This article is from page 69 of the 2011-03-29 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 69 JPG
Newmarket-on-Fergus 1-17 – Kilmaley 1-14 at Clarecastle
IT TOOK over 140 minutes to separate the sides but in the end, it was Newmarket who held their nerve to qualify for the last four. Much like the drawn game, both sides had their periods of dominance in an encounter that swung one way and then the next before Newmarket’s superior composure and fresher legs in extratime saw them prevail.
In addition, Newmarket simply had the better spread of scorers throughout with six different forwards getting in on the scoring action while Kilmaley were over-reliant on their two scoring forwards, Daire Keane and Mikey O’Neill.
Newmarket were quick out of the blocks and had two points on the board through Ian Cusack and Shane Liddy before Kilmaley cranked into gear. However, upon settling, Kilmaley hit six points without reply starting with a hat-trick of O’Neill frees followed by eyecatching efforts from Daire Keane in the right corner and an Eoin Enright lineball.
However, the topsy-turvy nature of the tie meant that it was Newmarket’s turn to respond pulling back three before the break and adding four more unanswered points in the third quarter to pull themselves 0-9 to 0-6 clear. In the midst of that purple patch, Kilmaley goalkeeper Bryan O’Loughlin had to make an acrobatic double stop to deny a Shane Cusack volley from close range and it would make a significant difference as Kilmaley finally broke their 30 minute scoring drought by hitting three points in as many minutes to gain parity at 0-9 apiece by the turn of the final quarter.
Newmarket again attempted to shake off their opponents with points from Tommy Griffin and Noel Frawley but after a Conor Cleary reply, for the second successive week, it was Daire Keane who levelled up the game at the end of normal time with a free.
Extra-time was a different story however as the introduction of Donagh Keogh and Liam Clancy for Newmarket saw them up the ante once more while Kilmaley increasingly looked ragged and war weary.
Shane Liddy’s 64th minute goal had Newmarket ahead by 1-14 to 014 at the midway point but despite another Keane equalising 20 metre free to the net in the 73rd minute, Newmarket simply brushed of that setback and finished strongly with points from Clancy (2) and Shane Liddy to finally book their place in the semi-final against Cratloe.
Newmarket- on- Fergus
Ian Mulcahy, Niall Garry, Niall O’Connor, Shane Kelleher,Alan McInerney, Darren O’Connor, David Liddy, Sean O’Connor (0-3 2f, 1’65), Frank Melody,Thomas Griffin (0-2), Niall Enright, Noel Frawley (0-1), Ian Cusack (0-2), Shane Cusack, Shane Liddy (1-4 3f)
Subs
LiamClancy (0-3) for Enright (48 mins), Donagh Keogh (0-2) for S. Cusack (58 mins)
Kilmaley
Bryan O’Loughlin, Martin O’Connor, Stephen Griffey, Niall McGuane, Kevin Connellan, Colin McGuane, Kevin McNamara, Eoin Enright (0-1 s/l), Conor Cleary (0-1), Michael Pyne, Enda Finucane, John Cabey, Michael O’Neill (0-8 6f), Daire Keane (1-4 1-2f), Shane Darcy
Subs
Eoin Fitzgerald for Connellan (26 mins), Killian McNamara for Darcy (43 mins), Paul Kennedy for Cabey (43 mins), Sean Hayes for Pyne (60 mins), Michael Pyne for McNamara (60 mins), John Cabey for Cleary (ET)
Man of the Match
Darren O’Connor (Newmarket- on- Fergus) Referee Ger Hoey (Killanena)