Understrength Leitrim brushed aside by powerful Sligo

Understrength Leitrim may have been but there was no disguising the harsh lesson Sligo dealt out to the Green & Gold on Sunday afternoon in Avant Money Pairc Sean Mac Diarmada as the Yeatsmen cruised to a comprehensive nine point Connacht SFC victory.

In atrocious conditions where the gale force wind made kickouts almost a lottery, Sligo adapted to the conditions much better than Andy Moran’s side after an initial feeling out period to score their most comprehensive victory of recent years over their north Connacht rivals.

Leitrim’s caused was not helped by the absence of U20 barred Barry McNulty and Jack Foley and the injured Donal Casey but the news that Mark Plunkett was ruled out due to illness meant that not even the most optimistic Leitrim fan would have foreseen victory before the ball was thrown-in.

With Leitrim winning the toss and opting to face the wind in the first half, the idea was obviously to batten down the hatches and it worked for the first 20 minutes as a misfiring Sligo kicked a succession of bad wides that kept this game much closer than general play indicated.

But the final 15 minutes before halftime saw Sligo’s press on the Leitrim kickout start to pay dividends as they reeled off six unanswered points to go into the break with a 0-9 to 0-1 lead, a lead that looked anything but substantial given the strength of the wind down the centre of the field.

LEITRIM GAA MAKE PRESENTATION TO WILLIE DONNELLAN TO MARK 50 YEARS COVERING LEITRIM GAA

Yet it was Sligo who continued to dominate - Leitrim had just one shot in the entire first half, they improved considerably in the second but Tony McEntee’s side still outscored their hosts six points to five in the second period despite facing the same conditions.

Sligo’s physical strength and ability to carry the ball, retain possession and work scores meant they looked a good bit more comfortable than the nine point final winning margin suggests, a chastening experience for this Leitrim team after so many close contests in recent years.

To be honest, had Sligo converted half of what they hit wide and converted a couple of the goal chances they created, this could have been a lot more harrowing for Leitrim fans.

The absence of Plunkett, Casey, McNulty and Foley would have made a significant difference to Leitrim, no team can absorb the loss of four starters so easily but Leitrim manager Andy Moran also pointed out that Sligo were themselves down quite a few players.

More relevant was Leitrim’s schedule in recent weeks - while Leitrim contested last week’s Division 4 final, Sligo were resting up and eying up this contest and once they got to grips with the conditions midway through the first half, they looked inevitable winners.

The loss of so many key players does give Leitrim some mitigation but the lack of penetration upfront, numerous turnovers, forced and unforced, and Sligo’s physical strength will no doubt greatly concern Andy Moran and his management team ahead of the Tailteann Cup campaign that gets underway in May.

The Leitrim team who were defeated by Sligo in the Connacht SFC Picture: Willie Donnellan

Sligo made the early running but had three wides in the first seven minutes in a low key opening and it was Leitrim who opened the scoring nine minutes in when a ball broke in the middle of the park, Pearce Dolan broke through on it and charged forwards, firing low at the Sligo goal only for keeper Aidan Devaney to divert the ball up over the crossbar.

That left Leitrim a point to the good and it took Sligo another six minutes to level, Darragh Cummins breaking through a tackle to float over a 40 yard point. From the kickout, Sligo forced a turnover when James Rooney was caught in possession and Niall Murphy pointed.

Still Sligo missed chances despite the powerful wind at their back but Nathan Mullen belied his centre-back status to charge forward, cut inside a Leitrim defender to fire over on 21 minutes. That proved somewhat controversial as Mullen was then booked by Tyrone referee Kieran Eannetta for a heavy challenge on Darragh Rooney in the lead-up to the score.

Sligo began to find their way and points from Murphy (free), Canice Mulligan and Murphy again stretched the lead to five points. That second Murphy point came after Nevin O’Donnell was unable to use the kicking tee and shanked the delivery straight to a Sligo man.

Sligo were still hitting more wides than scores but they did add well worked scores from Patrick O’Connor and Murphy, the Sligo talisman scoring a brilliant effort after Sean Carrabine turned over a Leitrim possession.

Tom Prior threatened a second Leitrim score as he bore down on goal in added time but the ball was turned over and it was Sligo who finished the half with a score, Paul Kilcoyne fisting over from close range after a good move to leave Leitrim trailing 0-9 to 0-1 at the break.

