Edenderry's footballing ethos keeps them on course as Durrow ask searching questions

THE new rules were showcased in all their glory in a really exciting entertaining Senior Football Championship tie in Durrow on Saturday evening as Edenderry got away in the second half for a win that was way harder earned than the score indicates – the nine point winning margin definitely flatters Edenderry as Durrow were still in with a chance with five minutes left and almost got right back into it when Dan Bourke rattled the crossbar at that stage.

Tullamore Court Hotel Senior Football Championship Group 1 Round 2

Edenderry 0-25

Durrow 2-10

Football is an infinitely better game since the new rules came in and we had everything here: two point scores, breaches of the three man back/forward rule and some great attacking football.

Another factor is that a game is very seldom over because of two pointers. Durrow made a dream start with two goals inside the first two minutes for a 2-0 to 0-1 lead. Just 13 seconds had gone when Mark Troy had the ball in the net for the first and the second arrived just after Cian Farrell had fired over a quality Edenderry point – Kevin McDermott was fouled and Steven Doran converted the penalty.

Durrow could not have hoped for a better launching pad and they played very well for a lot of the first half, asking really probing questions of Edenderry who did not find top gear until the second half. Last year, an early deficit like that might have been irretrievable as a team would be able to pack their defence, though in this case Edenderry would still probably have come back at them – while Durrow has a great footballing tradition, they have a lot of players whose focus is on hurling and this was always likely to be a telling factor, no matter what the rules were and this was also the case here.

With two pointers at play, it was clear that a two goal head-start meant little and Edenderry quickly got back into it with a two point free from Cian Farrell. Edenderry had three other failed two point attempts in the first half while centre half back Jack O'Brien got two spectacular ones for Durrow. These had them 2-6 to 0-10 ahead after 25 minutes of a great first half before points from Cian Farrell and Kaelem Bryan levelled it up at 0-12 to 2-6 at the interval – Sam Bourke had punched a good goal chance wide for Durrow in the 29^th minute.

A free flowing, tough, competitive and fast moving game kept the nice crowd on their toes and Edenderry were given a real battle but they were really good when it mattered and after beating Rhode in the first round, they are firmly on track for knockout football.

Durrow had all their hurlers playing. Ciaran Burke, Ross Ravenhill, Sam Bourke, Brian Duignan, Dan Bourke and Mark Troy are all county hurlers while Jack Fogarty was on the panel this year. Hurling and winning the senior with Ballinamere is their priority but they are permission players there, members of Durrow and it was a very good thing to see them all line out here.

Ciaran Burke, Ross Ravenhill and Dan Bourke in particular would probably be county footballers if concentrating on that code and have been been regulars for Durrow in recent years. Hurling goalkeeper Mark Troy and Jack Fogarty always line out for them as well but Brian Duignan has not always done so and Sam Bourke has not played much football in his short career.

The lack of football did show at times, especially with Sam Bourke and to a lesser extent, Brian Duignan - Bourke looked raw and made mistakes, purely from lack of football, but both him and Brian Duignan were physical, honest, made the hard runs, showed the right desire and were a definite factor in Durrow being so competitive. Duignan went from midfield into the full forward line in the second half, kicking a fine point straight away, and then going back out to the middle. He tried hard to make an impression while Sam Bourke also played his way into game, before being replaced just before the three quarter way stage – you had to admire the battling qualities of both.

That point followed by a Kevin McDermott two point free and a Barry O'Rourke free, awarded for a two man breach, put Durrow 2-10 to 0-12 ahead and in with a real chance of an upset

Edenderry were in a difficult predicament but the difference in football played and football training told a powerful tale in the closing twenty minutes as Durrow failed to score after O'Rourke's 36^th minute free.

The winners were full of running, carving holes through the Durrow defence in the closing quarter and ending up with a very pleasing 25 points. The scoreline does not reflect how competitive Durrow were for a lot of it but when push came to shove, the home side ran out of legs, inspiration and ideas. And it should not be lost on Durrow that legs were not an issue for most of their county hurlers but some of their other players.

Edenderry were on level terms, 0-16 to 2-10 at 44 minutes and edged in front with a Cian Farrell '45' moments later. From here on, it was all very inevitable, though Durrow produced one moment of magic when still in the hunt at 54 minutes – trailing by just four points, 0-20 to 2-10, Ross Ravenhill made a great surge up the field before passing to his county colleague Dan Bourke. Bourke, a genuinely exciting footballer who played very well, despite the odd stray pass, was desperately unlucky to see his shot rebound off the cross bar, while he also had a shot blocked in the frantic follow up.

