Munster Junior Cup 2nd Round 9th October Match Reports
Vee Rovers 2 – 0 Wilderness Rovers
Vee Rovers finally picked up their fist win of the season in the Munster Junior Cup against fellow Premier League team Wilderness Rovers on Sunday afternoon in Clogheen. In a game that took place in horrendous conditions, the home team started out playing into a very heavy wind, but still took control of the game and dominated the early proceedings. They had a number of half chances before they finally took the lead in the twentieth minute, when Sean Casey finished off a five man passing movement to slot the ball calmly past the visiting keeper. They had a number of chances after that to extend the lead but there were no more goals in what was an entertaining first half. With the wind now at their backs, they continued in the same dominant vein in the second period and added the important second goal eighteen minutes from time, with Alan Condon finding the target. Although Wilderness tried throughout the game to fashion scores, the hosts defence were in great form and kept them quiet right to the end to ensure their sides victory.
Bansha Celtic 9 – 1 Clerihan
Bansha Celtic showed the gulf between the Premier League and Division Two, when they dismantled a brave Clerihan side at home on Sunday morning to move to the next round of the Munster Junior Cup. The hosts took the lead almost straight from kick off when Eamon Quirke was on hand to finish from close range, and withing two more minutes added a second, when Liam Murphy was on hand to capitalise on a defensive mistake from close range. With this cushion, they were able to pick apart a shell shocked Clerihan side and added a third in the twentieth minute after some nice build up play, saw the ball end up with Eamon Quirke, who finished well to the bottom corner. Ten minutes from the break it became four goals to nil when Daire Egan rose highest to head in a corner kick at the back post. The second half started much the same as the first when the home side were awarded a penalty after just two minutes, and Daire Egan doubled his tally from the spot. Five minus later it was six when Eamon Quirke completed his hat trick, and on the hour mark it turned to seven when Daire Egan got his third, smashing home from the edge of the box. Clerihan finally got themselves a consolation through Jonas Kerr with a well taken goal in the sixty fifth minute, but two more goals by the home side through Darren McGrath and a fourth from Daire Egan finished out an excellent home side performance.
Cullen Lattin 1 – 3 Peake Villa
High flying Peake Villa travelled to Aisling Park in Cullen to contest this second round tie in the Munster Junior Cup, on a morning where playing conditions were extremely difficult with heavy rain and strong winds hampering both sides ability to play football. Villa were in control for the early part of the game but created very few chances until the thirteenth minute when Pippy Carroll found himself in space on the left, took on the home defence and coolly slotted home to put his side one up. Just before the half hour mark, the same player added a second when Villa were awarded a free kick just outside the Cullen area and Carroll curled a delicious effort into the net. But Cullen didn’t fold, and a few minutes later they took advantage of sloppy defending in the visitor’s area, and Mickie O Brien finished from close in to bring the score back to two goals to one. This woke Villa up and they restored their two goal advantage when Robbie Stapleton took advantage of good build up play to find himself one on one with the keeper and he made no mistake from close in. This was how the game went to the break, and as the second half progressed, the game turned into a drab affair as weather conditions worsened, but the visitors had done enough in the first half to go through to the next round.
Peake Villa B 3 – 2 Galbally United
Peake Villas seconds joined their first team in the next round of the Munster Junior Cup, when they defeated Galbally at a wet and windy Tower Grounds on Sunday afternoon.Both teams started well and from the start it was obvious that there were going to be goals in this game. The opener came for the visitors after a slip up in the home defence led to Owen O Sullivan breaking clear and he made no mistake fifteen minutes into the game. But the home side gradually began to up the pace and were rewarded for good play when Kevin Patan broke through before was taken down in the box, and Conor Murphy made no mistake from the resulting spot kick. After that the game settled with neither side making any more clear chances before half time, and the teams went to the break level. The game opened up in the second half and the young Villa side came into their own, having a strong spell before a Keelan Graham shot was parried by the keeper and Scott Brennan was quickest to react to make it two goals to one midway through the half. On top now, they almost added a third but Jack Kelly’s header came back off the crossbar and was scrambled away. But fourteen minutes from time, they finally added the third they were looking for when a Niall Dunne corner was met by the head of Sean Condron who powered home. Galbally got back in the game nine minutes from the end when they were awarded a penalty and Josh Dineen scored to bring it back to a single goal game. But the Villa team managed to hold on and took the victory in the end to the delight of their supporters and management.
