Match Report: Curraha v Trim. Fairyhouse Steel Senior Championship Relegation Playoff 19/09/2024

 

Curraha clashed with Trim on Thursday night in the Senior Relegation Football Championship quarter final in Batterstown.

Robbie Barrett got proceedings under way at 8pm with a sizeable crowd in attendance. Diarmuid Moriarty for Curraha rose the tallest and won the throw up. Moriarty immediately passed the ball to his midfield partner Phelim Dowling who gave a brilliant long range footpass into Conor Moriarty. Moriarty jinked left then right and delivered a pin point pass across goal into the hands of Ruairí O’Sullivan who  dispatched the ball to the roof of the net to give Curraha a dream start after only 30 seconds of play. Trim had to wait until the 3rd minute of play for their first score of the game. Aaron Lynch was Trims danger man in the forward line and he converted a free off his right to open his and Trims account. Lynch converted a free off the ground 3 minutes later, Lynchs shot was dropping under the crossbar but Luke McCarthy was taking no chances and the Curraha keeper got to fist the ball over the bar. With the heavy dew coming down on the pitch play for both teams was becoming difficult. Trim leveled the game in the 7th minute with David Lernighan converting a free off his left. Curraha began to grow into the game themselves. Séamus Hogan was on a lot of ball and was winning kick outs and setting up Curraha attacks. Diarmuid Moriarty got Currahas next point when Conor Moriarty was fouled just outside the D in the 9th minute. Diarmuid Moriarty converted to give Curraha a 1 point lead. Brian Joyce was having a great game in the midfield area for Curraha and caught a great kick out in the 13th minute and gave a fine pass across to Michael John Lavin who gave a fine hand pass to Conor O’Farrell. O’Farrell went on a fine run along the clubhouse side before delivering a long pass into Ruairí O’Sullivan, he fisted the ball to Jack O’Connor who split the posts in 2 with the best move of the game with a shot from the outside of his right boot. Aaron Lynch got the next point of the game with a point from a free in the 18th minute. Aaron Lynch made it a draw match with  ten minutes remaining in the half with a point from play. Curraha responded almost immediately again with some great build up play from Matthew Webb. Webb, the Curraha full back found himself at the top of the D after a long run recycled the ball back out to a player in a better position. Curraha were patient with their build up play and Jack O’Connor kicked another monster score on the right hand side to give Curraha their lead back with 9 minutes remaining in the half. Aaron Lynch responded for Trim again with a point from a free in the 23rd minute. Trim finished the half the brightest with 3 further scores with the best coming in the 30th minute when David Lernighan sent over a brilliant free off his left to give Trim a 3 point lead. That would be the final action of a very entertaining first half with very little to separate the 2 teams. 

Trim kept the pressure on Curraha at the start of the second half and Aaron Lynch converted a point when he fisted the ball over the bar to leave 4 points between the teams. Trim were rewarded in the 2nd minute of the half when David Lernighan converted a goal to give Trim a 7 point lead. Curraha didn't give up though and some further good play from Brian Joyce and great defending from Niall Murphy led to an excellent point from Ronan Flynn from a free in the 4th minute to reduce the deficit. Curraha were reduced to 14 men in the 7th minute of the half when Phelim Dowling was shown a black card. Curraha decided to make a substitution in the 8th minute of the half when James McEntee was introduced for Michael John Lavin. Luke McCarthy was once again called into action moments later when he did brilliantly to get across the face of the goal and pull off a fine save with his feet and send the ball out for a 45. Trim failed to convert the 45 but got the next point of the game to again make it a 7 point game. Trim got the next score of the game from Aaron Lynch with 15 minutes remaining. Curraha weren't going down without a fight however and began to dominate proceedings. Diarmuid Moriarty kicked a brilliant point from a free after they made a great interception involving Podge O’Hanrahan who delivered the ball in to win the free. Curraha won the next Trim kickout and McEntee skinned his man and kicked a great point off his left foot as it curled in between the posts. Trim gave a short kick out and the ball was aimed at Aaron Lynch however Oisín Fay made a fine interception and passed the ball to Jack O’Connor who in a similar position to McEntee moments prior kicked the ball straight betweeen the posts off his left to only leave 5 between the teams. Trim responded with a score with 5 minutes remaining in the game. Curraha made a triple substitution moments later when Eoghan Burke came on for Seamus Hogan, Seán Ronan came on for Conor O’Farrell and David Coyle came on for Ruairí O’Sullivan. Curraha kept piling pressure on Trim and James McEntee kicked a great score off his right this time with 3 minutes remaining. Diarmuid Moriarty was again on hand for frees duty and he kicked 2 brilliant frees 1 after the other to only leave 3 points between the teams as the game went into injury time. Trim won possession of the ball and worked it well into a dangerous position. Luke McCarthy made a brilliant initial save but a Trim player was in the right place at the right time to slot the ball to the back of the net which finished off the chance of a late Curraha comeback  to send the game into injury time. In the 35th minute a long ball was sent in towards one of the Curraha substitutes David Coyle who was fouled, initially there were calls for a penalty but a free in was awarded. James McEntee took the free and his shot went over the bar to leave the full time score Curraha 1.11   Trim 2.13

A very entertaining game with some great scores from both teams. Well done to Trim who secured safety but Curraha can take some great positives out of the game and did very well to fight back from 8 points down to leave only 3 between themselves and Trim in the closing stages. Curraha will take great confidence from their performance heading into their next game in 2 weeks time as they will have another chance at securing safety in the senior ranks for 2025.

Luke McCarthy, Séamus Hogan, Matthew Webb, Oisín Fay, Conor O’Farrell, Niall Murphy, Podge O’ Hanrahan, Brian Joyce, Phelim Dowling, Ronan Flynn(0.01F) Jack O’Connor(0.03) Diarmuid Moriarty(0.04F) Ruairí O’Sullivan(1.00) Conor Moriarty, Michael John Lavin 

Subs used: James McEntee 0.03(0.01F) for Michael John Lavin, Eoghan Burke for Séamus Hogan, Seán Ronan for Conor O’Farrell and David Coyle for Ruairí O’Sullivan

Report: Ivan Keogh