the deadlock with a superb individual effort. Patrick collected the ball & drove straight through the middle before keeping his composure to place a superb finish into the bottom right corner to give Colemanstown a deserved 1-0 half time lead.
A reshuffle at half-time saw Jamie Lally move upfront, Martin Mellody switch to the right wing & Philip Fitzgerald moved to midfield. The changes worked a treat as Colemanstown came out for the 2nd half with renewed energy & purpose. From the restart, Colemanstown were simply on fire & produced some splendid football with the ball moved around impressively from the defence, through midfield & into our strike force up front. 10mins into the 2nd half, we got the perfect start when Jamie Lally fired home a superb strike from just outside the box to double the advantage. Then came a quickfire double from Martin Mellody. His first was a beautifully worked goal, as Martin latched onto a great through ball from Jamie Lally & finished inch-perfect to make it 3-0. Mellody wasn’t finished there. Shortly afterwards, he found himself one-on-one with the Craughwell keeper & again showed excellent composure, he calmly rounded off the move with another superb finish to complete his brace & put Colemanstown firmly in control at 4-0. With 10mins remaining, Sean Keating put the icing on the cake with an absolute stunner from around 40 yards. In a finish reminiscent of David Beckham, Sean’s effort sailed over the keeper & into the net to complete a memorable 5-0 victory.
It was a superb second half performance from Colemanstown, particularly considering the awful weather conditions that both teams had to contend with on the night. The improvement in our lads after half time was significant, with some excellent passing, movement, teamwork & intensity. There were excellent performances all over the pitch, but special mention must go to: Jamie Lally who was outstanding all through, Tadhg Hart who covered every blade of grass in midfield, Martin Mellody who capped his performance with two superb goals & Oisin Gavin who lorded the defence from centre-back & provided a commanding presence at the back in what was a difficult night weatherwise but was made all the more enjoyable by a terrific result. Match Report: Steven Broderick
Squad: Tommy Nutley, Michael Lally, Daniel Booth, Philip Fitzgerald, Oisin Gavin, Jamie Lally, Patrick Gavin, Tadhg Hart, Noah McDonnell, Tom Holohan, Martin Mellody, James Gerard, Sean Keating, Gearoid Walsh, Joshua Lualdi, Ryan Shaughnessy, Niall Robinson, James Somers, Fabian Carroll.
Western Hygiene Supplies Art Friel Championship: Salthill Devon B 1–2 Colemanstown United. Our A team got their Championship campaign off to the perfect start on Sunday morning with a hard-fought 2–1 victory away to Salthill Devon B in a tough and testing opening-day encounter.
Conditions were difficult, and the opening 10–15 minutes were cagey enough, with neither side really able to settle into any rhythm or play much football. Colemanstown gradually began to grow into the game, however, and started to create a couple of half chances.
There was little to separate the sides for much of the opening half-hour, but it was Salthill who found the breakthrough shortly afterwards. A lovely pass from midfield released Ronan Greaney, who showed good composure to round the goalkeeper before slotting the ball into the net to make it 1–0.
Colemanstown responded well and had a huge opportunity to level just before the break. David Walsh delivered an excellent cross into the box which found Tomas Flannery, but the Salthill goalkeeper produced a fantastic save to keep his side in front at half-time.
A few honest words were exchanged in the Colemanstown dressing room at the interval, and whatever was said certainly had the desired effect. We came flying out of the blocks in the second half and started the opening 15 minutes with real purpose. Chances began to come one after another, with Shane Quirke, Thomas Carr and Tiárnán Proulx all going close as Colemanstown put Salthill under serious pressure.
The pressure eventually told, with Colemanstown deservedly finding the equaliser when Tomas Flannery unleashed an effort from around 25 yards. The shot appeared to squirm under the goalkeeper’s hand and into the net to make it 1–1. At that stage, it was almost all Colemanstown, although Salthill continued to pose a threat on the counter-attack.
After around 70 minutes, Colemanstown completed the turnaround. Richie Lally produced a glorious ball over the top which sent Shane Duffy racing down the right, getting in behind the full-back. Duffy did brilliantly to keep the move alive and deliver an excellent cross into the box, where Tiárnán Proulx was on hand to meet it and put Colemanstown 2–1 ahead with 20 minutes remaining.
The final stages were nervy, as you’d expect in an opening-day game, with Salthill pushing for an equaliser and Colemanstown looking dangerous on the break themselves. We had a couple of opportunities to put the game beyond doubt but ultimately had to dig deep. We did exactly that, seeing out the final stages to secure a valuable 2–1 victory and, most importantly, the opening three points of the Championship season.
It wasn’t always pretty, and it certainly wasn’t easy, but there was plenty of character, resilience and togetherness shown by the lads to come from behind and take all three points. A brilliant way to start the season. Three points on the road.
