Senior Footballers Beat Derry At Celtic Park

DUBLIN 1-16 

DERRY 1-11 

Dublin completed their third successive victory when comfortably defeating Derry by five points in their Allianz National Football League Division 1 encounter at Celtic Park on Saturday afternoon.

Wins over Roscommon and Kerry had brought the Dubs to mid-table security but now their sights could well be set on a league final following another composed and mature showing.

Much of the play was condensed in the Derry half initially but a Conor McCluskey goal in the 26^th minute added life to the home challenge as the Dubs led by just two points by the interval.

The margin was maintained at two points during a relatively even third quarter but a goal from Cormac Costello within thirty seconds of his introduction effectively settled the issue by the 51^st minute.

From the outset, Ciaran Kilkenny looked determined to build on his excellent performance seven days previously and he opened the scoring with a well-taken point inside fifty seconds.

A Con O’Callaghan free doubled that advantage three minutes later with Derry opening their own account in the 7^th minute through the first of three Shane McGuigan frees in the first-half.

Some fine interplay between O’Callaghan and Kilkenny allowed the latter to fist over in the 9^th minute to restore Dublin’s two-point buffer before McGuigan popped over a facile free at the opposite end.

The visitors came back again as Ross McGarry fired over from distance before Dublin’s solitary goal chance of the half arrived in the 14^th minute as O’Callaghan’s high shot was repelled to safety by Ryan Scullion following an incisive pass by Niall Scully.

Another McGuigan free brought Derry to within a point at the start of the second quarter but a more composed Dublin put daylight between the teams following successive points by O’Callaghan, Paddy Small and Kilkenny.

Derry were still to score from play at this stage but they rectified that statistic in emphatic finish as McCluskey made a trademark run from deep that went unchecked and his resultant finish proved too precise for David O’Hanlon in the Dublin goal.

Brian Fenton and Sean Bugler replied for Dublin with excellent points from deep but the final word of the half belonged to Emmet Bredley, whose late point trimmed his team’s deficit to 0-9 to 1-4 by the turnaround.

McGuigan’s first point from play saw Derry halve their deficit but Dublin enjoyed a monopoly on territory and possession as they struck back through O’Callaghan (free) and Kilkenny.

Lachlan Murray and McGarry traded points as the half evolved with another excellent McGuigan score in the 50^th minute drawing the hosts to within two points once again.

That’s as close as they managed however as Dublin’s patience was rewarded as O’Callaghan and Bugler made inroads and while Scully’s palmed effort was blocked on the line, Costello highlighted his predatory instincts with a clinical finish from the rebound.

A sublime Fenton score added to the Dublin momentum and the Dubs could and should have netted a second goal but Lorcan O’Dell fired over the crossbar when well placed.

It mattered little as Fenton and Lee Gannon added to the away tally in the closing stages and while McGuigan and Eoin McEvoy replied at the opposite end, those scores proved of consolation value by the final whistle.

Scorers – Dublin: C Kilkenny 0-4, C O’Callaghan (3f), B Fenton 0-3 each, C Costello 1-0, R McGarry 0-2, P Small, S Bugler, L O’Dell, L Gannon 0-1 apiece. Derry: S McGuigan 0-7 (3f), S McCluskey 1-0, E Bradley, L Murray, P Cassidy, E McEvoy 0-1 apiece.

Dublin: D O’Hanlon; S MacMahon, B Howard, E Murchan; C Murphy, J Small, L Gannon; B Fenton, P Ó Cofaigh Byrne; N Scully, S Bugler, R McGarry; P Small, C O’Callaghan, C Kilkenny. Subs: T Lahiff for Ó Cofaigh Byrne (half-time), C Costello for P Small (50), L O’Dell for McGarry (56), G McEneaney for Gannon (68), K McGinnis for Scully (73).

Derry: R Scullion; C McCluskey, C McKaigue, D Baker; S Downey, C McFaul, E Mulholland; E Bradley, B Rogers; D Cassidy, D Gilmore, N Toner; L Murray, S McGuigan, C Murphy. Subs: E McEvoy for McKaigue (half-time), E Doherty for Mulholland (half-time), P McGrogan for Downey (half-time), P Cassidy for Murphy (47), C McGuckian for Murray (59).

Referee: Martin McNally (Monaghan).