Senior Footballers Make It Two Wins From Two With Victory Over Cavan

DUBLIN 5-17 

CAVAN 0-13 

Dublin completed their second successive victory in Group 2 of the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship series as they comfortably accounted for Cavan nineteen points at Kingspan Breffni Park on Saturday night.

First-half goals from Cormac Costello and Paddy Small were a fair reflection of Dublin’s dominance that yielded a comfortable 2-9 to 0-7 interval advantage.

The procession towards the home goal continued unabated in the second-half with further goals from Killian McGinnis and Seán Bugler adequately conveying their supremacy over the seventy-plus minutes.

It didn’t take long for Dublin to open the scoring, with Paul Mannion converting a 1^st minute free while Cavan’s decision to change goalkeepers before throw-in was rewarded soon after as Liam Brady slotted over a ‘45’.

A Brian Fenton point restored Dublin’s early advantage but that score proved an isolated moment of encouragement in an attacking perspective as the visitors spurned a number of presentable point chances as the half evolved.

Granted, Costello kicked a brace of placed balls in that opening quarter, including an excellent ‘45’ into the wind, but their overall profligacy allowed Cavan, far from flawless in the scoring stakes themselves, to stay in the hunt.

Oisín Brady and Oisín Kiernan knocked over points from play and the former ensured parity by the start of the second-quarter with his close-in free leaving the teams deadlocked at 0-4 apiece.

It was at this stage that Dublin began to make inroads up front and after Mannion had curled over his second free in the 22^nd minute, a well-worked team move soon after saw Costello race through impeded for a calm finish beyond the exposed Liam Brady from eight yards.

A second goal in an almost identical manner should have arrived two minutes later as Fenton left Killian Brady for dead but his rising shot clipped the crossbar as the Dubs pushed four points clear.

Oisin Brady added three points (two frees) by way of riposte for Cavan but Dublin were finding greater space in attack at this point, as reflected in fine scores by Seán Bugler and Small.

A second goal looked on the cards for Dublin and it duly arrived in the 33^rd minute as Con O’Callaghan slipped in behind Brian O’Connell and his low pass was palmed to the net from close range by Small.

The half finished with Fenton landing his third point of the half with O’Callaghan the provider once again as the Dubs enjoyed a more than healthy eight-point lead by the interval.

That margin was enhanced even further within thirty seconds of the restart as McGinnis, who was fouled from the throw-in, moved through unnoticed from deep to raced onto Small’s pass and hammer his shot high past the helpless Liam Brady.

Points followed through the lively Niall Scully and Costello (free) as the disparity between the teams was becoming all too evident and that impression was franked in the 44^th minute as another free-flowing move saw Bugler roll home from Costello’s pass.

The hosts plugged away through points from Cian Madden and Oisín Brady but substitute Colm Basquel was keen to make an impact as he clipped over two points in quick succession to leave Dublin seventeen points clear by the 58^th minute.

Another substitute, Jack McCaffrey, showed glimpses of his pacy and brilliant best and could well have netted a fifth Dublin goal but Liam Brady reacted well to push his low shot to safety.

It mattered little as the contest petered with Costello taking his personal tally to 2-5 by the final whistle with a brace of facile points from play and a clinical penalty in the closing stages.

Scorers – Dublin: C Costello 2-5 (1-0 pen, 0-2f, 0-1 ’45);P Small 1-2; S Bugler 1-1; B Fenton, C Basquel 0-3 each; K McGinnis 1-0; P Mannion 0-2 (2f); N Scully 0-1. Cavan: O Brady 0-8 (5f); L Brady (‘45), C Madden, Oisín Kiernan, J Smith, D Lovett 0-1 apiece.

Dublin: S Cluxton; D Newcombe, M Fitzsimons, E Murchan; B Howard, J Small, S Bugler; B Fenton, K McGinnis; N Scully, C Costello, C Kilkenny; P Small, C O’Callaghan, P Mannion. Subs: J McCaffrey for Scully (43), C Basquel for O’Callaghan (46), T Clancy for Murchan (51), L O’Dell for J Small (54), P Ó Cofaigh Byrne for Fenton (Temp, 55), G McEneaney for P Small (65).

Cavan: L Brady; C Reilly, B O’Connell, L Fortune; P Faulkner, N Carolan, O Kiernan; C Brady, K Brady; Oisin Kiernan, C Madden, G Smith; R O’Neill, J Smith, O Brady. Subs: M Magee for C Reilly (half-time), P Smith for K Brady (half-time), T Madden for O Kiernan (46), R Brady for Oisin Kiernan (54), D Lovett for O’Neill (55).

Referee: Paddy Neilan (Roscommon).