By Stuart Connolly
Keadue Rovers 1
Letterkenny Rovers 2
Letterkenny Rovers retained their Brian McCormick Sports Premier Division Title on Sunday afternoon after a thrilling end to their match against Keadue Rovers.
The hosts took the lead right before the interval via the head of Aidan McHugh and they held firm for a majority of the second half.
Two substitutes changed the outcome, with Lee McMonagle finding the leveller in the latter stages and BJ Banda heading home to seal the title with one game to spare.
Knowing what was at stake, Letterkenny Rovers started with intent, on the front foot and were the width of the post away from a goal inside two minutes as Simon McGlynn was denied following a long throw-in from Zach Gorman.
McGlynn was involved in the next big opportunity with a dozen minutes gone, and his low ball across the box was smothered by Shane Graham.
The chances kept flowing in the early stages for the visitors and the deadlock should have been broken with a dozen minutes gone as Padraic Gilsenan blasted just inches over the bar after they’d recycled the ball following a clearance.
At the midway stage of the half, Graham was called upon again, and he made a superb one-handed save to deny a long-range shot from Ryan Lonergan.
Keadue Rovers had a couple of forays forward, but little to test Mark Anthony McGinley, however, that changed on the cusp of half-time.
Adam McCaffrey lofted in a free kick from the halfway line and Aidan McHugh got up well to head to ball into the top left corner, just out of reach for McGinley.
The visitors started the second half with the same intent and Dean McCarry went close to an equaliser twice in as many moments with a header off the post followed by a strike across the face of goal, and it just looked like it wasn’t going to fall for them.
With the away side throwing so much forward, it left them open to the occasional counter attack and on two occasions, Keadue Rovers almost doubled their lead. Keith Cowan was well-placed to block an effort from Aidan McHugh, while he set up Peter McGee for the next chance, which fizzed wide of the post.
Into the final ten minutes, Letterkenny Rovers ramped up the pressure.
Bj Banda had one effort saved by Graham, as did Joel Gorman, and as the game approached stoppage time, the reigning champions turned the game around.
Adrian Delap curled the ball in from the left and Lee McMonagle headed home at the near post, with the ball back on the centre spot promptly, as a winner was of the utmost importance for both teams.
In a similar scenario in the 91st minute, Simon McGlynn launched the ball in from the right and BJ Banda was perfectly placed at the back post to head home and spark massive celebrations on the bench.
Their celebrations were almost cut short in dramatic fashion not long after as Keadue Rovers chased an equaliser. Pauric Neely was denied by the post in the final seconds and the rebound from McGee fizzed just over.
Teams
Keadue Rovers: Shane Graham; Brian Proctor, Brendan McCafferty, Chris Greene, Martin Ferry; Mark Forker, Peter McGee, Michael Greene, Aidan McHugh; Adam McCaffrey, Oran Fallon. Subs: Pauric Neeley for McHugh(70 mins), Dylan Boyle for McCaffrey(85 mins).
Letterkenny Rovers: Mark Anthony McGinley; Padraic Gilsenan, Ryan Lonergan, Dean McCarry, Keith Cowan; Joel Gorman, Adrian Delap, Luke Parke, Shane McNamee; Zach Gorman, Simon McGlynn. Subs: BJ Banda for Lonergan (61 mins), Caolon Kelly and Lee McMonagle for Parke and Z.Gorman(80 mins), Gareth Doherty for McNamee(90 mins).
Referee: Dessie McLaughlin