Grass can get greener but McCloy can be happy with Lough’s start.

Third gear was scarcely needed by Greenlough as they fired a proper warning shot to the rest of intermediate football. This was them in cruise control. This was them minus Kevin McCann and John Og McPeake. This was them beating borderline top half team by ten points, without ever having really to break sweat.

Niall Bradley didn’t dominate at midfield and yet they won two thirds of the kick outs. The forward line only clicked in fits and starts, and yet all six of them scored from play.

This wasn’t completely fluid, it wasn’t world beating, but it was enough to win a championship game by ten points.

That will be a frightening thing to read for the Craigbanes, Castledawsons and Ballymaguigans, who maybe all fancy themselves to get their hands on some silverware later in the year.

When Neil Mc Cloy took over, his primary aim was not the championship. Greenlough having knocked on the door but been turned away a few times are looking to cross the threshold of senior football.

Five wins from five league games shows they are taking care of that end of things and they came to Newbridge with their cup of confidence overflowing.

The fifth of those victories was a nineteen victory over this same Drumsurn side, just four days before this clash. Despite a pre-match talk that nearly blew the changing room door off its hinges, there is little you can do to change players’ mindsets. For 15 minutes, Greenlough seemed to wait for things to happen, expecting Drumsurn to rollover and have their bellies tickled.

That wasn’t going to happen. In fairness, right up until Fintan Kelly put the wean to bed with Greenlough’s second goal in injury time. Drumsurn tried their best to make a game of it.

Their defence strained sinew to keep them in touch, Dane Mullan had a decent game in the corner, while Cahir Mullan finished the game well at corner back. Paul Butcher was the driving force during the second half purple patch with his powerful running from deep.

But the further up field it went, the more it fell apart. Pierce McNickle was threatening to give Gary Loughlin a headache in the first 10 minutes, when a few diagonal balls found the Drumsurn full-forward, though he couldn’t register a score.

But from the minute they pulled him out to the wing-forward and put Gerard Curley on the edge of the square their attacking threat died a slow death. Gary Loughlin was superb for the rest of the game.

Drumsurn weren’t helped either by playing a two-man full-forward line. While Martin Mullan broke up a few Greenlough sweeping in front of his full-back line, pulling him out left Chris Lagan free for Greenlough. He was the catalyst for almost every single attacking move from deep.

Curley came off the bench for his first game in two years, replacing the injured Ryan Mullan after just 12 minutes, but for the 18 minutes that remained in the first half, his team mates gave him no service.

In those 18 minutes, Greenlough took over at midfield and turned parity into a seven point lead.

A quick free out on the sideline helped keep the momentum in an attack that saw Thompson McCann get forward to feed Cormac O’Neill. Stephen Harbinson Committed himself and O’Neill waltzed around him to fire home a 23rd minute goal.

Enda Lynn (two, one free) and Fintan Kelly raised flags before the interval to see the Clady men into a 1-05 to 0-01 lead when Ciaran Brolly blew the half-time whistle.

It was a lead they’d merited on the balance of play, but one point was an unfair return for the effort Drumsurn had put in. They kicked six wides in the first 30 minutes, but they lacked the focal point of an attack that the injured Ciaran Mullan would have given them.

Drumsurn’s most dangerous player in the league game between the two had been the pacy young Cathair Friel, but he was Milk Cup tied and missed this clash.

Those two would certainly have tightened the gap on the scoreboard, but they wouldn’t have won it for the men in the unfamiliar green and white of their amalgamated underage sides.

Mickey Coll and Chris (aka Jack) Harbinson struggled beneath kick outs but in open play, they were two of the more influential figures on the field, constantly trying to drive things on. Curley made a bit of a difference when he came out into the middle after half time.

It was partly down to their refusal to surrender that Ferris’ side conceded the second goal in injury time. They were 8 points down, but they never dropped their heads.

Paul Butcher and Jonny Irwin were both involved in setting up an attack that was broken up by Niall Bradley on the Greenlough 45’. The whole half-back line was caught up field and Seamus Graham had acres to run into, unselfishly feeding Fintan Kelly to cut inside and lash past Stephen Harbinson from eight yards.

Greenlough had forwards that were able to put that gloss on the score line. Had it come down to it, they would have had the forwards to put the game away. That was essentially the difference.

Neil McCloy knows he has the forwards to put away most teams they’ll face this year. Such is the depth of his squad and the competition for places that Paul Downey, midfield on the championship winning team of 2007, was in the squad of 24 for the first time this year on Thursday night.

“We were without Kevin McCann there tonight, with out John Og McPeake for seven weeks with a broken leg, but the competition for places is immense”, said McCloy after the final whistle.

The reserves are also sitting top of the league and that’s what we want. Of course we want players challenging. This gives us confidence, it’s something to build on and if we continue to make the strides, we’re hopeful we’d be good enough for any opposition.

“I didn’t think we played the football we were really capable of, but the character and determination that we have there was good”.

“There were some nice passages of play but it shows what we have to work on for the next round and to continue in the league”.

That was the Greenlough synopsis. Drumsurn’s was more concise. Straight to the point. A four second interview.

“We were beaten by the better team. That’s all there was to it,” was Richard Ferris’ reaction.

He too can take positives from the defeat. It was a major improvement on the performance in the league game a week earlier. With his full deck to choose from, his troops wouldn’t have been that far away. They may still have some say in the championship before the seasons over.

But they can’t afford to lose important players. Ciaran Mullan was due for a consultancy on Friday morning and was hopeful the knee injury he’s picked up isn’t as serious as first feared. He could be back in a matter of weeks.

Greenlough have that bit of an airbag that allows them to take an injury hit or two and still win tough championship games against good sides by ten points, and do it without getting out of third gear. It’s why they’re the most feared side in the intermediate league at the minute. Good luck to whoever gets them next.

Drumsurn
Stephen Harbinson; Dane Mullan, Michéal Archibald, Craig Chewning; Johnny Irwin, Cahir Mullan, Paul Butcher; Christopher Harbinson (0-03), Michael Coll; Ciaran Ferris, Dean O'Neill, Ryan Mullan; Mark McLaughlin (0-01), Pierce McNickle (0-02), Martin Mullan

Subs
Gerard Curley (0-01) for Ryan Mullan (12 mins), Ronan McNickle for Dean O'Neill (55 mins)