High-flying Duleek ‘Clear' winners in local derby tie
Premier Division
A GOAL inside 15 seconds set Duleek on their way to a comfortable victory at home to local rivals Kentstown on Thursday night.
The win sees Duleek retain their position of second in the top flight, just three points behind league leaders Bellurgan.
Right from the kick-off Duleek broke forward, Cormac McGroggan slipped Dylan O'Boyle through and he finished with aplomb to give the hosts the perfect start.
After that Duleek continued in the ascendancy, no doubt buoyed by their early strike, and they went close on several occasions before eventually doubling their advantage on 25 minutes.
Another good piece of build-up play saw Jayden Clarke break down the wing before delivering a pass to Jamie McCarthy who duly scored his first goal of the season.
Kentstown, though, have been a dogged team this season and they started to get into the game. Jonathan Clear made some fine stops in the Duleek goal as the visitors enjoyed a purple patch.
However Duleek got to the half-time break with their two-goal lead still intact.
The game became somewhat of a war of attrition early in the second period, but Duleek boss Bryan Murphy rang the changes mid-way through the half and those switches soon paid dividends.
Matthew Noone and Josh O'Reilly, who had both come into the game, combined for Duleek's third goal. With Rovers pushing forward more, Duleek countered quickly and Noone supplied the pass for O'Reilly to score his fifth goal of the season.
O'Reilly went close to another goal soon after, his effort going narrowly wide on this occasion.
Duleek, though, still saw it out in good style as Clear secured his first Premier Division clean sheet.
While they have a bye this weekend, Duleek will certainly be happy with their position on their return to the top flight. The season is almost at the mid-way point and they have won four of their seven games which has included almost all their trips to Dundalk.
Meanwhile Albion Rovers had no fixture this week and their wait for a first league win of the season will continue as they are in Challenge Cup action this Thursday at home to Kingscourt Harps.
They sides have already met this season, with the teams playing out a 3-3 draw in the Kilmessan Shield group stages.
Duleek: Jonathan Clear, Sean Kennedy, James Traynor, Ben Boyce (Robbie Daly 83), Morgan Browne, Jamie McCarthy, Bobby Brady (Karl Dyas 83), Tom Reilly, Dylan O'Boyle (Josh O'Reilly 52), Cormac McGroggan (Matthew Noone 77), Jayden Clarke (Sean O'Halloran 77).
ENFIELD CELTIC 3 DULEEK 2NDS 1 Division 2 Duleek 2nds suffered a defeat away to Enfield Celtic on Friday night as the hosts recorded their eighth win of the season. It was always going to be tough for Duleek against the runaway leaders and they were forced into an early change as Eoin Tierney got injured inside 15 minutes and was replaced by Heuston Stanley. Enfield went on to hit the front on the half-hour and probably just about deserved it at that stage, although Duleek had their chances. As the game went on it looked like Duleek may sneak a leveller, but on the hour mark Enfield capitalised on a defensive mistake to score a second goal. The visitors pushed forward and pulled one back on 77 minutes as a sublime solo effort from Breno Araujo set up a grandstand finish. Duleek hit the post inside the final 10 minutes, but they were caught on the counter-attack deep into stoppage time as Enfield put the result beyond doubt. Duleek: Daire Moore, Aaron Seery, Craig Brodigan (Craig Clarke 86), Kyle Boland, Leon O'Leary, Eoin Tierney (Heuston Stanley 14), Kyle Byrne, Robbie Duff, Leon Smith, Dylan Brodigan (Alan O'Brien 67), Adam Courtney (Breno Araujo 60).
