*Joe Stack clears his lines. Photograph: Páraic McMahon.
SPORTING ENNISTYMON have claimed the last of the semi-final berth in the Ennis Carpets Clare Cup.
Sporting Ennistymon 3
Shannon Town B 2
Venue: Ennistymon CBS
A last four showdown with Avenue Utd is the reward for Sporting Ennistymon after they advanced to the Cup semi-finals with a deserved win over Shannon Town B on Saturday evening.
Seán McConigley bagged a brace in the opening half for the North Clare side who had fallen behind in the opening ten minutes.
It’s only four seasons since Sporting lined out in the Premier Division but they now sit mid-table in the third tier and are rank outsiders for glory in the Cup where the county’s three sides in Newmarket Celtic, Avenue Utd and Bridge Utd are left standing.
Nonetheless it is an achievement for the Eddie Crowe managed outfit to be the only non-top flight side still standing and they flew into the last four in the absence of Crowe who was out of the country for the rescheduled quarter-final.
Visitors Shannon Town B started much brighter and had a goal on the eight minute mark when Kevin Kelly finished to the net following some nice vision from midfielder Eoin Collins to pick him out with a pass. They almost scored before this but Daniel Riordan was denied by the post and Kelly’s subsequent shot was saved by Daragh Flynn.
Riordan came close to doubling their lead on eleven minutes but his shot trailed just wide.
It took until the twenty first minute for Sporting to register any chance of note, Mark Crowe had a volley but it didn’t cause the experienced Adam Fanning between the posts to unduly worry.
Within a four minute spell, Sporting had three chances on the bounce as they began to put on more pressure. Seán McConigley had an effort comfortably saved, left full Cian McMahon had a shot go wide on the far right post before McConigley raided for their equaliser when calming bringing the ball across the box before finishing to the net.
Seven minutes later, the thirty five year old had his second goal to put Sporting in front. He had a free header from a precision John O’Brien corner, leaving them in the driving seat.
Midfielder Conor Kearns had a double effort stopped by Fleming on the restart. The fire and energy was lacking from Shannon Town B as they chased the game with Sporting happy to clear their lines, the introduction of Eoin Marrinan offering them with a new lease of life.
Twenty five minutes into the second half, Shannon had their first chance but Eoin Collins’ shot was stopped by Sexton.
At the other end, a lapse in concentration from Fleming saw a rolling pass go astray, it presented a glorious chance for Sporting to kill off the game but Jason Refka failed to capitalise.
Entering the final ten minutes, Refka made no mistake when another opportunity came his way. Cathal McConigley was the provider as Refka tucked it home.
From here on, it should have been plain sailing but the hosts put themselves under needless pressure when conceding a silly penalty which Eoghan Maxwell calmly dispatched to have it 3-2 on eighty four minutes.
Shannon Town wouldn’t threaten for goal for the remainder while Sporting had three chances, two to Refka, one of which arose from solid work by Darren McNamara, O’Brien and McConigley almost linked up again from a set piece but this free header sailed over. It wouldn’t matter as Sporting managed to see out the game in normal time to tee up a semi-final date with Avenue at the end of May.
With only eight league games played due to their long run in the Munster Junior Shield and the regular postponement of games in Shannon, the exit of Shannon Town B caps off an unforgettable week for CDSL Fixtures Secretary David O’Grady, not because he is anti-Town but it takes away a headache and allows for more of their league ties to be played, it won’t be the highlight of his week as that’s saved for tying the knot with his partner Erica Kilmartin.
Centre-half Luke Cahill had a memorable outing and he won’t forget receiving a yellow card for calling referee Michael Rock ‘bud’.
For the winners, Joe Stack impressed at right-full, the aggression of Conor Kearns is a plus to their challenge while Darren McNamara, Jason Refkta and Eoin Marrinan got on a lot of ball.
Sporting Ennistymon: Daragh Flynn; Joe Stack Jamesy McConigley, Joseph Gallagher, Cian McMahon; Conor Kearns; Mark Crowe, Darren McNamara, John O’Brien, Jason Refka; Sean McConigley.
HT: Eoin Marrinan for Crowe (HT), Cathal McConigley for Stack (75),
Shannon Town B: Adam Fanning; Gavin Boyd, Jacob Hassen, Luke Cahill, Denis Martsenyuk; Eoin Collins, Jack Hannah; Eoghan Maxwell; Daniel Riordan, Kevin Kelly; Adrian Carew.
Subs: Marcel Dudzinski for Riordan (66), Rhys Regan for Hannah (74), Louie Finnegan Langdon for Boyd (74),
Referee: Michael Rock
