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Draperstown Celtic 4-1 Strabane

Draperstown continued their recent good form overcoming a determined Strabane side mainly due to an excellent second half performance which saw two goals from Sean McBride and a further goal from Eamon Murray ease the home side to victory.

The opening exchanges would not have for-seen such a final scoreline as Strabane started very well and were dominant early on especially through Gerald Donaghy and Martin Doherty. However, very much against the run of play it was the home side which scored first. McLaughlin in the Strabane goals made a hash of collecting Cathal Donnelly’s shot and John Higgins stole in for his seventh goal of the season after 8 minutes. Kevin Leonard did well to keep Celtic in the lead with a smart piece of work to deny Donaghy but could do little to prevent centre forward Doherty from scoring from 8 yards after 14 minutes. This certainly encouraged the visitors and they were denied what seemed a certain penalty when Gavin Graham fell under Leonard’s challenge but the referee awarded a goal kick to Draperstown. A goal from Starbane at this juncture may have resulted in a totally different outlook to the game. Starbane continued to pile on the pressure on the home defence. Donaghy twice came close to putting the visitors into the lead in the 25^th and 38^th minute, being denied firstly by Leonard and secondly by Stephen Caulfiled’s clearance off the line. The half time whistle came with Strabane on top, Celtic in a little disarray but happy to be drawing at this stage.

The second half was a different story altogether. Celtic became the dominant side and as in the first half, were rewarded with an early goal. A fine pass from Conway found Eamon Murray on the edge of the box who cut inside O’Neill and fired home from 12 yards. Richard Graham shot just over the Celtic bar as Strabane attempted to get back on level terms but Murray had a great chance to score his second and Celtic’s third when Donnelly’s free kick fell kindly to him but his close range shot was saved well by McLaughlin. However the home support did not have long to wait for the third goal when substitute Sean McBride latched onto Cathal Donnelly’s fine pass and hit a first time shot past McLaughlin to put Celtic 3-1 up after the hour mark. Strabane’s earlier good form was now deserting them and they became somewhat ragged in their play.

Celtic were now dominant in all areas and a fourth goal came when McBride beat the offside trap and coolly finished past McLaughlin to round off a wonderful cameo substitute appearance. Kevin Leonard so often the goal stopper for Celtic this season almost got into the act when after intercepting a pass to Doherty, the keeper went on a mazy 50 yard run, past three players which was only ended when brought down by Richard Graham who was sent off for a second yellow card offence. Leonard took the resultant free kick himself and sent the ball narrowly wide.

A good victory for Draperstown over a Strabane side which will be disappointed to have fallen away badly in the second half after starting the game so promisingly.

Draperstown Reserves 1-1 Claudy Rovers

Last minute penalty denies Draperstown Reserves versus 1st Divison high flyers Cluady Rovers.

Full Match Report to Follow.

Pre-season Training

Pre-season Training begins tonight, Tuesday 17th July at 7:15pm, all players are asked to attend, new players are always welcome. Continues on Thursday night.

Strabane 2-2 Draperstown Celtic

Another game and yet another draw for Draperstown who will feel somewhat disappointed, justifiably so, that this was another two points lost.

Two up with ten minutes to go, courtesy of goals from Gavin Bradley and Cathal Donnelly had put Celtic firmly in the driving seat but an error from the normally very reliable Kevin Leonard allowed a long range free from Strabane’s O’Neill to bounce into the net and a penalty from Gerald Donaghy secured a point for the home side.

All the action in this fast paced game took place in the second half. The first by contrast was a rugged affair with the physically stronger home side attempting to dominate proceedings but not getting everything their own way. The nearest either side came to scoring was when Strabane’s Doherty was unlucky to see his lob beat Leonard but also the crossbar. Draperstown were having to defend in depth especially when they lost McKee to a foot injury but Gavin Bradley and Darren McKillion were always in the thick of the action while Stephen Caulfield showed some of his form from a few years back. Stephen Donaghy was exerting a great influence for Strabane and McGavigan on the left wing was very bright throughout the game.

The second half was only 3 minutes old when Strabane failed to properly clear a Declan Graffin corner. The ball fell for Gavin Bradley who with great skill executed a wonderful lob from 25 yards to beat McLaughlin and put Draperstown in the lead. Within the next 5 minutes Celtic had chances to extend the lead. Firstly McLaughlin saved well from Colin Murray who had raced on to Leonard’s long clearance, while Cathal Donnelly’s was crowded out after he had created a goal scoring chance with his quick turn of pace.

