*Newmarket Celtic goalkeeper Shane Cusack was among those to score a penalty in the shootout. Photograph: Joe Buckley
NEWMARKET CELTIC have qualified for the semi-finals of the Munster Junior Cup, winning on penalties in Waterford.
Newmarket Celtic FC 1
Hibernian FC 1
Newmarket win 3-2 on penalties
Venue: Ben Wadding Park, Poleberry
An impressive unbeaten run under Alan Gough continues for Newmarket Celtic who qualified for the Munster Junior Cup semi-finals for the first time since 2023 after leaving Waterford on a high.
It took a penalty shootout for them to overcome Hibernian FC in the last eight of the provincial competition but Newmarket are still standing with momentum growing in their push for honours this season. However, they will admit their latest encounter was not their finest display and not the most memorable of affairs.
After comfortably overcoming the club’s second string in the opening round of the Clare Cup last weekend, Newmarket faced a stronger opponent in the guise of Hibernian FC.
Hosts Hibernian finished second in the Waterford Premier Division which concluded in November following the league’s decision to move to a summer calendar. Only Villa FC who have been confirmed as one of the fifteen clubs to
form part of the new FAI National League Tier 3 which kicks off this autumn, finished above Hibernian.
Darragh Leahy gave Newmarket Celtic the lead with seventy minutes, heading a cross to the back of the net after Eoin Hayes made an excellent delivery from the right wing. Leahy connected superbly to put Newmarket in the driving seat and was denied a second goal moments later by the cross baer
Celtic were reduced to ten men when centre-half Tadhg Noonan was dismissed for a second bookable offence by referee Chris Maher on seventy seven minutes.
In the dying minutes of additional time, Hibernian struck for an equaliser. Mark McManus finishing to the net to force extra time, his was a low driving effort into the bottom corner of Shane Cusack’s net.
Hibs looked the more threatening in extra time and had a goal which was disallowed for offside. The numerical advantage had the Waterford side the stronger of the two outfits but Celtic held their nerve to send the tie to penalties.
Shane Cusack once again came to the fore for Newmarket Celtic, scoring his penalty and saving two in the shootout. Harvey Cullinan and David McCarthy both dispatched their penalties to the back of the net while Darragh Leahy and Cian McDonough were denied by Sean Whitty when he saved their efforts to the bottom left corner.
Mark McManus and Ben Walsh converted their penalties for Hibernian but they were unable to navigate beyond the towering presence of Cusack who had again a big hand to play in success for Newmarket Celtic.
Round Two of the Clare Cup sees Newmarket return to action on Thursday evening when they face Manus Celtic in Frank Healy Park.
Newmarket Celtic FC: Shane Cusack, Éanna Crimmins, Harvey Cullinan, Tadhg Noonan, Conor McDaid; Jack Kelly, Nathan Boaventura, Kevin Hartnett, Dean Hegarty, Eoin Hayes, Darragh Leahy.
Subs: David McCarthy for Boaventura (50), Cian McDonough for Harnett (68), Cathal Cullinan for Hegarty (80), Aaron Rudd for Hayes (84), Ian Collins for Kelly (91).
Hibernian FC: Sean Whitty; Lee Hennessy, David Adebayo, Daire O’Keeffe, Antonio Petrovic, Ben Walshe, Mark McManus, Luke Kevrick, J Caulfield, Philip Drohan, Sean O’Keeffe.
Subs: Lee Kavanagh for Drohan (80), Samuel Adebayo for D O’Keeffe (80), Joe Hawkes for Hennessy (93).
Referee: Chris Maher
