Standout Players Laois Shopping Centre SFC Round 1

Standout Players Laois Shopping Centre SFC Round 1

The Heath: 0.11

Portarlington: 2.18

Portarlington:

Rioghan Murphy was at the heart of Portarlington’s attacking play. He showed excellent awareness to square an unselfish handpass across goal for Colm Murphy to palm to the net before later using his blistering pace to burst through the Heath defence and finish a superb goal of his own. He also won a penalty through his direct running and willingness to attack defenders.

Hugh Connolly carried the ball superbly throughout, driving Portarlington forward and linking attacks with great composure. Defensively, he produced an outstanding turnover when he brilliantly snatched the ball from a Heath forward’s grasp before surging into attack, a move which directly created a Colm Murphy point. Connolly continued to impress with another perfectly timed tackle to dispossess a Heath attacker, and that turnover immediately led to a two-point free for Portarlington by Sean Michael Corcoran. Hugh Connolly may not have scored himself but he contibuted massively in every other aspect of his play to contribute to his sides win, most importantly and was by far the most impressive player in the game.

Colm Murphy made the most of the opportunities created around him. He reacted quickest to Rioghan Murphy’s clever handpass to palm home a well-worked goal and later added a point after Hugh Connolly’s excellent defensive turnover and driving run turned defence into attack.

Arles Killeen 2.12

Park Ratheniska 2.07

Park Ratheniska

Noah Fingleton (1-1) was Park Ratheniska’s most direct attacking threat, constantly taking the game to the Arles Killeen defence. His pace, clever footwork and ability to sidestep defenders allowed him to burst through the defensive line on several occasions, and he was rewarded with an excellent return of 1-1. Throughout the opening half he was the one player consistently driving forward with purpose and giving his side the attacking spark they needed.

Cian Nolan (1-2) also injected vital pace and directness into Park Ratheniska’s attack. He wasn’t afraid to take defenders on, creating dangerous openings every time he received possession. He won an important free before producing a brilliant second-half goal, anticipating the pass perfectly by drifting into space before turning quickly and finishing clinically to the net.

Simon Fingleton (0-2) made a huge impact after the break with his energy from midfield. He linked superbly with Cian Nolan through intelligent passing and supporting runs, with the pair combining brilliantly in a move that was unfortunate not to end in a goal. Earlier, he also saw a two-point effort brilliantly blocked by the Arles Killeen defence.

Talking Point:

Noah and Simon Fingleton’s, plus Cian Nolan’s; direct running, taking on men one to one and succeeding, bursts into space to look for a pass and then recieve it on the run, willingness to take shots, overall braveness in attacking play is what really stood out.

Particularly because Park Ratheniska’s overall set up was slow, focused on only keeping possession and lacking in attacking movement. Moving the ball everywhere but directly forward, going sideways and backwards with hand passes and kickpasses: it proved to be too slow at times and they were getting no joy out of this style of play as there was no 2 pointers created/ scored/any attempts blocked down as the Arles Killeen defence were well able to cover their defensive lines with little to no pressure, which resulted in wides and turnovers.

So when these 3 players, Nolan and the 2 Fingleton’s went directly forward, it was a thrill to watch and hugely beneficial despite the result. Park Ratheniska got some really great scores and created a mountain of chances, that would have seen them possibly win the game if chances were converted. But they spent too much time playing anti attacking football.

Proving in future that adding more direct attacking play to their game as seen from Nolan and the 2 Fingletons; is what is required for a chance of wins going forward.

It was very impressive attacking play from the newly promoted side and would be great to see it utilised more.

Arles Killeen

Colin Dunne (0-3) produced several moments of quality in attack. He kicked a superb point from a very tight angle off the outside of his boot before later showing excellent composure when surrounded by three defenders, turning sharply and still managing to split the posts. His vision was equally impressive as he drifted wide before delivering a perfectly weighted pass inside to directly set up a point for a teammate.

Ennae Byrne (0-2) played an influential role around the middle of the field. He won the kick-out that launched the move leading to Paul Kingston’s goal and followed that up by getting on the end of a slick passing move, curling over an excellent point after great skill and quick thinking from Colin Dunne in the build-up. He also produced a vital defensive turnover which helped launch another Arles Killeen attack.

Oisin Byrne (0-0) made several important contributions despite not scoring. Early on he produced a crucial block to deny Simon Fingleton’s two-point attempt before later delivering a superb outside-of-the-boot kick pass into the full-forward line, creating another dangerous attacking opportunity for Arles Killeen.

Ballyroan Abbey 0.19

Rosenallis 1.09

Ballyroan Abbey

Diarmuid Whelan was simply outstanding with his long-range kicking, finishing with an incredible four two-pointers. His accuracy from distance was hugely impressive and repeatedly punished Rosenallis, making him the standout attacking performer on the field.

