Castleknock Celtic  2    Portmarnock  2

"Celtic pressure tells in the end"

NDSL 14Premier

16 Nov. 08

This game in the mud at Porterstown had it all - great goals, great play from both sides, competition for every ball and wonderful entertainment for all involved.

Portmarnock took control of the first 15 mins with Celtic keeper Kevin Murphy in commanding form, holding a rampant Portmarnock side at bay with 3 great saves.

Kevin then kicked it long for Luke Gealon to split the Portmarnock defence and slip Arthur Stark in one on one with the keeper. He made no mistake. 1-0 Celtic against the run of play.                         click photo to enlarge

Portmarnock took up where they left off again, pouring forward, and when the Celtic's defence failed to clear the ball, their number 4, Sean Freeney, thundered a stunning drive into the top corner from all of 30 yards. 1-1 and a more realistic scoreline.

Celtic's midfield was a mess and unable to deal with the physical challenge of their opponents.  An easy second was gifted to Portmarnock, following a slip shod clearance, which was taken cooly by Darren Ryan.  1-2 at the break.

Celtic made 5 changes at the break, bringing on John O’Hare in midfield and Graham Fagan beside him, with John Roe up front, along with new boy Emmanuel Nwang, and what a difference it made.  It was wave after wave of Celtic attack now, with Brian Slevin going close 3 times, before Artur Stark sprung the offside trap, receiving a ball over the top from Graham Fagan. Artur rounded both the keeper and defender to bring parity to the scores yet again as he slotted home with aplomb. 2-2.                                click photo to enlarge

The feeling now was that Celtic would finish off the job as they were in full flow. Slevin hit the post and Fagan was now dominant in the middle. Celtic again went close, with John Roe, as Celtic poured forward looking for the winner.  But as the ref checked his watch for full time, Portmarnock almost stole it. Their striker, Darren Ryan, broke free, surged into Celtic's box, one on one, saw the white of the Celtic's keeper's eyes, and shot what looked the winner.  Alas for the Port, it rebounded off the foot of the post, as the final whistle sounded. 2-2 Great game and fair result in a mud fest at Porterstown.