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
RTÉ News
5 hours ago
- RTÉ News
Shamrock Rovers sail through following St Joseph's stalemate
It wasn't pretty but with a 4-0 lead from the first leg, Shamrock Rovers could afford to play a game that was more akin to a training match as they eased through to the third qualifying round of the UEFA Conference League and a meeting with Kosovan side Ballkani next Thursday with the first leg away from home. It also means that the Rovers versus Derry City Premier Division game will now go ahead as planned in Tallaght at 7pm on Sunday evening. It was a game that never lifted itself out of the ordinary. The Gibraltar side, on a mission impossible, defended in numbers, content it seemed with the stalemate as they gained a measure of pride at keeping the second leg scoreless after last week's hammering, Hoops manager Stephen Bradley, as expected, made wholesale changes from the first leg, six in total, giving midfielder Cian Barrett, son of ex-Ireland international Graham Barrett, his full debut. In a forgettable first half, it was the visitors had the best early chance in the seventh minute as Manual Sanchez fed Jayce Olivero inside the area, but Olivero never steadied himself and ballooned his shot over the bar. Straight from the goal kick, Rory Gaffney saw his shot rebound off the knees of the St Joseph's keeper Bradley Banda and Danny Grant blazed the follow up over the bar when he should really have scored. The visitors were content to defend, sitting deep. But they almost scored just after the half hour as Hoops keeper Ed McGinty had to come quickly off his line to smother a shot by Javi Forjan, put through by an excellent ball down the channel by Geovanni Barba. Rovers began to up the pressure at the resumption and teenager Michael Noonan, who was celebrating his 17th birthday, created a chance for sub John McGovern, but his close-range header was well saved, one handed, by Banda. Late in a game Noonan was denied what looked like a penalty as he tumbled in the area, but the Rovers appeals from players and fans alike were waved away by the referee as the game then petered out to its inevitable conclusion. Shamrock Rovers: Ed McGinty; Gary O'Neill,Roberto Lopez © (Lee Grace 45), Cory O'Sullivan; Danny Grant, Jack Byrne (Sean Kavanagh 63) Aaron McEniff (Dylan Watts 63), Cian Barrett, Josh Holohan (Danny Mandroiu 63) ; Rory Gaffney (John McGovern 45), Michael Noonan St Joseph's FC: Bradley Banda; Leon Volz, Gabri Cardozo (Javi Paul 79), Geovanni Barba, Jace Olivero; Juan Pena (Pablo Rodriguez 60), Manuel Sanchez, Juanma ©; Mitch Gibson (Adrian Armental 45), Javi Forjan (Ethan Santos 65), Angel Martinez.
The Irish Sun
5 hours ago
- The Irish Sun
‘It had everything' admits Stephen Kenny as he hails St Pat's rain-soaked extra-time Conference League win v Nomme Kalju
STEPHEN KENNY praised St Pat's for checking out of the Four Seasons with a rain-soaked aggregate win over Nomme Kalju in the UEFA Conference League. Joe Redmond's 90th minute goal sent the second leg in Tallinn to extra time after the hosts had overturned the first leg deficit with goals either side of half-time. 2 St Patrick's Athletic manager Stephen Kenny praised his side's win over Nomma Kalju Credit: Evaldas Semiotas/Sportsfile 2 Jake Mulraney and Joe Redmond scored as they came from 2-0 down Credit: Evaldas Semiotas/Sportsfile And with the rain cascading onto the pitch below, Jake Mulraney clinched the Kenny said: 'It had everything. 'It had four seasons in the game. It finished with monsoon rain and puddles. 'We showed great character to come back and win the game which was really important. Read More on Conference League 'They scored off their first chance, really. That was so disappointing and then when they scored again, we were up against it. 'They were sitting with a back five. We were very persistent. Their goalkeeper made some unbelievable saves in the game but thankfully we managed to get the equaliser and the winner. 'We are delighted to win it because we know how hard it is to get through away from home in Europe . 'To come from 2-0 down, to have setbacks such as Aidan Keena's, with a potential thigh muscle injury, was really testament to our character.' Most read in Football Reward for their smash-and-grab in Estonia is a date with Besiktas in the third qualifying round. The Turkish giants, coached by former striker and manager Ole Gunnar Solksjaer, will present a significant step-up after dropping down from the Bizarre moment Havertz fouls the WRONG Tottenham player after Arsenal star sent for a hotdog But while wary of the threat they will pose, Kenny insisted his focus is on Sunday's Premier Division fixture against Pat's look set to be without Aidan Keena and Jason McClelland after they both were taken off injured on Thursday. And Kenny said: 'I always respect my opponent. People think we should be beating Hegelmann and Kalju and should be losing to Besiktas. 'This is our tenth game in Europe in just a year. We have just one defeat. 'They have a lot of quality. I have not really watched them play yet because I was firmly focused on this game. 'We fly home tomorrow but before we do so, we are switched on to Waterford on Sunday, which is a big game for us. That is my real focus now. 'We have lost two players to injury tonight and we lost Zack from the last game. We have to get ready for Sunday. 'It is a great game to play one of the big Turkish clubs, an institution in the capital, but one we must prepare for and be ready and give ourselves every chance. 'It will be tough as we have Waterford and Sligo amid the two games.'
