Straide & Foxford United B 2-3 Crossmolina

A late Derek Greham goal robbed gallant Straide and Foxford United B of a precious point in a titanic relegation battle on Saturday evening, as
Crossmolina outlasted their hosts for a 3-2 victory. Both sides were
planted in the nether regions of the Premier Division prior to the match
and Crossmolina`s late late win propelled them towards respectability while ensuring their beaten opponents remained in the quagmire at the bottom. S & F United laid siege to the visitor`s goal in the opening five minutes with throw-ins and corners galore but Crossmolina defended stubbornly holding the hosts to hopeful half chances, while clearing the ball out of play rugby-style to interrupt the barrage. After absorbing all that S & F could throw at them Crossmolina began to assert themselves in the game and in the 11th minute John Duggan sprinted down the right wing onto a Derek Greham pass before shooting weakly wide. In the 15th minute Greham provided Eoin Syron with a perfect cross from the right wing but the midfielder couldn`t get his head to the ball from 6 yards out. Greham was at the centre of the game`s turning point a minute later when he was cynically fouled by Micky Fox, despite posing no danger in an innocuous position in midfield. Referee Pat Foley didn`t hesitate to send the perpetrator off and suddenly the home side were playing for a draw. In the 20th minute a curious decision by referee Foley from an S & F kickout earned Crossmolina a free kick on the edge of the 18 yard box and Paul Flaherty stroked the ball into the top left corner to give the visitors a 1-0 lead. In the 24th minute Syron powered forward from midfield before shooting straight at United goalie John Gallagher. S & F`s best chance of the half was snuffed out by a timely John Hegarty challenge in the box after their striker received the ball 12 yards out from goal with only the netminder to beat. After half an hour Crossmolina doubled their lead when goalie Gallagher failed to hold onto a Greham shot and Joe Keane poked the ball in from 6 yards out. The battle of attrition continued in the second half continued in the second half and in the 55th minute Crossmolina could have sealed the victory that always looked fragile while the lead was two goals. From an S & F corner kick Paul Flaherty released Duggan who ran over 70 yards before squaring the ball back to the unmarked Adrian Conway who stunned everybody by lifting the ball over an open goal from 8 yards out. Crossmolina spurned another opportunity when Greham cut in from the left wing before firing over the bar from an acute angle. After these reprieves United launched waves of attacks at the visitor`s goal. Pat Jordan alertly peeled off of a left wing throw-in to latch onto a header which directed him goalwards but his shot was easily handled by goalie Heffernan. In the 68th minute S & F scored the goal that seemed inevitable all game long when they were awarded a free kick on the edge of the box after the tackle seemed to occur inside the 18 yard area. It became a moot point, though, when Brendan McHugh rifled the ball into the top right corner to set up a tense final quarter. The home side maintained their onslaught as Crossmolina were reduced to brief breakouts which rarely passed midfield. A 78th minute corner earned United the equaliser they had worked so doggedly for, when Shane Holleran punctuated a goalmouth scramble with a 12 yard shot through a sea of bodies into the net. The swung the momentum 180 degrees and it was ten man United who pushed for the winning goal while Crossmolina desperately clung to their consolation point as the immensity of the final ten minutes became apparent to both teams. Fortune smiled on Crossmolina when Greham swept the ball into the net from the edge of the box much to the relief of his team mates. Resilient S & F refused to accept defeat, though, and from another corner kick in the final minute they produced a strike at goal which John McGuinness heroically cleared off the line to preserve the win for Crossmolina. Overall the game was about as entertaining as an afternoon at the dentist`s with Radiohead for background music but the Mayo FA award points for wins, not style, so Crossmolina won`t be too concerned by any unhappy spectators who may have witnessed the
contest.