Allianz National Hurling League Division 2A: Down 0-23 Derry 1-20
ON D-Day for Down and Derry, it was the Ardsmen who left McKenna Park with the satisfaction of Division 2A safety almost secured after salvaging a dramatic late draw on Sunday.
Head to head results now redundant heading into the final weekend of the League, it appears likely that scoring difference will decide which of these Ulster rivals stays where they are and which drops through the trapdoor into Division 2B.
Courtesy of Pearse Og McCrickard’s equalising free at the death, the odds are stacked in Down’s favour going into the final weekend of the League.
They are 19 points better off than Derry, who face a trip to Carlow - still in the relegation mix themselves – while the Ardsmen travel to Tralee to take on a Kerry side with little but pride at stake, Saturday’s defeat to Kildare killing off any lingering promotion hopes in the Kingdom.
Therefore, as well as hoping Kerry beat Down, Derry must get a result of some kind at Netwatch Cullen Park to pull off a great escape. In reality, though, this was their golden opportunity – and they came so close to grasping it.
Trailing by five at half-time, the Oak Leafs used the significant wind at their backs to chip away at the Down lead. Cormac O’Doherty was magnificent around the middle, showing all the experience years on the road with Slaughtneil brings, and it was a typically unerring free from the Emmet’s maestro that drew Derry level with less than 10 to play.
They weren’t done yet either. As edginess spread across the stand in Ballycran, John Mullan punched the air in celebration after first putting Derry ahead in the 63rd minute, and then again two minutes into the minimum three added on by referee Sean Stack.
With a dogged performance built on the most solid of defensive foundations, it looked as though the two points – and survival – would be heading up the M3.
But when Sean Cassidy was blown for throwing the sliothar in the dying seconds, Down were afforded one last shot at saving their skins. McCrickard steadied himself once the commotion and protests died down, the sound of held breath deafening as eerie silence descended.
Down boss Ronan Sheehan turned the other way and looked at the ground, his side’s fate in the Liatroim man’s hands now. From 50-odd metres, with what was the last puck of the game, he made no mistake to ensure a share of the spoils that sat much easier with one than the other.
And Derry boss Johnny McGarvey made no attempt to disguise his frustration at some of the referee’s calls late in the game, particularly the award of that decisive late free.
“Annoyed – really annoyed,” said the Lavey man, “the two frees in injury-time, I didn’t think either of them were fouls.
“I’ll call them hometown decisions.”
Perhaps unsurprisingly, Down counterpart Ronan Sheehan didn’t agree.
“It was a definite foul,” he said, “a throw ball all day.
“I could go back and pick up 10 frees in that game. The referee didn’t win or lose the game.”
In the cold light of day, both counties might have cause to wonder how they didn’t win it.
Down – who named county footballer Conor McCrickard on the bench – were caught early on, conceding a penalty three minutes in when John McManus dragged down the pacy Cormac Gough, with O’Doherty converting.
But, despite having McManus sin-binned for 10 minutes, the Ardsmen assumed control, with Marc Fisher influential and the livewire Tim Prenter finding form as Down moved into a 0-9 to 1-1 lead by the quarter hour mark.
It could and should have been more, with eight first half wides and balls dropped short stopping their supremacy being reflected on the scoreboard and offering more than a glimmer of hope in the Derry changing room.
The Oak Leafs dug in and, after heavy defeats to Kerry, Offaly and Kildare, served up their best performance of the season, slowly but surely wrestling away control as the Down forwards struggled to make any headway.
Then, with the gap narrowed to two by the 55th minute, free-taker Paul Sheehan uncharacteristically sent one wide from in front of the posts. It was another indication of how the pendulum had swung.
“When that happens,” said Ronan Sheehan, “you’re thinking ‘it’s not going to be our day’.
“But really it was our inability to take our chances in the first half that put us in a real serious position.”
Daithi Sands, just home from America last week, came on and injected a bit of urgency, while Liam Savage and sub Stuart Martin helped Down regain a foothold around the middle after John Mullan edged Derry in front with the finishing line in sight.
Still the Ardsmen clung on in the dying embers of a game that was for so long anybody’s, in the end nobody’s - McCrickard’s last act leaving Derry with it all to do next Sunday.
“I thought we were by far the better side in the second half, I thought we deserved to win the match and, look, we didn’t,” said McGarvey.
“We’re not going to cry about it now but I thought we played some great hurling. Look, we have to go to Carlow now and get a result of some description. If we’d been offered that at the start we’d probably have took it, to have a fighting chance in the last game.”
Down: S Keith; B Trainor, J McManus, T Murray; M Fisher (0-2), M Conlan, C Taggart; L Savage (0-2), F Turpin; R McCusker, P Sheehan (0-8, frees), P Og McCrickard (0-6, 0-3 frees, 0-1 sideline); O Mac Manus (0-1),C Egan, T Prenter (0-3). Subs: N McFarland for Trainor (HT), D Sands (0-1) for Mac Manus (52), J Doran for Murray (56), T McGrattan for Sheehan (59), S Martin for Prenter (59)
Black card: J McManus (2-12)
Yellow card: M Fisher (19)
Derry: O O’Doherty; SF Quinn, M Craig, D Kelly; E Conway, R Mullan, S Cassidy; M McGrath, P Cleary; C O’Reilly (0-3), C O’Doherty (1-10, 1-0 pen, 0-9 frees), J Friel (0-2); C Gough (0-1), J Mullan (0-3), D McGilligan (0-1). Subs: S Melaugh for Conway (47), C O’Kane for Friel (62), P Nellis for Gough (68)
Yellow cards: J Mullan (52), S Cassidy (64), C O’Reilly (68), P Nellis 70+1)
Ref: S Stack (Dublin)
