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Mountjoy Utd 2–3 Draperstown Celtic

April 20, 2009

A goal six minutes from time by Ally McLean was enough to tip the balance in favour of Draperstown in this excellent cup tie played in near perfect conditions at the impressive grounds of Mountjoy. Celtic had raced into a two goal lead by the 24th minute with goals from Crossett and Murray but were pegged back by strikes from McGrew and McCain and it looked certain that it would be the home side which would prevail as Draperstown began to tire badly in the warm conditions. However they battled on and secured a semi final berth thanks to McLean’s goal and some resolute defending by the Celtic rearguard.

The opening exchanges were even with both sides playing some good passing football on the excellent surface. Mountjoy were looking dangerous on their right flank while Sean Young was seeing plenty of the ball in attacking positions for Draperstown. The first good chance fell to Adams of Mountjoy but his header flew over the Draperstown goal. The first goal of the tie came in the 15th minute when Joe Crossett latched onto Young’s cross and fired home first time from the edge of the box past Gilfellan. Farniourk saved smartly from McGrew before a terrible backpass by Marshall saw the ever alert Murray round Gilfellan and score from a very acute angle to double the advantage.

Celtic were now in the driving seat but took their foot off the peddle and began to let Mounjoy gain a lot of possession. Derek Matthews had a good opportunity in front of goal but mis-controlled the ball and the chance was gone. On the half hour McDonald’s free was headed wide by Adams when he was well placed. A goal for the home side looked likely at this stage and it came on 37 minutes when Celtic’s John Higgins was caught in possession in midfield, the ball finding Matthews who crossed for McGrew to score from close range. A Crossett flick at the near post and a long range effort from Higgins almost restored the two goal lead for Draperstown but half time saw them keep their slender advantage.

The second half was nearly all home pressure with Draperstown relying on quick breaks from their own half. Farniourk saved well from David Matthews on 50 minutes before the same player picked up a yellow card for a foul on Seamus Quinn. Opportunities for Draperstown were now rare but they should have capitalised in the 55th minute when a throw from Declan Graffin caused a great deal of panic in the home defence but there was no Draperstown player there to add the vital touch. Mountjoy substitute Fullton headed over as the home pressure mounted and their equaliser came on 69 minutes when McCain latched onto a loose ball on the edge of the Celtic box and fired home giving Farniourk little chance.

The tie was now up for grabs and with Draperstown visibly tiring, the home side launched attack after attack. However Quinn and McKillion were as solid as ever in the heart of the defence and as a result Mountjoy, despite all their pressure did not force a genuine save from Farniourk. McDonald’s throws were a constant source of pressure with Celtic glad to clear the ball downfield at any opportunity in the hope of relieving the pressure. They were able to do more than this in the 84th minute when Graffin’s free was headed on by Gavin Bradley and McLean reacted the quickest to the dropping ball and forced it past Gilfellan. Mountjoy spent the last minutes encamped in the Celtic half and had claims for a penalty turned down in injury time but it was Draperstown who claimed the win and a semi final spot.

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Written by Michael Kelly · Filed Under First Team, News