Nobber 1 – 8 (11) Kilmainham 0 – 12 (12)
Nobber kickstarted their Division 3 league campaign on bank holiday Monday afternoon last, welcoming Kilmainham to their home grounds. A mixed day weatherwise with conditions during the first half proving favourable, however, they took a turn in the second half, with both teams trying to navigate slippy and wet conditions. A mixed day for the Nobber men in terms of performance and scoring and one could say it was a game of two halves.
The black and ambers started brightly with some well-taken scores by midfielder Dean Halpin and full forward Aodhan McEntee. The first quarter proved a tight affair, however Nobber pushed on leading into the half-time break, enjoying the majority of the possession and using it well. Further scores from Conor Owens, Dean Halpin, Niall Farrell, and Paddy Clarke left the Deesiders going into the break with a healthy lead.
Half-time Nobber 0 – 7 Kilmainham 0 – 3
As the rain started to fall, Kilmainham started to up a couple of gears after the half-time break scoring 3 without response leaving just the minimum between the sides. Six minutes into the second half the Nobber men were awarded a free 15 – 20 yards from the goal. The hugely experienced Niall Farrell saw an opportunity and took advantage of the Kilmainham defence who were unaware of the danger and kicked low and hard to the back of the net. Martin Morgan’s charges swiftly followed this up with a well-taken score by Dale Larkin with 17 minutes remaining on the clock. This proved to be Nobber’s final score of the game. Kilmainham drove hard at the Nobber defence in the final quarter and continued to chip away at the lead. In truth, the black and ambers had opportunities to add to their tally but it wasn’t to be their day as Kilmainham held on to record the win.
Nobber will be disappointed with their second-half performance but will be keen to take the positives and work on improvements for the next day. A short turnaround for the North Meath men who travel to the other side of the county on Saturday afternoon to face Kilbride at 4 PM. Also, congratulations to Evan Nelson on making his senior adult debut for the club.
Nobber: Dary Hutchinson, Tony McEntee, Eanna Fagan, Barry Cassidy, Kian Donohoe Niall Farrell (1 – 1), Barry Bradley, Conor Owens (0 – 2), Dean Halpin (0 – 2), Paddy Clarke (0 – 1), Karl Casserly, Dale Larkin (0 – 1), Joe Tierney, Aodhan McEntee (0 – 1), Scott Farrell.
Subs used: Evan Nelson, Jonny Donohoe.
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