MICKEY Moran's magic has been working for Sligo and Fermanagh U21 footballers were the latest victims of Sligo's revival in a one-sided affair at Enniskillen yesterday, losing 1-15 to 0-10.
A very small crowd saw a very clinical display from the Yeats county who have grown in confidence under the quiet but canny Derry man.
Fermanagh were always chasing – apart from the opening five minutes when Colm McGovern and Declan Fitzpatrick put them into a two-points lead.
Fermanagh were minus Tom Brewster and the injured Stephen Maguire came on in the second half – but they never really recovered from a superb Eamonn Cawley goal after just six minutes.
Clever Cawley blasted a tremendous shot to the net from 25 yards to finish off a great six-man move – a Raymond Gallagher-type goal that powered Sligo to a 1-5 to 0-4 half time lead.
The second half was mostly a battle of the boots between the agile Gerry McGowan of Sligo and Rory Gallagher, who has returned for Fermanagh.
Gallagher hit five points but it was Sligo's slick short passing and superb fitness that caught the eye.
Sligo scorers: G McGowan (0-7), E Cawley (1-3), T Brennan (0-2), D Carty (0-2), S Deery (0-1). Fermanagh scorers: R Gallagher (0-6), D Fitzpatrick (0-2), C McGovern (0-1), G Greene (0-1).
ooooooOOOOOoooooo
GARETH TURNBULL produced another fine run to claim seventh place in the junior event at the European Cross-Country Championships in Lisbon yesterday.
Turnbull went into the race with medal hopes after finishing fourth 12 months ago.
But the pre-race talk in the Irish camp of a top three finish for the 18-year-old Belfast man was uttered before it became apparent that Dutch star Gert-Jan Lieffers and France's Mustapha Mohammed were in the junior field.
It was thought that Lieffers was now in the senior grade after cleaning up in the junior ranks over the last two years.
Mohammed has been meanwhile competing with distinction on the senior circuit in Europe so far this season.
ooooooOOOOOoooooo
ULSTER boxers flew back to Belfast last night armed with a hat-trick of UK Boys Clubs titles after a rewarding day's work in Nottingham at the weekend.
There were another three medals on board – all silver – after the NI squad battled for honours on Saturday's evening programme at the Monty Hind centre.
Immaculata's flashy little light flyweight Martin Lindsay started the winning sequence in the Class A section with a hard-earned points decision over London champ Eddy Taylor.
NI youth flyweight title holder David Moore (St Joseph's) notched up back to back wins before four-time Irish champion Patrick Taylor (St Agnes) made it three-in-a-row by comprehensively outpointing Newham's English international David Fox.
"It was an excellent team performance," said BGCNI co-ordinator Terry Watson from the Monty Hind ringside.
"All the boxers fought brilliantly, but my heart goes out to young Shane McKeown. “He was superb but just lost out to a cracking kid from the famous Repton club of London."
McKeown, a featherweight from St Patrick's ABC, Newry, was unlucky to run up against an in-form Danny Hunt, one of the rising stars of English ABA boxing. Thomas Long (Oak Leaf) had to settle for silver in the 45 kilos Class B decider against Hollington's Darren Langley while Conor Doherty (Emerald) had the rare misfortune of going out at the scale on finals night.
No, he wasn't overweight.
Surprisingly he weighed one and a half kilos under the stipulated minimum middleweight limit. UK Championships results as follows:
Class A: Light Fly: Martin Lindsay (Immaculata) bt Eddy Taylor (Hollington) Flyweight: David Moore (St Joseph's, Derry) bt Matthew Marsh (Elham & Dist) Feather: Patrick Taylor (St Agnes) bt David Fox (Newham) Class B: 45 kilos: Thomas Long (Oak Leaf) lost Darren Langley (Hollington) Feather: Shane McKeown (St Patrick's, Newry) lost Danny Hunt (Repton) Middle: Conor Doherty (Emerald) lost walkover Michael Robinson (Plains Farm)
