Castletown outclass Fethard in stroll in the park
Jody O'Shaughnessy (Castletown) breaks away from Fethard's Jim Byrne.
CASTLETOWN WERE very much on song as they cruised to the most comfortable of 19-point victories over a poor Fethard outfit in this WFC Senior football championship quarter-final at Wexford Park on Sunday last.
Castletown were so much in control that the result was a foregone conclusion by the tenth minute, at which stage they led by 1-5 to 0-1. They completely overwhelmed the opposition with cohesive attacking football. Even at this early stage it was only a question of what their winning margin would be.
Fethard were so outclassed that it's difficult to understand how they had reached the knockout stages, as they were totally out of their depth. They were unable to muster any kind of a challenge as they were totally outplayed in every sector, and they are lucky that the defeat was not of greater proportions.
Castletown flew out of the blocks with points from Conor Carty (free) and Andy Merrigan inside three minutes. While a Philip Tubritt pointed free one minute later left the minimum separating the sides, that was as close Fethard were to get, as Castletown took the initiative through the midfield dominance of Tomás Sheehy and Jesse Foley, plus a sweet-moving attack, as they powered their way through the opposition defence with some ease.
Castletown points flowed from James Holmes with two (one free) and Anthony Masterson, before a sweeping move set up the game's opening goal on ten minutes. Colm Morris started the move deep in defence and worked the ball forward, combining with James Holmes, before setting up Brendan Halpin who finished superbly from an acute angle to give his side a 1-5 to 0-1 lead, leaving no way back for the Fethard side.
After James Holmes and Conor Carty had extended their side's lead with points, they had their second goal on 18 minutes when Anthony Masterson beat the 'keeper to a ball to finish to the net. While Fethard did respond with Damien Browne points, they still trailed by 2-9 to 0-3 at the interval.
The second 30 minutes were totally devoid of interest as Castletown's control of the game grew with each passing minute. They sprayed the ball about with speed and accuracy, leading to Masterson claiming his second goal after 37 minutes, courtesy of a dreadful mess in the Fethard defence.
Fethard's game deteriorated as the game progressed, if that was possible, with Castletown using their bench which did not hinder their dominance as they continued to pick off the scores. It was a welcome relief when referee Syl Doyle blew for fulltime as this was the most one-sided quarter-final seen at the venue for many years.
Castletown will be well pleased with their display and will now look forward to the semi-final against Adamstown with a degree of confidence.
