There was disappointment for our Under 16s in the Championship Final on Sunday afternoon as they were beaten by a very strong Eglish side at Beragh.
The final score was 6-11 to 2-14 and much like the recent league semi-final between the sides, we just left ourselves with too much to d0 despite a much-improved second half. The team deserve a lot of credit for continuing to battle right to the end though. There was a time in the second half when we were back in this game but Eglish’s sixth and final goal, coming just a few minutes from full-time, sealed the game for Eglish.
We got off to a slow start and were trailing by several points after 12 or 13 minutes with Aaron Montgomery getting both our points from frees. We started to come in to the game a lot more after that. Aaron hit a good score from play followed by an excellent point from Malachy McManus, who caught a high ball in to a crowded penalty area, turned and fired over. We were creating plenty of chances now too but weren’t able to take enough of them to put Eglish under real pressure.
Cormac Hurley got a good score from play before Malachy concluded the scoring in the first half with a goal following a good team move involving Aaron, Michael Roche and Darragh O’Kane. The half-time score was 5-6 to 1-5.
Driven on by Aaron, Darragh, Michael and Caolan Wormsley we were much better in the second half outscoring Eglish 1-9 to 1-5. Aaron hit seven points during the second 30 minutes, some fantastic scores from play and a couple of wonderful long-range frees from near the sideline. Cormac added a goal and a point while sub Eoin Montgomery also got on the scoreboard.
Goalkeeper Ronan Smithson made a couple of great saves too as we looked to get back in to the game. We came up short but it was a great effort. We’re all extremely proud of this team for their performances and effort all year.
It’s been a pleasure to see the lads development over the last two years. From not being able to field in 2012 to winning the League in 2014 and playing in the Championship final this year. As we get over today’s disappointment, we can’t help but look forward to the years ahead. We know there’ll be more opportunities for this Team.
Thanks to all the supporters, friends and family who turned out to support the lads today. We wish a quick recovery to Captain Darragh O’Kane who picked up an injury during the game.
