February 16, 2011
By Staff Reporter
St. Barnabas withstood a late Rockland surge to win a thrilling under-18 contest, 2-9 to 2-7, Sunday at Rockland.
From the opening whistle to the final kick of the ball, this game was full of intensity and dynamic football. At halftime, Rockland led 2-3 to 1-5, but St. Barnabas converted more second-half chances and their defense held on during a dramatic final five minutes to hold off a series of Rockland offensive raids.
The best players for St. Barnabas were Kevin Hannon, Danny Helbig, Douglas Brady, John Mulligan, Ed Sheeran, and Joe Graziosa. Rockland’s top performers were Glen Roche, Billy Cosgrove, Brendan McManus, Chris Mangan, James Donahue and Ray Bader. Players of the Match were Pat McGurk of St. Barnabas and Joey Farrell of Rockland.
Celtics and Rockland meet in a tripleheader of games this past Saturday.
In the under-10 match, Rockland were the winners by 4-4 to 2-0. Rockland controlled the play in the first half and established a firm lead of 2-2 to nil at halftime. Celtics stormed back in the second half with two early goals, only to see the host team regroup and clinch their victory in the last 10 minutes. This was an exciting game and both teams played good football with many well-taken scores and excellent goalkeeping.
Rockland’s star players were Ciaran Smith, Chris and Brandon Relihan, Shane Hanley, Tom Furlong and Evan O’Brien. Superb for Celtics were goalkeeper Padraig Koyne, Keith Lang, Aishlinn Gormally, Matt Slattery, James Tierney and Aine Cregan. Players of the Match were Ryan McNamara of Rockland and Dylan O’Neill of Celtics.
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In the under-12 contest, Celtics were the stronger team and won 5-11 to 3-2. Celtics flew out of the starting gates and never looked back. They played fine football, moving the ball splendidly up the field and gave a great exhibition of point kicking and defensive football. Although they tried bravely, Rockland were never able to curtail this fast-paced attack.
Celtic’s best were Kelly McArdle, Brian Curley, Eamon Tierney, Michael Lang, James Tierney and Stephanie Tierney. Outstanding for Rockland were Declan White, Danny McGrory, Patrick Troy, Conor Moore, Martin Linnane and Brendan Lee. Players of the Match were Daniel Tierney of Celtics and Dillon Maye of Rockland.
Rockland were victorious in the under-14 game 3-12 to 1-2. Maybe it was the gut-wrenching speech by halfback John White or their new uniforms that inspired them. But Rockland came out fired up and gave a tremendous display of teamwork and kicked some excellent scores. Their attack was a pleasure to watch. They worked the ball up field methodically, showing intelligent give and go combinations and off the ball movement.
Rockland’s top players were Conor Whelan, Emmett McGrade, Robert Daly, Mike McElligott, Nick Mangan, Steve Spellman and Mike Sullivan. Celtic’s most enterprising players were Alison Traynor, Ashlinn Smith, Brian Hegarty, Kevin Purce, Carl McGovern, Brian Curley and Shane McNelis.
In under-10 action at Paddy’s Field, St. Barnabas defeated Rangers 3-8 to 1-2. Stars for St. Barnabas were James Hannon, Conor Hogan, Liam Deane, Shane Flanagan, Dione Norney, Conor Flanagan and James Mullan. Rangers who played well were Brian Twomey, Conor McIntyre, Shane McIntyre, Kevin Druenwalt and Johnny Druenwalt. Player of the Match for St. Barnabas was Frankie McDermott.
On Sunday, in Woodbury Park, Monroe, N.Y., host St. Brendan’s played St. Raymond’s in the under-10 and under-12 divisions.
In the under-10 match, St. Raymond’s were winners by 5-2 to 2-1. Best for St. Ray’s were Shane Tierney, Siobhan Flattery, Mikey Enright and Eamon Kelleher. St. Brendan’s top players were Pat Garvey, Brian McPike, Niall Croke and Greg Byrne. Players of the Match were Steve DiPompeis of St. Raymond’s and Niall Harding of St. Brendan’s.
St. Brendan’s won the under-12 game, 2-5 to 1-5. This was a nip-and-tuck encounter all the way through. At halftime, St. Ray’s were ahead 1-1 to 0-3. But a valiant second-half comeback by St. Brendan’s secured their victory. Players of the Match were Jamie Boyle of St. Brendan’s and Padraig O’Connor of St. Raymond’s.