Desertmartin versus Limavady

Desertmartin Vs. Limavady (08/05/11)

Desertmartin played host to Limavady last Sunday at with conditions bright and blustery at Longfield. The home side were looking to bounce back from a disappointing result last week against Moneymore; a game nobody quite knows how they lost. Once again the reserves set the standard when they casually annihilated the Limavady opposition who could only muster one score over the course of the match. The senior game would prove to be quite different though, a far more even contest that failed to provide anywhere near as many scores. Limavady took the lead after two minutes when they converted a simple free kick. Desertmartin responded when the two Murray brothers of Donal and Decky notched a point each before Cormac McGuckin added another score from just inside the 21 metre line when it was well broke by Paul McGovern.. Desertmartin began to take a grip on the match and after midfielder Danny Murray fired over a further two points, one of which a mammoth 50 metre skyscraper, the home side were firmly in control. Enda McGuckin stretched the lead to five before Limavady cancelled the score out with a fine strike from 30metres against a strong wind. Brendan Higgins then fired over a superb point from an acute angle before Limavady struck two in quick succession to leave the half time score 0:07 – 0:04. The second half started brightly for the away team, making use of the strong wind at their backs they pointed three in a row to level the sides. Desertmartin then made their first sub of the day, Decky Murray making way for JP Higgins who was surprisingly dropped from the starting line-up. Donal Murray then restored the home side’s lead after splitting the posts from 30 metres on the right side of the goalposts. The game then entered a scrappy 10 minute spell with several big challenges flying in from both sides, JP Higgins guilty of emptying men left, right and centre. Desertmartin then made another substitution, Shane ‘O Neill making way for James Breen at corner back. Enda McGuckin then put two between the sides after a brilliant run from midfield, playing a nice one-two with Paul McGovern along the way. Limavady respond with a simple 13 metre free kick before Aidy McGuigan replaces Brendan Higgins for the home side. Limavady are then given a chance to move into the lead after a penalty kick was awarded, Cahir Madden having been deemed guilty of delivering a tidy left hook to the half forward’s jaw. However the penalty failed to find the net, coming back off the right post after Brian McElhennon guessed the correct way. The ‘Martins again were let off the hook after Limavady missed a fairly straight forward free kick in front of the posts. Desertmartin then made their final sub of the match, Gavin Kidd replacing Paul McGovern. The match then had to be stopped for approximately 20 minutes after a collision of heads between two Limavady players, with an ambulance having to be sent for. When the game finally resumed with four minutes remaining, Enda McGuckin struck over the final score of the day to leave the home side victors on a score-line of 0:10 to 0:08.

Man of the match: Brian McElhennon

Desertmartin team and scorers: Brian McElhennon, Shane ‘O Neill, Paddy McCann, Connor Monaghan, Cahir Madden, Mark Madden, Gregory McGovern, Danny Murray (0:02), Johnny McGovern, Donal Murray (0:02), Cormac McGuckin (0:01), Decky Murray (0:01), Paul McGovern, Enda McGuckin (0:03), Brendan Higgins (0:01)
Subs – JP Higgins for Decky Murray, James Breen for Shane ‘O Neill, Aidy McGuigan for Brendan Higgins, Gavin Kidd for Paul McGovern