CLERIHAN SCHOOLBOYS FC

U13A LEAGUE CAHIR PARK 3 CLERIHAN 1

The u13A squad went down to a surprise defeat in Cahir and , after their exit from the SFAI cup , have yet to kick-start their season. Shane Hickey gave Clerihan the lead after 10 minutes but Cahir were back on level terms within a few minutes. Despite creating plenty of chances , Clerihan lacked the killer instinct in front of goal and went into the half-time break on a 1-1 scoreline. Any hopes that Clerihan would pick it up in the second half were dashed when Cahir scored within minutes of the restart. The home side killed the game off with a third goal and Clerihan could find no way through a good Cahir defence. On a disappointing day , Conor Horan was very solid in defence but there was a lack of creativity in midfield and poor finishing in attack.

U13B LEAGUE CLERIHAN 0 BURNCOURT CELTIC 2

Despite the defeat , this was a tremendous effort from the u13B squad and a huge improvement on their opening game in this league. Clerihan suffered the worst possible start when the defence stood still to allow a Burncourt attacker hit a half-volley to the net from 12 metres within 2 minutes. This was to be the only slip-up from a defence that went on to give a great display. Both full-backs, John Mulcahy and Daniel Browne were immense while , in the centre , Cathal Maloney and Cathal Ryan have rarely played better than this. Behind them , Michael Cleary gave a wonderful performance with a string of great saves. Clerihan’s man-of-the-match Kevin Freier was unlucky not to level matters after a great run through the defence while Christopher Brabston looked certain to do so only to see his effort come back off the post and into the goalie’s arms. It was 1-0 to Burncourt at half-time and , ten minutes into the second half , they grabbed a second to make the game safe. However , Clerihan never gave up and everybody ran themselves into the ground in an effort to pull a goal back. Seamus McMahon had a brilliant game and must be the most improved player in the club at the moment.