AGHADERG SENIORS HOLD OUT FOR FIRST LEAGUE VICTORY

TECONNAUGHT  V  AGHADERG 22/05/09
 
Aghaderg Senior footballers registered their first league win on Friday night away to Teconnaught. It was the Reds who were quickest out of the blocks when Rory Simpson gained possession at midfield and drilled a long ball into Eugene Devlin who off-loaded a slick pass to the on running Kieran Maguire to slot the ball neatly over the bar.
Teconnaught however did reply a couple of minutes later as they pushed forward in waves to level the score. Aghadergs Eugene Devlin won good ball out on the right wing and with some intricate play between himself and Kieran Maguire, they managed to set Rory Simpson through on goal where he blasted to the net from close range.
Aaron Mc Avoy increased the locals’ lead a few minutes later with a well-taken point out on the left wing.
Teconnaught started to get a foothold in the game and were pushing forward at will but some wayward shooting meant they only registered a single point. Just before the break, they managed to breach the Aghaderg rearguard once again and a certain goal was on the cards but Aghaderg net minder Paul Mc Grath pulled off a point blank save with his feet, one that Pat Jennings would have been proud of.
Aghaderg went straight up the field and managed to win a free, which Rory Simpson converted to end the action for the half.
HALF TIME:
Teconnaught 0-1, Aghaderg 1-3.
Aghaderg started the second half in explosive style when Rory Simpson won the ball from the throw in and went on a solo run straight through the Teconnaught backline and blasted over the bar. Two minutes later Rory showed his ability at high-fielding when he rose to collect a Teconnaught kick out and passed to the on running Cathal Mc Grath who made good ground before he sent the impressive Kieran Maguire through for his second point of the match. Aghaderg continued to push forward with Teconnaught starting to get frustrated they upended Eugene Devlin out on the right wing. Rory Simpson took the resulting long range free and sent it straight between the posts.
The whirlwind start by Aghaderg then suddenly began to falter and instead of pushing forward, we sat back, fell deeper into defensive mode, and invited Teconnaught to come at us once again. Teconnaught hit five unanswered points to narrow the gap to two to leave the last few minutes a very nerve wrecking experience. Paul Mc Grath made another great save from close range to keep us ahead and despite several more chances for Teconnaught the Aghaderg lads managed to hold out for victory. 
FINAL SCORE:
Teconnaught 0-7, Aghaderg 1-6.