Ardnaree power to thrilling win over The Neale

INTERMEDIATE FOOTBALL CHAMPOIONSHIP GROUP 4

Ardnaree Sarsfields 1-12

The Neale 0-12

ARDNAREE

It wasn't the return to intermediate football that The Neale were hoping for, as a fourteen-man Ardnaree Sarsfields defeated the South Mayo side after a superb second-half performance. 

Despite missing a penalty, and trailing at the halfway mark, Ardnaree's “never say die” attitude was on show on Sunday afternoon.

It was Donal Costellos' visiting side who made the better start to the game, kicking two points without reply, while displaying a defensive structure that the home side found difficult to break down.

That was until the eighth minute, when John Timlin burst through and fired the ball into the top left corner of the net, giving the home side a one-point advantage. 

Both teams put on an excellent display of shooting in the opening half, led by the young Tom Lydon. The Mayo U20 kicked five points in the opening 30 minutes. 

Seaghan Duffy kept the Sarsfields ticking over with his superb free taking, however with 17 minutes on the clock, there was a feeling that the game could be over, when Ardnaree's wing-back Alan Flannery, saw a straight red card.

The home side did not let the extra man phase them, and after some excellent play, were awarded a penalty, which Ethan Convey sent just wide in the 23rd minute.

The Neale failed to capitalise on the extra man, only leading by one point at the interval, on a scoreline of 0-9 to 1-5. 

The work rate of Ardnaree in the second period was where the game was won. Rory Clarke's men fought for every ball and won multiple turnovers to kick themselves into a four-point lead by the 50th minute. This was helped by the opposition also being reduced to 14 men when full-back Michael Varley saw a black card in the 42nd minute. 

The Neale will be disappointed to have only kicked three points in the second half, compared to Ardnaree's seven. 

It was a total team effort from the home side in the second half which led to a well-deserved and hard-earned victory.

A full match report will be carried in Tuesday's Mayo News