BT Harps 'A' 1 - Rearcross 'A' 0
'A round man cannot expect to fit in a square hole right away. He must have time to modify his shape'. - Mark Twain
Rearcross bowed out of the Premier Division Shield at the Quarter Final stage last Wednesday night in a game played at the Templemore Venue in overcast conditions. Rearcross, applying a relatively new 4-5-1 formation, started the game slowly and found themselves on the back foot from the off with much of the possession being kept by their Templemore opponents. Goalkeeper Jim Caplis came to the fore on a number of occasions in the opening minutes, catching a Joe Shiels deflected shot early on and then getting down at his near post to block Sean Patrick Guerins’ effort in the 16th minute. Apart from long range efforts from midfielders Simon Kennedy and Diarmuid Sheehy, it was pretty much one way traffic for the home side in the first half, with Sean Guerins coming particularly close in the 43rd minute before being denied by the evergreen Jim Caplis. Harps eventually found the net on the stroke of half time when a defensive mix up allowed Aidan Fogarty through on goal who tapped between the posts from close range to give BT Harps a deserved lead. A new formation, coupled with Simon Kennedy’s long range effort in the first minute of the second half, signalled intent from the travelling green and white hoops. Derek O’ Toole then came close with two efforts in the space of a few minutes – a header and then a strike from the edge of the box – before setting up Kieran Devitt in front of goal; the Coonmore Cyclone being denied by a Joe Shiels diving header on this occasion. Rearcross to their credit kept battling and came close again in the 72nd minute when a Michael O’Gorman shot was saved by the Templemore shot stopper Cathal Leahy, followed closely by a long range Mark Hogan free kick which was also saved impressively. This attacking frame of mind left the visitors somewhat exposed at the back and it took a well timed Robert Harrington tackle to deny Stefan Leahy from waltzing in on goal with fifteen minutes remaining, an event which was followed closely by a penalty claim against Harrington for a harsh challenge on the aforementioned Leahy which went unheard. With five minutes left on the clock, Sean Patrick Guerins and Stefan Leahy combined before the latter drove wide, while up the other end James Gough’s first time touch from edge of the box pulled away from the target to leave the score remaining one nil, and the spoils on this occasion to BT Harps. Given the squad available on the night and the relatively recent return to Pre-Season, Rearcross will no doubt be encouraged by a lively second half performance and, rather notably, the return of a number of high profile players to the foray.
Rearcross 'A': Jim Caplis, Robert Harrington, Tommy Ryan (L), Eamon Wade, Eamonn Devitt, Matthew Ryan (L), Kieran Devitt, Liam O’ Toole, Diarmuid Sheehy, Simon Kennedy, Derek O’ Toole
Subs Used: Michael O’Gorman for Matthew Ryan Luke(58th minute), Mark Hogan for Diarmuid Sheehy (58th minute), James Gough for Tommy Ryan Luke (68th minute)
Subs not used: Darren Quigley, Shane Quigley, Liam Ryan (R), William Mackey, Brendan Shanahan, Darragh Kennedy
BT Harps ‘A’: Cathal Leahy, Steven Owens, Declan Fogarty, Joe Shiels, James Quinn, Aidan Fogarty, Killian O’Neill, Chris Eid, Jack Moore, James Kavanagh, Sean Patrick Guerins,
Subs: Stefan Leahy, Sean McCormack, Christy Moore, Jerry Ryan, Patrick Delaney
Referee: Toddy Sweeney
Report compiled by Simon Kennedy