Enniscorthy's first XI men hosted Wicklow in an often fractious derby encounter at the Astro Active Centre on Saturday. The respective league positions of the two sides, as ever, bore no relation to the tightness of the contest.
The first half saw the county Wexford men on top in terms of possession and chances, Wicklow's goalkeeper being forced into a top class save just five minutes into the contest; Charlie Dunne then saw an excellent opportunity hit the crossbar ten minutes later for the home side. Wicklow, though, also showed they could be dangerous when forcing Hill into a one-on-one save ten minutes before the break.
The two sides were scoreless at the break. Enniscorthy began brightly with some sparkling play from Durnan and a combination of Rynhart and Maguire, but their chances of victory took a turn for the worse when top scorer James O'Sullivan had to leave the firld due to injury. Wicklow responded by earning a penalty corner which was confidently dealt with by the home defence.
Clive Rothwell then had a great chance to open the scoring just over 20 minutes into the second half when awarded a penalty flick but his effort was saved. Instead it was Wicklow – second from bottom before the match – who scored.
Enniscorthy ratcheted up the pressure several notches, earning a long corner and pushing Roy Chapman into attack, but Wicklow's defence held out for a valuable three points.
Despite the result – Enniscorthy's first league defeat of the season – the cathedral town side still hold a four point advantage over closest chasers Pembroke Wanderers. Enniscorthy's management team of Donal Doyle and Fraser Rothwell will be hoping for a big improvement when the team travels to Park Avenue and bottom side Railway Union on Saturday.
Squad: Graham Hill, Ivan Rothwell, Clive Rothwell, Andrew Rothwell, Cori Cooke, Glenn Chapman, Roy Chapman, Seb Rynhart, James O'Sullivan, William Durnan, Jake English, Charlie Dunne, Niall Maguire.
The first half saw the county Wexford men on top in terms of possession and chances, Wicklow's goalkeeper being forced into a top class save just five minutes into the contest; Charlie Dunne then saw an excellent opportunity hit the crossbar ten minutes later for the home side. Wicklow, though, also showed they could be dangerous when forcing Hill into a one-on-one save ten minutes before the break.
The two sides were scoreless at the break. Enniscorthy began brightly with some sparkling play from Durnan and a combination of Rynhart and Maguire, but their chances of victory took a turn for the worse when top scorer James O'Sullivan had to leave the firld due to injury. Wicklow responded by earning a penalty corner which was confidently dealt with by the home defence.
Clive Rothwell then had a great chance to open the scoring just over 20 minutes into the second half when awarded a penalty flick but his effort was saved. Instead it was Wicklow – second from bottom before the match – who scored.
Enniscorthy ratcheted up the pressure several notches, earning a long corner and pushing Roy Chapman into attack, but Wicklow's defence held out for a valuable three points.
Despite the result – Enniscorthy's first league defeat of the season – the cathedral town side still hold a four point advantage over closest chasers Pembroke Wanderers. Enniscorthy's management team of Donal Doyle and Fraser Rothwell will be hoping for a big improvement when the team travels to Park Avenue and bottom side Railway Union on Saturday.
Squad: Graham Hill, Ivan Rothwell, Clive Rothwell, Andrew Rothwell, Cori Cooke, Glenn Chapman, Roy Chapman, Seb Rynhart, James O'Sullivan, William Durnan, Jake English, Charlie Dunne, Niall Maguire.
