Lavey dig deep to claim first championship win

Lavey 3-16 ... Na Magha 1-15

A strong final ten minutes earned Lavey their first win of the championship as they overturned a six-point deficit to run out winners in Owenbeg on Sunday.

Central to the victory was Rian Collins, who netted their third goal in the closing stages to give his side breathing space down the final stretch.

Na Magha dominated the opening 20 minutes and deservedly led by six, but by the break, that gap had been cut to just two. With Michael Lynch, Deaglan Foley, Breandan Quigley, and Padhraig Neilus all catching the eye, the lads from the city settled better into the contest.

Inside the first seven minutes, they moved into a 0-5 to 0-0 lead — Lynch, Quigley, Neilus, and Ruaidhri McLaughlin all on target. Collins finally got Lavey on the board, and when they cut the deficit to two, it looked like they had the measure of Na Magha's early dominance.

But that wasn’t the case. With the wind at their backs, Na Magha continued to call the shots. Alan Grant was excellent between the posts — and with his puck-outs. Four points in-a-row saw them restore a six-point advantage, and they were full value for it.

Lavey were out of sorts but got the lift they needed on 19 minutes. Collins rattled the crossbar, Grant saved the rebound, but Lorcan McDonnell was waiting to tap the ball into the net. When Foley closed the first-half scoring, Na Magha led 0-10 to 1-5 — despite having looked the better side, a two-point interval lead would have left them disappointed.

Foley landed a monster free to make it a three-point game on the resumption, but substitute Charlie Curley rattled the net as he fired low under the advancing Grant to level the scores.

How Na Magha didn’t immediately respond with a goal, only Aidan Cutliff will know — he was set up by Lynch but scuffed his effort with the goal at his mercy.

Neilus struck an inspirational effort on the run, but with a Collins free and a point from Tiernan Melaugh, Lavey hit the front for the first time on 39 minutes.

That advantage was out to three, and suddenly the game looked to be slipping away from Na Magha — until Mark McCloskey raced onto a loose ball and fired to the net to restore parity. Lynch then edged his side in front 13 minutes from time, but Lavey took control from there.

Ryan McGill began to influence proceedings more as he got on the ball. Inside, Collins was untouchable. McGill, Collins and McDonnell all split the posts and Lavey were two clear.

That became five when Collins found the net — and that was that. Job done for Lavey. The sides traded points in the final minutes, but Lavey had dug deep to finish stronger and secure the victory.

Na Magha will look back at what might have been — missed opportunities at vital stages. Lavey too were wasteful, but in Collins they had a match-winner, and McGill stood up when it mattered.

IN PICTURES: Lavey overturn six-point deficit to run out winners over Na Magha

Both sides face tough final round fixtures and look set to heading for the junior playoff positions when the group stages are done and dusted.

Teams & Scorers

Lavey: Eoin Mulholland; John McGurk, Brendan Laverty, Aidan Toner; Aimon Duffin, Eoin Scullion, Tiarnan Melaugh; Ryan McGill, Ryan Farren; Connor Melaugh, Ryan Mulholland, Jack Convery; Rian Collins, Raymond Duggan, Lorcan McDonnell.

Subs: Charlie Curley for Convery (21), Ryan McGarvey for Farren (41), Patrick Bist for Duggan (58).

Na Magha: Alan Grant; Oisin Glass, Odhran Clenaghan, Aaron Campbell; Bliadhain Glass, Breandan Quigley, Fergal McAnaney; Michael Lynch, Aidan Cutliff; Jude Bryson, Tim Rankin, Mark McCloskey; Ruaidhri McLaughlin, Deaglan Foley, Padhraig Neilus.

Subs: Lorcan Doherty for Glass (Temp 19-28), Ryan McAdams for McLaughlin (41), Lorcan Doherty for McAnaney (48).

Lavey: R Collins 1-5, (0-2f), L McDonnell 1-3, C Curley 1-0, T Melaugh and C Melaugh 0-2 each, R Mulholland, R McGill, R McGarvey and P Birt 0-1 each.

NaMagha: M McCloskey 1-1, M Lynch (1f), D Foley (f), P Neilus 0-3 each, R McLaughlin and B Quigley 0-2 each, A Cutliff 0-1.

Referee: James Callaghan