Clontibret by the Minimum

Clontibret 0-8
Latton 0-7

Reigning champions Clontibret know that it will be no easy task to retain their title following this quarter-final meeting with Latton where they were pushed all the way before sneaking victory with two late points from wingback Martin Corey.

Played at a hectic pace throughout this was a game that saw both sides enjoying a lot of possession and getting through an enormous amount of work as play swung from end to end repeatedly.

Clontibret were forced to field without the services Jonathan McGuigan and John Paul Mone, the latter tweaking a hamstring in the pre-match warm up and their absence did mean fielding a reshuffled side that took a little time to settle. Clontibret also missed the presence of John Paul Mone in midfield with Eoin Lennon by and large dominating that sector. Conor McManus had an excellent hour for Clontibret and his five points, three from frees, was a vital element in this narrow victory. His fielding was superb and he repeatedly ran the shuttle between defence and attack as Latton piled forward in numbers throughout the game.

The Latton attack too functioned well and caused a number of anxious moments for the Clontibret rearguard with the pace of Owen Duffy and the accuracy of Hugh McElroy and Bernard O’Brien always a real threat. Noel Coyle beavered ceaselessly all over the field and was often the link man in Latton’s counter attacks. The game as a contest was an absolutely riveting affair while not a classic but the closeness of the scoring and the intensity of the exchanges left the issue in the balance right to the very finish.

Both goalkeepers also played their part and dealt capably with a number of incidents. . Clontibret led at half time by 0-5 to 0-3 and looked to be vindicating their favourites tag but Latton dug deep in the second half with Eoin Lennon controlling midfield and Hugh McElroy, Bernard O’Brien and Owen Duffy picking off points they gradually turned it around only to be caught at the death.

Teams and Scorers: Clontibret: Paul McElroy, Paraic Duffy, Eamonn Ward, Martin Corey, Darach Mooney, Dessie Mone, Rodney Gorman, Paul McGuigan, Eoin Greenan, Conor McManus 0-5, Michael Hughes, Darren Mulligan, Noel Morgan, Vincent Corey, Fergal Mone. Subs: Brendan Og Magennis for N Morgan, Ronan Murphy for D Mulligan.

Latton: Sean Farmer, Ruairi Ward, Edmund Lennon Hugh Lennon, Stephen Fitzpatrick, Francis Coyle, Kieran Lennon, Eoin Lennon, Aidan Farmer, Noel Coyle, Bernard O’Brien 0-3, Owen Duffy 0-1, James Connolly, Hugh McElroy 0-2, Kevin Hughes 0-1. Subs: Finbar Fitzpatrick for J Connolly, James Kingston for K Hughes.

Referee: Brendan McMahon (Eire Og).