SUPERB SECOND HALF SHOW SECURES THE SPOILS FOR THE SAINTS

                St MOLAISE GAELS    0-13        EASTERN HARPS  0-10

A sensational victory and a place in the quarter finals of the senior championship looked unlikely in the first half of this enthralling play off at Kilcoyne Park on Saturday evening last however a blistering second half display precipitated by astute switches and unyielding commitment saw the Northern side power their way into the quarter finals  at the expense of an ailing Eastern Harps side.

Dominating the middle third in the early exchanges with captain Kevin Gallagher leading by example and with attackers Niall McGill and Fiachra Gorman looking sharp Harps raced into a seven points to nil lead by the twenty second minute as St Molaise Gaels couldn’t get their act together and on the few occasions they did encroach on Harps defensive territory their shooting, mainly from frees, was off target. Captain Eoin McHugh did get winners on the scoreboard with a point after twenty four minutes and John Gilsenan followed this up with another two minutes later nevertheless the seasoned Harps men looked likely winners as they went to the half time break six points to the good 0-08 to 0-02.

County player Mark Quinn who operated to devastating effect at midfield for St Molaise Gaels in the second half opened the second half scoring with a point from play and from there to the final whistle the Grange/Cliffoney side were dominant in all sectors. The midfield shuffle enhanced the performances of the three Gilsenan brothers also together with Eoin McHugh, Darragh Fallon and dynamic defender Johnny Kelly and indeed it was the leadership of those players who provided the inspiration for the entire team to lift their performances and grab a notable scalp on their way to the quarter finals. A whopping eleven second half white flags were raised mainly through Eoin McHugh who had taken over the free taking duties, Darren Gilsenan and Darragh Fallon now positioned at wing forward while two points from Niall McGill and Fiachra Gorman was all the Harps men could manage.

Not as fluent in the past couple of years as in the nineties or indeed the noughties,  the 2013 absence of such quality players as Paul McGovern, Paul Taylor, Tony Taylor and Michael Doddy has left Harps, the former standard bearers from the east, really struggling as they now face into the unchartered waters of a relegation play off however they can still call on experienced players such as Ross Donovan, Kevin Cryan, Paddy Grady, and Kevin Gallagher plus a few promising youngsters who showed well in this championship to help steer them from the cliff edge.

TEAMS and SCORERS   St MOLAISE GAELS ... Conor Laughlin, Liam Kennedy, Gavin Gilsenan, Damien Kelly, James Brennan, Mark Quinn (0-02), Johnny Kelly, Cathal Burns, Eoin McHugh ( 0-04) Mark Leonard, Darren Gilsenan (0-04), John Gilsenan (0-01), Ryan O Sullivan, Niall McLaughlin, Darragh Fallon (0-02).  Subs Gerard Brady.

EASTERN  HARPS ... Stephen Heraghty, Patrick Gallagher, Robert Reid, Ross Donovan, Kevin Cryan,Brendan Phillips,  Peter Rafferty (0-01) Paddy Grady , Kevin Gallagher, Niall McGill (0-04) John Rafferty (0-01) Brian Craig, Fiachra Gorman (0-03) Thomas Cryan (0-01) Shane Regan. Subs ..  Declan Hannon,  Dan Flaherty.

Referee ...  Kieran O Donnell.