Colemanstown ‘A’ team made history today winning the 5th round of the Connacht Cup over Boyle Celtic’s ‘men in pink’ and have now made it to the last 8 in Connacht, a bloody fine achievement indeed. Two second half goals by Ray Moran & Tom Flan were enough to make Colemanstown’s hopes of making history a reality. Both goals rewarded an absolutely rousing performance by the entire team particularly in the 2nd half as the attitude & application of every player was outstanding. Players were brave as faces, ankles and other parts of the anatomy were put on the line as they harried, tackled and blocked in a bid to win the ball as Richie Lally, Ray Moran & Damo Wynne epitomised so well. Colemanstown were quickest out of the blocks as Paddy Mullins gave an early warning of his form but scuffed his effort. On 14mins the aforementioned Mullins & Kegs linked up well with Tom Flan but he drove his effort wide of the target. 2mins later Flan had a great cross which was met well by the head of Kerrill Hardy but the ball went agonisingly across the face of goal. Damo Wynne then had a great chance as he turned well, hit with his left foot but Boyle’s defence did their job. Then a vital interception by Ollie Crowe kept Colemanstown in the game as it looked like the Boyle striker was straight in on goal and the resultant header from a corner kick was powered over the bar. Boyle subsequently came more into the game but a brief period of dominance yielded nothing for them. On 24mins a great cross from Flan in the centre of the box to Ray Moran on the right whose effort went to the left of the post. In a replica move seconds later Tom Flan’s effort went agonisingly wide. On 30mins Colemanstown had another great effort following a great through ball from Ray Moran in midfield which Flan ran on to, and with great pace slipped away from his marker and found himself almost one on one with the keeper but a weak shot was saved well by the visiting custodian. Colemanstown’s next effort came from a line ball from Flan to Damo Wynne who crossed to Richie but his shot flew well over the crossbar. At this stage Colemanstown were playing with extreme urgency leaving Boyle with no time on the ball, hurrying their passes as Colemanstown pounced on their errors. On 37mins a Paddy Mullins inch perfect cross fell to Damo Wynne but the keeper was equal to the task. Colemanstown came closest to scoring in a smashing move which originated from Alan ‘Junior’ Finn in goals, flicked on by Flan, met by a half bicycle kick from Ray Moran which Kerrill Hardiman ran on to but the effervescent Kegs hit the side net. Almost immediately from the kick out Garry Lally won a free kick which was taken by Richie and a weak glancing header from Damo Wynne was not enough to test the keeper. Jayo Finn then had an effort before the break but failed to connect while Kegs and Flan combined again as Kegs back heeled from the goal line to Flan who hit the side net. Boyle Celtic had a rare chance before the half time whistle and almost took the lead as Jayo Finn was reputed to take down his man and the resultant free kick found the net but the player had to re-take as he was adjudged to have taken the kick before the whistle went. The second attempt came off the wall much to the relief of the sizeable Colemanstown contingent in the stand. 0-0 at the break but would Colemanstown rue those hatful of first half chances? Colemanstown restarted the second half where they left off as Ray Moran played Paddy Mullins in the left corner who in turn found Moran in the centre and his piledriver from 20yards found the net to great relief. This was the slice of fortune they needed. Seconds later a great diving save from Alan Finn kept Colemanstown in the game. Minutes later Colemanstown made it 2-0 as a Richie Lally cross found Tom Flan who made no mistake and dispatched the ball with the finest of ease. Paddy Mullins had the chance to make it 3 soon afterwards in a move involving Flan & Kegs on the far side of the field whose cross found Mullins who headed wide. Then a through ball from Flan found the inrushing Kegs whose effort was saved but Kegs hard work won him back the ball but the floored keeper somehow got his hands to it to make a smart double save. Then some good individual play from Ray Moran from midfield, beat 3 defenders, took a shot at goal but his effort could have been better. Further superb play by the aforementioned Moran who found Flan but his shot took a deflection as the resultant corner by Alan Finn was inches away from the head of Kegs. Boyle got a goal back with 28mins gone in the 2nd half as Colemanstown sat back a bit knowing they had a 2 goal cushion. Boyle came more into the game in a bid to break free from the Colemanstown shackles but thankfully two consecutive corners yielded nothing for them as our centre backs Ollie Crowe, Alan Finn & Jayo Finn were marvellous in their defending. It was a nervy and audible last quarter for the true Colemanstown supporters in the stand. Kerrill Hardy then won a corner after showing great pace and the resultant Damo Wynne corner kick was headed over the bar by the powerful Jayo Finn. Subsequently a great cross from Ray Moran to the newly introduced Stephen Walsh who tapped the ball back to Gareth Lally but his resultant effort was driven over the crossbar. Then a lovely cross from the stand side of the field from Ray Moran to Stephen Walsh who showed great athleticism in an attempted bicycle kick, had he connected it would have been the talk of ‘da town’. There were great scenes of jubilation in the stand when Garry Lally won a free kick late in the game as it was as good as a score in the last few minutes. Right at the death as Colemanstown were under severe pressure to hold out, Boyle Celtic were merciful to us in their effort as they blasted over the bar. The final whistle came on 49mins to great relief as the fans rose to their feet to applaud this mighty display. Our defense stood firm, were beaten once but showed no signs of panic. This was an outstanding performance by each and every player who harassed the opposition into losing possession on many occasions; showed great self-belief, were never inhibited by the occasion and didn’t show any signs of panic when Boyle clawed their way back into the game with 15mins to go. It was rousing stuff, but without the goals it would ultimately have meant nothing so hats off to Ray Moran & Tom Flan. In essence Colemanstown had the ambition and the quality and brimmed with adventure from start to finish. So roll on the quarter finals, there’s even better history in the making lads….. and there’s even talk that it’s a home game…. Next weekend they play Div1 table toppers West Utd in South Park at 11am in what will be another important clash.
Meanwhile our under 9’s & under 11’s had an exciting time on Friday night as they led both Galway Utd & Sligo Rovers on to the field in Eamon Deacy Park for their premier league clash. They played a mini 6vs 6 & 5vs 5 at half time as the deluge of rain came down. Those who scored on the hallowed turf were Ronan Hynes, Eoin Concannon & Sean Hansberry for the under 11’s & Jonah Donnellan, Ross Lally, Josh Mcguire-Greaney, Thomas Mellody & Fionn Flattery for the under 9’s.