Willow Park come from behind

An heroic comeback against a dogged Killavilla Utd kept Willow Park"s hopes of retaining the Combined Counties Senior Division title alive and kicking when the side"s met on a windswept and rainy afternoon last Sunday. Reigning champions Willow went into the game with a two-point advantage over local rivals St Peter"s after eight matches. But their hopes of stretching that lead looked in serious jeopardy when Killavilla - playing with a serious wind advantage - took a 49th minute lead. However, Willow bravely rallied in abysmal conditions and showed great mettle to claw their way back into the game and emerge victorious. Colm Hyland and Earl Gaylard netted the Willow goals to give them a five-point margin over St Peter"s with one more game played. The season, though, is only at its midway point and there"s sure to be plenty more twists and turns as this two-horse race heats up. Willow went into the game without right-sided player Mark Rigney and Peter Sherlock, the latter of whom is on overseas duty with the Defence Forces, while experienced striker Brian Frawley was carrying a slight injury and wasn"t risked from the start. A ferocious wind was heavily in Willow"s favour during the opening half and they immediately set about building a lead before the turnaround. However, some of their attacking play was often hurried and somewhat panicky at stages. Despite this, they managed to create several clear-cut chances. After just four minutes, Aidan Hyland raced onto a ball over the top of Killavilla"s defence. Hyland took his shot early from just outside the box but the on-rushing Keith McMahon saved well with his feet. On ten minutes, Robert Shine and Alan Kelly worked a quick free-kick and the latter"s deep back post cross looked certain to be headed home by James Mullally until Aidan Hyland, who was always stretching, intervened and headed off target. Willow saw efforts by Mark McConnell and Gary McHugh come to nothing as their sense of frustration began to show. On 27 minutes, Benny Magennis shot with the outside of his boot from 18 yards but also missed the target by a fraction. Killavilla then fashioned a chance out of the blue but Earl Gaylard made a superb last-gasp tackle to deny Brian Brookes. The visitors" Darren Coleman was fortunate to escape unpunished for a lunging tackle on Mark McConnell, as Killavilla dug in with everything they had in a scrappy bid to reach half-time scoreless. With only forward Paul Kirwan looking a threat for Killavilla, they had little choice but to simply try and reach the interval with parity intact. On 36 minutes, Magennis set up Aidan Hyland but he sliced his effort wide when a goal looked likely. Magennis and Robert Shine also had efforts late in the half but the visitors somehow managed to reach the break without conceding. Killavilla would have been delighted to be level at the break and it soon got better for the visitors, when Paul Kirwan headed home a quickly taken corner kick by Darren Coleman in the 49th minute. Willow were stunned and now had the arduous task of dragging themselves back into the contest with a major breeze blowing in their faces. But they reacted brilliantly and went from strength to strength once Brian Frawley was introduced in the 50th minute. Manager Tony O"Sullivan and his backroom team will be delighted with the manner of Willow"s comeback and a victory in this game is a huge step towards the ultimate aim of retaining the league title. Three minutes after his introduction for Mark McConnell, Brian Frawley got behind the Killavilla defence and dinked a floated ball towards the back post but Colm Hyland misjudged the flight of the ball and another good chance disappeared without reward. Robert Shine then delivered a perfect cross from the right flank and Aidan Hyland should have netted with a diving header but missed the target in agonising fashion as Willow"s wait for a goal continued. The major contrast in how either side dealt with the dreadful weather conditions was fascinating, with Willow opting to play neat football from the back and through midfield despite being faced by a serious wind. In this respect, Robert Shine, Gary McHugh and Mark Nicholson stepped up to the plate and performed very well for the home side. Eventually a deserved equaliser arrived in the 65th minute when Magennis spotted Colm Hyland through on goal and he supplied a neat finish to level matters. Willow netminder Ian Bolger made a couple of good saves as Killavilla attacked in fits and starts but it was Willow who found a winning goal on 82 minutes when Earl Gaylard rose highest in a crowded penalty area to head home a vital goal for the Athlone outfit. Championships are often won or lost on days like these and three points on a horrendous day for football showed Willow Park have the heart for a battle as well as possessing some skilful footballers. WILLOW PARK: Ian Bolger; James Mullally; Alan Kelly; Earl Gaylard; Robert Shine; Mark Nicholson; Gary McHugh; Mark McConnell; Colm Hyland; Benny Magennis; Aidan Hyland. Subs: Brian Frawley for Mark McConnell (50 mins); Michael Harney for Magennis (76); Martin McConnell for Kelly (83). KILLAVILLA UTD: Keith McMahon; Harry Lupton; Darren O"Connor; Thomas Lupton; Damien Stone; Padraic Phelan; Darren Coleman; Liam England; Paul Kirwan; Paul Stone; Brian Brookes. REFEREE: Ray Matthews.