Superb performance by A team killed off in the end

Our A team were well up for the local derby against St Bernard’s played at home yesterday in difficult underfoot conditions. The spirit, aggression and good sportsmanship shown was a testament to both the players and manager Gerry Moran. Although fielding a depleted team in yet another outing, this game was ding dong and went right down to the wire. There wasn’t too much creative for either side in the first half as both teams failed to muster a shot on target in the first half. 0-0 half time. 10 mins after the restart and Paddy Mullins’s exquisitely taken free kick from 30yards sailed over the wall and into the bottom right corner to delirious shouts from the few Colemanstown fans.  But the lead was short lived, however, as St. Bernard’s Jason Finn rounded 3 defenders displaying some great trickery and was eventually taken down only for the ref to point to the penalty spot while the resultant spot kick was well dispatched. 5mins later Jason Finn inflicted more damage as he latched onto a long ball through the middle, beat the offside trap and took his chance well to go 2-1 up. Colin O’ Grady went closest to finding the equaliser for Colemanstown but his effort was well saved.  And there was yet more drama before the end as Colemanstown pressed hard to share the spoils but were caught napping right at the death as every player drove forward including keeper Niall Gelston who was robbed of the ball on the half way line and the Bernard’s striker finished the simplest of finishes into an empty net to put the issue past doubt and finish on a 3-1 win for the Abbeyknockmoy side. It was good to see Colin O’Grady return to the green and white jersey after his time spent in UAE. It was like he was never away the fact that he slotted back into the team and showed a great level of fitness.