Drumragh U16 boys beat Coalisland in the league on Thursday evening
Drumragh U16 boys came out on top in a thrilling league game against Coalisland at Clanabogan Park on Thursday evening.
It was a brilliant game of football and a fantastic display from Drumragh who had strong performances from players all over the pitch.
Drumragh took an early lead when midfielder Conor Gormley found the back of the net. Coalisland then launched a few high balls in on top of the square early on, but Drumragh goalkeeper Matthew O’Doherty dealt well with each one. Connor McLaughlin, Shea Mullin and Ryan Baxter also came through with a number of important blocks and turnovers in the opening 15 minutes.
Coalisland kicked two points in quick succession, but Drumragh responded through Dara Cox, who scored a great point after Oran Barrett and Turlough Collins had created the chance.
Drumragh then got in for their second goal. A wonderful pass inside by Conor Gormley was gathered by Dylan Lowry and he struck the ball past the goalkeeper with a composed finish.
The away side enjoyed a period of sustained possession and Drumragh needed strong defending in the full-back line from Matthew Barrett, Ronan Bresnahan and Shea Mullin to protect their clean sheet. They did hit four points in-a-row before half-time, but Drumragh held the lead at the break.
Drumragh captain Dylan Lowry with the referee and Coalisland at Clanabogan Park on Thursday
Coalisland were soon level at the beginning of the second half but the Drumragh response was excellent.
Brothers Conor and James Fyffe combined to set up Conor Gormley for a good point while a foul on Oran Barrett allowed Aidan McCarney to send the ball over the bar from a placed ball.
Drumragh were then awarded a penalty, and Aidan McCarney stepped up and converted it brilliantly to the top corner, a not dissimilar penalty to the one his older brother Niall scored in Tyrone Minors’ shootout win over Donegal last year.
Coalisland were on target again, but Frankie Monk won a kick-out, fed the ball to Dylan Lowry who pointed for Drumragh.
Aidan McCarney kicked a free, after Oran Barrett was fouled again, while Dylan Lowry did well to win the ball back in the full-forward line before splitting the posts from a tight angle.
After the visitors pointed, Ryan Baxter stopped a dangerous attack from Coalisland, starting another move for Drumragh that finished with Oran Barrett extending Drumragh’s lead. Oran scored again not long after, following good play from Frankie Monk, Shay Donnell and Turlough Collins.
Coalisland kept going and with a goal and a number of points, an exciting finish was set-up.
Drumragh, however, held firm. Excellent defending from Matthew Barrett, Oisin Walsh and Ronan Bresnahan helped preserve Drumragh’s lead well into injury with the referee blowing the full-time whistle soon after.
A terrific win for Drumragh.
SCORERS: Dylan Lowry 1-2, Aidan McCarney 1-2, Conor Gormley 1-1, Oran Barrett 0-2, Dara Cox 0-1
TEAM: Matthew O’Doherty, Matthew Barrett, Ronan Bresnahan, Shea Mullin, Connor McLaughlin, Ryan Baxter, Conor Fyffe, Conor Gormley, Turlough Collins, Frankie Monk, Aidan McCarney, Oran Barrett, James Fyffe, Dylan Lowry, Dara Cox
SUBS: Shay Donnell, Oisin Walsh, Callum McNamee, Mark O’Neill, Ryan Colgan, Niall Gormley, Sean Boyle, Padraig Gormley, Niall Burt, Ben McCullagh, Aaron Duncan, Luke Hagan, Sean O’Donnell, Tiernan O’Donnell, Conor McGale, Ronan Baxter, Lorcan McGrath
Drumragh’s Oran Barrett in action against Coalisland on Thursday evening
