St. Brendan’s Park FC Under 12 Bs 2-1 Ballyhar
Soggy underfoot conditions from the relentless overnight rain greeted the two teams onto the pitch as battle commenced.
Park employed Finn in a central defensive position, behind speedy William, Trey and Odhran, with Adam plying his trade up front as the lone striker. From the off, William and Odhran skated down the flanks with ease creating early chances for Park.
The defensive line were relatively untroubled in the early stages with Sean Heaslip, Zach and Rory, mopping up any through balls in front of their calm goalkeeper Kevin.
Park peppered the Ballyhar goal with their keeper making some splendid saves until finally Finn drilled a low, curling shot into the corner giving Park the lead. Park rotated their squad, bringing on Killian, Rex, Eldion and Sean Whelan, all making an impact. But on a rare foray into Park’s half of the pitch, a shot from Ballyhar’s striker clipped the back of Killian’s arm and the referee immediately pointed to the spot. Despite the best efforts of Kevin in goal, the penalty was expertly converted and the teams went in level at the break.
Paul gave an inspirational and motivational talk at half-time which spurred Park to greater heights as they crashed the ball against the post and thundered another shot against the crossbar. Trey was tripped inside the box and rose to take the penalty, but his shot struck the outside of the post and was cleared for a corner. It looked like it was going to be one of those days.
With moments remaining, man-of-the-match Finn, who had been outstanding with his defensive duties, burst forward and curled a wonderful shot into the top corner to deservedly win the match for Park on the balance of play.