St Michael’s 3 – 1 Clonmel Town
This game was rightly billed as the tie of the round, as the visitors took an unbeaten start to their season to Cooke Park, to take on perennial favourites and record winners of the competition St Michael’s. And in the end, it was the Saints that prevailed, thanks to a strong first half performance, and the ability to withstand a strong second half showing, at a well game on Sunday afternoon. The hosts were fast out of the blocks and hit a superb opener in the third minute, when Russell Quirke broke the cover from an Ashley Kelliher pass and Jimmy Carr was on hand near goal to convert the cross from close range. But Town played themselves into the game and were level in the seventeenth minute, when Keith Guiry was upended as he burst into the Saints area by Adrian Walsh and the resultant penalty saw Alan O’Donnell’s fire home on the rebound after his initial shot was saved. But the cheers from the away end had barely died down when the home side re-established their advantage minutes later, again from the penalty spot. Russell Quirke was fouled in the area and although Evan Comerford saved Jimmy Carr’s initial penalty, Carr too reacted quickest to slot home the rebound. Both sides had chances after that but Saints delivered the telling blow in the thirty second minute when Ashley Kelliher got on the end of a Joey Mulcahy shot after Jimmy Carr did well to break down the left flank, to make it three goals to one. The entertaining half came to a close with Saints two goals to the good, and the crowd looked forward to more of the same in the second half. But it failed to deliver as the home side had the luxury to slowing the pace down and choking off all areas of attack from an increasingly frustrated Town side. Both Ashley Laslett and Alan O Donnell fashioned chances for the Clonmel side, but they never really looked like putting the home side under the kind of pressure that would be needed to pull their team back into the game. And even as they did, the hosts always retained that goalscoring threat that they felt could be brought out if and when it was necessary. In the end, there were no more goals in the game, and the home side continue the well-travelled path further and deeper into a competition that has given them many successful days in the past.
Cashel Town 2 – 2 Two Mile Borris (AET Two Mile Borris win 3-1 on penalties)
Another all Premier League clash saw Cashel Town and Two Mile Borris go all the way to the penalty kick lottery to decide who would take their place in the next round of the Cup, with an entertaining game played in front of a good crowd at Palmershill on Sunday afternoon. The game was as tight as was expected with both sides being tentative for most of the first half, before Cashel finally grabbed the lead six minutes before the break when Jack Fitzpatrick shot home from close range after a corner kick had been flicked on to him. That was the only goal of the first half, and the away side took control of the second period, levelling matters in the fifty seventh minute when Stuart Hanrahan fired through a group of defenders to score from twelve yards out. Six minutes later they took the lead when Alto Walker delivered a bullet of a header from a corner kick to give the home keeper no chance. From there to the end there looked like there was going to be only one winner but Borris were shocked in the final minute of the game when the hosts scored against the run of play with a Sean Fitzpatrick effort to bring the game into extra time. And the home side had the better of the chances in that period, with Brian O Dwyer rattling the post and Jamie O Keeffe hammering an effort off the crossbar, but to no effect on the scoreline. In the end neither time could find the winner in open play and when it went to spot kicks, it was the visitors that held their nerve the better to prevail on a three goal to one advantage.
TSDL First Division 9th October 2022 Match Reports
Cahir Park 2 – 1 Tipperary Town
Cahir Park welcomed Tipp Town to the park in a top of the table clash on Sunday morning, and it took quite a while for the game to get going in the poor conditions they had to face. Neither side fashioned anything that could be called a decent chance in the first half and they went to the break scoreless. The second half started with the home team on top, and five minutes in, they nearly made their pressure play only to see Andy Fitzpatrick’s effort come back off the crossbar with the visiting keeper stranded. But only three minutes later, the visitors finally took the lead when Vinny Godfrey got in behind the home defence and finished well from ten yards. The hosts upped their game and were level shortly after when Ger Quinn finished tapped home and a Tom Keating shot was saved by the Town keeper, but fell kindly for the home side. The Park piled on the pressure in search of the lead goal a got their reward five minutes after the hour mark, when Willie Dunne poked home after a goal mouth scramble. Town tried hard to get back into the game and came close on two occasions, once forcing Brian Sweeney into point blank save, but the home side managed to hold on to take the points and join their opponents at the summit of Division One.
