Four-point win flatters Gowna but champions get the job done

SFC round 3

Gowna 2-10

Castlerahan 0-12

Gowna maintained their perfect start to this year’s championship as they cemented a quarter-final place with a game to spare with a four-point win over Castlerahan. The Ballyjamesduff-based side, now under the management of Fergal Flanagan, were right in this game deep into injury time but as they pushed for a final score, Gowna caught them with a counter-attack goal.

The 2022 champions were far from their best as they failed to punish Castlerahan in the first half when they were on top in the possession stakes. For the third game in a row Cian Madden stood out as the key man for the Longford border side as he finished with four points to his name - but more important was his contribution in general play.

Castlerahan came out with a point to prove and in the opening five minutes one could see they were here to set a marker. A very impressive attacking move freed up Padraig McGahern and he perfectly placed the ball between the sticks for the game’s opener. Gowna replied by getting the ball to Conor Casey who shrugged off Jason O’Gorman before hooking the ball over the bar with his left foot.

Gowna could have claimed their first goal of the game when Seanie Hartin tried to play a ball across the Castlerahan goals but Kieran Daly dived to intercept the pass. Castlerahan, while not lacking in effort, were prone to mistakes in the opening half and an over-carry of the ball allowed Tiarnan Madden to slot over a free, giving Gowna the lead.

Gowna pushed up on the resulting Castlerahan kick-out and after winning possession, DJ Madden placed a ball on Ryan Brady’s chest running through the middle. Brady, with momentum, broke through on goal and with the outside of his right foot, he placed the ball low into the right corner of the net.

Castlerahan needed a response and Oisin O’Connell delivered on the 12th minute with a point. The 2019 senior champions applied a full zonal press to the Gowna kick-out and won possession but sent the resulting shot wide. Gowna overloaded the next restart and after winning the breaking ball, Cian Madden finished the attack off with his first point of the game.

After a foul on Daire Madden competing for a high ball, Cian converted the free and added a third in as many minutes as Gowna won a long Castlerahan kick-out. Gowna now held a 1-5 to 0-2 lead after 19 minutes of play as they made more of their chances up front.

Robbie Fitzpatrick converted a free on his left foot to extend the Gowna lead to seven points with ten minutes remaining in the first half, but the gap soon began to close. The lively Rory Smith pointed while Cian McCabe at full-forward was causing Gowna problems; he won and converted a free to start the comeback leaving the half-time score 1-6 to 0-4 in favour of Gowna.

Gowna restored a six-point advantage after three second-half minutes when Ryan Donohoe showed a great turn of pace to accelerate and point. Karl Cosgrove raised the first of his three second-half points, kicking from distance into the town end of the grounds.

One of many driving runs forward by Jason O’Gorman resulted in a Castlerahan free which Cian McCabe converted on the sixth minute of the half.

Castlerahan, now with real momentum, capitalised with a third point on the trot as Enda Flanagan was fouled and again McCabe did his duty with the free, leaving three points between the sides. Needing to break the Castlerahan run of scores, Cian Madden stepped up to win and convert a free with 17 minutes remaining.

After a missed chance by Castlerahan, they again deployed a zonal press and Oisin Kiernan gathered the breaking ball before setting up Cosgrove for his second before the Gowna defence reset.

Castlerahan were in control of the ball and should have levelled matters as Oisin O’Connell played in O’Gorman on goal but Ronan Bannon read the danger and nipped in just before the pass was completed.

Fintan Reilly and Dermot McCabe introduced Oisin Pierson off the bench and he gathered a break from a high ball to the square to tap it over the bar. With seven minutes to go, a fourth Cian McCabe free brought the difference between the sides back to three again but Gowna cancelled that out when Conor Madden’s pace saw him cut in from the wing to fist the ball over the bar.

Castlerahan continued to plug away with another McCabe free with two minutes remaining. An incisive run by Cosgrove brought him to the Gowna D and he hooked the ball over the bar at speed to leave just two points in it as the three minutes of injury time began.

Again Castlerahan deployed a zonal press and when Bannon went long, Kiernan rose highest to claim a midfield mark. Tiarnan Madden flicked the ball out of Kiernan’s hands after the mark was awarded and referee Mickey Lee turned the mark to a free on the 45-metre line. Cormac Daly stepped up and sailed the kick off the ground over the bar to leave the minimum between the sides.

Castlerahan again pressed the Gowna kick-out but Gowna managed to get their hands on the ball. In an attempt to grab a point and get possession back, keeper Kieran Daly came out to his own 45 to help apply pressure and did turn over the ball but his pass to set up an attack was intercepted and Gowna played the ball forward to Conor Madden who ran the ball into the open net.

Gowna: Ronan Bannon, Cormac Brady, Ryan McGahern, Seanie Harten, Fionan Brady, Andrew Dewart, Tiarnan Madden(0-1f), Ryan Brady(1-0), Ryan Donohoe(0-1), Robbie Fitzpatrick(0-1f), Conor Casey(0-1), Cian Madden(0-4,2f), DJ Madden, Conor Madden(1-1), Daire Madden

Subs: Oisin Pierson (0-1) for A Dewart, Darragh Gannon for DJ Madden, Raymond Keogh for R Fitzpatrick, James Madden for R McGahern.

Castlerahan: Kieran Daly, Enda O’Connell, Sean Óg McGearty, Jamie Reilly, Jason O’Gorman, Kiernan, Conor Farrelly, David Wright, Cormac Daly (0-1f), Padraig McGahern (0-1), Enda Flanagan, Karl Cosgrove (0-3), Oisin O’Connell (0-1), Cian McCabe (0-5f), Rory Smith (0-1).

Subs: Eoin McCaul for P McGahern, Luke Caldwell for R Smith.