Dohenys hang on to advance in dour contest
Dohenys 0-8 Douglas 0-7
No beating about the bush, no telling lies, this Evening Echo third round, senior football championship game in wet and miserable Cloughduv on Sunday last was one of the worst senior football games we have seen in many a long day. In fact we would be hard-pressed to remember worse. Whether it was the twelve-week lay-off since the last round, or the unexpected wet weather, or the very slippery pitch that caused both sides to play some terrible football but we saw more bad passing, terrible shooting, headless tactics and downright poor play in this game than we would hope to see in an entire season.
Not that Dohenys will be too worried about the standard. The objective was to win and progress to the quarter final, which is exactly what the Dunmanway men did. What they can’t be accused of, especially the defence and midfield, was a lack of guts and determination against a Douglas side which often dominated the possession stakes but failed miserably to convert it into scores. Watching a forward in possession, 25m out to the left of the goal, kicking the ball back outfield 45m rather than have a go at a score epitomised the Douglas possession game on the day. How Douglas, who reached the final last season and won the Kelleher Shield earlier this year, could have regressed so much is hard to explain but this was a terrible display, especially up front.
The low scoring could be put down to the poor conditions and the slippery nature of the pitch but also to the total dominance of both defences. Douglas managed only three points from play with Dohenys managing four and that was the point that separated the sides at the final whistle. While Douglas ran around in meaningless short-passing, Dohenys did, at times, try the more direct approach but lofting high balls on top of their ace forward, Ger McCarthy, who lacks vital inches, was not the tactic to employ. As a result of poor ball, McCarthy, so often Dohenys’ top scorer, was held to a single point by tenacious corner back, Frank Tobin. Dohenys introduced the tall Donal O’Sullivan as full forward for the second half, with the wind and rain, but instead of staying in near the Douglas goal as a target man, he roamed aimlessly way out the pitch and even popped up in defence. Neither sideline could be happy with their contributions to what was happening on the pitch.
With the wind and the rain in the first half, it was Douglas who controlled the play but failed miserably to penetrate a tough Doheny defence in which Michael O’Donovan, Conor Collins, Alan Murray and Paul Deane, cut out many badly-directed short passes. It was Ger McCarthy who opened the scoring with a Doheny point and the only Douglas contribution was a Fergal O’Sullivan free in the 5th minute. Despite the handicap of a half forward line that never functioned properly, Dohenys still looked the more dangerous side with Denis Healy doing well at full forward on Eoin Cadogan. Patrick McCarthy pointed a 45 and Healy pointed from play before Niall Heffernan had a rare Douglas point from play, leaving Dohenys 0-3 to 0-2 in front at the end of the first quarter.
Douglas practically owned the ball around midfield for much of the second quarter but again had no idea how to break down the Doheny defence and it was Denis Healy who shoved Dohenys two points in front in the 21st minute. With the Douglas half back line of David McSweeney, Killian Horgan and John Lane completely on top, the city side finally found the range when Shane McCarthy kicked a great point from 40m, in total contrast to what had gone before. Fergal O’Sullivan pointed another free before the break to level the scores, 0-4 each, but it was definitely Dohenys who retired the happier side.
The rain continued to come down as Dohenys got an early grip in the second half but their old failing of missing chances came back to haunt them and two easy chances of points were kicked badly wide. Patrick McCarthy put them in front from a free but O’Sullivan answered from a Douglas free. Although Michael Farr and Michael Milner were now battling hard at midfield the erratic supply of ball to the forwards wasn’t helpful and the Douglas defence was well on top. Jerry McCarthy pointed a Doheny free but back came Douglas with a point from John Farrell to level again, 0-6 each at the end of the third quarter.
The closeness of the scores was beginning to put some excitement into the game now and it was Dohenys who responded best when the hard-working Michael Farr kicked a fine score from play in the 46th minute. We had thirteen scoreless minutes then as the game was played mainly between the two 21m lines with neither side looking likely to score. It was Jerry McCarthy who finally broke the stalemate when he pointed a Doheny free and the closing minutes of the game saw Douglas go all out in an effort to rescue their season, with Eoin Cadogan, now operating at centre back, and sub, Ray Keating, pushing them forward. O’Sullivan pointed a free in the 61st minute to cut the gap to the minimum, 0-8 to 0-7, and then we had the sight of 28 players in the Doheny goal area as Douglas were awarded a free, 50m out. The kick landed short and somehow the Doheny defence scrambled it clear as the final whistle sounded.
Dohenys now advance to the quarter final but know they will have to improve 100% if they hope to go further, while Douglas were left wondering how their season, which is now at an end, could have gone so wrong.
Referee, Niall Barrett, Carrigtwohill.
Scorers: Dohenys – Denis Healy 0-2, Jerry McCarthy 0-2 frees, Patrick McCarthy 0-2, 0-1 free, 0-1 a 45, Michael Farr 0-1, Ger McCarthy 0-1. Douglas – Fergal O’Sullivan 0-4 frees, Shane McCarthy, Niall Heffernan, John Farrell, 0-1 each.
Dohenys – Darragh Farr, Conor Collins, Paul Deane, Alan Murray, Timothy O’Donovan, Michael O’Donovan, Niall Hurley, Michael Milner, Michael Farr, David Collins, Jerry McCarthy, Pat Collins, Patrick McCarthy, Denis Healy, Ger McCarthy. Sub, Donal O’Sullivan.
Douglas – Brian Boyle, Richard Murphy, Eoin Cadogan, Frank Tobin, David McSweeney, Killian Hogan, John Lane, Cormac Dineen, Alan Barry, Conor McCarthy, Shane McCarthy, Niall Heffernan, Kevin Murphy, John Farrell, Fergal O’Sullivan. Subs, Ray Keating, Stephen Bermingham, Willie Coveney, Thomas Sheehan, Garry McLoughlin.
“Cois Farraige”