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Cavan knock champions from playoff hunt

February 16, 2011

By Staff Reporter

The Breffni boys were on the scoreboard first when center forward Gary McDermott fired over a point after midfielder Barry Annette had controlled the opening throw-in. Annette’s midfield partner, Owen O’Carroll, added a second Cavan point before Stamford could get untracked.
When Stamford did get on the board it was from a Niall Bergin free. That was followed by a free from Niall Killeen and that set the pattern for the Stamford attack. It was Bergin left and Killeen right, as these two players accounted for every Stamford score, with the right-footed Killeen contributing 0-6 to lefty Bergin’s 0-4.
The soon-to-be-former champions were working hard punishing all Cavan transgressions with their dynamic duo scoring from both frees and play as Stamford pushed out to a 0-6 to 0-4 lead.
Then Cavan struck. Corner forward Gary Cunningham sent a long sideline ball toward the Stamford goal. Wing forward Colm Fitzpatrick timed his move perfectly and fisted the ball to the net, without drawing the square ball foul.
Stamford showed a champion’s heart, bouncing right back with a point each from Bergin and Killeen and led by 0-8 to 1-4 with 30 minutes left to save their season.
Things seemed to be going Stamford’s way when Sean Larden had to retire at the half. The Cavan full forward was roaming the length and breadth of the pitch and he seemed to have the Stamford rearguard slightly off balance. Cavan went to the bench for Shane Russell, who didn’t start because of a slight injury, and Colm Shannon to begin the second half.
Fergal O’Neill, whose retirement after last season’s championship left a big hole in the Stamford attack all season, had checked in to the match after 20 minutes, but he never really got going after his long layoff.
Frees from Bergin and Killeen bracketed a great Cavan point from Gary Cunningham as the second half got under way. Killeen’s free was a good one, 40-plus yards off the ground and Stamford led by 2 pints, 0-10 to 1-5.
Incredibly, that would be their last score as Cavan took charge. First Annette, who had an energetic hour at midfield, combined with Brian Newman to place Shane McAnerney for a point. Then a poor clearance fell to Newman and he fired the equalizer over the lathe.
It was all Cavan the rest of the way, as Stamford’s hopes of repeating faded, while Cavan added two points to the coffers for their playoff push.
Man of the Match: Barry Annette
Cavan: Paul O’Dowd, James McEntire, Colm Hannon, Nobby Smith, Francie Sheridan, Jamie Shaw, Eugene O’Hagen, Barry Annette, Owen O’Carroll (0-1), Shane McAnerney (0-2), Gary McDermott (0-1), Colm Fitzpatrick (1-1), Brian Newman (0-3), Sean Larden, Gary Cunningham (0-6, 4 frees). Subs: Shane Russell, Colm Shannon, John Lyng, Alan Carolan.
Stamford: Paddy Donoghue, Fergal Doyle, Pat Coyne, Aiden Kiely, Justin O’Halloran, Kevin Newell, Mike Murphy, Jason Killeen, Richie Purcell, Niall Bergin (0-4, 3 frees), Emmit Killeen (0-6, 4 frees), Ollie Crowe, Tom Williams, Eric Bradley, Keith Hennessey. Subs: Fergal O’Neill, Malachy McHugh, Philip Wickham.

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