Grudge derby match fails to produce expected fireworks

CORTOON SHAMROCKS 0-9 MILLTOWN 0-9

THERE was no tribal blood-letting in the clash of the edgy neighbours at Tuam on Sunday evening, but at times this quarter-final clash could have done with a sprinkling of venom to spice up what turned out to be a rather dull dish.

True, the match was always competitive with rarely more than a kick of the ball between the sides, but despite the intensity of the endeavour, there was precious little hard evidence to suggest that either side will see a county final this year.

Milltown will probably be the more disappointed. They entered this match as pretty strong favourites to dispose of an expected spirited challenge from Cortoon, but in the end they were slightly fortunate to come away with a draw.

The outcome was never going to be as cut and dried as the money with the bookies last week had suggested, given that Cortoon have been well organised all year and don’t give much away soft inside their own 45, while some of the Milltown forwards haven’t any great liking for some of the more intimate contact with defenders.

In the end, Cortoon came within a whisker of pulling off one of the mild upsets of the quarter-finals, their quest denied by the missing of a couple of second half goal chances – although Milltown ‘keeper Conor Nolan must be given credit for one great stop at a critical juncture of the match.

Milltown, mainly through the defensive energy of Darren Mullahy – he has to be one of the most mobile players on the club scene – and the attacking probes of James Kavanagh, appeared to have huffed and puffed their way past the Cortoon challenge when they forged into a 0-9 to 0-8 lead as the game ticked into its 62nd minute.

Then up popped Derek Savage to grab a loose ball, before guiding a left footed missile from 40 yards straight over the bar to level the match for the last time – in the dying seconds the Shamrocks did forage for a late winner but it was not to be.

Savage will probably have breathed a huge sigh of relief at having delivered the late leveller, as just a few minutes earlier he had opted to try and set up a goal from an eminently scoreable 18 metre free, before Milltown cleared their lines.