Patrician come from behind to eliminate Cavan in MacRory

Danske Bank MacRory Cup Eliminator
Patrician Carrickacross 4-8 St Patrick’s Cavan 1-7
WHEN St Patrick’s Cavan turned around at the break with just a single point lead, they probably knew then that they had not done enough to stay in the Danske Bank MacRory Cup.
Two one-on-one chances with the Carrickmacross goal-keeper had been squandered and then right on half-time Sean Jones hit the key score, a goal, to put Carrick 0-7 to 1-3 in arrears, with the aid of the strong breeze to come in the second half.
But Cavan dug deep to stay in the game with Eoin Clarke’s 39th minute goal putting them back into a three points lead. However it was their only score of the half and, almost inevitably, when Liam McDonald finally broke their solid defence for a goal at the start of the last quarter the floodgates opened.
Clarke was one of the Cavan heroes with Cian and Emmett Boylan and Cormac Donohue also putting in good shifts. However Carrickmacross were the better team, maybe not by a margin of ten points, and they have now set up a quarter-final play-off with the holders St Ronan’s Lurgan in late January.
Sean Clarke was excellent for the Monaghan team at midfield, with good supporting performances from Shane Hanratty, Jack McMahon and Oisin O’Hanlon while Ryan McNulty put the nail in Cavan’s coffin with two second half goals.
With the breeze behind them, St Patrick’s played some good attacking football in the opening half and two points each from Eoin Clarke and Jack Treanor put them into a 0-7 to 0-3 lead going into the break. But Sean Jones’s goal changed the game and left them with a small margin to cling to for the second half.
They managed to hold on until the 47th minute when Liam McDonald broke the cover to find the net and within a couple of minutes Carrick were five clear with the first of two goals from Ryan McNulty.
All the Patrician goals were well worked through hand and foot passing movements and McNulty capped a good last quarter with their fourth goal to secure their place against St Ronan’s.
Patrician : Ryan McNulty 2-1, Sean Jones 1-3, Liam McDonald 1-1, Ryan Farrelly 0-1, Jordan McGarrell 0-1, Liam óg Murray 0-1
St Patrick’s : Eoin Clarke 1-2, Jack Treanor 0-2, Emmett Boylan 0-1, Darryl McGurren 0-1, Kyle Tyler 0-1.