Trim 2-13 St Michael  3-7

After a blistering first half display of attractive free flowing attacking football Trim Intermediate footballers just about got over the line in Cortown on Saturday evening.

Trim were in scintillating form in the first thirty minutes as the blew St Michaels out of the water with great passing combinations, quick ball into the full forward line and fast moving football. The old habits crept into their performance in the second half. When this Trim team plays as a team there are not many left in this competition  that will beat them but when they play as individual as  they did in the second thirty minutes last evening they will not win any more matches.

James Cullen got the Reds on the score board in the first minute when he palmed a great pas from Alan Douglas over the bar, a goal was on but the ball hit the top of the bar for a point. This score was followed by two good points from play from Aaron Lynch and Brian Dowling. St Michaels got on the score sheet with a point in the seventh minute. They added another point in the tenth minute. In the next twenty minutes Trim went on a scoring spree the town side scored two goals and seven points to St Michaels one point. The first goal came from a lovely interchange of passing between youngster Conner Quigley and Aaron Lynch which left Quigley bearing down on goal with just the keeper to beat and young Quigley blasted the ball into the bottom left corner og the St Michaels net. The second goal in this period of dominance was a pile driver from the boot of the impressive Alan Douglas. Three points from Aaron Lynch, one each from Robert Burke, James Toher, Ciaran O’Rourke, and James Cullen left the team in Red leading by two goals and ten points to just two point from a poor St Michaels side. In the last three minutes of the half St Michaels score a goal from the penalty spot and a point from play and at half time Trim lead by ten points , Game over one would have thought.

Half Time Score : Trim 2-10 St Michaels 1-3

As Trim ran out on the pitch for the second half the talk among the Trim supporters was that this would be a total wipe out in the second half, the thought process of the Trim supporters in attendance was that Trim would continue to give the quick ball into their very impressive full forward line of Alan Douglas, Arron Lynch and Brian Dowling and that this line would run the St Michaels backs ragged as they had done in the first half. These thoughts could not have been further away to what actually happened the Trim team did exactly the  opposite, they started to solo the ball, take pot shots from all sorts of angles and distances and in the first ten minutes of the second half had kicked seven wides. Four of these wides were scandalous decisions from the kickers. The full forward line were starved of ball , they continued to make great runs to get themselves free of their market but their team mates stooped supplying them with ball.  St Michael out scored Trim in the second half with two goals and four points to just three points to Trim. The second half performance was a disaster and showed the frailties in this Trim team. The team management will be happy with the first thirty minutes but need to get into the heads of the players that football is a team game for sixty minute not just thirty. Trim had a similar performance in the second round against Bective where they were in total control of the game playing as a team unit, they stopped this with twenty minutes to go and were beaten. A performance like last night in the knock out stages against better opposition will leave Trim looking from outside the wire for the rest of the championship.

Trim: Barry Callaghan, Rory McGrath, Ger Dwane, Brian Bolger, Declan Dowling, James Toher, Paul Munnelly, Connor Quigley (1-0), Robert Burke (0-1), Daire Lynch (0-1, )James Cullen (0-4), Ciaran O’Rourke (0-1), Aaron Lynch (0-4), Alan Douglas (1-0), Brian Dowling (0-1)

ST. MICHAELS IFC MATCH REPORT 

St. Michaels 3-07, Trim 2-13       

Efficiency in front of the posts in the opening half propelled Trim to victory in this IFC fourth round match in Cortown on Saturday evening last, however had St. Michaels played the first half as they did the second, the result could have been so different. 

Trim could not have asked for a better start as they went 1-5 to 0-1 in front after only nine minutes play, St. Michaels, who lined out without their influential forward Oran Meehan opened their account in the seventh minute with a Ciaran Lynch point, Shane McDonnell followed up with a good long range effort four minutes later however that score marked the start of a 15 minute barren spell for the Saints and they conceded 1-4 as their two back lines received a roasting from the Trim forwards. Hemmed in and a wall of red in front of them St. Michaels suffered dearly as Trim managed to keep them at arms length while keeping the scoreboard ticking to go 2-5 to 0-2 in front after 25 minutes play, their second major coming on 21 minutes. A Shane McCormack free on 26 minutes gave the St. Michaels lads some respite and when McDonnell rattled the net from the penalty spot a minute later following a foul in the square on Ray Reilly it improved the look of the scoreboard for his side as they went in at the break trailing 1-3 to 2-10. 

Shane McDonnell floated over the opening score of the second half however it was the half time introduction of Ronan Lynch that kick started the St. Michaels revival as his presence around the middle third had an immediate effect as his foraging and deliveries into his forwards paid off handsomely. Team captain Sam Briody led by example and got on the end of an up-field move for a well worked point, Trim replied immediately with a point and from a move started with Darren O'Connell's resultant kick-out Patrick Tobin latched on to a loose ball at the other end of the pitch to blast to the back of the net after some good work by Harry Dunne and Ray Reilly. 

Neither side troubled the scoreboard attendant for the next 10 minutes and it was the industrious Tobin who was bearing down on goal when he was hauled to the ground for his sides second penalty which McDonnell duly converted for a three point game 3-6 to 2-12 in favour of Trim with just 4 minutes of normal time remaining. Trim went back up field to register only their third and final score of the half while the St. Michaels lads kept plugging away at the opposite end however they could only manage a further point from a free by Ciaran Lynch before time ran out on their valiant effort.                                                                                                                                                                                             

St. Michaels: Darren O'Connell; Ben Reilly, Sam Briody (0-1), Ciaran O'Reilly; Harry Dunne, Matthew Halpin, Alan Reilly; Mark Stafford, Paddy Clarke; Shane McDonnell (2-2), Ray Reilly, Shane McCormack (0-2); Paddy Tobin (1-0), Cian Sheridan, Ciaran Lynch (0-2). Subs: Ronan Lynch for P. Clarke 30 minutes, Kevin Cassidy for A. Reilly (BC).                                                                                                             

Referee: Frank Scully.

Report: Pascal Reilly PRO. 

 

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