*Kieran Mahony is an injury doubt for Newmarket Celtic. Photograph: Joe Buckley
NEWMARKET CELTIC are sweating over the fitness of some key attackers ahead of Saturday’s Ennis Carpets Clare Cup final while a fixture clash for the parish’s hurling side will also deprive them of some defensive options.
First choice striker Darragh Leahy is ruled out with suspension for Saturday’s Cup final which kicks off at 18:00 in Frank Healy Park. The Shannon native was dismissed for a second bookable offence by referee Brian Punch during the second half of their 4-3 semi-final win over Bridge Utd on Friday.
Leahy’s suspension was not the only setback sustained by Newmarket Celtic in their semi-final win with Kieran Mahony at risk of missing out on the Cup final after picking up a calf injury.
Ennis native Mahony scored 21 goals for the club in his breakthrough season of 2019 which saw him earn player of the season. He was among the scorers in Friday’s semi-final and also netted a hat-trick in their 6-2 win over Shannon Hibs in the quarter-finals.
David McCarthy missed out on the semi-final due to a calf injury which he picked up in their final league game of the season when they came from behind to beat Bridge Utd 2-1 with goals from Kelvin Mulqueen and Éanna Crimmins. The two-time Oscar Traynor winner has been out of action since that tie on May 15th.
In better news for the Newmarket-on-Fergus side, former FAI Junior International of the Year, Eoin Hayes is nearing a return to full fitness. He was introduced with fifty five minutes played in the semi-final in what was his first appearance in a month for the club. The secondary school teacher is expected to play a more prominent role this weekend as he chases history with the chance to win an eleventh Clare Cup medal.
Ex Clare footballer Kevin Harnett missed the semi-final win over Bridge Utd and was out of action with injury for the league win against the Sixmilebridge side but is expected to be available for selection for Alan Gough’s side this weekend.
Speaking to The Clare Echo, Gough outlined that they will not be at full strength for Saturday’s final. “We have got some injuries, Darragh is missing through suspension, Kevin was in the UK last week with his wife, this is junior football at the end of the day so we have to work around these things, hopefully Kevin will be available, Kieran is seeing a physio tonight and we have a few more knocks and bruises, the likes of Deano (Hegarty) and Conor McDaid. Jacko deserves great credit, he played the semi-final and got married on Saturday, we’ll try rally the troops and come up as best we can”.
No additional injuries were picked up over the weekend as captain Jack Kelly tied the knot. “From some of the videos I’ve seen online there’s lads wearing no shirts so I’d say they enjoyed themselves and that is the bottom line, they deserved a good blowout”.
Sporting supporters in Newmarket-on-Fergus have also been presented with a fixtures clash this Saturday. Celtic are in Cup final action at 18:00 on Saturday with Newmarket-on-Fergus hurlers lining out in the Clare Cup quarter-final against Feakle at 19:00 on Saturday.
This clash is also set to result in defenders Liam O’Connor and Éanna Crimmins missing out on the Cup final. The duo did not tog for last weekend’s semi-final, opting to focus on hurling with the Blues in action in the Clare Cup against Clooney/Quin, the following evening.
On the absence of the duo for the semi-final, Gough said, “it was disappointing, I’ve spoken to the two players concerned, Liam and Éanna and I have told them I am disappointed to be perfectly honest, it seems a shame from the outside looking in that a community like Newmarket-on-Fergus and we are very big on community here, representing the badge and it is a legacy shirt that we were, I’m sure it is the same for the hurling boys, I know it is very difficult but we would like to work together, it is our last game on Saturday, it is finished and done, we’d love to have the two lads in our squad, they are always welcome and we will always try and facilitate both codes”.
