Janesboro 2-0 Carew Park: ‘Boro defeat champions to edge closer to glory

Janesboro increased their lead at the top of the LDL Premier Division to three points by avenging their early-season defeat to champions Carew Park.

The heavy March 12 defeat at Pike Rovers saw Carew Park manager Mike Aherne ring the changes for this one. Lee Boyle, who started in the recent 4-3 victory over Fairview Rangers, returned at left-back, with Jon Somers shifted just ahead to keep tabs on Junior International Player of the Year nominee Danny O’Neill.

The absent duo of Barry Dillon and Ryan Earls dropped out of the side, with the latter replaced at centre-back by a returning Mark Slattery. Alex Purcell also reappeared in the starting lineup, with top scorer Mark McGrath confined to the bench.

Meanwhile, having won their final road game of the season, away to Kilmallock United last Sunday, Janesboro co-manager Aidan Ryan made just two changes to his starting eleven.

Calling the shots alone, in the absence of a suspended Shane O’Hanlon, