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Draperstown Celtic 3-2 Oxford Utd

Pharmacy Supplies League Cup – Group Stage

Fans of Draperstown Celtic can’t say that they have seen a lack of good football and entertainment at Cahore Rd this season so far. Following on from the excellent win against Newbuildings last time out, Saturday’s game against Oxford had almost everything crammed into it. Excellent goals, great saves, a sending off and a late winner from Eamon Murray was the recipe to send the crowd home happy.

This was always going to be a crunch game for both sides as they battled to stake a good claim for a semi final spot in this year’s competition. Oxford, back in Intermediate football after tasting Irish league Championship football looked determined in the opening minutes but it was James Green in the visitors’ goal who pulled off the first save of note palming away Quinn’s speculative effort on 13 minutes. Seven minutes later it was the home side took the lead when Ally McLean scored from close range after Oxford failed to clear a corner. Oxford came back well with McBrearty heading past the near post and Whoriskey heading over when well placed. The equaliser came on 26 minutes when poor defending allowed Campbell to score from close range. But Celtic did not allow heads to drop and again took the game to their opponents with Sinclair very busy in midfield and Bradley on the left wing causing problems. Joe Crossett, who had his best game of the season so far, almost caught Green off his line on 30 minutes while Farniok in Celtic’s goal saved well from Whoriskey.

Draperstown took the lead right on half time and in spectacular fashion. Crossett challenged Green to a high ball with the keeper only able to punch the ball to John Higgins who, from 23 yards hit an inch perfect lob over the keeper and defender on the line to send Celtic in at half time a goal to the good.

The opening ten minutes of the second half saw Oxford go all out to find a second equaliser. Browne headed over from a corner and Farniok pulled off a great reaction save to deny Whoriskey from close range. However Brown scored with a firm header from a corner on 53 minutes and Celtic were dealt a further blow when Sinclair was dismissed for a needless challenge.

Draperstown manager McKee introduced Eamon Murray for Haskins at this stage and is often the case the team with the ten men rose to the challenge. With Crossett now playing on the right wing it was Celtic who upped their game and were applying pressure on the Oxford defence. To prove the point, Green pulled off a good save to deny Murray after Bradley’s incisive pass carved out the goal chance. Still, Oxford remained a threat and Gavin Bradley did very well to head Whoriskey’s corner off the line and away to safety.
Crossett was causing all sorts of problems on the wing for Oxford and a foul on him gave Higgins the chance from the edge of the box. A slight deflection saw Brown only parry the ball to Murray but from a tight angle he could only hit the ball across the face of the goal with no Celtic player to add the final touch. With the game now looking to end in a draw it was Murray who showed great strength and skill on 86 minutes to latch onto Higgin’s astute flick and lob Brown from 25 yards to put Celtic into the lead for the third time, a lead they were determined not relinquish.

Solid defending saw Draperstown see out the final minutes for a vital, hard fought win over a good Oxford side.
Celtic’s last group game is at home to NFC Kesh next Saturday

DC 3–1 Newbuildings Utd

Pharmacy Supplies League Cup – Group Stages

A sublime piece of skill from Gavin Bradley powered Draperstown to victory over a stubborn Newbuilding’s side which had threatened to spoil Celtic’s first home game on the recently developed Cahore Rd pitch. The left winger fully deserved his goal following a very sound overall performance and his goal certainly added to the occasion on a sunlight day. His display was not the only bright aspects of Celtic’s performance, especially in the second half when they had the visitors on the back foot for most of the period, but this was far from the case in the opening 45 minutes.

The game opened at a fast tempo with Draperstown quick off the blocks with Bradley’s cross causing panic in the Newbuilding’s defence. However it was the visitors who should have taken the lead when confusion in the home defence allowed the visitors a great chance to take the lead but Quinn was able to clear off the line.
Draperstown were denied an obvious penalty in the 12th minute when a defender cleared Murray’s goal bound shot off the line with his arm but the referee waved play on much to the disbelief of both players and home support. Murray almost opened the scoring for Celtic but his header from Sean Young’s cross went disappointedly wide when he looked certain to score.
The visitors took the lead on the half hour, a little against the run of play when they won possession from a Celtic throw and scored from 10 yards. A poor goal to give away and Draperstown did look a little scrappy for the rest of the half.

The second half was a totally different game. Celtic upped their performance a great deal and stretched Newbuildings all over the park. The visitors were happy to defend with great resilience and play on the break and while not always comfortable, they seemed happy to take the draw.

The equaliser came on the 50th minute when a great cross from Gavin Bradley was turned home by Eamon Murray from close range. As the half wore on it was Draperstown who became the more dominant side but found it difficult to turn their superiority into goals. The introduction of Benny Heron made a massive contribution to Draperstown and he lead the Newbuilding’s defence a merry dance such was his skill and drive on the ball. Crossett pulled off a good save from the visiting keeper while Murray should have done better on the hour mark when he headed over Heron’s great cross.

A Newbuilding’s substitute had a glorious chance to put the visitors in front but pulled the ball badly wide when it looked easier to score. They were almost made to pay for this miss on 75 minutes when Gavin Bradley’s free crashed off the crossbar and was cleared to safety but the same player soon made amends when, after picking up John Higgin’s cross, he cut in and unleashed a wonderful shot off the outside of his left foot to curl the ball into the top corner from 25 yards. It was special goal to round off a very good individual performance.

Celtic wrapped up the game when Benny Heron scored from a deep cross from John Higgins and give the home support a well deserved victory. So all in all a good day for Draperstown Celtic with a good victory and and a good home support which all in the Celtic club were very appreciative of.

