B McCAFFREY & SONS ERNE CUP DIVISION 1 FINAL
Derrygonnelly 0-23 Enniskillen Gaels 2-18
RYAN McGandy scored a goal in the last play of extra-time to snatch a one-point win for Enniskillen Reserves on Saturday as they retained the Erne Cup Division 1 honours following a titanic battle in Brewster Park.
The Gaels and Derrygonnelly went toe-to-toe in an all-action encounter at the weekend, with the game forced to extra-time, and in the end the County town side won the title in the most dramatic of circumstances.
The Gaels made the perfect start to the game. Conor Watson opened the scoring from a close-range free, before Patrick Reihill smashed the ball to the roof of the Harps net with just two minutes on the clock.
Derrygonnelly struggled to get their hands on the ball with the Gaels extending their advantage through Jamie Steele and Ethan Beresford, before Conall Rasdale scored the Harps’ first point after five minutes.
Enniskillen were dominating around the middle and they stretched further ahead through a free from Watson, a two-point free from goalkeeper Eoin Beacom, and Steele and Reihill scores, to the delight of their fans.
Eoghan Hoy pointed for Derrygonnelly’s second score after 23 minutes, with Rasdale following suit.
Watson and Patrick Durkin then traded scores, before Derrygonnelly’s Rasdale, who finished the game with an impressive haul of ten points, converted another free to cut the half-time deficit to 1-9 to 0-5.
At the break, Derrygonnelly rang the changes, introducing Jarlath Flanagan and Rory Smyth into the fray.
The duo helped the Harps get control of the ball around the middle third, with Flanagan landing two two-point scores from play, and Niall McKenna tagging on a free to reduce the Enniskillen advantage to two.
McKenna added another to reduce it to one, before Steele kicked a strong two-pointer for the Gaels.
Stephen Gilroy scored for the Harps with 41 minutes played, as they brought in Bryan McKenna, Michael Duffy and Michael Jones who all helped the resurgent Derrygonnelly get a foothold in the final.
Beresford extended the Enniskillen advantage to four, before Derrygonnelly replied with scores from Declan Cassidy and two frees from Rasdale to leave one between the sides with nine minutes to play.
Watson and Fabio Ledwith kicked scores to put the Gaels three in front again. However, Rasdale, a contender for man of the man, hit three late frees, one a two-pointer, to force the encounter to extra time.
With both sides having scores changes in the first period of 10 minutes, Derrygonnelly showed their clinical side with Dara Burns, Rasdale (2) and Gavin McGovern scoring to put them four points ahead.
During extra-time, Enniskillen switched their goalkeeper, with Eoin Beacom going outfield, while defender Aaron Nolan, who put in an impressive shift during the 60 minute period, pulling on the keeper’s jersey.
In the second period of extra-time, Beacom tagged another two-point free to cut the deficit to two.
With four minutes played, Watson then levelled the game with a spectacular two-point score from play.
Both sides had chances and Derrygonnelly converted two late scores from Rasdale and sub McGovern to leave two scores between the sides with the clock showing 80 minutes played in Brewster Park.
Despite calls for the referee to blow up the extra-time period, he adjudged that there would be four minutes of additional time, and Enniskillen would eventually hit the winning goal.
Sub Conor Kelly won the ball and he played it to the onrunning Adam McShea who fired goalward.
His effort was parried away by Harps goalkeeper Sean Farrell, with McGandy bundling the ball to the net as the final whistle sounded in Brewster Park, with the Gaels retaining the Erne Cup Division 1 title.