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Doherty lifts Culdaff off the
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Aileach FC...2 (A Doherty’17, McElhinney ’37) Culdaff FC...4 (D Doherty ’24 and ’55, McFeely ’47 (pen), N. McLaughlin ’80) by Jonathan Downey, Inishowen Independent, at Burnfoot As often occurs in Inishowen soccer, the weather again dictated the level and condition of play last Sunday afternoon in Burnfoot. The pitch was deemed playable at midday but by kick-off, heavy rain had made the terrain undesirable but that didn’t stop Culdaff from claiming another vital victory. After their surprise win over QPS, Culdaff capitalised on their form and overwhelmed Aileach with a 4-2 victory. |
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Aileach led their visitors
2-1 at half-time thanks to goals from Anthony Doherty
and Cathal McElhinney. But it was a different game in
the second half as Culdaff put three past Aileach, with
John McFeeley, Derek Doherty and Niall McLaughlin
putting an end to the home side’s hopes. The first half began with a light shower, adding to the woeful surface conditions where staying on your feet was the biggest battle. However despite this, both sides showed plenty of promise. Wide players on both teams provided the attacking threat early on. Culdaff’s Eugene McLaughlin and Aileach’s Dermot Doherty were making great runs but the long ball usually meant control was difficult in the wet. On 16 minutes a through ball found Niall McLaughlin but he failed to capitalise with the free space. On the counter |
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attack Aileach opened the
scoring when Anthony Doherty nicked in to give his team
the advantage. A lack of communication in the Aileach goalmouth allowed Derek Doherty to find himself unmarked and he levelled for Culdaff on 24 minutes. However, there were objections from the Aileach camp and they had a case as the ball looked to have been stopped on the line. Aileach landed themselves a blow just before the half hour when keeper McDermott had to be subbed due to a muscle injury and was replaced by McKay. On countless occasions, attempts to pass the ball forward were halted as it stuck in the muck. This led to frustration for the forwards but pressurised defenders and helped create scoring opportunities. Aileach’s Brian Sheerin and Declan O’Donnell and Culdaff’s Brian Harris all profited from this. |
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Aileach reclaimed the lead on 37 minutes when a smart
through ball by Anthony Doherty found Dermot Doherty and
he crossed for Aileach captain McElhinney to head home. Going into half time there seemed little to separate the sides but Culdaff took that opportunity to recharge their batteries and reassess their tactical options. Culdaff started the second half with a quick penalty. A long shot was not dealt with by Shan McKay in goal and the fumble led to O’Donnell conceding a penalty in the panic. John McFeeley stepped up equalised for the away side. Aileach tried to respond with a flurry of chances. Graham Browne’s goal chance went straight at the keeper and Gerard Arbuckle was unlucky with a shot that was well saved. In the 55th minute Culdaff took the lead when Conor O’Brien’s quick cross was well finished by Doherty. Aileach, struggling to get into the match since half time, were finding Culdaff’s direct football difficult to overcome. Browne’s snapshot midway through the half was their best chance in a quiet period. Eugene McLaughlin displayed fine footwork on the left |
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wing to create an opening
but he fired wide past the post. When Aileach changed to ball-to-feet play and dropped the high ball forward it looked as if an equaliser was imminent. They were finding goal chances more often and putting more pressure on the away defence. However with ten minutes remaining Culdaff wrapped up the points when O’Brien’s corner was headed in by Niall McLaughlin and put Culdaff two goals in the lead. This prompted a ten-minute domination by Aileach and chance after chance was wasted inside the Culdaff 18 yard box. Time after time tempting crosses were dealt with too easily by the keeper where any amount of pressure may have resulted in a fumble in the terrible conditions. However Brian McGonigle was immense in defence for Culdaff and the away side held out for the win. Aileach look to have brought themselves into the relegation battle nearing the last games of the season but a lot depends on how results will go for the sides below them. Culdaff have revitalised their season in the last few weeks and now have the opportunity to extend this good run and pull themselves away from relegation danger. Aileach FC: Kevin McDermott (Shan McKay ’28); Brian Sheerin (Gregory Doherty ’84), Declan O’Donnell, Cathal McElhinney, Stephen O’Donnell; Damian Barr, Dermot Doherty, James Gillespie, Anthony Doherty; Graham Browne, Ciaran Craig (Gerard Arbuckle half-time). Culdaff FC: Marty McLaughlin; Benny Lafferty, Brian Harris, Brian McGonigle, Matthew Byrne; John McFeeley, Conor O’Brien, Dermot Diver, Derek Doherty (Conor McLaughlin ’81); Eugene McLaughlin, Niall McLaughlin. For full coverage of all your weekend sport, read the Inishowen Independent. |
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