Heartbreak again for UCC United

There was a sense of deja vu for United last weekend as they lost by the odd goal in three for the second week running. Once again they ended up playing against 10 men.

It was a battling performance by United, but they ran out of time in the end when they had 10-man Supervalu pinned back inside their own half for the last 20 minutes of a tempestuous game.
Supervalu started the brighter of the two and came close on two occasions. Supervalu striker Maurice O'Keeffe was proving a handful for the United defence. He sat on the shoulder of UCC United centre half Ronan O'Dubhghaill and was marginally onside when he broke clear to shoot just wide leaving Romain Gosselin in the United goal stranded. UCC United weathered the storm and were starting to get on top as the half progressed. Noel Browne and Joel Walmsley up front were very busy and Browne in particular was carving out some promising chances. It was Supervalu however who hit the front through a smashing goal from O'Keeffe. A long ball out of defence was not attacked by the UCC defence and the striker hit a half volley from the edge of the box into the top left hand corner of the net. Gosselin had no chance and will have to wait for the Echo to read what happened.

UCC fought back from this setback however but weren't rewarded with an instant goal as they were against RCI the previous week. Their best chance came with a quick break from a Supervalu corner. Deckie Jordan reacted quickest to break from the edge of his own box and a pass from Browne put him away. It was two against one but the Supervalu defender handled on the edge of his own box to prevent a clear goal from Walmsley. The referee showed remarkable mercy by brandishing only a yellow card.

The second half was only 10 minutes old when Supervalu got their second. Another long ball wasn't handled well by the UCC defence, but the Supervalu striker did handle it well, literally, and despite a good effort from Gosselin found the back of the net. The referee waved away UCC's protests.

The remaining 30 minutes or so proved to be very tempestuous. Supervalu's second goal scorer was cautioned for kicking the ball away after being blown for offside. Only minutes later he was sent to the for striking UCC's centre half O'Dubhghaill. It was symptomatic of the final 20 minutes of the game as UCC went chasing a result. They were frustrated again and again by resolute Supervalu defending. Dave Morrissey and Anthony Coomey in the middle of the park were very impressive throughout and particularly as the game entered the final phase. Morrissey scored with less than five minutes remaining and it was some consolation for his man-of-the-match performance. The equaliser evaded the College side as time ran out.

In the first game between the clubs earlier in the season, Supervalu ran out very comfortable 5-1 winners. It is cold comfort for United that they have progressed this season to be able to hold their own with the best teams in this league. They still find it difficult to turn narrow defeats into draws or even victories and are still struggling to convert the chances being created. The problem of trying to get consistency in team selection is also a big difficulty (once again this Saturday there were no subs available which could have made a big difference on a heavy pitch in very warm weather as they chased the game). However, there is a lot to be positive about as the club comes towards the end of its very first season. If the nucleus of this side remains in place with a few more additions in the close season, these games will prove to be great experience.

UCC United: R. Gosselin; D. Jordan, D. Soden, R. O'Dubhghaill, S. Coffey; J. Hepburn, D. Morrissey, A. Coomey, A. Gibbs; J. Walmsley, N. Browne.