Villa retain title as first half power show downs Celtic

TEMPLE Villa successfully retained the ADSL Futsal Stacey Cup by virtue of a 3-1 victory over AC Celtic Hawks in the final of the tournament at Athlone IT last Thursday evening. Hundreds of proud parents and friends turned up at AIT for the latter stages of the competition, and they were treated to a total of 33 goals from eight matches - an average of more than four goals per game from the quarter-final stage. The tournament, organised by the Athlone & District Schoolboy/Girl League, was again a rip-roaring success. And so, too, were this fine Temple Villa side, who brought the competition"s main trophy back to Mount Temple for a second year running. Villa, managed by Eddie Sleator, did most the damage during a first half in which they netted all three of their goals. The speed and sheer powerful nature of their attacking play caught AC Celtic off guard in the early stages. And although AC Celtic kept trying and showed lots of heart, they were always fighting a losing cause after going 3-0 down before the interval. AC Celtic came into the final unbeaten after impressing greatly during five group matches and the subsequent quarter and semi-final stages. Temple Villa seemed to grow as the competition progressed though, and were physically stronger than many of their opponents. Patrick Sleator, Darren Hynes and Billy Berry grabbed first-half goals for Villa, and such a hefty half-time advantage provided too big a mountain for Celtic"s brave heroes to climb. The game started in somewhat nervy fashion with neither side wanting to give anything away in the opening stages. Temple Villa drew first blood but Patrick Sleator"s long range drive was always going well wide of the target. Seconds later, AC Celtic broke upfield and almost got through Villa"s rock solid rearguard. However, the towering Patrick Sleator was on hand to cut out Liam Flowers" attempted through ball to Chris Roche. Patrick Sleator again tried his luck from long range but his well struck effort was narrowly wide. However, Sleator"s shoot-on-sight philosophy reaped its rewards in the fourth minute when his drive slipped through the grasp of AC Celtic "keeper Cathal Mannion and into the back of the net. Cue wild celebrations in the Temple Villa camp. And once they found the elusive breakthrough, there was no stopping a rampant Temple Villa. They doubled the advantage within seconds of their first goal. This time, Billy Berry set up Darren Hynes and he calmly slotted the ball past the exposed Cathal Mannion. Villa were dominating every sector of the court and could have gone further in front had AC Celtic"s Chris Roche not made a terrific block to deny Billy Berry a certain goal. AC Celtic rallied briefly but Chris Roche"s drive was well held by Keith Malynn, who provided a safe last line of defence for Temple Villa. With only a minute remaining in the first half, Villa more or less put the game to bed. Cathal Mannion did superbly to save from Stephen Connolly"s original drive but Billy Berry followed up to blast the rebound into the roof of the net. There was still time before the interval for AC Celtic"s Chris Roche to strike the post with a thunderous drive but Villa"s three-goal half-time advantage gave them a safe lead at the break. Celtic spent the majority of the second half on the attack and stretched every muscle to claw their way back in the contest. Chris Roche tested Keith Malynn early on but the Villa "keeper coped comfortably. Midway through the second period, AC Celtic found some hope when Chris Roche, their most impressive player on the night, netted a wonderful individual goal. Roche lifted the ball delicately over a Villa defender"s head before striking a well hit volley past Keith Malynn. Unfortunately for AC Celtic, they were running out of time and staring defeat in the face. Villa generally managed to weather the storm and almost added to their tally when Stephen Connolly was denied by Celtic "keeper Cathal Mannion, who was beaten in the final minute only for defender Liam Flowers to clear off the goal line and leave the final score at 3-1 in Temple Villa"s favour. Temple Villa are worthy champions and are certainly setting the standard in the two-year old Futsal Tournament. The gauntlet has been laid down to their rivals in the ADSL before next year"s tournament. If next year"s event is anything like this, everyone can look forward to another treat of Futsal in Athlone. Meanwhile, two goals by Luke Carty gave Hodson Bay a 2-0 win over Willow Park in the third/fourth place play-off. Temple Villa Seals: Keith Malynn; Patrick Sleator; Billy Berry; Stephen Connolly; Sean Pettit; Darren Hynes; Dylan Molloy; Kevin O"Flaherty. AC Celtic: Cathal Mannion; Patrick Joyce; Liam Flowers; Cathal Stacey; Chris Roche; Timmi Olahede; Shane Duffy; Dean Kelly. Referee: Declan O"Connor.