The Tigers played Dungoyne at 9:30am on Saturday 9th of April at Moat Park. This was an exciting match where the Tigers played some of the best football of the year so far. It was a match that saw the Tigers with a large number of attempts on goal with the Dungoyne keeper kept very busy.
The Tigers got the first period of the game kicked off and it was straight into attack for Carryduff. Ronan, Finn and Christian made up the initial midfield and were quickly pressing forward with the ball. They came up a resilient Dungoyne defense which repelled a number of early attacks quickly turning them into counterattacks. Peter, Andrew and Darragh made up the defensive line and Dungoyne found the Carryduff defensive just as hard to break down. It was good to see the defensive line try to pass the ball out of defensive when they opportunity arose. And so the period went on with the Carryduff team having a number of shots saved by an on-form goalkeeper. Unfortunately it was probably with the first shot on target from the Dungoyne team that we had our first goal. The Dungoyne team broke through the line of defense and the finishing was clinical leaving the Carryduff goalkeeper no chance.
Into the second period of what was proving to be a very enjoyable match on a sunny April morning. Dungoyne got game underway again. Fionn, Andrew and Christian took up defensive duties, Patrick, Ronan and Peter took up midfield duties. It was very much a replica of how the first period went. Patrick, Ronan and Fionn all had chances to get the game back to evens. However the Dungoyne goalkeeper again made some fantastic saves. Even a long range effort from Christian which crashed off the crossbar did not bring the score which Carryduff deserved for their pressing. Dungoyne also had more chances in the second period and it was another blow when they managed to convert one of these chances to a score. However, the Carryduff boys did not drop their heads and went back on the offensive ending the period with another couple of chances but unfortunately no score.
And so, into the final period. Peter, Andrew and Darragh resumed defensive duties together. Patrick, Fionn and Finn were in midfield. It was a very even match with Peter, Andrew and Darragh making some vital interceptions at the back and Finn running around the midfield supporting both the defence and the attack. Fionn and Patrick both pressed for a goal. There were chances at both ends but no luck for the attackers at either end. It wasn’t until some sustained pressure from the Carryduff forwards, following the re-introduction of Ronan, that Ronan finally managed to seize upon a rebound and stick the ball in the Dungoyne net. The rest of the match saw some further chances at either end but no conversions.
The Carryduff boys can fell very proud of themselves. They were unlucky not to win, nevermind draw this match. They played really well as a team and the smiles on their faces at the end show how much they enjoyed themselves.
Tigers: Ronan, Finn, Fionn, Patrick, Christian, Andrew, Darragh, Peter