U19 Football Championship 2022
November 5: Starlights 4-8, Ferns St. Aidans 2-7
Bill Peare staked an early claim for the watching Anthony Russell’s county Under-20 side with a sensational performance to guide Starlights past hosts Ferns St. Aidans in the opening round of the Panda Under-19 football Division 1 championship on Saturday.
With the game deadlocked and two goals already on the board for the classy full-forward, Peare broke a pair of long balls to himself in one-on-one situations and blasted past the excellent William Kavanagh in the Ferns goal to seal the win for the visitors.
In what was a very entertaining game on the back pitch in Ferns, there was little to choose between the sides other than Peare’s moments of magic.
It was a hotly-contested game but played in a good spirit between two sides that could have the quality to make a run at this crown.
Getting the victory certainly helps Starlights in that regard, as they have a nice home tie against HWH-Bunclody up next and will fancy their chances of getting another win on the board if they can match the hunger and desire of this showing.
After Kevin Barron kicked them ahead, Peare finished to the net following great work by Jamie Donnelly and Kian Dwyer.
His second goal arrived in the seventh minute from a Barron assist, and when Peare pointed three minutes later it was 2-2 to nil.
However, they would add just a Kian Murphy point before the interval as Ferns edged back into the game. Either side of two points from his own boot, James Kinsella punched to the net from Charlie Murphy’s pass to make it 2-3 to 1-2 at half-time.
Within seconds of the restart Kinsella netted again, this time after a gut-busting effort from George Warren.
The sides traded points for the next 20 minutes although Ferns believed they had scored a goal when Murphy’s effort appeared to fly through a hole in the net.
The thought that there are no holes in the net on the main pitch might have swept through Starlights’ minds amid the controversy, but they kept their heads down.
And with Peare and Tommy McVeigh on the scoreboard at one end, and James Murray, Liam Byrne and Danny Dreelan at the other, the scores were level with 60 minutes coming up on the clock (2-7 each).
Then Peare took over, as he broke Matt Kinnaird’s ball to himself and drilled past Kavanagh, and two minutes later he did the same with a Barron pass.
That was game over, and the creator of the second knocked over a late point to give the visitors a seven-point success at full-time.
Ferns St. Aidans: William Kavanagh; Darragh Breen, Conor O’Toole, Craig Dreelan; Danny Dreelan (0-1), James Murray (0-1), George Warren; Seán Gahan, Liam Byrne (0-1); Matthew Hanley, Max Meegan (0-1 free), Jack Brennan; James Kinsella (2-2, 0-1 free), Brian Stafford, Charlie Murphy (0-1). Subs. - Jerry Sheridan for Breen (36), Jack Curran for C. Dreelan (41), Oisín Cronin for Meegan (45), Jack Byrne for Stafford (50).
Starlights: Adam Shiggins; Kian Dwyer, Ronan Kervick, Conor Redmond; Brian Cronin, Matt Kinnaird, Jamie Donnelly; Oisín Pepper, Jack Byrne; Billy Redmond, Kevin Barron (0-2), Tommy McVeigh (0-1); Riley Doran, Bill Peare (4-4, 0-2 frees), Kian Murphy (0-1). Subs. - Mikey Webster for Murphy (51), Jamie Dugdale for Donnelly (60), Danny Kervick for C. Redmond (60+2).
Referee: Jamie Farrell (HWH-Bunclody).
Bill Peare staked an early claim for the watching Anthony Russell’s county Under-20 side with a sensational performance to guide Starlights past hosts Ferns St. Aidans in the opening round of the Panda Under-19 football Division 1 championship on Saturday.
With the game deadlocked and two goals already on the board for the classy full-forward, Peare broke a pair of long balls to himself in one-on-one situations and blasted past the excellent William Kavanagh in the Ferns goal to seal the win for the visitors.
In what was a very entertaining game on the back pitch in Ferns, there was little to choose between the sides other than Peare’s moments of magic.
It was a hotly-contested game but played in a good spirit between two sides that could have the quality to make a run at this crown.
Getting the victory certainly helps Starlights in that regard, as they have a nice home tie against HWH-Bunclody up next and will fancy their chances of getting another win on the board if they can match the hunger and desire of this showing.
After Kevin Barron kicked them ahead, Peare finished to the net following great work by Jamie Donnelly and Kian Dwyer.
His second goal arrived in the seventh minute from a Barron assist, and when Peare pointed three minutes later it was 2-2 to nil.
However, they would add just a Kian Murphy point before the interval as Ferns edged back into the game. Either side of two points from his own boot, James Kinsella punched to the net from Charlie Murphy’s pass to make it 2-3 to 1-2 at half-time.
Within seconds of the restart Kinsella netted again, this time after a gut-busting effort from George Warren.
The sides traded points for the next 20 minutes although Ferns believed they had scored a goal when Murphy’s effort appeared to fly through a hole in the net.
The thought that there are no holes in the net on the main pitch might have swept through Starlights’ minds amid the controversy, but they kept their heads down.
And with Peare and Tommy McVeigh on the scoreboard at one end, and James Murray, Liam Byrne and Danny Dreelan at the other, the scores were level with 60 minutes coming up on the clock (2-7 each).
Then Peare took over, as he broke Matt Kinnaird’s ball to himself and drilled past Kavanagh, and two minutes later he did the same with a Barron pass.
That was game over, and the creator of the second knocked over a late point to give the visitors a seven-point success at full-time.
Ferns St. Aidans: William Kavanagh; Darragh Breen, Conor O’Toole, Craig Dreelan; Danny Dreelan (0-1), James Murray (0-1), George Warren; Seán Gahan, Liam Byrne (0-1); Matthew Hanley, Max Meegan (0-1 free), Jack Brennan; James Kinsella (2-2, 0-1 free), Brian Stafford, Charlie Murphy (0-1). Subs. - Jerry Sheridan for Breen (36), Jack Curran for C. Dreelan (41), Oisín Cronin for Meegan (45), Jack Byrne for Stafford (50).
Starlights: Adam Shiggins; Kian Dwyer, Ronan Kervick, Conor Redmond; Brian Cronin, Matt Kinnaird, Jamie Donnelly; Oisín Pepper, Jack Byrne; Billy Redmond, Kevin Barron (0-2), Tommy McVeigh (0-1); Riley Doran, Bill Peare (4-4, 0-2 frees), Kian Murphy (0-1). Subs. - Mikey Webster for Murphy (51), Jamie Dugdale for Donnelly (60), Danny Kervick for C. Redmond (60+2).
Referee: Jamie Farrell (HWH-Bunclody).
