Rathkenny edge out Cille's in dour tussle
A LEAGUE DIVISION 2 RATHKENNY.................0-7 ST COLMCILLE'S............0-3
St Colmcille's Brendan Beakey takes on Rathkenny's Colin Curtis during Sunday's A League Division 2 clash at Rathkenny. Credit: Photo: www.colinbellphotos.com
Wednesday March 03 2010
ST COLMCILLE'S were seeking to build on the promise shown in the narrow defeat to O'Mahony's when they visited Rathkenny for this A League Division 2 match last Sunday.
However, the outcome, and indeed the display, proved a massive disappointment against a Rathkenny outfit who themselves could never lift their performance above the ordinary.
A misfiring attack that failed to register for the last 46 minutes of the game tells its own story for Richie Culhane's side and some of the efforts at scoring were a mixture of the bad and the deplorable.
Rathkenny, on the other hand, fared only marginally better, but once they weathered an early second half storm from the Seasiders and notched three third quarter scores to lead by double scores, 0-6 to 0-3, they always looked likely winners.
The absence of Graham Reilly, sidelined for a number of weeks with a jaw injury, proved a massive blow to the east Meath outfit.
Midfielder John Levins kicked an enormous point on three minutes in reply to Richie Timmons' opening score from a free.
The sides were level on two other occasions in the half. Ciaran Kelly pointed a free on eight minutes in response to a similar effort from Brian Meade. Then on 16 minutes it was the hosts turn to come from behind, with full back Michael Macken popping up to level after John McKenna, with a well worked score, had the Cille's ahead on 14 minutes.
Alarmingly the visitors failed to score again after that, though they had ample opportunities to do so, especially in the second half.
Rathkenny themselves went a full 22 minutes without a score before Colin Curtis pointed them ahead eight minutes into the second half. The same player kicked another point on 41 minutes and Derek Smith accounted for his side's sixth point on 44 minutes. The only score of the final quarter was a pointed free from Richie Timmons on 52 minutes – it was that sort of game.
The Cille's hit a sequence of wides while Ciaran Kelly dropped two efforts short into the hands of keeper John Martin.
Martin made a smart save from substitute Mark Whearty on 55 minutes and Damien O'Brien shot badly wide from another goal chance on 59 minutes.
The game's outstanding player was Rathkenny's Donal Keoghan who blotted out the threat of Cille's danger man John McKenna.
After that there was very little to choose between either team.
- WALL
