Colemanstown U12 Boys 3 – 2 Ballinasloe Town AFC
Our U12 Colemanstown boys headed to Ballinasloe to take on Ballinasloe Town AFC in the Connacht Shield yesterday. We knew we were up against a very strong division one team, but the boys in green took on the challenge and proved they deserved to be in the next round of the Connacht Shield. Colemanstown lined out with Adam Kenny in goals, Liam O Connor, Keelyn Kirby, Dermot Parker and Owen Hillary in the back line. Oisin Nugent, Kealan Murray and Finian Walsh in mid-field and Daithi Burns up front. From the start our back line stood strong defending any ball that the Ballinasloe boys shot at them. They showed some serious defence action clearing ball after ball up the field. Ballinasloe kept pushing forward and finally broke through our defense leaving Adam Kenny under pressure and the first goal of the game was scored. The Colemanstown boys were very eager to get the equaliser and piled on the pressure in every position of the pitch. A free was given, Keelyn Kirby stepped up with confidence to take it and a perfect shot from him seen the ball land perfectly in the Ballinasloe square where Dermot Parker was ready to perform his bicycle kick and popped the ball in the back of the net. A little celebration from the boys and straight back to the game.
At this stage of the game Finian Walsh, Oisin Nugent and Kealan Murray found themselves under constant pressure but all three did some trojan work to keep the boys in green moving forward. The strong south-westerly winds swept across the pitch but didn’t seem to affect Adam Kenny’s kick outs which were still reaching well into the Ballinasloe half. The boys took advantage of these kick outs and Daithi Burns found himself having a few shots on goal but, the Ballinasloe defence line were standing strong and weren’t letting any ball in the back of their net. A few changes were made, Odhran Madden and Daniel Ruane slotted in for Finian Walsh and Oisin Nugent and from the minute their boots hit the pitch they were under pressure. Some great passage of play was witnessed from both sides. The half time whistle blew and the Colemanstown boys had a team talk with manager Alan Walsh.
The boys headed out for the second half with a winning mentality and determination that they were going to win this game. The strong wind was at the boys backs for the 2nd half which seen a few shots drift over the bar for the Colemanstown boys. A charging run from the Ballinasloe side and with the help of the strong wind found the ball slot into the top left corner of the Colemanstown net. The boys settled themselves and got straight back into the game. We won a free and once again Keelyn Kirby confidently stepped up to take it landing a perfect ball in the square for Dermot Parker to slot into the back of the Ballinasloe net. At this stage of the game it looked imminent that there would be extra time. The Ballinasloe boys were piling on the pressure testing our strong defence. Adam Kenny made some quick thinking decisions to avoid the ball hitting the back of his net. Liam O’Connor had to retire due to injury and Kealan Murray was called to take his place on the back line. With a few minutes to go our hat-trick hero took the ball to his feet, made his way through the mid-fielders, through the Ballinasloe back line and off his left foot rattled the back of the net. The Colemanstown boys knew they had won their place in the next stage of the Connacht Shield. The final whistle blew and the boys shook hands. Great skill, team work and sheer determination were shown yesterday on the pitch in Ballinasloe. Final score line: Colemanstown 3-2 Ballinalsoe Town AFC . Match Report by Ita Kenny
Panel: Adam Kenny, Dermot Parker, Daragh Blake, Odhran Madden, Daniel Ruane, David Barrett, Keelyn Kirby, Owen Hillary, Kealan Murray, Darragh Finnerty, Finian Walsh, Mikey Nutley, Gearoid Griffin, Tim Ruane, Oisin Nugent.