February 16, 2011
By Staff Reporter
By Mike FitzpatrickAstoria 0-15, Tyrone 1-8
The Gaels of Astoria surged forward into the Junior B football final with a victory over their rivals Tyrone in this clash Sunday at Gaelic Park. Astoria will now meet the winners of next week’s other semifinal between Stamford and the winners of the Sligo/St. Barnabas tie. The Gaels were forced to fight hard for victory here, with either side looking as if they could have grabbed the win at various stages throughout the game.
A four-point victory perhaps creates the illusion that Astoria were well ahead of their rivals in terms of scoring prowess and desire to win, but the tie could really have gone either way. The Gaels had midfielder James Dolan to thank, along with half forwards Derek McKenna and Mike Keane, who all hit points.
Tyrone’s decisive attacking weapon arrived in the form of Michael McCloskey, who notched five points in his side’s unsuccessful attempt at knocking Astoria from their perch. Astoria certainly look good for something this year, having shown grit and determination in this particular victory, and, judging by some of their earlier performances, it seems as if they are very serious indeed about clinching the junior B crown. Coming up against the winners of the three-way semi-final between Stamford, Sligo and St. Barnabas, they must certainly hold some hope. Stamford will perhaps be favorites, and should the winners of the Sligo/Barnabas tie display some of the determination to succeed as we witnessed today, then we’re on course for some wonderful football in the next few weeks.
Astoria: Eugene Kyne, Pat Mulrey, Brendan Doyle, Mike Dolan, Conor Corbett, Paul Bruin (0-1), John Beirne, Jimmy Conley, Sam Yore, James Dolan (0-3), Derek McKenna (0-4), Mike Keane (0-3), Nestor Allen (0-2), Enda O’Flaherty, Niall Conlon, Jim O’Brien. Subs: Eddie O’Reilly (0-1), Dan Harrington (0-1).
Tyrone: Martin O’Brien, B.J. Donaghue, Carroll Quinn, Noel Woods, James Muldoon, Johnny Salmon (1-0), Shane Devlin, Enda Donnelly (0-1), Brian McAteer (0-1), Niall Owens, Mick McCloskey (0-5), Barry McNamee, Brendan Brady (0-1), Anthony McLoughlin, Pat O’Brien.
Sign up to The Irish Echo Newsletter