With just five minutes left, anything could have happened if that had ended in the net. Instead, Durrow's heads dropped and they gave up to an extent while Edenderry went for the jugular, adding five late points including a Cian Farrell two pointer and two from very impressive sub, Cillian Foran.

And while Durrow were a lot more competitive than people just looking at the score might think, Edenderry could have won by more as Lee Pearson missed two clearcut goal chances – Dermot Colbert made a terrific full length save with the first in the 45^th minute while he also saved well in injury time, though Pearson will be wondering how he didn't have at least one goal to his name.

MATCH ANALYSIS

MAN OF THE MATCH

Cian Farrell (Edenderry): After a comparatively quiet game in their potentially season making first round win over Rhode, Cian Farrell fired on all cylinders here. As you would expect between these two ultra competitive players, there was a real niggle between him and Durrow full back Ciaran Burke, a few flash points. Burke worked hard and won good ball and got up field on occasions but Farrell ended up with 14 points, six from play, and by any definition, that is a game winning contribution.

Apart from Farrell, Edenderry had a lot of players who were solidly unspectacular but there was still something very impressive about the way they performed when the gun was to their head and this game provided further evidence that they are turning a big corner and something good is happening there.

Dan Bourke was excellent for Durrow at times, really taking on Edenderry and really flowing once he warmed into the game – it was a measure of the respect Edenderry had for him that they detailed county star Lee Pearson with marking him, and Bourke showed the wisdom of this by giving him plenty of it. Jack O'Brien had a terrific first half for them and Jack Fogarty worked so hard in the middle.

THE SCORERS

Edenderry: Cian Farrell 0-14 (1 x 2pf, 6f, 1 '45' and 1 x 2p), Kaelem Bryan 0-3 (1f), Cian Murphy, Jordan Hayes, Cillian Foran 0-2 each, Dylan Byrne and Rory Egan 0-1 each.

Durrow: Jack O'Brien 0-4 (2 x 2p), Mark Troy and Steven Doran (penalty) 1-0 each, Kevin McDermott 0-2 (1 x 2pf), Ciaran Burke, Dan Bourke 0-1 each.

THE TEAMS

EDENDERRY: Cormac Hurley; Lee Pearson, Eoin Dunne, Adam Mahon; Mason Farrell, Rory Egan, Harry Goulding; Jordan Hayes, David Maloney; Cian Murphy, Aaron Murphy, Mark Abott; Kaelem Bryan, Cian Farrell, Cillian Lowry. Subs – Dylan Byrne for Lowry (45m), Cillian Foran for Aaron Murphy (50m),.

DURROW: Dermot Colbert; Sean Hughes, Ciaran Burke, Gavin Hand; Sam Bourke, Jack O'Brien, Ross Ravenhill; Jack Fogarty, Brian Duignan; Steven Doran, Dan Bourke, David Magner; Mark Troy, Barry O'Rourke, Kevin McDermott. Subs – Darragh Wyer for Sam Bourke (43m), Conor Wyer for O'Rourke (51m), Colin Waters for Ravenhill (59m),

Referee – Brian Gavin, Clara.

REFEREE WATCH

Brian Gavin let play run but controlled it well and had a solid game. He had no hesitation in awarding Durrow's early penalty while he showed a 14^th minute yellow card to David Maloney for a challenge on Steven Doran – though Maloney had perhaps earned a yellow seconds early for a heavy hit on Dan Bourke but play was waved on. There was plenty going on – linesman Jackie Longworth brought an Edenderry breach of the three man forward rule to his attention a couple of minutes later but Ciaran Burke had kicked a super point anyway and that stood instead of a free. Gavin Hand was very fortunate not to get a black card for pulling down Cian Farrell in the 27^th minute but the referee gave him the benefit of the doubt. There were a couple of decisions here and there that were questioned but these balanced out.

MOMENT OF THE MATCH

Dan Bourke was very unlucky to hit the crossbar five minutes from time when Durrow were four points behind. Edenderry swept into attack, Cian Farrell floated over a great two pointer and it was all over.

VENUE WATCH

As usual, Durrow had their facilities well prepared and plenty of stewards on hand to make sure everything went off smoothly.

WHAT'S NEXT

Durrow meet Ferbane in Clara in round 3 while Edenderry have a bye until they take on Ferbane in round 4 in O'Connor Park on August 30.

STATISTICS

Wides: Durrow – 6 (2 in first half); Edenderry - 6 (1 in first half).

Yellow cards: Durrow – 1 (Jack Fogarty); Edenderry – 1 (David Maloney).

Black cards: 0.

Red cards: 0