29 January 2011
Goals win games is often a motto we hear repeatedly, but this was certainly the case in Celtic Park tonight. Antrim footballers having reached their first ever semi-final berth in the McKenna Cup bowed out to a reorganised and ambitious Derry team on their home patch.
Derry started out the stronger scoring early but it was the Glensmen who then hit a purple patch surging into a 6-3 lead before they were pegged back by a Derry 3 pointer. The Oak leaf county then scored a second goal to take control of this game and gain an advantage that the Saffrons were never able to peg back.
Eventually Antrim got back on the score sheet to leave it 2.07 to 0.08 at half-time. However, despite reducing the gap to 4 points twice in the second half, the inability to grab a goal proved the difference between the 2 teams and it is the Derry men who will have a McKenna Cup final appearance to look forward to.
Derry natives and Antrim management team Liam Bradley and Niall Conway will unquestionably be disappointed about tonight’s result, but this preparation for maintaining Division 2 status may just have exceeded expectations given the number of regular players unavailable to them.
They will hope and need greater numbers to turn-out to support the Saffrons in the league campaign which begins against Kildare next Sunday in Casement Park.
FROM BBC:
Derry became the first team through to the McKenna Cup final thanks to a six-point win over the Saffrons at Celtic Park on Saturday night.
Goals from Sean Leo McGoldrick and Paddy Bradley helped Derry to a 2-7 to 0-8 interval lead in the semi-final.
A brace of Mark Dougan scores and a Paddy Cunningham free cut the deficit with 15 minutes remaining but Derry held on easily for the victory.
Derry will be hoping for a first title since 1999 in the February decider.
McGoldrick hit the opening goal on 24 minutes with Paddy Bradley adding the second four minutes later.
Paddy Cunningham kept the Saffrons in touch with four first-half points, with Brendan Herron, Tony Scullion and CJ McGourty also among the scorers for the visitors.
Liam Bradley's charges failed to score between the 15th and 32nd minutes in the first half.
FROM Irish Times:
FIRST-HALF goals from Seán Leo McGoldrick and Paddy Bradley proved the difference as Derry booked their place in the final of the McKenna Cup at Celtic Park on Saturday evening.
Antrim led 0-6 to 0-3 after 15 minutes but those two goals in the space of four minutes turned the match in Derry’s favour and they led 2-7 to 0-8 at the interval.
The second half was another free-scoring affair with Mark Dougan scoring three great points for Antrim but Mark Lynch, Bradley and Conleith Gilligan made sure Derry stayed in control.
DERRY: M Conlan; B McCallion, G O’Kane, D McBride; M Drumm (0-1), B McGoldrick, A McAlynn; PJ McCloskey, J Conway (0-1); D Mullan, S L McGoldrick (1-1), M Lynch (0-4); C McGoldrick, P Bradley (1-4, 1f), C Gilligan (0-3, 2f). Subs: Niall Holly for McAlynn (48).
ANTRIM: C Kerr; C Brady, D McCann, K O’Boyle; T Scullion (0-1), A Healy, D O’Neill; B Herron (0-1), J Crozier; T O’Neill, K Niblock, M Sweeney; P Cunningham (0-7, 5f), M Dougan 0-4), C McGourty (0-1). Subs: K Brady for McCann (53), J Laverty for Scullion (62), E McNeill for McGourty (64), M McAleese for D O’Neill (64).
