Two goals from inspirational captain Clive Rothwell- one a first half penalty flick- saw Enniscorthy's men clinch a first ever cup final appearance at Rathdown School on Sunday.
Following an energy- sapping league victory over Mullingar II the day before, the Slaneysiders travelled to south Dublin seeking a first win over Monkstown V as well as the ultimate prize, an appearance in the Walters Cup decider. Having drawn 0-0 in their previous encounter with 'Town, Fraser Rothwell's men rightly anticipated a close affair. The opening stages saw Monkstown have the greater share of possession but were unable to break down a stubborn Enniscorthy defence. Once again Roy Chapman was in impressive form in central midfield, while brother Glenn put in an equally valuable shift in the left midfield berth. Ten minutes in the blue had the ball in the back of Graham Hill's net, but the effort was ruled out as contact had not been made with the ball inside the Enniscorthy semi- circle. Instead it was the Wexford men who took the lead, Daithí Medcalf's pass finding Roy Chapman whose goal- bound shot was stopped on the line by a foot belonging to a Monkstown defender. A similar instance the day before had only seen a short corner being awarded, but this time umpire Tommy Doyle indicated a penalty flick. Clive Rothwell made no mistake, sending it high into the top left corner of the net: one- nil to the visitors.
At the break Enniscorthy narrowly retained the lead but the mood in the camp was positive. That confidence took a knock, however, ten minutes after the restart as Monkstown finally equalised. The south Dublin side had started the new half strongly, pinning Enniscorthy deep inside their own half. 'Town earned a free on the 23- metre line as they attacked down the right, and the resulting shot found a Monkstown player lurking dangerously close to Hill's goal. The contact took the ball over the diving Enniscorthy 'keeper and deadlock had resumed.
Both sides stepped up their efforts as Enniscorthy sought to regain the lead and Monkstown a second goal which would put them ahead for the first time. The visitors were unable to place the Monsktown goal under sustained pressure and instead relied on counter- attacks and set- piece situations for shots on target. Indeed, it was from such an effort that the winner arrived, with fifteen minutes left on the clock. Jowett dribbled forward into the Monkstown semi- circle when umpire Peter Agnew spotted an infringement and awarded a short corner. Clive Rothwell injected the ball, pushing it out to Cathal Ó Suilleabháin. In the teeth of the onrushing defence, the Corkman returned it to Rothwell, and his effort found the net.
As the minutes ticked by, Enniscorthy put in a huge defensive effort in order to secure their place in the final. As part of this, the visitors switched from a 4-3-3 formation to 4-4-2, leaving Jowett and Costello to harry the Monkstown defence on the rare occasions when Enniscorthy were able to break out of their own half. At the back, Ogilvie and Veitch, in particular, were tenacious in the tackle, and Ó Suilleabháin covered a huge amount of ground in order to keep the blues at bay. A succession of green cards were handed out in the closing stages to both sides as tempers flared and tensions rose. Enniscorthy, though, held out and now have their first cup final to look forward to.
Squad: Graham Hill; Keith Ogilvie; Clive Rothwell; Martyn Veitch; P. J. Pierce; Andrew Rothwell; Cathal Ó Suilleabháin; Roy Chapman; Glenn Chapman; Kieran Costello; Robbie Walshe; Daithí Medcalf; Liam Jowett; Jason Rothwell.
Click here to see photos from the game.
Following an energy- sapping league victory over Mullingar II the day before, the Slaneysiders travelled to south Dublin seeking a first win over Monkstown V as well as the ultimate prize, an appearance in the Walters Cup decider. Having drawn 0-0 in their previous encounter with 'Town, Fraser Rothwell's men rightly anticipated a close affair. The opening stages saw Monkstown have the greater share of possession but were unable to break down a stubborn Enniscorthy defence. Once again Roy Chapman was in impressive form in central midfield, while brother Glenn put in an equally valuable shift in the left midfield berth. Ten minutes in the blue had the ball in the back of Graham Hill's net, but the effort was ruled out as contact had not been made with the ball inside the Enniscorthy semi- circle. Instead it was the Wexford men who took the lead, Daithí Medcalf's pass finding Roy Chapman whose goal- bound shot was stopped on the line by a foot belonging to a Monkstown defender. A similar instance the day before had only seen a short corner being awarded, but this time umpire Tommy Doyle indicated a penalty flick. Clive Rothwell made no mistake, sending it high into the top left corner of the net: one- nil to the visitors.
At the break Enniscorthy narrowly retained the lead but the mood in the camp was positive. That confidence took a knock, however, ten minutes after the restart as Monkstown finally equalised. The south Dublin side had started the new half strongly, pinning Enniscorthy deep inside their own half. 'Town earned a free on the 23- metre line as they attacked down the right, and the resulting shot found a Monkstown player lurking dangerously close to Hill's goal. The contact took the ball over the diving Enniscorthy 'keeper and deadlock had resumed.
Both sides stepped up their efforts as Enniscorthy sought to regain the lead and Monkstown a second goal which would put them ahead for the first time. The visitors were unable to place the Monsktown goal under sustained pressure and instead relied on counter- attacks and set- piece situations for shots on target. Indeed, it was from such an effort that the winner arrived, with fifteen minutes left on the clock. Jowett dribbled forward into the Monkstown semi- circle when umpire Peter Agnew spotted an infringement and awarded a short corner. Clive Rothwell injected the ball, pushing it out to Cathal Ó Suilleabháin. In the teeth of the onrushing defence, the Corkman returned it to Rothwell, and his effort found the net.
As the minutes ticked by, Enniscorthy put in a huge defensive effort in order to secure their place in the final. As part of this, the visitors switched from a 4-3-3 formation to 4-4-2, leaving Jowett and Costello to harry the Monkstown defence on the rare occasions when Enniscorthy were able to break out of their own half. At the back, Ogilvie and Veitch, in particular, were tenacious in the tackle, and Ó Suilleabháin covered a huge amount of ground in order to keep the blues at bay. A succession of green cards were handed out in the closing stages to both sides as tempers flared and tensions rose. Enniscorthy, though, held out and now have their first cup final to look forward to.
Squad: Graham Hill; Keith Ogilvie; Clive Rothwell; Martyn Veitch; P. J. Pierce; Andrew Rothwell; Cathal Ó Suilleabháin; Roy Chapman; Glenn Chapman; Kieran Costello; Robbie Walshe; Daithí Medcalf; Liam Jowett; Jason Rothwell.
Click here to see photos from the game.