St Michaels 1 – 2 Old Bridge
A litany of missed chances cost Saints here in a game where they would have felt they deserved something against an Old Bridge side who have been blowing hot and cold so far this season. The strong swirling wind which made control of the ball very difficult all afternoon saw both sides struggle, but the home side had early efforts on goal both blocked by some excellent goalkeeping, and poor finishing. Shane Foley went clean through on fourteen minutes but the wind blew the ball away from him on his run to goal, and the Bridge breathed a sigh of relief. And minutes later, Jack Burke gave the visitors the lead when he turned in cross from close range. They made it two nil in the twenty seventh minute when Robbie McGrath failed to control a cross and David Cagney made no mistake from close range. Josh Flannery brought a save from Power in the visitors goal and Evan Hawkins saw his effort come back off the bar on the half hour, but in the end the away side took their two goal lead to the break. The home side pushed forward in numbers early in the second half but Bridge remained dangerous on the break throughout. Seven minutes from the end the home side finally got the goal their efforts deserved when a cross come shot by substitute Paddy Bermingham deceived the keeper to make it two goals to one. But that was to be the end of the scoring and the Clonmel side hung in for a vital three points.
Mullinahone 0 – 3 Clonmel Town
A Kevin Kirwan hat trick on Sunday afternoon gave Clonmel Town’s seconds a good win over a Mullinahone side struggling to adapt to life after promotion at the start of the season. The weather made it tough for both sides but the visitors were able to dominate the ball for long periods and went into the break two goals to the good thanks to the excellent forward play by Kirwan. The lead allowed them to soak up any pressure put on them by the home side in the second period and they made sure of the points when Kirwan added a third midway through the half after some excellent play through the middle of the pitch.
TSDL Third Division 9th October 2022 Match Reports
Powerstown 3 – 2 Bansha Celtic
Both sides threatened early on, in what was a game that crackled with chances from the start. Kieran Quirke made some heroic saves in the Powerstown goal to keep the score level at nil all, before Brian McKeown put the home side in front after seventeen minutes, when he got on the end of a ball played in behind the Celtic defence and clinically placed it past the Bansha Celtic goalkeeper. Bansha continued to push, but they were caught on the break minutes before the end of the half, and Mc Keown doubled his and his sides tally with a well taken second goal. The visitors started the better of the two teams in the second period and halved the deficit when they struck just after the hour mark. They followed up with a second five minutes later to rock the home side when they were awarded a penalty kick after a home defender was adjudged to have deliberately handled a ball that was heading to the net. This also seen Powerstown reduced to ten men, with the momentum looking to have completely swung to the visiting side. But Powerstown rallied and Brian McKeown completed his hat trick in the sixty-eight minute to put his side back in front. The final twenty minutes was a cagey affair, but the home side showed great character to withstand the Bansha bombardment and see the game out for all three points.
Killenaule Rovers 3 – 0 Kilsheelan United
Killenaule Rovers continued their good start to the season with another good win over a Kilsheelan side that have been showing some up and down form this season. The home side dominated the play right from the off, and went into the break two goals to the good thanks to a brace of goals from Dylan Walsh. The same player continued harassing the victors back line throughout the second period, and added hit hat trick goal on the hour mark. After that it was a case of controlling the ball and running down the clock and they did so easily enough to grab all three points.
TSDL Youths Division 9th October 2022 Match Reports
TSDL Youths Division 1
Slievenamon Celtic 1 – 1 Bansha Celtic
Slievenamon picked up their first points of the season with a hard-fought draw against Bansha Celtic on Saturday afternoon. The visitors had been in better form going into the game and had a lot of the early ball, looking particularly dangerous from set pieces. But the home side soaked up the pressure and created a really good opportunity when Cian Phelan took advantage of some good build up play, before his effort went straight into the visiting keeper’s grasp. That gave the home side more confidence to attack and they were rewarded when they took the lead after they were awarded a penalty that was dispatched to the net by Darragh Landers. The away side piled on the pressure in the second half and with fifteen minutes to go, won a penalty of their own, that was fired home by Adam Hennessey to level the game. Both sides pushed for a winner after that, but it was not to be, and they had to be content with a share of the spoils in the end.
Youths Round up
There were two TSDL Youths sides in action in the FAI Under 17 Cup, with unfortunately neither being successful after two high scoring games. In the first Donohill travelled to play North Tipperary side Killavilla and the two sides set up a goalfest for the watching supporters. In the end, while the North Tipperary side prevailed by a single goal in nine, the young Donohill team can be happy that they did themselves proud on the day. It wasn’t however any way close in the second game involving a TSDL side, when Cahir Park welcomed Waterford outfit Bridge United, only to be put to the sword by six goals to one against their very strong opponents.
In Youth League action, Peake Villa continued to climb in Division One, with a two goal win away to Cullen Lattin, while in Division Two the clash between the two unbeaten sides saw Cashel travel to Shanbally United and come home with all three points after a comfortable two goal to nil win.