Late McLoughlin point paves the way to victory

Substitute Daryl McLoughlin claimed a sensational winning point in the final minute for St Ultan"s in the Leinster IFC quarter-final at Pairc Tailteann. St Ultan"s were full of determination and endeavour against Louth champions Dreadnots, but there was little to enthuse about during a low-key first-half. 'That was a tough game and we did well to win it, but we have a few more injuries to worry about now for the next round,' stated St Ultan"s manager Davy Cahill. 'Eugene Brady has an ankle injury and it is quite badly swollen at the moment and we are concerned about Kevin Galligan as well, but maybe with two weeks before the next game, it will help us to get everyone fit. 'We didn"t know too much about Dreadnots, but we knew they would give us a hard game, they played to their strengths and we had to battle for victory. 'Gary (Gorman) got two nice points, he did well and it"s great to have a player of his quality on the bench, it helps to keep the other players on their toes, we have a good bench with lots of competition for places,' added the manager. And it didn"t look too promising for St Ultan"s in the early stages as the Louth men started smartly with a Nigel Shevlin point from play after only three minutes. However, neither side made any great impression in an opening half which produced 25 frees. Disjointed would be the best way to describe St Ultan"s initial 10 minutes as they tallied five wides with some woeful shooting and they also collected two yellow cards. Brian Mulroe and Kevin Rogers were cautioned by Westmeath referee Peter Daly who also ticked Cian Rennicks and Fergal McGuigan (Dreadnots) arising out of separate incidents. Despite that, St Ultan"s were ahead by 0-3 to 0-1 at the end of the quarter with points from Rennicks (two) and Eugene Brady. Dreadnots stayed in touch with a well-taken Padraig Smyth point from play which briefly cut the lead to the minimum, but the Meath side countered when Eugene Brady opened his account in the 17th minute. Dreadnots wing-back Liam Shevlin reduced the deficit to the minimum a minute before the break. One worrying aspect for the St Ultan"s selectors was a tally of nine first-half wides as they took a paltry 0-4 to 0-3 lead to the dressing room at half-time. The Louth men started the second-half briskly and were unlucky to have a 'goal" ruled out when the referee brought play back to tick a player from each side, Brian Mulroe of St Ultan"s and Darren Malone of the Dreadnots. The closeness of the contest kept the spectators interested and it was all square at 0-5 apiece by the end of the third-quarter during which St Ultan"s Paul Murray collected a yellow card following what was an accidental clash with an opponent. St Ultan"s were also hampered by the loss of Brady through injury, but his replacement, Gary Gorman, scored two fine points to keep the challenge alive as Dreadnots enjoyed their most profitable spell. Three points from Kelly gave them the initiative, but they were unable to maintain the advantage and Gorman"s second point with eight minutes remaining drew the sides level (0-6 apiece). That set the scene for the frantic closing stages and substitute McLoughlin split the posts on the hour for yet another memorable victory for St Ultan"s. SCORERS St Ultan"s - C Rennicks 0-2, one free; G Gorman 0-2; E Brady 0-1, B Galligan 0-1; D Murray 0-1. Dreadnots - C Kelly 0-3, one '45"; P Smyth 0-1; N Shevlin 0-1; L Shevlin 0-1; THE TEAMS St Ultan"s - N Burke; K Lynch, D Galligan, J Bennett; D Mallon, A Martin, T Coyne; B Mulroe, K Galligan; P Murray, B Galligan, K Rogers; E Brady, C Rennicks, C Rogers. Subs - G Gorman for C Rogers 27 mins; D McLoughlin for Brady 35m;D O"Brien for Coyne 37m; J Rennicks for K Galligan 40m; Dreadnots - N Levins; D Sutherland, D O"Brien, S Marley; F McGuigan, P Rath, L Shevlin; D Malone, C Mulroy; R Kirwan, P Lynch, C McCaughey; C Kelly, P Smyth, N Shevlin. Subs - R Connolly for Lynch , J Califf for Marley, both 49 mins. REFEREE Peter Daly (Westmeath)