St. Mochta’s 6-15 Roche Emmets 8-15

The U13 boys recorded their second win on the trot when fending off a ferocious fightback by St. Mochta’s in Louth Village on Friday night.

Emmets led 6-8 to 2-3 at half-time and after a strong start to the second half, were in cruise control. However, it took a late goal by Lee Casey to ensure the points travelled back down the road.

Midfielder Niall Connolly gave a tremendous display, shooting 2-8 from play, while Dean Griffin’s early reversion to full-forward saw him strike for a hat-trick before the midway juncture.

Indeed, some of the passing moves in the first half were of the highest calibre with Conor Clarke, Kyle Callan and Brooklyn Taaffe linking the play very impressively.

Meanwhile, captain Liam McCabe gave another Rolls Royce display, always making the right decision when on the ball and kicking some fine points.

Goalkeeper James Curtis kept his cool amid the second half onslaught and prevented the hosts from scoring another certain goal with a wonderful tackle, dispossession and clearance as the affair entered ‘squeeky-bum time’.

Likewise, before going off with a knock, Shay Carolan gave a powerful account, twice cracking the crossbar with vicious shots having kicked a point and been a cog in various flowing moves.

Cian Ellis and Rory O’Donnell defended manfully and impressed especially during the first half as they repelled Mochta’s almost indefinitely, while Adam McGuinness converted a point and set-up a few more when moved up the field.

On the left of the backline, Ronan Grant tackled aggressively and never afforded his opponent an inch, with Jack Murphy coming in to sort out the Mochta’s danger forward, snuffing out his influence on the match with some snarling tackling. His support play was also crucial to the outcome.

Donal Bradley had his best game in a Roche jersey, featuring in the full-back line for the first time, with his ball-winning and distribution catching the coach’s eyes.

Another at the back, Seán Conlon put an end to Mochta’s attacks prior to sustaining an injury, using his physique to wrestle back the ball, while Bernard Verbeek harried and chased, acting as the first line of defence from the full-forward area.

This promising group play their next matches in quick succession, hosting Naomh Máirtín on Sunday at 5pm before Geraldines visit Páirc de Róiste next Wednesday.

Roche (12-a-side): James Curtis; Cian Ellis, Ruairí O’Donnell; Adam McGuinness (0-1), Ronan Grant; Niall Connolly (2-8), Lee Casey (1-1), Dean Griffin (3-0); Conor Clarke, Kyle Callan (1-2); Liam McCabe (0-2), Brooklyn Taaffe (1-0)

Subs: Seán Conlon, Shay Carolan (0-1), Jack Murphy, Donal Bradley, Bernard Verbeek

Referee: Brian Brady