February 16, 2011
By Staff Reporter
By Jack Flynn
Longford 0-14, Clare 1-9
Kevin Lilly’s three straight second-half points put Longford ahead for the first time since the opening moments of the match, and they held on for the duration of Sunday’s Senior Football Div. 2 encounter with Clare.
“I’m happy with the win,” Lilly said. “The team pulled together well.”
Longford was forced to pull together after a poor start that gave Clare the early advantage. Ross Carr scored the first point of the match, before Clare went on a 7-point binge to take a 1-4 to 0-1 lead.
Full forward Dermot Boylan scored Clare’s first two points on the afternoon, then Joe Egan scored a fine goal to make the score 1-2 to 0-1 in favor of Clare.
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Egan stole the ball from Longford fullback Padraig McGoldrick and went on a long run that placed him squarely in front of the goal with only Gerry Fox to beat. Egan did just that, booting the ball past Fox’s outstretched arms and just under the crossbar.
Derek Garvey and Sean Lakes continued the Clare run, scoring points and further distancing their side from Longford. Ian Brown finally broke through for Longford, scoring a point and making the score 1-4 to 0-2 for Clare.
Brown, Carr and Brendan Lennon put together a small run of their own for Longford, each picking up points and narrowing the gap to 1-4 to 0-5.
A Dan Lynch point put Clare back onto the scoring sheet. Soon after, Lilly stole an errant pass and fed Collie Bawle for a point. Brendan Donahue added a point of his own, then scored again with time running down in the half to make the score 1-6 to 0-8 in favor of Clare.
Longford’s second-half run began after a Boylan point lengthened Clare’s lead. Carr and Barry Kavanagh scored points to level the score at 1-7 to 0-10, then Lilly notched three straight scores to give his side a lead they would not relinquish.
Boylan nearly leveled the match again, but his goal try was brushed aside by Fox, keeping Longford in control. Two Boylan points late in the match made things exciting one more time, but Donohue’s third point with time running down negated any hope of a miracle finish for Clare.
Carr, Lilly and Donohue 0-3, Brown 0-2, Lennon, Bawle and Kavanagh 0-1.
Clare: Egan 1-0, Boylan 0-6, Garvey, Lakes and Lynch 0-1.