Duffry seal spot in quarter-finals
MICHEÁL DOYLE'S eighth-minute goal proved decisive as Duffry Rovers held out for a two-point victory over favourites Shelmaliers in this exciting WFC Senior football championship Group D second round game at Wexford Park on Sunday last.
Improving Duffry Rovers ensured of a place in the quarter-finals as they grew in confidence as this game progressed and were full value for their victory, their second of the campaign, preserving their one hundred per cent record in the process.
Shelmaliers, who had recorded a massive opening round victory over Clongeen, never succeeded in getting their game together. They looked a very disjointed outfit, dependant on individual effort to try to fashion a result, but in truth they struggled against the wholehearted efforts of their opponents.
Eamonn Doyle and Terry Gainfort had exchanged early points before a Stephen Banville point edged the Shels in front after four minutes. The game was quite open with a lot of looseness in the respective defences which led to the only goal after eight minutes.
A high ball into the Shels goalmouth broke to the right, but with the defence hesitating and no-one prepared to take on the responsibility, Micheál Doyle nipped in to firsttime the loose ball to the net. John McCarthy made it 1-2 to 0-2 with a fine point, before Colin Redmond responded with a point.
As the half progressed the sides continued to trade points, with Matthew Flynn-O'Connor (two), Jim O'Neill and Micheál Doyle on target for the Duffry, while James Gordon, Terry Gainfort, Alan Griffith and Stephen Banville kept the Shels in touch, but they still trailed by 1-6 to 0-7 at the interval.
Duffry Rovers bolted from the traps on the resumption with a Micheál Doyle point inside one minute. But thereafter the scoring ratio slowed considerably, with one having to wait until the 38th minute for the next score - a Terry Gainfort point.
The Duffry then responded with two points inside three minutes through Matthew Flynn-O'Connor and Micheál Doyle to lead by 1-9 to 0-8.
Following this, mainly through the fine play of Brian Malone at midfield, the Shels enjoyed their best spell, adding points through Terry Gainfort (two, one free) and James Gordon, with one in between to leave the minimum separating the sides (1-9 to 0-11), with five minutes remaining.
While it looked as if the Shels had the momentum, the Duffry fashioned one final attack and a Flynn-O'Connor pointed free ensured victory.
- BRENDAN FURLONG in Wexford Park
