Derry minors’ strong first half proves decisive

Ulster MFC round 2

Derry 1-16

Cavan 1-9

Damien Donohoe at Owenbeg

A dominant first-half display laid the foundation for Derry’s seven-point victory over Cavan in Owenbeg on Saturday evening, as the Oakleaf County secured a home Ulster Minor Championship semi-final place.

While the final margin was comfortable, Cavan will look back on a sluggish opening period as the decisive factor. They were the better side for long stretches of the second half but a combination of poor conversion, missed chances and a crucial double save from Derry goalkeeper Michael Doherty prevented any realistic comeback.

Cavan made the brighter start on the scoreboard when Exceedingly Imade opened the scoring inside three minutes, but that early lead quickly evaporated as Derry seized control.

Donnacha Collins got the home side up and running before a pivotal early moment saw Doherty race from his line to deny Oliver Clarke a clear goal chance, smothering at the Cavan forward by diving feet first. The Cavan support called for a penalty but referee Eoin Murphy waved away the shouts.

Derry capitalised fully. Don Mulholland edged them in front on 11 minutes and, shortly after, the game’s first goal arrived. Tadhg Bradley’s initial effort was well saved by Darragh Eccleston, but Mulholland reacted quickest to drive the rebound to the net, leaving it 1-2 to 0-1 after 13 minutes.

The hosts continued to dictate the tempo, with Lorcan Higgins and a two point free from Doherty extending the lead as Cavan struggled to find rhythm. By the 21st minute, Derry were firmly in command at 1-5 to 0-1.

Cavan eventually halted their scoring drought through a two-point free from goalkeeper Eccleston, and Simon Coleman followed up with a point to narrow the gap. However, just as it seemed the visitors might settle, Derry produced a decisive spell before the break.

Four unanswered points in the final ten minutes of the half from Tadhg Bradley, Tomas Devlin, Don Mulholland and Gabriel Gormley stretched the lead to eight points at the interval, 1-9 to 0-4, leaving Cavan with a significant mountain to climb.

To their credit, the Breffni side responded strongly after the restart. Imade was central to much of their attacking play and was involved in a strong penalty appeal that was again was waved away, while Oliver Clarke clipped over a point to reduce the deficit.

Cavan dominated possession in the opening stages of the second half but struggled to translate that control into scores. Derry, meanwhile, remained clinical on the break. Bradley finished off a swift counter-attack and Higgins added another after a powerful solo run to restore a nine-point cushion.

The visitors refused to go away. Jake Brady surged through the middle to land a fine point before producing the game’s second goal. After a superb catch by Imade in midfield, Oliver Clarke supplied the pass and Brady finished emphatically to the net, cutting the deficit to five and breathing life into the contest.

With momentum building, substitute Charlie Reilly was introduced and immediately made an impact, but his efforts were thwarted by a moment of brilliance from Doherty. The Derry goalkeeper produced a superb double save to deny Reilly twice in quick succession. Had either effort found the net, there would have been just two points between the sides with 15 minutes remaining.

Instead, Derry regrouped. Bradley clipped over a settling score and, although Imade and Jay Graham (free) kept Cavan in touch, bringing the margin back to four, the Ulster champions always appeared to have something in reserve.

Gormley steadied nerves with an excellent outside-of-the-boot effort late on, and while Graham responded once more, the final say went to Pól McPeake, whose two-point free sealed a deserved win for the home side.

For all Derry’s attacking quality, Cavan will feel this was a game that got away from them in that first-half spell. The Breffni side created enough chances after the break to make Derry genuinely uncomfortable, but the eight-point interval deficit meant they needed near-perfect execution in the second half.

Instead, too many opportunities went wide or dropped short both from play and dead ball, and Doherty’s goalkeeping intervention proved every bit as important as Mulholland’s early goal. Cavan had wrestled back momentum at that stage and were beginning to punch real holes in the Derry defence, but the home side survived the storm and showed the composure required to close the game out.

Derry, by contrast, were far more economical. Their ability to punish Cavan turnovers, particularly through the pace of Bradley, Higgins and Gormley, ensured they always carried a threat. Even when Cavan enjoyed their best spell, the Oakleaf men found timely scores to stop the gap narrowing to dangerous territory.

It was that efficiency, combined with their strong finish to the opening half, that ultimately separated the teams. Derry now advance to a home semi-final full of confidence, while Cavan remain alive but must regroup quickly ahead of their final opportunity to stay in the championship.

Derry: Michael Doherty(0-2,2tpf); Tadhg Scullion, Conor Sargent, Dan McEldowney; Connail Campbell, Joey Mullan, Dara McKaigue; Gabriel Gormley (0-3,1tp), Darah McKenna; Donnacha Collins (0-1), Lorcan Higgins (0-2), Conor O’Kane; Tadhg Bradley (0-3), Don Mulholland (1-2,1f), Tomas Devlin (0-1)

Subs: Jarlath McCartney for T Scullion; Ultan McCloskey for D Collins; Declan McEldowney for T Devlin; Neil McDermott for T Bradley; Pól McPeake (0-2, 1tpf) for D McKenna

Cavan: Darragh Eccleston (0-2, 1tpf); Jack Fallon, David Liggan, Andrew Smart; Simon Coleman (0-1), Daire McCrystal, Conor McCabe; CJ Fitzpatrick, Exceedingly Imade (0-2); Hugo Morgan, Oliver Clarke (0-1), Oisin Smith; Jack Forde, Jake Brady (1-1), Jay Graham (0-2,1f)

Subs: Emmet McCaul for C McCabe; Charlie Reilly for J Forde; Zach Byrne for H Morgan; Finlay McCaul for D McCrystal; Ben Stafford for J Brady