Roscommon's promotion hopes suffer a big blow with defeat against Cavan
Shane Cunnane and his Roscommon team-mates were second best against Cavan. Picture: INPHO/Tom Maher
Cavan ensured that the second promotion berth from Division Two is very much up for grabs after shocking Roscommon at King and Moffatt Dr. Hyde Park.
With Monaghan all but assured of an immediate return to Division One, Cavan brought their promotion push to the final day with a thoroughly deserved success.
Raymond Galligan’s side trailed by two points at the break, having missed two clearcut goal chances.
But they recovered from a four-point deficit early in the second half to turn the game on its head and take Roscommon’s hopes of returning to top-flight football out of their own hands.
Cavan were arguably the better team during the opening 35 minutes, despite trailing by two points at the break.
They missed two glaring goal chances as Barry Donnelly blazed wide with the goal at his mercy and Gearoid McKiernan brought a great save out of Roscommon goalkeeper Conor Carroll.
Enda Smith and Dara McVeety swapped the opening two scores of the contest before points from Ultan Harney and Cian McKeon edged the Rossies 0-3 to 0-1 ahead.
A Conor Cox two-pointer from play stretched the home side’s lead further but it wasn’t long before Cavan, through a combination of their midfield dominance and turnovers, wrestled back the initiative.
Cormac O’Reilly hit two points in quick succession but Conor Hand responded for Roscommon with a perfectly-executed two-point free off the ground.
However, Cavan’s feathers weren’t ruffled, Cavan weren’t discouraged though, and frees from Gearóid McKiernan and Cian Madden alongside points from play substitute Seán McEvoy, McKiernan (free) and Cormac O’Reilly edged the Breffni men 0-8 to 0-7 ahead after 27 minutes.
But Roscommon were more efficient in the lead-up to half time. Cian McKeon and Jason Smith swapped points before a ’45 from Hand and a Ciarán Murtagh score just before the hooter left Davy Burke’s side 0-11 to 0-9 at the change of ends.
A free from an acute angle by McKiernan on the resumption left the bare minimum between them but a Ciaráin Murtagh point was followed by two Conor Cox frees after referee Seán Hurson brought the ball forward 50 metres twice when Eddie Nolan was prevented from going forward after claiming possession in the middle of the field.
But Roscommon couldn’t push on from there. McKiernan tagged on a free before a couple of two-pointers in quick succession from Dara McVeety and Gearóid McKiernan, from a monstrous free, edged Cavan in front.
A brilliant individual point from Conor Hand brought the sides level as the nip and tuck nature of the contest continued.
But Roscommon continued to play in fits and starts as Cavan looked more fluent in attack.
Cormac O’Reilly landed his fourth point of the afternoon before Cian Madden, Seán McEvoy and Barry Donnelly kept the scoreboard ticking over.
Ciaráin Murtagh missed a goal chance for the hosts, palming Shane Cunnane’s pass off the crossbar.
Diarmuid Murtagh marked his introduction with a point, while Enda Smith and Ciaráin Murtagh (free) kept their side in touch.
McVeety and McEvoy pushed Cavan three points ahead, and even though Diarmuid Murtagh pared back the deficit to two points from a free, there wasn’t enough time for Roscommon to make further inroads as Cavan held on for one of their best league results in years to ensure an exciting conclusion to Division Two next weekend.
Cavan: Gary O’Rourke; Niall Carolan, Brian O’Connell, Cian Reilly; Padraig Faulkner, Ciarán Brady, Luke Fortune; James Smith (0-01), Gerard Smith; Oisín Brady, Barry Donnelly (0-01), Dara McVeety (0-04, 1 2p); Cian Madden (0-3, 2f), Gearoid McKiernan (0-06, 1 2pf 4f), Cormac O’Reilly (0-04). Subs: Seán McEvoy (0-03) for Oisín Brady (13), Ryan O’Neill for McVeety (temp 26-28), Evan Crowe for Fortune (49), Thomas Edward Donohoe for O’Reilly (55), Ryan O’Neill for Smith (57).
Roscommon: Conor Carroll; Ruaidhrí Fallon, John McManus, Niall Higgins; Shane Cunnane, David Murray, Robbie Dolan; Enda Smith (0-02), Eddie Nolan; Ciaráin Murtagh (0-03, 1f), Ultan Harney (0-01), Conor Hand (0-04, 1 2pf, 1’45); Ben O’Carroll, Cian McKeon (0-03), Conor Cox (0-4, 1 2p, 2f). Subs: Shane Killoran for Harney (temp 10-23), Colm Neary for Dolan (35), Diarmuid Murtagh (0-3, 2f) for Cox (48), Keith Doyle for Harney (48), Daire Cregg for McKeon (63), Dylan Ruane for Cunnane (68).
Referee: Seán Hurson (Tyrone).
