Dr McKenna Cup Round 2
Fermanagh 1-12
Cavan 1-10
A BIG finish from Fermanagh helped them to a deserved two-point victory over Cavan in the Dr McKenna Cup in Tempo on Wednesday evening, as Declan Bonner got his Erne campaign off to a winning start.
Played at a drizzly St Patrick’s Park in Tempo, Cavan started the brighter of the sides with Ryan Donohoe and Cormac O’Reilly kicking good scores to give the Breffni side an early advantage.
Fermanagh were slow to settle but they eventually got off the mark when wing half back Fionan O’Brien fisted the ball over the bar with five minutes on the clock to open their account.
Erne youngster Cian O’Brien, who made his Dr McKenna Cup debut, then levelled the game with nine minutes played, before Garvan Jones pointed a close-range free to put them one in front.
With 12 minutes played and against the run of play, Cavan struck for the game’s opening goal.
Cavan turned the ball over deep in their own half and Gearoid McKiernan charged down the pitch, offloading to the talented Caoimhin McGovern who fired high to the roof of the Erne net.
O’Reilly then added a second for the Breffni men to put them three ahead after 15 minutes.
Minutes later, O’Brien hit back with a close-range free for Fermanagh, before the Erne men created a good goal chance when Jones found himself in space, but his effort was smothered by the Cavan goalkeeper.
Devenish man O’Brien, who was enjoying a half to remember, then reduced the deficit to one point.
Stephen McGullion turned over a Cavan kickout with good fielding in the middle, passing off to Jones who unleashed an effort from distance to level the game in Tempo, with five minutes of the first half remaining.
McGovern, who returned to the Cavan lineup following a period of ill health, edged the Breffni men back in front when he cut down the endline, before fisting the ball over Seán McNally’s crossbar.
Late in the half, Cavan sharp-shooter Paddy Lynch kicked the game’s first two-point score from play, firing over accurately off his right foot, to extend his team’s lead to three points.
Joe McDade and McKiernan then traded scores to leave the Cavan men 1-07 to 0-07 up at the break.
In his first Dr McKenna Cup game as Fermanagh manager, Declan Bonner rang the changes at the break, introducing Conor Love and Ciaran Corrigan into the fray.
Fermanagh made a strong start after the restart, putting the pressure on their opponents and with 34 minutes on the clock, they struck for a well-worked goal to level the game.
After turning over the ball high up the pitch, Josh Largo Elis went on a surging run, fisting the ball across the face of goal to midfielder Stephen McGullion, who palmed to the net, to the delight of the Erne fans.
Buoyed by the goal, Fermanagh then surged in front following a good point from Declan McCusker.
Both management teams made changes in the third quarter, with Fermanagh and Cavan guilty of coughing up some good scoring chances, as the rain continued to drizzle down at St Patrick’s Park.
The next score didn’t arrive for 12 minutes, when Donohoe levelled the game for the Breffni men.
Donohoe carried the fight for Cavan and he kicked a good free off the ground to put Cavan one ahead.
With nine minutes remaining, substitute Aogan Kelm levelled the game when he fisted the ball over the Cavan crossbar, to set up a tense finish at St Patrick’s Park.
Cian Shackleton, who played a key role in Kingscourt Stars’ championship win in Cavan last season, then popped up with a good score with 57 minutes on the clock to put the Breffni men into the ascendency.
But there was still time for Fermanagh and Belnaleck’s Darragh McGurn kicked over a monstrous two-point score from distance to swing the lead into the Erne men’s favour.
In the fifth minute of added time, Jones tagged on a late free, to put two between the sides, wrapping up a deserved win for Fermanagh in Tempo.
