Tamhlacht topple Ronanstown in cup

THE FIRST cup semi finalist of the season was confirmed last Saturday, in Sean Walsh Park, when Tamhlacht FC beat Ronanstown FC in the quarter final of the UCFL MMI Cup, reports John Mooney.

This was a cracker from the opening whistle and Tamhlacht were deserved winners, but the visitors will look back at some missed opportunities when only trailing 2-1.

The swirling strong wind played a major part in this game and the home side seemed to settle the better in the opening half and raced into a 2-0 lead, one they held until the last minute of the half.

They opened their account after eight minutes as Glen Warner chased through ball, keeper Jamie McCarthy beat him to the ball and cleared but only as far as Peter Wall Boggans who lobbed the ball home.

That lead was doubled 17 minutes later as Jamie Smullen gathered the ball on the right, skipped a challenge and played the ball into Eoin Moore, and he dinked it over the advancing McCarthy.

The visitors were doing all they could but the home defence stood firm and were cool when under pressure, but they finally made a breakthrough on the stroke of half time.

Tamhlacht FC’s Glen Warner holds off Ronanstown FC’s Brendan Devoy

Joseph Reynolds won the ball on the edge of the area and slipped a pass to Conor DeFerreira, he beat a defender and returned the ball into the area where Reynolds was waiting to guide home.

It gave the visitors some belief and as the second half started they created two great chances in the opening 10 minutes that could have change the game, but DeFerreira saw his effort saved by John Gibbons and Reynolds pulled his shot inches wide.

That was as good as it got as Tamhlacht smashed home a cracking number three from Warner, after Conor Murphy controlled a throw in and laid the ball on a plate for him.

The visitors threw everything they had at the home rearguard as they went in search of another goal, but the defence stood firm and Gibbons wasn’t really troubled.

And, with time almost up, the home side rubbed a bit more salt into their wounds when substitute Aidan Wall Boggans headed home number four.

TAMHLACHT FC: John Gibbons, Shane Hanrahan, Reece O’Connor, Francis Brooks, Jason Walsh, Bryan Kinsella, Peter Wall-Boggans, James Smullen, Eoin Moore, Glen Warner, Conor Murphy, Edward Barry, Aidan Wall Boggins, Charlie Farrell, Alan Deering, Sean Brophy.

RONANSTOWN FC: Jamie Mccarthy, Brendan Devoy, Blake Devitt, Kenneth Geoghegan, Dean Kelly, Callum McGovern, Joseph Reynolds, Kyle Rafferty, Conor DeFerreira, Taidgh Curran, Mark O’Neill, Daniel Devoy, Cian Knowles, Glen Craig, Karl Quinn, Kian Kavanagh, Jamie Goonery, Jethro Mande.