Cloonacool opened their Connacht Gold Junior A football
championship with a convincing win over Eastern Harps in a splendid Bunnanadden
Community Park on Saturday evening. Intermittent showers didn’t dampen a
youthful Cloonacool’s enthusiasm as they triumphed over a hardworking Eastern
Harps.
A wasteful Cloonacool could be punished on another day for
kicking nine wides in the opening half. Indeed, the scoreline at the first
water break put both sides level on no score apiece. Eoin Carty on his
championship debut put Cloonacool ahead after the restart with a well taken
point. Three further scores from the victors left the half time score at
Cloonacool 0-04 Eastern Harps 0-00.
Whatever words of wisdom Cloonacool’s manager Brian Mc
Intyre and coach Barnes Kelly imparted at half time had the desired effect.
Within 20 seconds of the restart Harps keeper Errol Flynn was picking the ball
out of his net after being beaten by a rasping effort from Rian Moylan.
Cloonacool corner forward Conor Prendergast widened the gap further on 32
minutes when he finished neatly to the Harps net. However, Cloonacool could not
rest on their laurels and Cloonacool’s keeper Joe Neary could do nothing to
stop Ciaran Hannon’s effort finding the back of his net after a route one ball
in from midfield after 38 minutes.
However, this was as good as it got for the Harps men as
their centre back Barry Convey received his marching orders from referee Paul
Clavin after collecting a yellow card along with a black card he picked up
earlier. Cloonacool were now in the driving seat and they finished off the job
in hand with a number of well taken points and goals from Brian Towey, Ronan
Leonard and Jason Brennan.
Overall a good workmanlike display by Cloonacool but sterner
tests await in this year’s Connacht Gold Junior A championship.