St Molaise Gaels pull away to reach Intermediate championship final

Back 03/10/2022 @ 23:33 | mainnews | St Molaise Gaels pull away to reach Intermediate championship final

St Molaise Gaels march on to the intermediate final after a dominant yet comfortable performance against Bunninadden on Sunday.

Jimmy Langan’s men will hope to make lucky their third intermediate final in a row as they meet Easkey in the decider.

Despite the final result it was Bunninadden who played all of the football in the opening five minutes. Luke Marren pointed an early free before Conor Murray, who hit 0-3 in the previous game against Castleconnor, scored two points with one off either foot.

Unfortunately for Willie Gormley’s side, they wouldn’t find the target again for some 26 minutes as Molaise would go on a scoring spree, hitting 2-6 without response.

Alan McLoughlin, captain of the side, hit the first on seven minutes before the game’s opening goal just seconds later. Joe Keaney burst through the Bunninadden defence before rifling a right footed shot to Mike Fogarty’s left, putting Molaise one point ahead.

Bunninadden were struggling on their own kickout, not finding the duo of Adrain Frain and Matthew Clavin as much as they would have liked, as Dean Carroll and Keaney worked well at midfield for the opponents.

Top of Form

Bottom of Form

Goal number two of the game came on twelve minutes, and who better to score it than Jack Davitt. Taking the ball near to the penalty spot, he shimmied and sold a dummy off his left before slotting home to a near empty net, putting seven between the teams.

The forward line of Cathal Herron, Davitt and Michael Langan were menacing throughout the first half and paramount to the Molaise Gaels lead.

Bunninadden did manage to create a goal chance late in the first half, as Oisin Gorman spun his man and with the goal at his mercy, passed lateral to Marren, whose shot went just over the crossbar. A let off for Molaise and a massive opportunity missed for Bunninadden.

Gorman hit a point for himself before half time, leaving 0-8 between the teams at the interval.

The composure and control in the second half from Molaise Gaels was exemplary as they managed to see out the game at their own pace, denying any late comeback from the opposition.

With just the one point in the opening ten minutes of the restart, coming from Davitt, Bunninadden committed bodies forward in a last ditch attempt to keep their final hopes alive. Clavin was sent into full forward along with Michael Gormley, as the high ball soon became the order of the day.

Nine minutes into the second half, and Molaise Gaels caught Bunninadden on the counter to seal the deal on the game. Coming up the left side of their attack, McLoughlin linked up well with Johnny Kelly and James Heraghty, with Heraghty carrying the ball to the thirteen before sending a shot to the bottom left corner.

The third goal of the day for Langan’s men, and twelve between the teams.

Gorman, Gormley and Clavin pointed for Bunninadden as they continued to channel the route one style, but no clear goal chances came their way. Langan and McLoughlin added points to stretch the Molaise lead, as did Gerard Brady who came off the bench.

John Gilmartin blew the full time whistle with twelve points between the teams, as Molaise stride to the intermediate final.

Disappointment for Bunninadden considering how close they came in last year’s semi final, but Division 1 football in 2023 will be their friend as they strive for an intermediate title next year. For Molaise, they now enter their third intermediate final in a row after losses to Curry (2020) and St Farnan’s (2021). Can Jimmy Langan make it third time lucky, or will it be a win for the west once again?

St Molaise Gaels scorers: Jack Davitt (1-3), James Heraghty (1-2), Alan McLoughlin (0-3, 0-2f), Joe Keaney (1-0), Michael Langan, Dean Carroll (0-2 each), Gerard Brady (0-1).

St Molaise Gaels team: Niall McLoughlin; Luke Casserly, Johnny Kelly, Liam Kennedy; Luke Towey, Paddy McGowan, Marc Heraghty; Joe Keaney, Dean Carroll; James Heraghty, Alan McLoughlin, Keelan Waters; Jack Davitt, Cathal Herron, Michael Langan.

Subs used: Eoin McHugh, Ethan Watters, Cathal Burns, Gerard Brady, John Kerins.

Bunninadden scorers: Luke Marren (0-3, 0-2f), Oisin Gorman, Conor Murray, Michael Gormley (0-1m) (0-2 each), Matthew Clavin (0-1).

Bunninadden team: Mike Fogarty; Peadar McManus, Conor Mitchell, Jonathan Hodgins; Conor Murray, Rory O’Dowd, Cian Brett; Adrian Frain (C), Matthew Clavin; Barry Cafferky, Oisin Gorman, Ronan Doherty; Michael Gorman, Michael Gormley, Luke Marren.

Subs used: Niall O’Donnell, Keith Frain, Shane Murray, Stephen Anderson, Patrick McDonagh.