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Blue sky and Sun, Ellenfield Park pitch perfect, 8 players warming up for their Cup encounter against St Kevin’s Boys, what more could you ask for. One more player would help given it was a 9-a-side game. Cue Patrick Buie who trotted into view from the Holy Child Church horizon. Referee promptly blew and the game was underway.
Castleknock Celtic had been duly briefed on the task ahead. They were reminded that they have skill in abundance, but it must be complemented with commitment and 100 per cent work rate, especially when there are no replacements on the bench due to injuries etc. So it was out of the traps immediately as Celtic swarmed forward. They put down a marker early on as they took the game to SKB. Wave after wave of attack saw successive efforts on goal from the Celtic front man Oleg Sinkevics, followed quickly by Gavin Peters, Callum Daly and a blistering effort from Callum Coffey that was tipped around the post by the excellent SKB keeper. These were superbly supported by the back four who defended stoutly when called upon, but they were equally comfortable coming forward to link up with their attacking colleagues. Andrew McGee was his reliable self picking out the pass when time permitted, inside him was Cillian Garvey who never flinches, deputising today at right full back was Patrick Buie who fitted perfectly into the role and was always trying to be creative and attack-minded, and at the heart of the defence, Oisin Dunne.
Full marks and thanks to Jerome Powell who stepped into Alex Phelan’s boots today in goal as Celtic’s usual Number 1 was out injured. Jerome did not put a foot wrong and kept a clean sheet in that first half, which ended goalless, though there were a couple of scary moments in the Celtic box when SKB threatened to grab the lead, but robust defending kept the Celtic goal intact.
The second half saw more of the same, and in fact Celtic were even more in control. Patrick had taken over goal duties, and he also kept a clean sheet. At the other end, almost everyone on the visiting team wanted to try their hand at scoring. While Celtic always held their shape, there was almost seamless movement between defenders and attackers. Jerome was now outfield and he was having his best game in a Celtic shirt on the right hand side and was a constant source of trouble for the SKB midfield and defence.
7 minutes after the break, it looked like Callum Daly was sure to score but his shot from the left hand side drifted wide of the far post. Oleg was demonstrating his full repertoire of skills and couldn’t wait to bulge the net. Less than a minute after Callum, Oleg shot low and hard but into the side netting. Man of the match, Oisin Dunne who was supreme throughout, was unlucky to lose out in a heading duel from the resultant corner kick. Not surprisingly, it was Oleg who made the breakthrough 12 minutes into the half, he jinked past the defender and placed the ball perfectly into the far corner, which was no more than he and his team deserved. 8 minutes later, it was Gavin Peters’ turn to head goalward, but it looped over the crossbar. But he made no mistake soon after when his perfectly flighted corner with his trusty left foot sailed into the net over the keeper and his defence, and there was a little more daylight between the teams. He was unlucky 2 minutes later when brave goalkeeping denied him a second. Callum Daly was again just wide with an effort after he had skinned the full back and weaved his way into an attacking position.
28 minutes into the half, Patrick crowned his debut performance when he got possession 18 metres out, and he let fly with his cultured left foot and the ball torpedoed its way into the top left hand corner. It was then the turn of Oleg to get his second after Jerome and Patrick had combined to set him up, but the centre forward’s finish was bullet-like. Within 90 seconds he was only denied his hat trick by the SKB keeper whose performance today was immense. He had no chance for the final goal almost at the final whistle when Callum Daly got his reward for a fine performance of attacking and defending as he hit a sublime unstoppable shot from 15 metres.
Thus it ended 5-0 away to SKB, a very satisfying win for Celtic who waited for today as their previous performances in the B1 division had not been rewarded as they were hampered by a depleted squad, but today with the full nine, they shone brightly. They now look forward to the 2nd round of the Cup when who knows they might be drawn against Celtic’s B team who are one division higher. The spectators cannot wait for the next episode of exciting football and today was full of it. Well done boys. more match action
