St Enda’s finish strong against Donaghmore in Junior clash

Omagh Thirds 0-13  Donaghmore Thirds 2-6

OMAGH Thirds claimed their third Division 3B win in four matches on a balmy Thursday evening, though they certaintly didn’t have it all their own way against their Donaghmore counterparts, who when all is said and done remain rooted to the bottom of the table.

Donaghmore Thirds have yet to win a single game and without meaning to put too fine a point on it, they’ll rue an eminently scorable late missed free in injury time against St Enda’s, which likely would have been enough to snatch a draw.

It was a fairly entertaining contest, Omagh’s early superiority giving way in the shape of an invigorating second-half, Donaghmore deservedly plundering two goals but ultimately not doing enough to avoid a fourth successive defeat.

Early in proceedings Omagh looked sharp and comfortable in possession, their efforts yielding points from Cian O Brolcháin and Manus Doyle – the former an almighty boot from distance, the latter a more intricate work.

Donaghmore by contrast looked laboured and their kicking game wasn’t bearing fruit with the Omagh full-back line marshalling their men to good effect, but they got their account up-and-running in the 14th minute when Aodhán Molloy, who really came into his own in the second-half, finished off a sweeping team move.

Both teams were guilty of some wayward shooting for a spell, though there was a flurry of points in the closing stages of the half – Omagh’s  O Brolcháin and Ryan McGarvey (twice) finding the target either side of a superb two-pointer just yards from the sideline from Donaghmore’s Joseph Kelly.

That left St Enda’s with a two-point margin on the scoreboard at the interval, which they extended shortly after the ball was thrown-in for the second half with the excellent McGarvey getting his third of the afternoon.

Donaghmore had been toothless in the first-half, but were a much more potent side after the break, and they rocked Omagh for a fine goal, Molloy latching onto a probing pass from deep before laying the ball on a plate for Sean McCaul, who applied a tidy finish to the net.

Omagh issued a good response with a score from Sean McSorley, the assist provided from Conor McGuigan, one of the game’s stand-out performers.

The visitors’ tails were up, however, and they got two of the game’s next three points, Molloy knocking over a fine point while Ryan Mullan also got in on the act.

The scores were level heading into the final quarter and there was a sense that this one was going to go right down to the wire. Omagh’s Joe Miller popped over a free before a fine score on the run from Donaghmore wing-back Joe Kelly, and another Miller free gave Omagh a 0-10 to 1-6 advantage with 50 minutes on the clock.

Then came what could have been a killer blow to the home team’s chances: Donaghmore’s Molloy burying the ball in the back of the net after a swift attacking move involving a number of players, meaning that they held the lead for the first time all afternoon.

Omagh finished the game strongly, however, landing the final three points of a really watchable contest – McGuigan, a real livewire, landed two points on the trot to restore parity before what turned out to be the winner, a late free from Dillon Chism.

Donaghmore did have a chance of snatching a draw, but a latst-gasp free from Joseph Kelly tailed narrowly wide and that was that.

Scorers

Omagh Thirds: Ryan McGarvey (0-3), Cian O Brolcháin and Conor McGuigan (0-2), Dillon Chism (0-2, 1f), Joe Miller (0-2f), Sean McSorley and Manus Doyle (0-1 each)

Donaghmore Thirds: Aodhán Molloy (1-2), Sean McCaul (1-0), Joseph Kelly (0-3, 1 2pt f), Ryan Mullan (0-1)

Teams

Omagh Thirds: Adam Groogan, Ciaran O’Doherty, Matthew Mallon, Ronan Clarke, Kieran McCullagh, Conor McGuigan, Ciaran Lagan, Sean McSorley, Cormac McGinn, Ryan McGarvey, Manus Doyle, Joe Miller, Dillon Chism, Cian O Brolcháin, Ronan Kelly. Subs used: Conor Pritchard, Rory O’Hagan, Ronan Corry, Oisin Campbell

Donaghmore Thirds: Conall Molloy, Robert Gallagher, Henry McQuaid, Matthew McIlvanna, Conall McGee, Dualta McKee, Joseph Kelly, PG O’Neil, Conall Heron, Adam Hetherington, Conor McGinn, Ryan Mullan, Aodhán Molloy, Nathan Toner, Sean McCaul.

Referee: Stephen McBride (Drumquin)