Starting XI: Alan Finn, Shane Duffy, David Walsh, Richie Lally, Sean Hardiman, Aironas Kantaušas, Mossy Carr, Ray Moran, Tiarnan Proulx, Tomas Flannery, Shane Quirke, Sean Cooke, Ethan Flaherty, Richard Sillence, Ross Lally, Matthew Keane, Kyle Madden, Jack Kennedy
Substitutions: R. Lally for T. Carr (63’), K. Madden for S. Hardiman (65’), M. Keane for T. Proulx (86’). Goals: T. Flannery, T. Proulx
Colemanstown United U21s 1–4 Craughwell United: U21 Div 1. Last night (Monday) marked a little piece of history for Colemanstown United as our first-ever U21 team took to the pitch for their opening Division 1 league campaign, hosting Craughwell United under the Colemanstown floodlights.
For many of the players, it was their first time playing together as a team, and understandably, building an understanding and developing relationships on the pitch will take time. It was also the first opportunity for management to see some of the players in a competitive match situation.
The final score of 4–1 to Craughwell perhaps doesn’t tell the full story of the game. Post-match analysis showed Colemanstown had 49% possession, with 226 completed passes compared to Craughwell’s 261. While there is plenty to work on, the game itself was much more evenly matched than the scoreline suggests.
Colemanstown started brightly and immediately looked dangerous from set pieces. Ryan Gavin was causing problems for the Craughwell defence from the right wing and helped win a number of early corners. After just five minutes, Matthew Keane delivered a low corner into the box which fell to centre-back Donnacha Walsh on the edge of the area. Walsh’s half-volley looked destined for the net but was blocked on the line before Craughwell managed to clear. Another corner soon followed, with Conor van Oosterhout coming close at the back post, but his effort went narrowly into the side netting.
Craughwell, however, looked particularly dangerous on the break, with their two wide players possessing plenty of pace and skill. On eight minutes they took the lead when their right winger no.9 “Gillie” delivered a pinpoint cross to the back post, where their number 10, “Zimmer”, arrived to head home.
It was great to see Ross Lally back in the Colemanstown jersey, and he settled comfortably into the centre-back position alongside Donnacha Walsh, who produced an excellent performance at the heart of the defence.
Up front, Dylan King worked tirelessly during the first half, constantly trying to close down the Craughwell defence, although he wasn’t getting the supply he needed. Joshua McDonnell was introduced in his place as Colemanstown looked to change things up. Kyle Madden put in an enormous shift, covering almost every blade of grass, before eventually having to leave the field with around 15 minutes remaining after suffering from calf cramp. Noah McDonnell came on in his place.
It was also fantastic to see Josh Buckley back on the pitch after his lengthy absence following the ankle injury he suffered last season. Nathan Mannion had an excellent first half at right full, while the midfield worked hard to try to establish control against a Craughwell side that remained a threat on the counter. At halftime, Ross Lally was replaced after picking up a knock to his thigh, with Paddy Gavin coming into midfield and Conor van Oosterhout dropping back into centre-half.
3-0 down but Colemanstown continued to battle and were rewarded after 66 minutes with a brilliantly worked goal. Matthew Keane played the ball wide to Noah McDonnell, who delivered a dangerous cross into the box. The ball fell to Ryan Gavin, who cleverly knocked it back into the six-yard area. Craughwell failed to properly clear, and Cathal Keane reacted quickest, taking a touch before blasting the ball past the goalkeeper to bring Colemanstown back into the game at 3–1.
With the game still very much alive, Colemanstown continued to push, but tired legs began to show as the evening progressed. Matthew Keane hit the crossbar with a superb shot while another effort from Buckley was cleared off the line. Craughwell eventually sealed the result after 80 minutes when Colemanstown were caught in possession just outside their own box. Craughwell’s number 12 produced a cheeky finish, delicately dinking the ball over Sean “Cookie” Cooke to make it 4–1.
Despite conceding four goals, Cooke was outstanding between the posts, producing a number of excellent saves throughout the evening to keep Colemanstown in the contest and prevent the scoreline from becoming even more difficult. There is certainly work to do, but there is no reason for doom and gloom after the opening game of what is a brand-new & very young U21 team. The players have only just begun the process of developing an understanding with one another, and there were plenty of encouraging signs throughout the game. The possession statistics, passing numbers, attacking spells and individual performances all give management plenty to build on. Most importantly, history has been made at Colemanstown United. The club now has its first-ever U21 team, giving these young players an important pathway and the opportunity to continue developing together. There will be plenty of lessons taken from this game, but also plenty of positives to build on.
Player of the Match – Sean “Cookie” Cooke. A difficult night for any goalkeeper with four goals conceded, but Sean Cooke was undoubtedly one of Colemanstown’s standout performers. He made save after save throughout the game and kept his team within touching distance for long periods. The scoreline certainly doesn’t reflect the quality of Cooke’s individual performance. A strong showing between the posts from Cookie. Match Report: Kara Mullins
Squad: Sean Cooke, Cathal Keane, Donnacha Walsh, Ross Lally, Nathan Mannion, Ryan Gavin, Conor van Oosterhout, Matthew Keane, Josh Buckley, Kyle Madden, Dylan King, Joshua McDonnell, Noah McDonnell, Paddy Gavin. Management: Orla McCaffrey & Kara Mullins