Mattock ease to opening day victory

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Mattock Rangers opened up their Intermediate championship campaign with an emphatic victory over Glyde Rangers in Hunterstown on Sunday evening.

By the time the fourth quarter arrived, the Fergus Flynn/David Reid managed side led by 2-5 to 0-1 in a half which saw them clinically accrue 2-8 from 15 shots, and 5-15 from 30 over the hour.

Ben McKenna got the ball rolling with a fine score from distance. Minutes later, a turnover from the evergreen Adrian Reid in the Glyde half led to a quick move through the hands, with corner back Alan Carragher scrambling the ball home for his side’s opening green flag.

The gap between a seasoned division one side and division 3 was there for all to see as Mattock Rangers wasted no time in putting the Tallanstown side to the sword.

It also did not take long for the talented Flynn brothers to make their mark on proceedings. Having collected a Cathal Fleming footpass, before firing over the bar, Sean Flynn later saw a hard run into the Glyde square halted by their defence, before the ball broke to Ronan Kilbane who fired to the net soccer style for Mattock Rangers’ second major after 5 minutes.

Sean’s older brother Liam who finished with 24 possessions over the hour, soon got his name on the score sheet with a fine score from play, as Mattock continued to find their men at ease with precise footpassing.

Glyde Rangers who missed the presence of key defender Conor McCullough, also struggled to get any change out of the Mattock defence, which was marshalled by sweeper Daire Englishby, with Cillian Hickey sticking tight to the dangerously imposing Ciaran Sheridan at the edge of the square.

Killian Scott managed their sole response amid this early Mattock storm, while Ronan Kilbane saw plenty of the ball with 28 possessions from wing back. He impressed as part of an experienced half back line, alongside Terry Donegan and Adrian Reid. Liam Flynn teed up his brother Sean for another fine strike to make it 2-5 to 0-1 in Collon’s favour inside 12 minutes.

With a sense of inevitability about the outcome, the intensity dropped, with the next score not coming until 7 minutes before the break emanating from Oisin McKenna, another fine strike, before Glyde Rangers ended their 21 minute wait for a score thanks to a Tadgh Kellet free.

However, Collie Campbell’s side still treated us to the score of the game, when Brian Duffy made a sweet connection with the outside of his right boot from the right hand side for Glyde’s third score of the evening.

While the likes of the Flynn brothers will take most the plaudits, the industry displayed by Mattock Rangers’ midfield pair Ben McKenna and Jason Condon was also noteworthy, with a turnover from McKenna from a short Glyde kickout, leading to his brother Oisin setting up James Carragher for the final point of the half, making it 2-8 to 0-3 at the break.

Second Half:

The second half started the same way as the first half ended with a James Carragher strike, before Adrian Reid set up James’s twin Alan for a well taken effort upon the resumption.

Glyde introduced Dion Conlon at the break, and the midfielder impressed, involved in the buildup for Glyde’s next score for Tadgh Kellet, in a move which also featured the hardworking Fiachra Sheridan.

Sheridan set up cousin Ciaran Sheridan with an accurate kickpass down the right flank, before the forward turned inside to raise a white flag, trading scores with Liam Flynn (f).

The Flynns continued to add scores beside their names, trading points with Adam Sweeney who continued to battle hard for the Glyde cause. That left it at 2-13 to 0-6 by the end of the third quarter, with Mattock Rangers emptying their bench.

One such sub Pauraic Bannon made his mark, when he broke up a Glyde Rangers attack, which led to Terry Donegan finding Flynn via the boot, who put it on a plate for James Carragher to crash the ball to the net as Mattock Rangers sealed this emphatic victory.

There was also time for another sub Robert Holmes to get his name on the score sheet, before further goals from Sean Flynn and Pauraic Bannon wrapped up a good evening’s work for Mattock Rangers, as they aim to get their season back on track with a tilt at the Seamus Flood Cup, following their division one demotion.

Mattock Rangers: Stephen Smith; Alan Carragher (1-1), Cillian Hickey, Ben Quaile; Ronan Kilbane (1-0), Terry Donegan, Adrian Reid (0-1); Ben McKenna (0-2) (one ’45), Jason Condon; Oisin McKenna (0-1), Liam Flynn (0-4) (2f), Cathal Fleming; Sean Flynn (1-3), James Carragher (1-2), Daire Englishby.

Subs: Robert Holmes (0-1) for Oisin McKenna (HT), Shane Maguire for Quaile (HT), Pauraic Bannon (1-0) for Reid (41), JP Watters for Fleming (48), Tom Grimes for Englishby (50).

Glyde Rangers: David Brennan; Fiachra Sheridan, Cian Sheridan, Mark McKeever; Aaron Myles, Jack McKeever, Tadgh Kellet (0-3) (2f); Lee Finnegan, Adam Sweeney (0-1); Barry Brennan, Brian Duffy (0-1), Geard Bourton; Killian Scott (0-2) (1f), Ciaran Sheridan (0-2) (1 mark), Aaron Devlin.

Subs: Darren McKeever for Cian Sherdian (18), Dion Conlon for Finnegan (HT), Oisin Lynch for Devlin (40), Sean Devaney for Barry Brennan (44), Conor Sheridan for Myles (47).

Referee: Damien Connor (St Patricks).