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Burt challenge gathers momentum
29.09.09
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Burt...1-16 (Boyle 0-5(3f), E McDermott 1-2(f), K McDermott 0-3,McCarroll 0-2, P McDermott 0-2(f), McHugh 0-1, Gavigan 0-1) Urris...1-10 (E Kelly 0-6(3f), A Friel 1-1, B Doherty 0-1, P Doherty 0-1, M Kelly 0-1(f)) by Simon McGeady, Inishowen Independent, at Hibernian Park AFTER flirting with the fringes of relegation in recent weeks, back-to-back wins in the league in eight days have propelled Burt to within five points of third placed Urris with a game in hand. Now a strong finish to the season by the Hibernian Park men could even see them qualify for the end of season promotion playoff. Of these two Inishowen rivals, Urris still have the better chance of going up to Division Two alongside runaway leaders Fanad Gaels, but the manner of their defeat to Burt on Sunday will give John Friel and the Urris coaching staff pause as they plan for the final month of the season. Burt dictated the play throughout, excellently disrupting Urris’ attacks and slowing the play down where they could against the breeze in the first half, before unleashing the full force of their forwards after the interval. Early frees from Paddy and Enda McDermott were cancelled out by Eddie Kelly who punished Enda McDermott’s wayward hand-pass then collected Brian Doherty’s lay off to fire over. |
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The free-littered first 25
minutes was uninspiring fare for the crowd up on the
bank. Burt showed they had an answer for the Urris up
and under as Ciaran Dowds, Johnny Downey and company
fielded effortlessly. It was a different story at the other end where a couple of turnovers from Phil Pat Doherty lead to one point for the hosts, Jude Campbell playing in Paul McHugh to restore the Burt advantage, short-lived as it was. Burt’s ability to build moves patiently from the backline and retain possession was a key to this result. Benny Harrigan, especially, but also Downey were willing runners off the ball. With Urris backing off, Dowds and Niall McCarroll combined 40 metres out to set up Kevin McDermott for a score before the ever-accurate Eddie Kelly hit back. Alan Friel was pressed into corner forward action after a quarter of an hour in relief of Shaun McDaid and the Urris Stalwart made an instant impact. First, after good pressure by Damien Harkin to win the ball back, Friel scored an unlikely goal, |
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chipping Burt stand in
keeper Ronan McLaughlin with a shot from wide on the
left to make it 1-4 to 0-4. Then, from a similar location, and after more fine play from Harkin, Friel got the result he had intended with his shot moments earlier; a point. Urris were enjoying their best period of play and when Eddie Kelly scored another free to make it 1-6 to 0-4 after good work by right corner-forward Mark McLaughlin, it looked as though the Straid side would take a nice cushion into the second half. That was before, deep into stoppage time, Burt hit the key score of the match. Enda McDermott spotted Campbell in space on the right and picked out the diminutive forward who rounded Adrian Doherty, drew keeper Johnny Noone to the near post before hand-passing across the small square for Enda to lash home. Burt started the second half with real purpose. Eamon Reddin burst out of defence and after three yellow shirts touched the ball, Joe Boyle applied a simple finish to a first-rate move. By the 46th minute the sides were all knotted up at a goal and eight. A pair of Joe Boyle frees sandwiched an opportunist’s strike from Niall McCarroll after Liam Diver failed to field a high ball into the square. Diver, unusually, was a peripheral figure and his height was a non-factor with Burt bypassing the midfield sector whenever they could. In the 47th minute Burt hit the front for the first time in 24 minutes when Paddy McDermott fired over in a flash amidst a sea of red shirts 40 metres from goal. Enda McDermott and Joe Boyle points had Burt up by three with ten minutes to go before Urris checked their advance with scores from Phil Pat Doherty, joining the attack at just the right moment, and another Eddie Kelly free. Burt were not to be denied, however, and took the match by the scruff of the neck in the closing minutes. McCarroll struck his second point of the game before Harrigan came up from the back and rushed onto a languid pass from the unflappable Paddy McDermott, then sprinted forward 20 metres and put his boot through the ball to make it 1-13 to 1-10. Urris were powerless to change the flow of the match now and with time running out they resulted to high balls into the square seeking the height of Brian Kelly, but the Burt line was not breached, Paddy McDermott blocking the only real chance which fell to the impressive Damien Harkin. Burt’s energy levels were greater throughout and in the final few minutes Kevin McDermott and Joe Boyle scored to cap a deserved and potentially vital win for the peninsula’s dual club. Burt: Ronan McLaughlin; Mark McGavigan, Eamon Reddin, Johnny Downey; Benny Harrigan, Ciaran Dowds, Martin Donaghey; Dermot Callaghan, Kevin McDermott; Enda McDermott, Joe Boyle, Paddy McDermott; Paul McHugh, Niall McCarroll, Jude Campbell. Urris: Johnny Noone; Sean Doherty, Patrick Doherty, Adrian Doherty; Martin Kelly, Phil Pat Doherty, Damien Harkin; Liam Diver, Edward Kelly; Dara Doherty, Brian Doherty, Shaun Toland, Shaun McDaid, Brian Kelly Mark McLaughlin. For full coverage of all your weekend sport, read the Inishowen Independent. |
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