Mixed fortunes in Kennedy Cup for Midlands outfit

The Midlands Schoolboy League U-13 team was unable to secure any silverware at the Kennedy Cup tournament held in the University of Limerick last week.

The Midlands outfit finished third in their group which put them into the Shield quarter-finals where they faced Clare. Having led 3-0 at half-time of that quarter-final, the MSL saw their hopes of advancing crushed by Clare striker Kalyum Mata, who scored five goals for his side.

In the end, the Midlands finished 22nd. Here is a recap of the games involving the Midlands team.

Midlands 1 Limerick Desmond 2

After an early second half goal from Jordan Daly it looked like Midlands would hold out but the Limerick outfit netted twice in the last few minutes to take all three points.

It was Midlands who started the brighter with Lochlann Fletcher carving out a chance which was well saved. The Limerick side then wrestled back control up until the water break but the Midlands defence held them out well. Both sides carved out chances but couldn't make a breakthrough before half-time.

Within minutes of the resumption, Midlands substitute Jordan Daly expertly finished into the net. The Midlanders controlled the game up until the last ten minutes. With eight left on the clock, Dan Healy lashed a penalty into the top corner to level matters.

With time almost up, both sides created chances to win the game and Antosh Stasczak's effort was expertly saved. With the last play of the game Leon O’Connor finished well to ensure victory for his side.

Midlands 2 Cavan/Monaghan 1

In a role reversal of the first game as the Midlands fought back to win this tie in the last couple of minutes to grab their first three points of the tournament. From early on the Midlands side pressed up high on their opponents.

This nearly paid off after four minutes when Lochlann Fletcher's effort flew over the bar. After the water break all the chances came to the midlanders, with Cormac Graham, Cillian Gavin and Fletcher all coming close.

Against the run of play, the Ulster side opened the scoring when Eoin Kelly long range free kick evaded everyone to find the back of the net. Not to be deterred, Fletcher levelled the tie within three minutes. It wasn't until five minutes to go when Midlands finally took the lead as Antosh Stasczak was awarded a penalty which was slotted away by Joshua Coyne to give his side a well deserved victory.

Midlands 0 South Belfast 3

It wasn't to be for the Midlands side as their Northern counterparts, the eventual overall winners, got the better of them in their final group game. This result meant they finished third in their group.

The Midlands side did produce a very good defensive display in the first half keeping their counterparts scoreless up until the break.

It wasn't until just before the second water break that the deadlock was broken when Rocco Devlin opened the scoring with a well taken goal. After the final break two more goals were added, the first from Beto Unhabo with eight minutes remaining before Devlin finished off the scoring when he doubled his tally. The Midlands were drawn to play Clare in the Shield quarter-final last Wednesday evening in UL.

Midlands 3 Clare 5

A five star performance from Clare striker Kalyum Mata saw them beat Midlands after what was a strong first half performance from the opposition.

From the outset the Munster side had more possession than their opponents but couldn't break down a strong Midlands defence. After the water break and against the run of play the Midlands side managed to net three goals inside ten minutes. The first of these came after a great pass from David O’Shea to Sam Meegan, who controlled and finished expertly into the corner.

Minutes later, they doubled their advantage when Culainn McEvoy managed to head in a ball from a corner. With the last play of the half Midlands extended their lead when Clare’s Daithí Ryan put the ball into his own net.

It looked like the tie was out of sight but one player changed this quarter-final in the second half. This was Clare striker Kaylum Mata who managed to find the net five times in the second half. The last two of his goals came in added to time to give his side a victory which looked out of the question at the interval. This meant Midlands would play Carlow in the shield placing game on Thursday.

Midlands 1 Carlow 1 (Midlands win 5-4 on pens)

After a tough outing the previous day, the Midlands side showed some serious character to win a penalty shootout against Carlow. From the outset of this game it was very clear that nothing would separate the sides.

Moments after the second half resumed, Carlow broke away against the run of play to take the lead with a strike from Owen Fitzharris. Within a couple of minutes the tie was leveled as Sam Meegan controlled a pass from Conor Keeshan to fire home.

As the final whistle drew closer penalties looked inevitable until Carlow were awarded one which was brilliantly saved by Tom McCaul. This save brought the tie to a penalty shootout. Midlands managed to score all five of their penalties through Jayden Daly, Mark Dunne, Sam Meegan, Donnacha Seery and Joshua Coyne. A save on Carlow's final effort by McCaul ensured victory for Midlands. This left them to play Wicklow on Friday morning to decide 21st/22nd place.

Midlands 2 Wicklow 4

It wasn't to be for the Midlands after a spirited effort as their Wicklow opponents got the better of them in a six-goal thriller on Friday.

From the opening whistle Midlands defended with a lot of heart and were eventually broken down when Wicklow fired in a direct free kick to take the lead. After the break Midlands levelled the tie after four minutes when Sam Meegan’s rocket flew into the top corner of the net. They were pinned back moments later as the opposition took the lead for the second time. Just before the second break in play the tie was level again as Oliver Goulding found the back of the net.

This was the closest they got as Wicklow netted twice in the last 15 minutes to ensure victory.

Speaking afterwards, Midlands manager Darren Whelan described it as "a tournaments of ups and downs really”. He noted that his side was small in stature but wanted to play their preferred style of football and stick to their principles.

Midlands squad: Tom McCaul (Mullingar Athletic), Antosh Stasczak (Kinnegad Juniors), Marius Buividavicius (Mullingar Athletic), Aaron Martin (St Joseph’s), Culainn McEvoy (Portlaoise AFC), Connor Keeshan (Birr Town), Cormac Graham (T&S United), Sam Meegan (St Francis), Jayden Daly (Tullamore Town), Cillian Gavin (St Joseph’s), Ilyan O’Dwyer (Portlaoise AFC) Conor O’Neill (Temple Villa), David O'Shea (Tullamore Town), Lochlann Fletcher (Frankford Utd), Joshua Coyne (Hodson Bay Celtic), Daniel Hynes (Edenderry Town), Mark Dunne (Killeigh), Oliver Goulding (Edenderry Town), Donnacha Seery (Edenderry Town), Danny Breen (Portlaoise AFC).

Manager: Darren Whelan. Coaches: Simon Dagg, Ciaran Nestor, Cormac Nee. Goalkeeping coach: Ken Gorman. Analyst: Ethan Dagg. Head of Delegation: Derek Collins.