United Churches League 1, Carlow League 0
THE heavy rain and swirling wind conspired in a vain attempt to dampen the attacking spirits of both units during the first quarter exchanges which saw a UCL defence employ a razor sharp offside trap that effectively blunted the Carlow attack spearheaded by the hard working Aidan Cooney and Ray Shannon.
In a crowded midfield Darren Ayres and Alan O’Brien busily disrupted any promising UCL attacks while Mickey Corcoran and Gary Powell often provided the support that stretched the UCL defence to its limits depending on their ‘keeper as an effective last line of defence.
In the second quarter play became increasingly scrappy in part due to greasy underfoot conditions and close range marking. In the 30th minute UCL created an opening that ended with a shot being scooped over the Carlow bar and ‘keeper John Graham was forced into his first real save in the 32nd minute.
At this stage it appeared that UCL had effectively upped the tempo of the game and had found the key to unlock the Carlow defence as they took the direct route towards goal. However, a number of promising moves and frees failed to trouble Carlow’s outstanding ‘keeper or the twin towers of Mick Roche and Mark Hutchinson.
Indeed the Carlow defence impressively maintained its shape despite the pressure but in a hectic spell towards the end of the half John Graham advanced to smother a UCL forwards shot and then deflected a goal bound free to safety in the 43rd minute.
The Carlow response materialised almost immediately when Powell delivered a corner to the near post where Aidan Cooney directed his header just over an inviting target.
Caution was less obvious during the third quarter exchanges with Ger Cuddihy providing support for Powell now revelling in his wide midfield role while on the other side of the pitch the energetic Raymond Buggy was never afraid to race up in support of Mickey Corcoran and Alan O’Brien now producing accurate passes that had the well organised UCL defence retreating but never to the point of losing its solidity.
This remained the case until the introduction of Ross Nolan and Jamie Moran, to spearhead the Carlow attack, who quickly made a telling impact on the collective peace of mind of the UCL defence. Carlow became more adventurous and effective in their attacking play but as the game progressed towards the final exchanges UCL were managing to penetrate deeper into the Carlow defensive zone. During one such escapade Graham received an injury that required treatment and on his recovery the game progressed into injury time. UCL’s last throw of the dice reaped rich and very relieving rewards when they scored what proved to be the winner within seconds of the final whistle. In a great team performance Mick Roche was Carlow’s man of the match while others to excel included ‘keeper, John Graham who was also excellent on the day, defence - Raymond Buggy and Gary Powell with Alan O’Brien and Darren Ayres in midfield.
Carlow: John Graham, Raymond Buggy, Ger Cuddihy, Mick Roche, Mark Hutchinson, Garry Powell, Darren Ayres, Mickey Corcoran, Alan O’Brien, Aidan Cooney, Ray Shannon.
