N.Y. GAA Coulter show propels Mayo

By Pierce O’Reilly

Mayo 1-11, Cork 0-11

Mayo footballers got their first win in over a year at Gaelic Park on Saturday evening. Playing with the advantage of the slight breeze in the opening half, the Westerners raced into an early lead. Points from Kevin Touhy, Paddy Reddington and Brendan Coulter pushed them in front after 15 minutes.

Cork, however, with Steven O’Shea deadly accurate from frees and Taghd O’Callaghan hitting two from play never let the Mayo men pull away. Down import and man of the match Brendan Coulter was the difference. His pace, accuracy and ability to find an unmarked teammate set him apart. When he received the ball on the edge of the small square with five minutes remaining in the half, he rattled the net for a great goal.

The second half was nip and tuck from the off, and with Cork dominating at midfield for the first time, they reeled in the Westerners. O’Callaghan and O’Shea once again were the marksmen. After 15 minutes there was only a point between the sides and New York senior Pat Mahoney beginning to flex his muscle around the middle. Mayo manager John Burke moved weekender John Lavery to marshal Mahoney and the Down native negated his impact immediately. Up front, Mayo hit good points from Shane Haughey, John Browne and two from John Moran to earn their first win in over a year.

Mayo: Alan Beatty, Keith McMahon, Damien Hendy, Niall McMahon, Eamon McEvoy, Pete McGinley, Tomas Gallagher, Pierce O’Reilly 0-1, John Lavery, Kevin Touhy 0-1, Brendan Coulter 1-4, John Moran 0-2, Mark Culhan, Paddy Reddington 0-2, Noel Faherty. Subs: Shane Haughey 0-1, John Browne 0-1.

Cork: Paddy O’Sullivan, Ken Delanty, C.J. Doherty, Andy Mullins, Liam Hanley, Noel Buckley, Seamus Foley 0-1, Pat Mahoney, John Lydon, Steven O’Shea 0-6, James McSweeney, Brendan Wiley, Denis Kiely, Morgan Burns, Taghd Callaghan 0-4.