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Sunday 16th November
Oscar Traynor Inter League
Missed opportunities send Inishowen out of Oscar Traynor
Inishowen League 1-1 Mayo League
In what was another excellent performance from Brian Bell’s side the sad thing is that once again failure to take chances has cost the players a chance of progressing to the quarter finals.Mayo had the first opportunity when they were awarded a free on the right but Ger O’Boyle’s effort did not trouble Gerard Crossan.Inishowen were on top and duly opened the scoring after 15 minutes when Seannan McColgan skipped inside the fullback and squared for Gerry Gill to drive low past Emmet Peyton from fifteen yards.Brian Tracey then had a free deflect off the wall and gathered by Peyton before a period of pressure ended with Malachy McDermott’s superb outside of the foot shot whizzing just past the angle of post and bar.On 39 minutes a superb tackle saw Joe Grant gain possession and when he ran into the area he hesitated and ended shooting tamely at Peyton.Inishowen almost added a second on the stroke of half time after a superb move involving Grant, McDermott and Gill ended when Gill raced clear to fire past Peyton but the ball went inches past the far post.Mayo started the second period well with David Cameron on the right firing an angled effort which Crossan turned behind at full stretch. On 52 minutes Paul Grant was yellow carded for a late tackle but O’Boyle’s free crashed off the wall before being cleared.Another great burst by Cameron on the right saw him pick out O’Boyle but he blazed over from twenty yards.Mayo pressure finally told on 57 minutes when a misplaced header in the home defence fell to Dessie O’Malley and he hammered past Crossan from fourteen yards.Inishowen regained control for the remainder of the game and despite creating clear chances they failed to convert. On 70 minutes substitute Stephen McLaughlin ran onto Gill’s pass but saw hi well hit shot beaten away by Peyton before McLaughlin received a short corner but flashed his effort across goal and wide. Mayo in a rare break saw Cameron advance into the area but Martin Farren blocked superbly before making a winning tackle inside his area.Substitutes Joe Doherty and McLaughlin combined then to release McLaughlin but he fired inches wide with Peyton rooted to the spot.They should have won it on 87 minutes when Doherty released Gill who played a sublime chip to the back post but McLaughlin headed just wide.Then Doherty crossed for Gill but the ex Finn Harps man glanced a header just wide from eight yards.Deep in injury time Inishowen had another chance following a corner when the ball broke to Joe Doherty whose effort was clawed away by Peyton and Stephen McLaughlin’s follow up was blocked by the keeper on the line.
The management committee would like to thank Brian Bell and the players sincerely for their efforts this season and Redcastle United Football club for their assistance in staging the game on the day.Finally the Oscar Traynor panel and management off their condolences to captain Steve Harkin who was unable to play because off a family bereavement.
Oscar Traynor Inter League Trophy
Defensive errors leave Inishowen with mountain to climb !
Galway League 4-2 Inishowen League
Two dreadful errors in the Inishowen defence leave them with an almost impossible task if they are to qualify for this years quarter finals. Unless they record a big win over Mayo and hope Mayo then defeat Galway it looks like Brian Bell’s side will exit the competition at the first hurdle this year. Played at a frenetic pace in the opening half Galway got the perfect start on seven minutes when Paddy Quinn threaded a pass to Brian Mannion who got between defenders to coolly guide the ball past Gerard Crossan from the edge of the area for a sublime finish.Minutes later Inishowen were in trouble again when Dermot Diver miscontrolled but the big defender recovered well to dispossess Conor Cleary.Inishowen were forced into an early change on 11 minutes when Diver , suffering from flu , had to be replaced by young Seannan McColgan who played on the left side with Eamon Donnelly moving alongside Martin Farren in the centre of defence.Inishowen forced a corner which fell to Joe Doherty whose shot was blocked by a defender.On 16 minutes Brian Tracey’s crossfield ball found Paul McLaughlin whose attempted lob was caught on the line by the backpedalling Ryan Griffin in a lucky escape for the home side. Galway replied immediately and in a swift counter Mannion’s deep cross from the left found Quinn but he directed his header past Crossan’s right hand post.Inishowen were unlucky again on 20 minutes after McLaughlin’s corner found captain Steve Harkin but his header crashed off the bar with the home defence all at sea.Galway left back Gareth Gorman, from Letterkenny, then fired in a free kick which Crossan claimed easily before Inishowen levelled with a superbly worked goal on 25 minutes. Substitute McColgan and Donnelly played a short free kick inside the Galway half before Donnelly fed Mclaughlin who slipped the ball through to the overlapping McColgan and he burst into the area to fire left footed low past Griffin. All their good work was undone on 34 minutes when a hopeful long ball forward by the Galway defence was not cleared by Donnelly allowing Mannion to play in Cleary and despite appeals for offside the big striker calmly slotted low past Crossan from fifteen yards.Minutes later Inishowen created another good chance when Joe Grant’s deep free was palmed away by Griffin but Malachy McDermott fired the loose ball just over the bar from twelve yards.Inishowen levelled again on 38 minutes with another superb goal. Jimmy Gallagher played a great ball from midfield out the left to Tracey who headed the ball infield to Mclaughlin and he burst into the area before firing left footed past Griffin from fourteen yards. Galway replied before the break when Gorman unleashed a piledriver which Crossan tipped away before on the stroke of half time after a nasty challenge on Tracey, Donnelly’s free kick was gathered underneath the bar by Griffin.
The second half saw the tempo drop and while Galway may have had more possession Inishowen looked the more dangerous. On 47 minutes the home side’s Jamie O’Driscoll flashed a twenty yards effort wide of the mark. Inishowen replied on 58 minutes when Martin Farren’s superb pass released another young substitute Stephen McLaughlin on the left and he advanced into the area but saw his low driven effort claimed by Griffin at full stretch.Ten minutes later they almost took the lead after McLaughlin played a superb pass into the path of Tracy but the Redcastle man was just beaten to the ball by the advancing Griffin who kicked clear inside the area. The home side then took the lead in fortuitous fashion on 71 minutes after Seamus Crowe unleashed a thunderbolt from twenty five yards which crashed off the bar to Cleary whose follow up effort was brilliantly tipped onto the bar by Crossan but the rebound fell kindly to Mannion and he headed to the unguarded net. It was cruel luck on Inishowen who looked comfortable upto that point but any chances of salvaging a point disappeared minutes later when Donnelly miscontrolled in central defence allowing Cleary a clear run on goal and he finished superbly past Crossan. But credit to Bell’s side they did not let their heads drop with Stephen McLaughlin flashing a twenty three yards effort over the top before McColgan fed Tracey but his shot was well saved by Griffin.On the stroke of full time Tracey sprayed a superb crossfield pass to McColgan and his shot was deflected for a corner.From the corner Harkin saw another header crash off the bar before being cleared and even a consolation goal could have changed the shape of the group but it was not to be.
Overall an excellent game and one which Inishowen did not get the breaks in but in reality at this level you cannot afford to gift opponents two goals of the nature the Inishowen defence gave away.There were plenty of positives to be had from the encounter not least the representative debuts of McColgan and McLaughlin both eighteen years of age and some fine performances by a lot of the players. The committee fully appreciate the efforts and commitment of the players and the management and look forward to the Mayo game with confidence on the 16thNovember