Shaun Murphy (0-0) dominated around midfield, winning three kick-outs through excellent fielding and timing under the high ball. His handling was exceptional as he rose above opponents to claim possession cleanly. He also directly set up one of Diarmuid Whelan’s two-pointers with an intelligent pass before being unfortunate not to score himself when his effort from play came back off the post.

Davin McEvoy (0-1) was hugely influential with his distribution. His pinpoint long kick passes into the forward line continually created attacking momentum and directly set up Enda McWey (0-2) for a point. McEvoy also used his pace and clever footwork to draw several fouls, winning valuable frees, while he linked brilliantly with Conaire Gee (0-3) through intelligent passing and supporting runs to earn another free for Ballyroan Abbey.

Rosenallis

Charlie Friel (1-4) was Rosenallis’ biggest attacking threat. He calmly converted a penalty, added an excellent point from play and also landed a superb two-pointer, underlining the excellent scoring form he showed throughout the contest. He also won the resulting kick-out after his penalty, immediately putting Rosenallis back on the attack.

Joey Shelly (0-0) produced one of the defensive plays of the game when he intercepted a dangerous high ball that looked destined for the Ballyroan Abbey full-forward line. He then embarked on a tremendous solo run from his own 45-metre line to the opposite 45, turning defence into attack and creating a scoring opportunity.

Barry McEvoy (0-0) defended superbly throughout. He read the game brilliantly to get across in front of James McWey (0-1), cutting out what looked like a dangerous Ballyroan Abbey counter-attack with an important interception.

O’Dempseys: 1.08

Courtwood: 2.09

O’Dempseys

Joe Lennon (0-1) was arguably O’Dempsey’s standout performer despite the defeat, producing an exceptional defensive display from start to finish.

His man-marking, both on and off the ball, was outstanding, giving Courtwood’s dangerous forwards very little space to exploit throughout the contest. He constantly stayed touch-tight to his opponent, reading the game superbly and making life extremely difficult whenever Courtwood looked to build attacks.

His highlight was a magnificent block to deny Ryan Little what appeared to be a certain goal, but that was just one of a series of excellent defensive contributions. Lennon also made a number of crucial tackles and timely interceptions, repeatedly breaking up attacks before they became dangerous.

His positioning, anticipation and relentless defensive work ensured he was consistently one of O’Dempsey’s most influential players over the hour.

Joe Lennon’s position (no. 7) meant after his great defensive moments he contributed strongly to midfield and attacking play too when he went forward and involved in attacking opportunities, scores and alongside scoring a point from play himself.

Courtwood

Cian Doyle (1-1) produced a match-winning display in the second half. He constantly threatened the O’Dempsey’s defence and capped a superb team move with a clinical goal after the attack flowed through Niall Donoher, Rob Tyrrell and Sean O’Flynn. Doyle also added a point from play and was central to Courtwood taking control in the closing stages.

Alan Kinsella (0-4) was exceptionally reliable from placed balls, converting all four of his frees. At a time when scores were difficult to come by, his accuracy kept Courtwood within touching distance during the opening half before helping them pull clear after the interval.

Graiguecullen 0.19

Emo 1.08

Graiguecullen: Mark Timmons took the headlines and praise deservedly: for his scoring performance and jaw dropping 2 pointers scored from huge distance out and all off the outside of his boot which then curled wonderfully over the bar: but my man of the match is Josh O’Brien.

Josh O’Brien (0-1) was hugely influential throughout with his all-action display. He repeatedly carried the ball forward from deep with pace and purpose, driving Graiguecullen onto the front foot whenever he gained possession. His work rate was equally impressive defensively, where his disciplined man-marking helped keep opponents out of dangerous scoring positions. O’Brien also played a key role in the build-up to Graiguecullen’s attack, helping create a point for the full-forward line before getting on the scoresheet himself with a well-taken point from play after making an intelligent run into space. Around midfield he won multiple kick-outs, using excellent vision to deliver a pinpoint low pass directly into the path of his full-forward, whose goal effort crashed back off the crossbar. Later, O’Brien again showcased his outstanding distribution with a superb looping delivery that found his teammate cleanly, before another driving run and perfectly weighted pass directly created another scoring opportunity.

Emo

Ross Meredith was a constant attacking threat for Emo. He moved intelligently in possession, creating space for himself and teammates with clever movement around the forward line, while his sharp hand-passing helped link together several scoring moves. Meredith capped his performance with an excellent goal from play after timing a superb run onto a perfectly weighted pass from Pa Kirwan, before showing real confidence to have another effort from long range. Although that shot drifted wide, his willingness to take responsibility and back himself from distance highlighted his positive attacking mindset.

Ends