Devenish defeat Derrylin in opening Championship fixture

Cadco Intermediate Football Championship Devenish 3-19 Derrylin 1-15 Two goals and two-two pointers scored in the closing ten minute of the opening half was to be the difference between the teams in Garrison on Sunday afternoon. This was an emphatic win for the home side. The teams were finely balanced on four points each as the game approached the twenty minute mark. But a superb two-pointer from Barry Mulrone followed on by one from Terry O'Flanagan four minutes later, opened up a five point advantage. And, when Ruairi O'Brien crashed the ball to the net one minute before the break, eight points separated the sides. The visitors woes were compounded seconds later when a misplaced kick-out fell invitingly to Terry O'Flanagan, the veteran full forward coolly lobbed the ball over the retreating keeper to raise the green flag. That put the visitors eleven points in arrears and too much of a task. The home side were off the mark with a first minute point from Lanty Feely. But the Derrylin response was almost instant with strikes from Luke Flanagan and Fearghal McGovern. The winners regained the lead with points from O'Flanagan (free) and Conall Maguire. But once again the visitors responded to level matters with points from Jake Smith and Dermot Owens. But the closing ten minutes of the half was to prove disastrous for the O'Connell's The winners were to enjoy a substantial advantage at half time as they led by 2-10 to 0-5. The losers opened the second half scoring one minute into the restart with a point from Cathair Leonard. But the Devenish scoring machine swung into action with a brace of points from Cian O'Brien to maintain a twelve point advantage. A Flanagan point in the thirty-sixth minute was answered by one from O'Flanagan, but, Derrylin battled on bravely with strikes from Flanagan and Leonard to leave ten points between the sides as the game entered the third quarter. Any possibility of a Derrylin revival, however unlikely that appeared, was demolished in the twenty-first minute. Devenish corner forward Jamie Flanagan powered through and crashed the ball to the Derrylin net to put Devenihs up by fourteen points. The next five minutes became the battle of the two-pointers as firstly Dermot Owens fired over one for Derrylin, only for Cian O'Brien to reply with a similiar strike for the winners. Owens hit another one for Derrylin, but O'Brien was not to be outdone and slotted over a long-range effort for his side. The closing minutes of half were dominated by the losers as they swooped for their only goal of the game. A combination of Owens and Flanangan released Smith to fire home from close range. And as the game entered injury time, Owens drilled over his third two-pointer of the game A gallant late effort, But Devenish were a well-deserving ten point winners. Devenish: Thomas Treacy, Martin Doherty, John Joe O'Loughlin, Thomas McHugh; Daniel McGovern, Taidgh O'Brien, Malachy O' Flanagan; Lanty Feely (0-1) Conall Maguire (0-3); Terry O'Flanagan (1-5 2tp), Cian O'Brien (0-7,2tp), Jarlath O'Brien (0-1); Ruairi O'Brien (1-0), Barry Mulrone (0-2tp) Jamie Flanagan (1-0). Subs used; Jason Love, Cormac Burns, Dara Stewart and Nathan McGoldrick. Derrylin: Brian Lunney, Joshua McGuinnesss, Luke Flanagan (0-2), Laurence Doone; Colm McGovern, Conail Boyle, Cathair Leonard (0-2); Michal Prusakiewics, James Dolan; Tom Lunney, Jake Smith (1-1), Padraic Owens, Joseph Lunney, Diarmuid Owens (0-7,3tp), Fearghal McGovern (0-3), Subs: John McCaffrey, Kian Prior and Daire Donegan. Referee: Niall Cullen (Erne Gaels)