{tab=Page2}Starbane then began to put Draperstown under some pressure and Gerald Donaghy should have done better when he headed over Graham’s free kick. Graham was also guilty of not hitting the target following a good cross from Stephen Donaghy.
Having weathered the storm Celtic began again to gain the upper hand in terms of possession and turned this into a second goal when great work by Jodie Shiels picked out Donnelly who slotted home from 12 yards. Strabane looked a beaten side but got back into the game in a bizarre manner. O’Neill’s free kick from the half way line was too strong for his forwards but it was allowed to bounce by the off balanced Leonard into the net. Spurred on by this Strabane were awarded a penalty on 85 minutes when Caulfield was adjudged to have fouled Stephen Donaghy and Gerald Donaghy scored from the spot.
Both teams had opportunities to win the game in a frantic end to end last five minutes. A combination of Raymond Caulfield and Kevin Leonard foiled McGavigan while a Shiel’s effort was cleared off the Strabane line with the keeper beaten made sure that the spoils were shared between two evenly match sides but it was Strabane who will be happier with their point.
As for Draperstown, this was a very positive performance from a very changed side who were lacking six regular starters. However those who came into the side put in an excellent performance and will give the manager some headache’s over team selection for next week’s game.

Team:

Kevin Leonard, Stephen Caulfield, Stephen McKee, Raymond Caulfield, Gavin Bradley, Declan Graffan, Martin McGuigan, Cathal Donnelly, Sean McBride, Ryan Bradley, Eamonn Murray

Subs: Conor McDevitt, Chris McGarrigle

Draperstown Celtic 2-0 Newbuildings

Draperstown recorded a comfortable victory over a stubborn Newbuildings side which in recent weeks had seen their challenge for league honours all but disappear.

It may have taken a double strike from the enigmatic Eamon Murray which separated the sides but the home side were dominant in all departments though they struggled at times to turn their superiority into clear cut chances especially in the first half.

The heavy pitch certainly did not help either side in the early stages of the game as both vied for early dominance but Murray came close on 13 minutes when visiting keeper Jayklowski partially blocked his shot and Jason Moore cleared the ball off the line. Riddles caused the home defence a few problems when some indecision in the home defence allowed him to get a shot in which was blocked and cleared by Darren McKillion who put in a solid performance all game. A good passing move instigated by Gary Conway and involving Cathal Donnelly and Eamon Murray saw the latter just shoot wide form the edge of the box. Mitchell, in a rare Newbuildings attack forced Kevin Leonard to tip the ball over the bar while the keeper also did well to block from the same player on the half hour mark. This was about as close as the visitors came in the first half as Celtic, spurred on in midfield by Raymond Caulfiled and Gary Conway had largely taken control and it was Caulfiled’s pass which set up Ryan Bradley with a good opening on 40 minutes but he hesitated and the chance was gone.

{tab=Page2}The second half saw Celtic again with the majority of the possession without putting Jayklowski under too much pressure especially in the first 20 minutes of the period. Murray almost broke the deadlock on 65 minutes, when after being set up by an astute pass from Conway saw his shot canon off the crossbar. As the game wore on it seemed as if it was to be another draw for Drapertown but a piece of individual magic from Eamon Murray on 80 minutes turned the game firmly in Celtic’s favour. Cathal Donnelly’s pass found Murray on the right wing whose double step over left Olphort on his back before he fired a great shot high into the net past Jayklowski. This was as much as the hard working Celtic team deserved but they had to rely on a sharp save from Leonard, who turned away McIvor’s header, to keep the lead intact. Two minutes later and Celtic were two up. Gary Conway was fouled 20 yards from goal and Cathal Donnelly’s free was superbly tipped onto the cross bar by Jayklowski but it was Murray who reacted the quickest as he headed into the net and secure the points for Draperstown. Indeed Murray was unlucky not to complete his hat trick when superb skill saw him dance past Graham Moore but his shot from the edge of the box skimmed the cross bar.

So a deserved victory for Draperstown over a good Newbuilding’s who could not complain about the result. For the home side there were excellent performances in all departments. McKillion, Bradley and Steven Caulfield excelled in defence while Raymond Caulfiled and Gary Conway put in superb performances in midfield but it is goals which win matches and Eamon Murray’s double strike earned him the Man of the Match honours.

Team:

Kevin Leonard, Stephen Caulfield, Stephen McKee, Raymond Caulfield, Gavin Bradley, Declan Graffan, Darren McKillion, Cathal Donnelly, John Higgins, Ryan Bradley, Eamonn Murray

Subs: Kevin Ward

Draperstown Reserves 1-0 Burndennett

Draperstown Reserves went into this game knowing only three points mattered in their bid to beat the drop and after the 90minutes had been played it would have been cruel on this young side to not have taken all three, however it took an injury time goal to settle the tie on a blustery day at cahore playing fields.

Glendermott 2-0 Draperstown Reserves

The misery continues for Draperstown Reserves after this two nil defeat to Glendermott, it’s now looking very ominous in the fight for survival. Let’s hope they can turn it around in the next few weeks.

Next First Team Fixture

NI Intermediate League | 13th March 2010
V
Draperstown Celtic v Mountjoy FC