Late flurry sees Rathangan overcome Ballycane
Rathangan goalkeeper Sean Moran makes a great save from a Ballycane free kick.
Rathangan FC secured a hard-earned 2-1 victory away to Ballycane Celtic over the weekend to book their place in the quarter-finals of the Connolly U20 Shield.
Despite lining up without a single substitute, Rathangan put in a phenomenally intense performance, with some clinical finishing proving the difference between the sides, with the visitors snatching a late winner to move past the Shield’s preliminary round.
The game was played in extremely challenging conditions, with a strong wind howling around the ground. The conditions played havoc with the game, nullifying any long-range passing and adding a sense of danger even to routine clearance kicks, with the unpredictability clear to see from the first couple of minutes when Ballycane’s Harry Jones rattled the crossbar from a corner kick.
Ballycane looked dangerous early on, but Rathangan responded well and began to grow into the game, with Oisin Dempsey’s free kick testing Ballycane goalkeeper Ryan Nolan.
Rathangan improved as the half went on, with Darragh Gilligan proving a major threat on the left flank, delivering some dangerous crosses for Dempsey, whose battle with Nolan was the highlight of the opening 45.
There were opportunities for Rathangan’s Timas Kacinskas and Ballycane’s Talen Kelly to open the scoring for, but the sides went into the break locked at 0-0.
Just a minute into the half, John Dunne unleashed a rocket towards the top corner of Nolan’s net, only for the keeper to produce an outstanding finger-tip save to keep the game scoreless.
The woodwork was rattled again with the assist of the wind moments later when Jack Shanahan Harris’s cross was caught by the wind before kissing the post.
Ballycane were largely reduced to playing on the counter, but it seemed to suit them. Lewis Knox and Cameron Norton each went close for the visitors before the breakthrough finally arrived with 78 minutes on the clock. Oisin Dempsey’s shot on goal was well blocked, but the ricochet fell perfectly to the feet Timas Kacinskas, who made no mistake from close range.
The lead was short-lived, however, as Ballycane hit back withing two minutes. A decent cross was flicked on by Norton into the path of Lewis Knox, who headed home the equaliser and set up a grandstand finish.
Rathangan got their second wind after the concession and immediately went on the attack. Then, in the 86th minute, Rory Burke played a lovely ball down the wing for Dempsey, who cut the ball back into the box where an arriving Burke drilled the ball home to restore the one-goal advantage. The visitors held on to close out the game and secure their place in the draw for the quarter-finals.
