Under 13 Division 1

• Killorglin AFC 7 – 1 Park B

Following a decent National Cup run, the under 13s finally got to play a league game with Park B the visitors to the Dragons Den. An awful night for football in terms of weather, saw the visitors start brightly, and it looked like Killorglin might be in for a tough night. But a free kick from Jack O’Connor, and strikes from Gearoid Hassett and Dylan Francis saw Killorglin settle in and take control. Park, to be fair, didn’t give up and grabbed an equaliser shortly before the break, to leave the half time score at a far from comfortable 3-1. And the second half started poorly from the home team when Park were awarded a harsh penalty. A fantastic save from Martin Fay in goal kept Killorglin well ahead, and we pushed on from there with goals from Stephen O’Loughlin and Kaiya O’Flaherty.

Late in the game, Dean Cahill came off the bench, and despite looking decidedly cold and subdued, he managed to convert a 25 yard effort on the half volley, and produce a nice turn and finish in the box to complete a brace. So 7-1 didn’t flatter Killorglin in the end, but it took stand-out performances from everyone to put us in control at key points in the game. Tireless work from Jack O’Leary and Aaron Broderick in midfield where their quality shone. Good wide play from Stephen and Ethan, and later on Kaiya gave us an attacking threat that wasn’t seen from the visitors. Dylan up front worked hard, and Gearoid Hassett was in a different class! Special mention to the defence who haven’t played together as a back 4 previously: Jason, Oisin, Jack and Kaiya showed a fantastic attitude and worked for the team throughout. It was hard to be a sub on a night like this, but they all contributed and I appreciate that.

Team: Martin Fay, Jason O’Sullivan, Oisin Cronin, Jack O’Connor, Kaiya O’Flaherty, Aaron Broderick, Jack O’Leary, Ethan Coffey, Stephen O’Loughlin, Gearoid Hassett, Dylan Francis. Subs: Cian Naylor, Darragh McKeefry, Dean Cahill