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Moville finish on a high 03.12.09
Division 4 League final

Moville...2-10
(Doherty 1-3, O McDermott 1-1, O’Hare 0-3(f), J McGeady 0-2, Faulkner 0-1)

Milford...1-7
(C Bradley 0-5, Flood 1-0, P Curley 0-1, L Friel 0-1)

by Simon McGeady, Inishowen Independent, at MacCumhaill Park

MOVILLE ended the season on a high note with a comprehensive six point win over Milford in the Division Four league final replay in Ballybofey on Sunday afternoon.
The first game between the two promoted teams in Buncrana last week ended all square, with Milford finishing strongly. However when the sides locked horns for a second time in a week it was the Donegal Junior Champions who came out on top.
Milford will be sick of the sight of Eddie Devine’s men this season, having also lost out in the county final in September, but will be able to put this result into perspective. Their league semi-final win over Convoy was of greater importance than this match.
Moville, who finished on top of Division Four, end this most successful of seasons with a Championship and League double, even if their Ulster campaign ended in semi-final heartbreak.
Moville have been quick starters in games this year and Sunday was no different. A trio of scores from the dominant Sean O’Hare coupled with an Oran McDermott strike and a John McGeady punch over the bar propelled the Foylesiders to a five point to no score lead with less than a quarter of the match played.
The fifth Moville point came about after a well-worked move with Enda Faulkner and Seamus Hegarty combining to set up O’Hare.
Milford were chasing shadows at times in the first half as Moville’s high tempo short passing mixed in with angled long ball to the corner forwards kept the opposition guessing.
True, Moville had the benefit of a slight breeze, but it was more than a favourable wind that had them so far in front.
Moville’s halfback line of Enda Faulkner, Seamus Hegarty and Paul White stymied the Milford attack and Faulkner and company supplied good ball to the attackers as well. In the midfield Malachy McDermott and O’Hare won most of their battles with Paul Sweeney and Lorcan Friel.
Milford’s shooting was erratic for much of the first half. David Curley, inexplicably, put a 13 metre free from slightly to the right of the goal into the arms of Moville keeper Maurice McGeady.
Chris Bradley scored Milford’s first point midway through the half only for Moville to go up the other end and extend their lead when Malachy McDermott’s long pass from the right drifted over the final sky blue shirt allowing Oran McDermott to collect on the edge of the square and thump left-footed past Caolan McGettingan.
Nigel McMonagle and Oran McDermott hit wides as their side laboured a little and Milford finished the first half with their best football. Bradley got another point before the same player pounced on a loose Moville pass and released the ball inside to the onrushing Lorcan Friel who seemed sure to find the net but skied his shot for a point with only McGeady to beat.
Moville led by five points at the break, but similar half time leads were surrendered in their last two games and so they could ill afford complacency.
Milford looked like they might make a fist of the match on the resumption.
David Curley crashed a shot off McGeady’s crossbar only for the alert Eunan Hegarty to deny Chris Bradley on the follow up with an urgent block.
Scores from Padraig Curley and Bradley gave them hope, before points from John Faulkner (a great first time effort in traffic from 30 metres out), John McGeady and a brace from the dependable Doherty put Moville up by 1-9 to 0-5.
With ten minutes to go the Carrick Field men all but wrapped the game up.
Danny Murphy burst in from the left end-line and was pushed in the back. Up stepped Doherty to take the resulting penalty, which had too much power and placement for McGettigan to stop, though he guessed the right way.
Into the final quarter and Milford gave up any pretence of going for points. Bradley played in Paul Shiels on the right but McGeady was equal to the corner forward’s drive, throwing himself to his left to prevent the ball from going in at the near post.
Milford bombarded the Moville defence with high-ball in the final minutes and were rewarded when substitute Mark Flood helped Peter Doherty’s chipped 45 past the Moville keeper with the flick of a fist.
That made it 2-10 to 1-7, but with little time on the clock it was only ever going to be a consolation.
So the top team in the league, fittingly perhaps, win the league final. Milford will relish meeting Moville in the more exacting surrounds of Division Three come the spring.

Moville: Maurice McGeady; Eunan Hegarty, Michael Browne, Conor O’Donnell; Enda Faulkner, Seamus Hegarty, Paul White; Sean O’Hare, Malachy McDermott; John Faulkner, Nigel McMonagle, Danny Murphy; Oran McDermott, John McGeady Graeme Doherty. Subs: Joe McBride for Nigel McMonagle, Kevin Coyle for John McGeady, Gearoid McQuilland for Paul White.

Milford: Caolan McGettigan; Enda McHugh, Barry McNulty, Cormac Friel; Kevin Sweeney, Peter Doherty, Paddy Peoples; Paul Sweeney, Lorcan Friel; Christopher Barrett, David Curley, Chris Bradley; Padraig Curley, Ciaran McHugh, Paul Shiels. Subs: Dermot Friel for Paul Sweeney; PJ Hagan for Ciaran McHenry, Mark Flood for Lorcan Friel.

For full coverage of all your weekend sport, read the Inishowen Independent.
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