The hope was that Leitrim would be able to use the wind in the second half as effectively as Sligo had in the first but it was the visitors who had the early chances, Carrabine putting a free wide before Canice Mulligan fisted over after a one-two with Mullen four minutes in.

Sligo's Nathan Mullen takes on the Leitrim defence Picture: Willie Donnellan

Riordan O’Rourke registered Leitrim’s first wide after 40 minutes and Jack Gilheaney left a shot short while James Rooney’s ambitious pass to a charging Aidan Flynn carried on the wind beyond the Leitrim Gaels clubman.

Evan Sweeney and Radek Oberwan came off the bench as Darragh Rooney broke to score a long range point but Sligo were still creating chances and after Mulligan won his own kickout, a pass to Cian Lally was eventually worked back to Darragh Cummins to nail his second point.

Time was flowing as swiftly as the Shannon as Evan Sweeney hit a nice point on the turn after 51 minutes and Ryan O’Rourke popped over when two Sligo men went for a kickout, losing the ball as Paul Keaney and Pearce Dolan combined to set up the Fenagh man.

That was the only time in the game when Leitrim landed consecutive scores and Sligo answered immediately with Alan McLoughin curling a shot over the Leitrim bar that the crowd in the stand may have called wide but few did behind the goal.

Murphy added another free before Leitrim got only their second sight of goal, Donal Wrynn gathering a long ball and turning sharply to fire a powerful shot over the crossbar with just over five minutes of normal time left.

Nathan Mullen added his second and it really should have been a goal - Shane Quinn, booked for a foul on Mullen seconds earlier, missed an attempt to shoulder a Sligo player out near the sideline, the Yeatsmen broke through and Mullen blasted high over the bar. 

THE LAST POINT: LAOIS CRUSH LEITRIM'S EASTER RISING

However, Quinn’s attempted tackle did have a cost as the linesman drew the referee’s attention to the challenge and referee Eannetta dished out a second yellow to the Mohill man in just over a minute, leaving Leitrim finishing the day with 14 players.

Darragh Rooney fired over a long range shot, via the woodwork, to complete Leitrim’s tally after 67 minutes but despite five added minutes, it was Sligo who continued to impress, Mark Walsh seeing a shot blocked before Mikey Gordon drove over the bar from close range after he collected  an off-target shot from sub Lee Deignan.

LEITRIM

Scorers: Darragh Rooney 0-2; Donal Wrynn, Pearce Dolan, Ryan O’Rourke & Evan Sweeney 0-1 each

Team: Nevin O’Donnell Shannon Gaels Cavan, Conor Reynolds Annaduff, Mark Diffley St Mary’s Kiltoghert, Aidan Flynn Leitrim Gaels Donal Wrynn Fenagh St Caillins, Shane Quinn Mohill, James Rooney Glencar Manorhamilton, Jack Gilheany Fenagh St Caillins, Pearce Dolan Aughawillan, Tom Prior Ballinamore Sean O’Heslins, Ryan O’Rourke Fenagh St Caillins, Paul Keaney St Mary’s Kiltoghert, Riordan O’Rourke Fenagh St Caillins, Darragh Rooney St Jude’s Dublin, Jack Flynn Leitrim Gaels. Subs: Evan Sweeney Glencar Manorhamilton & Radek Oberwan for Prior & Riordan O’Rourke (46); Adam Reynolds St Mary’s Kiltoghert for C Reynolds (49); Kieran Clancy Melvin Gaels for J Rooney (59); Stephen McLoughlin Kiltubrid for Keaney (62)

SLIGO

Scorers: Niall Murphy 0-5, 3f; Canice Mulligan, Nathan Mullen & Darragh Cummins 0-2 each; Alan McLoughlin, Paul Kilcoyne, Patrick O’Connor & Mikey Gordon 0-1 each

Team: Aidan Devaney, Evan Lyons, Eddie McGuinness, Brian Cox, David Quinn, Nathan Mullen, Darragh Cummins, Sean Carrabine, Canice Mulligan, Cian Lally, Alan McLaughlin, Eoghan Smith,  Paul Kilcoyne, Niall Murphy, Patrick O’Connor. Subs: Mikey Gordon for D Quinn (HT); Mark Walsh for Smith (54); Keelan Cawley & Lee Deignan for Lally & McLoughlin (67)

Referee: Kieran Eannetta (Tyrone)