Senior Footballers claim victory over Roscommon in the Allianz NFL

DUBLIN 1-19 

ROSCOMMON 1-12

Dublin picked up the first points of their Allianz National Football League Division 1 campaign when getting the better of Roscommon by seven points at Croke Park on Saturday evening.

Having lost to both Monaghan and Mayo, it was imperative the Dubs gained this victory and they were fully deserving of the margin, given the dominance they enjoyed for the duration.

The bulk of the damage was done in the second-half as they began to show greater accuracy in front of goal and their win was effectively clinched thanks to a 55^th minute goal by substitute Niall Scully.

Dublin dominated the early stages with Ross McGarry setting the tone with a tidy point in the opening minute and that lead was doubled in an instant as Lee Gannon spilt the uprights with another smart effort.

The contest was being played almost exclusively in the Roscommon half but from an isolated sortie into Dublin territory, Diarmuid Murtagh popped over the visitors’ opening score in the 3^rd minute.

The procession towards the away goal continued but Dublin’s marksmanship lacked precision as they kicked three wides on the bounce, allowing their opponents to play their way into the game.

A nasty facial injury suffered by Cormac Costello in the 7^th minute forced the substitution of the Whitehall Colmcille attacker but the hosts continued to control matters as reflected in two well-taken scores by Con O’Callaghan.

Roscommon eventually showed signs of life up front as they clawed their way back into contention by the 16^th minute following unanswered points by James Fitzpatrick and Daire Cregg.

Despite John Small and David O’Hanlon (free) restoring Dublin’s three-point advantage by the 20^th minute, the contest was becoming far more even as a Cregg free and Murtagh’s second point of the half left the bare minimum between the teams.

Ciaran Kilkenny clipped over a trademark point in the 25^th minute but a series of poor wides undermined Dublin’s tidy approach play as they endured a scoreless period of thirteen minutes.

This barren spell allowed the visitors to draw level by added time as Enda Smith kicked two excellent points but the last word of the half belonged to Brian Fenton, who edged his side into a 0-8 to 0-7 interval lead with a classy strike from distance.

That margin seemed disappointing, given the control the hosts exerted for the large part, but Dublin resumed in a determined manner, gaining tangible reward on the scoreboard through a 40^th minute point from O’Callaghan.

With Eoin Murchan in particular impressing at the back, the hosts began to build up a healthy lead as Sean Bugler and McGarry pointed in quick succession to move Dublin four points clear by the 42^nd minute.

A Cregg free opened Roscommon’s second-half account five minutes later but the impressive McGarry and O’Callaghan continued to threaten as they added to their personal tallies.

Their success was sealed in the 55^th minute as Bugler made a telling incision down the middle and with Fenton in space, the midfielder passed to the unmarked Scully for the simplest of tasks from close range.

O’Hanlon made a brilliant save with his feet to deny Conor Cox at the opposite end but the visitors did manage to raise a green flag by the 64^th minute as the influential Smith converted a scruffy effort from six yards.

Dublin refused to allow that concession to effect their play with O’Callaghan and Fenton pointing soon after and fittingly, it was O’Callaghan who completed the scoring from a ‘mark’ to complete a deserved and emotional win.

Scorers – Dublin: C O’Callaghan 0-7 (1f, 1 ‘mark), R McGarry 0-3, N Scully 1-0, C Kilkenny, B Fenton 0-2 each, L Gannon, J Small, S Bugler, D O’Hanlon (f), L O’Dell 0-1 apiece. Roscommon: E Smith 1-2, D Cregg 0-4 (2f), D Murtagh 0-3, J Fitzpatrick, C Cox, R Fallon 0-1 apiece.

Dublin: D O’Hanlon; S MacMahon, T Clancy, L Gannon; E Murchan, C Murphy, J Small; B Fenton, P Ó Cofaigh Byrne; R McGarry, S Bugler, C Kilkenny; C Costello, C O’Callaghan, P Small. Subs: S Lowry for Costello (Blood Sub, 7), N Scully for Lowry (47), L O’Dell for P Small (50), G McEneaney for J Small (56), B Howard for Ó Cofaigh Byrne (62), K McGinnis for McGarry (71).

Roscommon: C Carroll; D Murray, B Stack, N Higgins; C Hussey, E Flynn, E McCormack; S Cunnane, E Smith; R Fallon, D Ruane, C Lennon; D Cregg, D Murtagh, J Fitzpatrick. Subs: C Heneghan for Fitzpatrick (50), R Dolan for Hussey (50), C Cox for Lennon (56), A McDermott for Ruane (62), L Glennon for Higgins (68).

Referee: Sean Hurson (Tyrone).