|
Frank Kennedy Cup 1st
Round
Coolaney advanced to the quarter-final of the
Frank Kennedy Cup by beating Chaffpool Rovers 2-0 in Bunninadden on Friday
evening. Cathal Leggett put the visitors ahead after 20 mins with
a curling shot from the edge of the box. Chaffpool missed several
good chances before Alan Taaffe was brought down as he burst into
the penalty area. The ref flashed a red card and pointed to the
spot and Paul Farren made no mistake. Despite being a man down in
the second half, the home side had the better chances but failed
to take any of them, and Coolaney now meet Grange or Real Tubber
in the quarter final..
Promotion for Coolaney
Coolaney guaranteed themselves at least second
place and promotion to the Premier Division with a hard earned 3-1
win over Cliffoney Celtic Reserves in their final league game.
While they could still win the title, Merville United are odds on
to take that honour with their games in hand.
Coolaney conceded early, but James Ellis got the home side back on
level terms. Before half time, a Paul Farren penalty was saved but
Cathal Leggett scored from the rebound. Trevor McGuinn put the
result beyond doubt near the end with a powerful header from
Leggett's corner.
Easy Win For Coolaney
Coolaney kept up their good run with a 4-0 win
over Western Rovers today (March 28th). 2 goals each from Alan
Duggan and Cathal Leggett left the home side needing just 4 points
for promotion. The recent withdrawal of Chafpool United handed 6
points to MCR, leaving little room for error in the run-in. While
Coolaney are still clear at the top, it is likely that Merville
United will, barring a collapse, take the title
Walkover For Coolaney
Coolaney moved further ahead in the league as
they claimed all 3 points when Chaffpool United were unable to
field a team. The home side were expecting a difficult afternoon
after last week's match, but instead bagged the points without
kicking a ball to move a step closer to promotion.
Another Draw
Once again Coolaney had to settle for a point
when they finished 1-1 with Chaffpool United. Despite having the
better of the game, they found it difficult to break down the
visitors, but eventually Alan Farry was taken down in the box and
Paul Farren made no mistake from the spot. However Peter O'Dwyer's
sending off changed things in Chaffpool's favour, and a deflected
shot sneaked just inside the post with 3 mins left. There were
chances for both teams in the last few minutes, but both defences
just about held out.
League - February 7th
Coolaney swere hoping to bounce back from last
week's 6-0 defeat at the hands of Manulla in the Connacht Cup, but
in the end had to be satisfied with a 1-1 draw at home to Grange.
Indeed it looked as if all three points might be lost when they
conceded with about 10 mins left of this close encounter, but
Peter O'Dwyer scored deep in injury time to ensure one point.
League Resumes at last
(Jan 24th)
Coolaney stretched their lead at the top of
Division 1 to eight points today as football finally resumed after
all the frost and snow. A Peter O'Dwyer hat-trick secured all
three points as they ran out 3-0 winners, but they were made to
fight all the way by Magherow.
Coolaney extend lead
Coolaney had to fight back from a 2-0 deficit to keep their
good run going today (Dec 6th). Only a few matches beat the weather
today, the first to be played for several weeks. Coolaney went 2
down in the gale at Cliffoney, but Patrick Gormley pulled one back
just before half time, and another from Paul Farren, as well as an
og gave the visitors all 3 points. With no-one else in the top
half winning, the lead is now 5 points with just half the matches
completed. However, Merville in particular and also Chaffpool
United have several games in hand, but manager Gus Gilligan will
be glad to have the points in the bag before the Christmas break.
Win puts Coolaney on
top
A spectacular volley from Jonathan Gilligan
after only 7 mins put Coolaney on track for an important win over
leaders MCR to replace them at the top of the league. In a very
close encounter, Mark Stenson saved a penalty just before half
time to preserve the lead. The defence withstood a lot of pressure
in the second half before Peter O'Dwyer made the points safe with
a strike from outside the box in the last 10 mins. With Merville
suffering their first defeat of the season, Coolaney are now in a
great position to challenge for honours.
Coolaney Move Into Second Place
Coolaney's pitch was one of very few to survive the heavy
rain this week-end (Nov 1st) and they took advantage by moving
into second place in the league with a hard fought 2-1 win over
Grange Utd. Grange did not look like a team near the bottom of the
league and led 1-0 at half time. A penalty from Paul Farren
brought the home team back into contention and Trevor McGuinn hit
the winner with just nine minutes left.
Coolaney Utd 5 Aclare Celtic 0
The result of this match was never in doubt as Coolaney ran
out easy winners against bottom team Aclare Celtic. Goals from
Tomas Toolan, Cathal Legget and Paul Farren gave the home side a
3-0 half time advantage and Leggett completed his hat trick with
two more in the second half.
Next week's fixture is a Connacht Cup match away to Galway team
Cregmore.
Ten-Man Coolaney Record
Excellent Win
Coolaney bounced back from last week's heavy
defeat with an impressive 3-1 win away to league leaders MCR.
Despite having centre-half Trevor McGuinn sent off in the first
half Coolaney were the better team throughout, and goals from
Cathal Leggett (2) and Peter O'Dwyer secured the win which puts
them right back in the promotion chase.
Aclare Celtic are the visitors next week.
Heavy Defeat for
Coolaney
Coolaney suffered a heavy 7-0 defeat at home to
Merville United today (Sept 27th). After last week's excellent
Connacht Cup win over Premier side Quayside hopes were high for an
exciting match with the promotion favourites, but a depleted
home side were never really in it.
|

Coolaney Utd Manager
Gus Gilligan
|