Stradbally edge out Clonaslee in a thrilling cup tie
The Paddy Cotter Cup is the CCFL’s equivalent to the League Cup as the sides from the top 3 divisions – Senior Division, Division 1 and Division 2 – compete for silverware. There were several Laois teams involved in rounds 1 and 2 as the competition begins to heat up.
The tie of the round was the Laois derby between Division 1 rivals, Stradbally Town and Clonaslee United. The two sides served up a great cup tie that had everything you could want from knockout football.
Home side, Stradbally went with a 4-4-2 formation with Eoin Buggie and Aaron Wright leading the line and their main man, Damien Murphy in midfield, running the show. Clonaslee set up in a 4-3-3 with Robert Downey and Niall Hogan either side of James McRedmond and John Rigney in a deep-lying role, holding it all together.
Stradbally Town 1
Clonaslee Utd 0
The game got off to a bright start with both teams looking to get the ball down and trying to play from very first whistle. The battle in midfield between Murphy and Rigney promised to be a spicy affair, but the two men had very little interactions, instead leading, organising and in both players’ cases, being the driving force for their respective teams.
Clonaslee were looking dangerous down the right wing, as DJ Callaghan and Niall Hogan combined to create some decent chances. Callaghan was bombing forward from full-back and Hogan’s skill was creating space in the Stradbally back line. But the hosts looked assured at the back and repelled the Clonaslee attack.
The game-winning goal came in the 21st minute when Clonaslee failed to deal with a free kick from the left-hand side. The ball fell to Tom Shiel and the midfielder made no mistake, striking a well-hit, left-footed volley beyond Seamus Rosney in the Clonaslee goal.
A lot of niggle start to creep into the game after the goal. Both teams were fighting amongst themselves which made for a prickly atmosphere both on the field and on the side-lines. The yellow cards started to come out as both sides began putting in some crunching challenges.
Shane Lambe on the overlap from right back was causing all sorts of problems for Clonaslee as the game began to open up for Stradbally. Seamus Rosney was called into action on the 38th minute with an excellent double save, first denying Eoin Buggie and then Aaron Wright.
The second half was a breathless, end-to-end affair as both sides pushed for a goal – Clonaslee looking to draw level and Stradbally looking to put the game to bed.
Each side had their chances. Ciaran O’Neill, Eoin Buggie and substitute, Brian Small all came close for the hosts. Conor Buggie, who came on at half time, had a great cameo in the second half for Stradbally. He played quite well and got into some great scoring positions.
Clonaslee had opportunities of their own. JJ Kennedy came close shortly after the break but fired the ball over the crossbar. Robert Downey then saw his shot saved in the 65th minute with a tremendously strong hand from Ethan O’Reilly.
It was a back-and-forth game right until Clonaslee goalkeeper, Rosney went up for one last attack in injury time. But Stradbally held out to advance to round two of the Cotter Cup where they join the likes of Portlaoise and Clara.
Stradbally Town: Ethan O’Reilly, Shane Lambe, Colin Beale, Eamon Delaney, Kaelen Barry, Tom Shiel, Ciaran O’Neill, Damien Murphy, Eoin Buggie, Liam Knowles, Aaron Wright.
Subs: Brian Small (HT for A. Wright), Conor Buggie (HT for C. O’Neill), Conor Goode (71 mins for L. Knowles), Padraig Fitzpatrick (71 mins for C. Beale)
Goal: Tom Shiel
Clonaslee Utd: Seamus Rosney, DJ Callaghan, Paddy Purcell, John Rigney, Jack Owens, Josh Flynn, Niall Hogan, Cian Callaghan, James McRedmond, Robert Downey, JJ Kennedy.
Subs: Daire Hogan (69 mins for J. Kennedy), Darren Conroy (77 mins for J. McRedmond), Joe Dunne (77 mins for N. Hogan)