Charlestown relegate Ardnaree in battle of the Sarsfields

MAYO SFL DIVISION 1A

Charlestown Sarsfields 2-18

Ardnaree Sarsfields 2-13

In Charlestown

VISITORS Ardnaree were always within touching distance in this one, but victory eluded them and the Moysiders dropped from the top flight to Division 3.

Cathal Noone’s goal near the end closed the gap to four points, but an on-fire Paul Towey, who posted a whopping 1-14 for Charlestown, secured the win in the battle of the Sarsfields.

Charlestown's victory saw them avoid a drop to the third tier, instead they will ply their trade in Division 2 nex season.

Ardnaree were the first to trouble the scoreboard operator when John Timlin arced over, but their ascendancy was eroded in cruel fashion.

Towey was nothing short of exceptional, slaloming past defenders for fun, and it was no surprise that he was the one firing for goal.

With ‘keeper Ronan Connolly out of the equation, having rushed from his net, the county man had no issue rattling the onion bag.

A fine Timlin effort closed the gap to the minimum, but Towey doubled the lead after six minutes

The Charlestown attacker soon completed the set, raising an orange flag with a missile of a free to go with the green and white ones already to his name.

It wasn’t long before the visitors produced a two-point effort of their own, as Cathal Noone’s pinpoint accuracy reaped its rewards.

Ethan Conwey opened his account for the day to keep the good times rolling for Ardnaree.

Patrick Goldrick soon put paid to those notions when his two-point effort bisected the uprights to get Charlestown back on track.

Singles from Jack Mahon and Towey followed, and while Seaghan Duffy notched his first of the game for Ardnaree, the hosts were unstoppable at that stage.

A trio of Towey points followed, meaning they would be going in seven points clear when the sides retreated to the dressingrooms for a reprieve from the scorching sun.

The only thing more impressive than Towey’s scoring stats was the distance covered by the water carriers, who were kept busy all evening.

Towey picked up where he left off early in the new half with another two-pointer, before Ardnaree wre boosted when Timlin was judged to be taken out in the square, winning a penalty, which was slotted away by Noone to claw back some of the deficit.

Timlin and Noone kept plugging away and the Moy boys sensed a revival. However, that hope dried up under a beating sun, as a swift Charlestown move found Niall Fleming in an advanced position. Fleming showed composure to offload to Ben Crean, who palmed to the net to essentially end the game as a contest, and secure Charlestown's spot in the second tier next season.

Timlin hit a late goal for the visitors but they couldn't reel in the men in green and Ginger Tiernan's men secured a vital victory, as both sides now look towards the adventures championship football will bring.

A full report will be carried in the sports section of Tuesday's edition of The Mayo News