Enniscorthy's under 14 boys put in a stellar first half performance on their way to a 4-2 league win over North Kildare in atrocious weather conditions at the Astro Active Centre on Sunday.
The home side got off to a dream start after 2 minutes when Conor O'Brien found the back of the net following a swift upfield move. More was to follow eight minutes later when a second arrived; both Dunne and O'Brien laying claim to a doubling of the lead. A fine Ronan O'Leary strike then made it 3-0 before North Kildare struck, finding a gap in the Enniscorthy defence and the lead was down to two. Aodhan O'Leary had by this stage moved to the left back berth, and this move would pay dividends as the match progressed. Indeed, the seeds of this win were sown in defence; in addition to O'Leary, there were strong performances from Stewart and Doran alongside the energetic Seb Rynhart. Charlie Dunne, operating from midfield then found the net with a long-range effort from the outer edge of the semi-circle to cap an excellent opening 25 minutes.
The second half told a different story as the Kildare side worked their way back into proceedings. Attempts on Glenn Rothwell's goal were few, but the Clonroche youngster was forced into a spectacular save when he found himself on the receiving end of a high ball looped in from the left wing. The visitors dominated possession for spells throughout but were only able to unlock the hard-working Enniscorthy defence once, a duo of Kildare attackers finding themselves unmarked at the far post following a cross from the left. The Wexford men also worked hard to extend their lead, Rogan and Ronan O'Leary making strong runs into the heart of the North Kildare defence but unlike the opening period, Enniscorthy were unable to take further advantage.
Enniscorthy Squad: Glenn Rothwell; Pearse Rogan; Samuel Veitch; Conor O'Brien; Andrew Stewart; Gavin Cousins; Ross Wallace; John Sutton; Seb Rynhart; Ronan O'Leary; Jack Doran; Aodhan O'Leary; Evan Jacob; Charlie Dunne.
The home side got off to a dream start after 2 minutes when Conor O'Brien found the back of the net following a swift upfield move. More was to follow eight minutes later when a second arrived; both Dunne and O'Brien laying claim to a doubling of the lead. A fine Ronan O'Leary strike then made it 3-0 before North Kildare struck, finding a gap in the Enniscorthy defence and the lead was down to two. Aodhan O'Leary had by this stage moved to the left back berth, and this move would pay dividends as the match progressed. Indeed, the seeds of this win were sown in defence; in addition to O'Leary, there were strong performances from Stewart and Doran alongside the energetic Seb Rynhart. Charlie Dunne, operating from midfield then found the net with a long-range effort from the outer edge of the semi-circle to cap an excellent opening 25 minutes.
The second half told a different story as the Kildare side worked their way back into proceedings. Attempts on Glenn Rothwell's goal were few, but the Clonroche youngster was forced into a spectacular save when he found himself on the receiving end of a high ball looped in from the left wing. The visitors dominated possession for spells throughout but were only able to unlock the hard-working Enniscorthy defence once, a duo of Kildare attackers finding themselves unmarked at the far post following a cross from the left. The Wexford men also worked hard to extend their lead, Rogan and Ronan O'Leary making strong runs into the heart of the North Kildare defence but unlike the opening period, Enniscorthy were unable to take further advantage.
Enniscorthy Squad: Glenn Rothwell; Pearse Rogan; Samuel Veitch; Conor O'Brien; Andrew Stewart; Gavin Cousins; Ross Wallace; John Sutton; Seb Rynhart; Ronan O'Leary; Jack Doran; Aodhan O'Leary; Evan Jacob; Charlie Dunne.
