Killeavy 1-10 St Pats 0-13
Killeavy would have been second favourites going into this First Round championship game with St Pats on Friday night in Carrickcruppen , following a less than inspiring run of form in the league. The team has been down on confidence recently, but on their night Killeavy can be a match for any side, and supporters made the short trip with plenty of hope. Conditions were typical of the past month, cool, wet, damp and a strong wind favoured Killeavy in the opening period. Needing a good start, they kicked a wonder point through Mark Stanfield after a couple of minutes, off his left foot from fifty yards from play. This score was a mixed blessing, because over the course of the half, Killeavy kicked some very poor wides from way too far out the field, rather than playing the ball into a very effective full forward line. Two picture postcard points from Gerard Byrne were highlights of the half, but as Mal Mackin started to dominate midfield, it was St Pats who were looking the more accomplished team, accurate from frees as well as play to move ahead. Killeavy were so close to socring goals on two occasions, with Anthony O'Hare blasting a shot off the bar, and Seamus Toner having a shot for goal that was very well saved. Wing back Conor McAnulty was very unfortunate to be substituted for James Duffy in the opening half, as Killeavy reshuffled to try and counter St Pats midfield dominance. Duffy did improve the aerial effectiveness and a couple of excellent late first half points from Stephen McDonnell(2) and Anthony O'Hare showed that Killeavy were well capable of breaching the St Pats rearguard. However, having kicked seven wides to Pats two, and missed two goals, the breeze and score advantage was with St Pats entering the break.Half-Time: Killeavy 0-6 St Pats 0-08
The second half of this game was an exact mirror image of the first. St Pats learned nothing from Killeavy's first half wastefulness. They themselves kicked a host of very poor early wides from range, and their freetaking also started to suffer from the blight. It was also their turn to miss goal opportunities, as twice they struck the inside of the Killeavy woodwork, and on the second occasion the ball miraculously ran back along the goal line before a very timely clearance. Killeavy's attacks were now more economic, and they got a dream start with Anthony O'Hare winning an opportunistic penalty. Stanfield emphatically finished to give Killeavy the lead, and they looked the much better outfit from this point up until the last two minutes. Frees (2) from McDonnell sandwiched an O'Hare point, and when Stanfield kicked over a fifty, Killeavy were two in front entering injury time. St Pats kicked two scores to tie, one from a close in free, while the last gasp equaliser came disappointingly from a lapse in defensive concentration. Both teams will reflect on missed opportunities in this game, and Killeavy might be better pushing Stephen McDonnell further up the field for the replay. Too often in the second half, their first instinct was to play laterally across the half back line, instead of looking up and playing the ball forward first time. Nevertheless, two draws after seven defeats, hopefully indicates confidence is returning and the corner is being turned, and best of luck to the lads for this weeks replay in the Athletic Grounds on Friday at 7-15pm.Full Time: Killeavy 1-10 St Pats 0-13
Killeavy Team: S. Duffy, P. Donnelly, B. McKevitt, G. Magennis , R. McConville, L. O'Hare, C. McAnulty, P. Watters, S. McDonnell(0-4, 2F), S. Boylan, M Stanfield(1-2 , 1F, 1-0 PEN), R. Teggart, A. O'Hare(0-2), S. Toner, G. Byrne(0-2).Subs: J. Duffy for C. McAnulty(20), P. Rocks for R. Teggart(35),C. Quinn for G. Magennis(50).