Limavady Utd 2–0 Draperstown Celtic

Craig Memorial Cup – Round 1

A goal late in the first half and a second deep into added time at the end of the game were enough to secure a safe passage into the second round of the Craig Memorial cup for the holders Limavady Utd. While the home side were worthy winners, Draperstown made them work hard in all areas of the field and the holders were thankful of the late strike to ensure the victory.

The game was scrappy by nature with the first shot on target not coming until the 22nd minute when McConnell saved from a Shane Jenning’s effort. Limavady did have the majority of the pressure but found it very difficult to put together any decisive attacks due to the harrying of Higgins. McBride and Sinclair for Draperstown in the middle of the park. Sinclair fired just over from 20 yards as a little more was seen of Draperstown as an attacking force while on 34 minutes Jennings should have at least tested McConnell in Celtic’s goal but was off target.

Limavady upped the pressure as the half was coming to a close and were rewarded when after some sustained pressure John O’Loughlin headed in McNulty’s cross.

The second half saw Draperstown really having a go and putting the home defence under more pressure but without creating enough sustained pressure. Indeed it was McConnell who had to bring off a great save to deny Vincent Sweeney doubling Limavady’s lead in the 54th minute.

With Murray winning a lot of ball in the air Draperstown were hoping to catch Limavady on the break and almost got the equaliser on 63 minutes when Murray met Gavin Bradley’s cross but headed tamely into Doherty’s hands. McConnell again had to be alert when saving from Jennings and later McLean cleared Sweeney’s shot off the line. Sean Young almost rounded off a good Draperstown move when he shot just wide from the edge of the box. But it was Limavady who finished more strongly and they scored their second in the 92nd minute when Lee Patrick fired through a sea of legs giving McConnell no chance.

So, a deserved home victory but a good, solid, if ultimately un-rewarding performance from Draperstown who matched their more senior counterparts in terms of effort and determination. A similar attitude in the weeks ahead will do no harm at all.

DC annual golf day

Twenty two teams took part in the annual Draperstown Celtic golf day held at Moyola Park golf club on Friday, August 28th. Heavy rain in the days leading up to the event had threatened the closure of the course and therefore a cancellation of the event but a bright, dry morning and only one brief heavy shower in the afternoon meant that the competition went ahead. Scoring was good despite the damp conditions and competition for the excellent prizes was always going to be tough.

However, after all the cards were tallied it was the O’Kane brothers, Martin, Seamus and Dessie along with Gary Sargent who were victorious with a fine score of 105 points.

Second place went to the team lead by Packie Farrell along with Dermot Kelly, John McGrogan and Paul McKernan who scored 96 points and claimed their spot as a result of a better back nine.

Third place with also a score of 96 points was the team of F. Cushley, A. Gilmore, M.Bradley and S.McGuckin.

In fourth spot came Kevin and John Conway together with Benny Kidd and John McGinn on 93 points.

The last of the prize winning teams was that of Patrick Comiskey, Packie Kelly, John Hegarty and Gerry Kelly who score 88 points.

The committee of Draperstown Celtic would like to thank all those who took part on the day together with those who sponsored tee boxes. This is one of the club’s major fund-raising events and we are very thankful of the support we receive each year.
Thanks also to Moyola Park Golf Club for the use of the course, and also to the caterers for the excellent meal everyone enjoyed afterwards.

We hope that everyone enjoyed the day and we look forward to seeing you all again next year.

DC Table Quiz

Draperstown Celtic are hosting a table quiz in the Market Inn on Friday September 11th.

It will the usual mixture of general knowledge, with a music and a picture round thrown in for good measure. We would like to get it started at 9:30 and if you have absolutely nothing better to do, totally bored sitting in the house, nothing worth watching on T.V. then pop in, join a team and pass a couple of hours without having to tax your brain too much.

Admission is £3 per person and everybody is very welcome.

Strabane 0–4 Draperstown Celtic

Pharmacy Supplies League Cup – Group Stages

Draperstown recorded a facile away win against Strabane on Saturday in this group stage match but will be somewhat disappointed with their overall play. Draperstown were never in any real danger from a Strabane side who were hit for 13 in their last outing and if Celtic had been more clinical in their finishing, they would certainly have reached double figures themselves. Poor finishing and a certain slackness in too much of their approach play will not have pleased manager John McKee. For the second week running he was also forced into re-shuffling his team due to the non availability of several players and this certainly did not help overall preparation for the game.

The highlight of the game itself was a hat-trick from Ally McLean who played as a makeshift forward and deserved his goals as a reward for the effort he put into the game. He could have opened the scoring as early as the third minute but just failed to make contact with Haskin’s cross while McKenna hit wildly over from the edge of the box on 15 minutes. Strabane keeper Brown saved well from Higgins on 19 minutes and did well to block McLean’s effort three minutes later. This was to be the general pattern of play with draperstown being very dominant but unable to take advantage of their superiority.

Little was seen of Strabane as an attacking side and when they did venture forward Celtic’s back four dealt very comfortably, with Conor McSorley looking very accomplished at left back in this his first competitive game.

It took until the 35^th minute for Draperstown to open the scoring. Both Crossett and McKenna had shots blocked before McLean latched onto the loose ball to fire home and give the visitors a deserved lead at half time.

The second half was almost one way traffic towards the Strabane goal and the home defence was put under a great deal of pressure. McKenna scored Celtic’s second on 49 minutes beating Brown at the near post but there followed a succession of missed Draperstown chances. Higgins, Crossett and Mclean all squandered several good chances before Haskins found McLean with a good cross and he scored from close range. McLean’s third and Draperstown’s fourth was a well hit shot from 20 yards which left Brown stranded and the home side well beaten.

Next week Draperstown travel to play Limavady Utd in the Craig Memorial cup and will need an overall improvement if they harbour any chances of progressing in the competition.

Next First Team Fixture

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