A brilliant second-half comeback from Drumragh minor boys saw them beat Strabane away in the league on Sunday afternoon.
Trailing by eight points midway through the second half, Drumragh kicked the last nine scores of the contest to win by a point, with a Ryan Montgomery free with the last kick of the game securing the victory. It was a terrific second-half display full of determination, and a refusal to give in. They played plenty of wonderful football too, with some strong defending and excellent scoretaking, in what were brutal weather conditions.
It was the home side that opened the scoring, but Drumragh were soon ahead when Dylan Lowry rose highest to palm a long ball in to the back of the net. Drumragh started the game confidently with Conor Gormley, Sean O’Doherty and Conor Barrett involved in a number of promising attacks early on. And that paid off with Dara Cox teeing up Aidan McCarney for a good score, while Ryan Baxter quickly added another.
But back came Strabane who scored a goal and a point in quick succession. A foul on Dylan Lowry allowed to Ryan Montgomery to send the ball over the bar, with Strabane responding by converting a couple of marks.
Niall Maguire kicked a brilliant point under pressure, but Strabane owned the remainder of the half. They scored two goals in a short space of time, and tagged on a point with the last action of the half, to lead at the break.
Drumragh captain Niall Maguire with the referee and Strabane captain ahead of throw-in
Strabane increased their lead with a couple of good points at the start of the second half, with Aidan McCarney responsible for the Drumragh reply with a nice point from play.
But from then on, Drumragh took over. They attacked in waves, and were creating good chances every time they went forward. The Strabane goalkeeper made three excellent saves while the crossbar also denied Drumragh on two occasions. The fightback began when Ryan Montgomery scored a point after good build-up play from Rory Dolan, Shea Mullin and Conor Gormley. Niall Maguire then won the ball back in the half-back line, drove forward before kicking a super score from distance. A quick bit of thinking from Aidan McCarney on a 45 allowed Niall to score again shortly after.
The Drumragh defence really stepped up during this time as well with Carraig McKenna, Lorcan McGrath and Oran Barrett in the full-back line winning the ball back at vital stages of the final 10 minutes. Dylan Lowry hit a wonderful point with the outside of his right foot, while Ryan Montgomery added another after a strong run through the home defence. Ryan Baxter was on target after good play from Rory Dolan and Frankie Monk, as was Oisin McManus, who scored with his first touch of the ball, only seconds after coming onto the field.
Drumragh were still a point behind as the game entered injury time, but that soon changed when Connor McLaughlin and Niall Maguire set up Dylan Lowry to hit the equaliser. The midfield partnership of Aidan McCarney and Rory Dolan did brilliantly throughout the second half securing possession for Drumragh time and time again. And they did so one more time, with the ball being moved upfield to Ryan Montgomery, who was then fouled. Ryan himself took the free, and made no mistake with the chance, completing a fantastic turnaround.
SCORERS: Dylan Lowry 1-2, Ryan Montgomery 0-4, Niall Maguire 0-3, Aidan McCarney 0-2, Ryan Baxter 0-2, Oisin McManus 0-1
TEAM: Sean O’Doherty, Carraig McKenna, Lorcan McGrath, Oran Barrett, Frankie Monk, Niall Maguire Shea Mullin, Aidan McCarney, Rory Dolan, Conor Gormley, Conor Barrett, Dara Cox, Ryan Baxter, Dylan Lowry
SUBS: Matthew O’Doherty, Oisin McManus, Matthew Barrett, Joseph Taggart, Connor McLaughlin, James Fyffe, Ben McCullagh
Drumragh’s Rory Dolan drives forward for Drumragh during the league game in Strabane on Sunday afternoon