Irish Daily Mirror
10 hours ago
- Irish Daily Mirror
Cork City fallout as Malik Dijksteel completes fast-tracked move to St Mirren
Malik Dijksteel sealed his move to St Mirren today having left Premier Division strugglers Cork City under a cloud of controversy. But Rebels boss Ger Nash has wished the Dutchman well, despite going without the winger in last Friday's crucial bottom-of-the-table clash with Sligo Rovers. Dijksteel signed a pre-contract agreement with St Mirren just three days before that Bit O'Red game, and he was due to stay and play in the rest of City's season. Yet there was no sign of Dijksteel for the Turner's Cross shootout which Cork City led 2-0 in before suffering a catastrophic meltdown and losing 3-2 in the dying stages. It was a devastating blow for their top flight survival prospects and after the game, Nash said: 'Malik's agent made it clear that he was unavailable for personal reasons." Click this link or scan the QR code to receive the latest League of Ireland news and top stories from the Irish Mirror. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice . St Mirren had wanted to sign the 24-year-old in this transfer window, and a bid was rejected. But following a standoff over the last week, a permanent deal has now been reached ahead of the Scottish Premiership season starting this weekend. And it means Dijksteel will be available for St Mirren in their opening league game away to champions Celtic on Sunday. Today, City boss Nash said: 'I spoke to Malik in the office for an hour on Monday and in my time working with him, Malik was a really good professional. 'St Mirren have got a really good player and I hope the move works out really well for him and he's got a big game this weekend. He's been our best player. He's been a real attacking threat for us and we wanted to pick him.' Nash continued: 'The conversation happened with his agent. It's very difficult for players in a situation where they want to leave, they want to go to a bigger club. 'There's also real life reasons and in terms of Malik, he's a father and where his child lives, that move would make it a lot easier to see his family. 'So there's a lot of human reasons why I completely understand why he wanted to move. I was pretty sad that he's leaving, but it's a good move for him. 'His agent had a conversation which made it clear that Malik had a lot going on in his mind and his personal life. It was clear to us that Malik wasn't in the right frame of mind for such an important game (against Sligo Rovers). 'When you're dealing with those sorts of transfers, it's not easy and whether he was in the right frame of mind was questionable.' Dijksteel isn't the only Cork City player to jump ship from the bottom side this week as defender Milan Mbeng was snapped up by reigning champions Shelbourne. The Frenchman was on Shels radar long before Nash arrived at the club in mid-May and the Rebels boss said: 'It was ongoing.' Nash added: 'When you have a player who has made it clear he wants to leave the club, it's difficult to hang on to them.' Teams and players at the foot of the table tend to find it hard to catch a break and that's precisely the situation Cathal O'Sullivan finds himself in. The exciting Cork City prospect - linked with a host of Premier League clubs in England, and Celtic - suffered a second ruptured ACL of his career last weekend. City confirmed the injury this week and defender Darragh Crowley said of his team-mate yesterday: 'It's a really tough one for him. I had the same injury two years ago and this is his second time doing it. You just have to feel for him. 'At such a young age, everything he had in front of him in the future, it's nine months to a year down the line. But I've no doubt he'll get back to where he was.' Get the latest sports headlines straight to your inbox by signing up for free email .
