ACL Div.1: Mullingar Shamrocks 2-12 Castledaly 1-6.

The green shoots evident against Coralstown-Kinnegad recently are progressing nicely it seems and were again visible in Springfield on Sunday morning in the ACL Div. 1 match against Castledaly that ended in a convincing 2-12 to 1-6 victory and secured safety in the top division for at least another season. Dean Moore registered an early Shamrocks score from a free and Davy Gavin crashing through the centre added a second point with Patrick Fagan the provider. A great combined move was finished for a third point by Ollie MacNamara, fast adjusting to the complications of adult football. A point from Castledaly was followed by a mini-scoring spree from Denis Corroon that added 1-3 to the Shamrocks total. A Castledaly point was balanced by another Patrick Fagan point before Shamrocks completed their first half scoring when Zach Aherne finished a great combined move that began deep in defence with Conn O’Hanlon and was continued up the left side of the pitch by Pearse Corroon and Dillon Matthews before Zach provided the finishing touches. A blasted goal from Paddy Holloway served notice that Castledaly were far from down and out as Shamrocks led by 1-8 to 1-2 at the interval.

Unfortunately for Marc Eivers the match ended early when he was forced to leave the field with a serious shoulder injury that is likely to keep him out of the game for some time. This is cruel luck for Marc who spent most of last season recovering from a long-term knee injury and was back playing some of his finest football. Speedy recovery, Mark.

A point from play early in the second half reduced the deficit but when a Denis Corroon 45 dropped short Zach Aherne rose highest and flicked the ball to the net to give Shamrocks an extra layer of comfort. Patrick Fagan and Denis Corroon added points, Castledaly pointed three points before Dean Moore finished the scoring with two fine points to leave the final score reading 2-12 to 1-6.

Mullingar Shamrocks: Sean Hynes; Eddie Moore, Conn O’Hanlon, Marc Eivers (Pearse Corroon); Ryan Blundell, David Gavin (0-1), Dillon Matthews; Brian Farrell, Denis Corroon (1-4); Killian Daly, Patrick Fagan (0-2), John O’Reilly; Zach Aherne (1-1), Dean Moore (0-3), Ollie MacNamara (0-1).