U19 A Football Wicklow

 AGB 2-14

Blessington 2-5

Eoin Horkan 

Pearse Park.

In the opening round game in Arklow it was the home side that ran out comfortable winners against their west Wicklow opponents.

It was a blistering start for the Gers as they stormed seven points ahead within the opening eleven minutes. Wing-back Ryan Scanlon ignited the charge with a surging run from deep before blasting to the net. His fellow defender Jonathan Nuzum quickly added to the tally with two fine points from distance, while further efforts from the ever-reliable Jim Connors and midfielder Fenn Wolohan left the visitors reeling.

However, the explosive opening finally sparked Blessington into life. Their response came midway through the half when Aaron Keogh powered straight through the heart of the defence and buried a low shot beyond the keeper. Patrick Small tagged on a point shortly after, trimming the deficit to just three by the 23rd minute.

The closing stages of the half became a shoot-out as both sides began to adapt to the tough  conditions. Two well-taken home scores were cancelled out by fine strikes from Connors and Tiernan Gahan before Jack Byrne pounced for Blessington’s second goal. Keogh added a late white flag to leave just a single point between the sides at the interval.

Within moments of the restart, the game was level as Small doubled his personal tally. But remarkably, that would prove to be Blessington’s final score from play as AGB seized complete control of proceedings.

Free-taker Cullen was unerring from placed balls, slotting over multiple efforts as the pressure mounted. Ryan Redmond and Connors added cultured points from play, while Scanlon continued to dictate matters from the half-back line, splitting the posts from an acute angle.

Blessington rallied briefly with scores from Cian Bruce and another from Small, but several misplaced passes at key moments cost them dearly. Their hopes were finally dashed when Cullen launched an outrageous long-range effort that sailed between the posts, drawing a roar from the home crowd.

With the result now beyond doubt, substitute Dylan Mullen was hauled down in the square, leaving the referee with no option but to award a penalty. Moore stepped up with confidence and coolly dispatched the ball into the corner, sealing a comfortable and well-earned victory for the Geraldines.

AGB may have stuttered briefly, but once they settled, they delivered a powerful statement of intent for the season ahead.

AGB:Adam O’Leary;Kristan Dowling,Joe Kindlon,Cormac O’Donoghue;Jonathan Nuzum(0-2)Aaron Kenna,Ryan Scanlon(1-1);Tiernan Gahan(0-1),Fenn Wolohan(0-1);Paul Moore(1-0),Jim Connors(0-3),Jack Keogh-;Kory Merrigan,Ryan Redmond(0-1),Odhran Cullen(0-5 2fs 1 2pt)

Subs Used:Peter Lappin for Kory Merrigan,Tiernan Pierce for Fenn Wolohan,Dylan Mullen for Jonathan Nuzum.

Blessington:Owen Vickers;Max Kehoe,Jack Byrne,Terence Punselle;Jamie O’Toole,Ronan Smyth,James Phibbs;Aaron Keogh(1-2),Luke Higgins;David Johnston,Patrick Small(0-2),Cian Bruce(0-1);Myles Leonard,Padraic Quinn,Conor O’Toole.

Subs Used; James May  for Myles Leonard,Aaron Mulhall for David Johnston, Daniel Smith for Conor O’Toole, Cillian Behan for James Phibbs.

Referee Anthony Nolan