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*Mark Kelleher drives forward for Ennistymon.
ENNISTYMON emerged as deserving winners over St Joseph’s Doora/Barefield with the Rouine brothers Cillian and Brendy leading their charge.
Ennistymon 2-13
St Joseph’s Doora/Barefield 1-11
Venue: Zimmer Biomet Páirc Chíosóg, Ennis
It’s the third year running that Ennistymon have claimed the spoils in the first round of the Clare SFC and their latest joust underlines that they appear to be moving in the right direction under Declan Downes.
Showcasing their ability to attack off the front-foot, Ennistymon were at their best when the Rouine brothers, Cillian and Brendy were powering forward from centre back and centre forward respectively.
Cillian broke forward with the last score of the opening half to see them hold a 1-8 0-9 advantage. He had got his side back on level terms for the first time with twenty minutes played, this time after Liam Cotter was the man to break the lines.
Substitute Gearoid Barry landed their second goal, firing a rasper to the back of the net on fifty minutes. Seán Rouine was to one to find a gap and drive forward on this occasion.
Having powered 0-4 0-0 in front by the fourth minute, Doora/Barefield gave themselves a great platform to drive on but they never did. They had just three scorers over the hour, a return that simply has to be increased if they are to have aspirations of returning to the knockout stages.
Tom Curran, Joe Rafferty and Tom McDonald were their only contributors to the scoreboard, McDonald kicking a two pointer after Darragh Fahy claimed possession from an Ennistymon kickout. The said kickout was from Rafferty’s score when Darragh Conneely was left outnumbed on his own in defence, in the first attack it was Conneely that made a vital interception from a Fahy pass.
Keelan Guyler got Ennistymon off the mark with a free on five minutes, this awarded for a foul on Cillian Rouine by Cian McDonough which resulted in a yellow card for the joint captain. Tom Curran replied at the other end of for Doora/Barefield before Ennistymon replied with three points in a row, Darren McNamara, Liam Cotter and Brendy Rouine all on target.
Eoin Lahiffe who despite not scoring was lively when attacking for Donagh Vaughan’s side, won a free which Curran converted to make it 0-6 0-4 by the fifteenth minute. They spurned a splendid chance in the previous attack when Tom McDonald handpassed the ball to the net.
Another burst of three points without reply saw Ennistymon go in front for the first time, Joe Concannon landed a free, Cillian Rouine kicked the equaliser and Josh Guyler put them ahead after Seán Rouine made a nice catch from an opposing kickout.
Rouine’s dart forward to assist left his marker Joe Rafferty free at the other end with the county panellist kicking a two pointer to restore the lead in their favour, one they added to with a single from Curran on twenty seven minutes.
Momentum was back in Ennistymon’s sails and right at the opportune time, kicking 1-1 on the bounce before the half-time whistle to lead 1-8 0-9 by the break.
Scores dried up in the third quarter, Doora/Barefield struggled to create chances and Ennistymon were in bother creating them, they kicked four wides in this spell, two on the bounce on each occasion.
Crucially they would keep raising white flags, Cillian and Brendy adding to their tallies while Gearoid Barry also marked his introduction.
Between the fortieth and fiftieth minute, Ennistymon had 1-4 without reply. Gearoid Barry getting a brilliant goal to put his hand up for a starting berth for round two.
Old habits die hard and Ennistymon were too slow bringing the ball out of defence which saw Tiernan Hogan turned over and allowed Joe Rafferty to bounce for a goal to put a bit more respectability on the scoreboard. It would be as close as The Parish would get as they fell to a disappointing first round loss.
Last year, it wasn’t until the quarter-final stage when Doora/Barefield won their first game of the campaign. Having started well in this outing, they failed to push on and struggled to stop powerful Ennistymon runs. The need to add more of a spark to attack is essential while Michael Nash’s return from the United States will be needed to strengthen them in the middle third. Darragh Fahy had a great first half at midfield but faded as the game progressed, they’ll also need more from Joe Rafferty to ask questions of opposing defences but he will also need greater support in attack to help his cause.
Leaving round one with more pros than cons is definitely the outcome for Ennistymon. Their slow start to the second half will be punished by stronger opponents but they reap the rewards when they play on the front-foot, the tendency to go backwards is still evident among some of their troops and the concession of their only goal is a clear reminder on why they need to keep the emphasis on driving forward with energy. For Declan Downes’ men, Cillian Rouine, Mark Kelleher, Brendy Rouine and Liam Cotter were the standout performers.
Football aside, a real positive was to see Diarmuid Fahy introduced, the former Clare minor has had a torrid run with injuries and his addition will only strengthen Ennistymon over the coming weeks, because their attack needs plenty of firepower if they are to be recording victories in the knockout stages.
All photographs by Gerard O’Neill.
Scorers Ennistymon: C Rouine (1-2 1f), G Barry (1-1), B Rouine (0-3 2f), D McNamara (0-2), L Cotter (0-1), J Guyler (0-1), J Concannon (0-1 1f).
Scorers St Joseph’s Doora/Barefield: J Rafferty (1-3 1TP), T Curran (0-5 3f), T McDonald (0-3 1TP)
Ennistymon:
1: Noel Sexton
6: Liam Cotter
3: Darragh Conneally
4: Joey Rouine
5: Tiernan Hogan
8: Cillian Rouine
14: Seán Rouine
9: Eoin Rouine
10: Mark Kelleher
7: Josh Guyler
20: Brendy Rouine
11: Josh Vaughan
23: Joe Concannon
24: Keelan Guyler
15: Darren McNamara
Subs:
13: Gearoid Barry for Concannon (39)
26: Diarmuid Fahy for K Guyler (47)
17: Brian McNamara for Hogan (55)
31: Seán Rynne for J Guyler (57)
St Joseph’s Doora/Barefield:
16: Kuba Ruminowicz
4: Killian McIlroy
3: Eoghan Boyle
2: Odhran Flynn
5: Cian McDonough
6: Fionn Kelleher
7: Diarmuid Boyle
10: Eoghan Thynne
9: Darragh Fahy
8: Odhran O’Connell
11: Joe Rafferty
15: Tom McDonald
12: Eoin Lahiffe
13: Paddy Bugler
14: Tom Curran
Subs:
17: James Rafferty for Bugler (28)
24: Martin Frawley for D Boyle (39)
26: Charlie Hannan for O’Connell (48)
18: Conor O’Brien for Fahy (54)
21: Conall Kelleher for Curran (56)
Referee: Barry Kelly (St Joseph’s Miltown)
