Champions make winning start to title defence
Cavan SFC Report
Kingscourt Stars began the defence of the Oliver Plunkett Cup with a hard-earned two-point victory over Ramor United on Thursday night. The reigning champions prevailed by 1-13 to 0-14 in a contest which never quite developed the championship intensity expected from two of Cavan football’s traditional heavyweights.
There were flashes of quality from both sides, but missed a lot of opportunities and a lack of intensity was evident as the teams showed some early championship rust. Kingscourt’s decisive moment came at the three-quarter mark when Caoimhín McGee finished a superb team move to the net, opening up a six-point advantage.
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Enda Maguire and Paddy Meade contest the throw-in. Photo: Adrian Donohoe.Image 2 of 8
Niall Sharkey looks for a way past Oliver McCrystal. Photo: Adrian Donohoe.Image 3 of 8
Sean McEvoy steps around the challenge of Killian Farrelly. Photo: Adrian Donohoe.Image 4 of 8
James Miller Brady gets out in front of Noah McCormack. Photo: Adrian Donohoe.Image 5 of 8
Sean McEvoy wins possession as Barry Tully closes in. Photo: Adrian Donohoe.Image 6 of 8
Enda Maguire rises uncontested at midfield. Photo: Adrian Donohoe.Image 7 of 8
Cian Shekleton protects the ball as Nathan Levy Valensi challenges. Photo: Adrian Donohoe.Image 8 of 8
Jordan Morris exploites a gap between Jenson Tynan and Oliver McCrystal. Photo: Adrian Donohoe.Ramor responded impressively, however, scoring five of the game’s final six points. Sean McEvoy was particularly influential after the restart and finished with 0-5, but Ramor had ultimately left themselves with too much to do.
The final whistle saw Kingscourt leave with the points and their championship defence successfully under way, while Ramor were left to rue their missed first-half opportunities.
See this week's Anglo-Celt newspaper for full report.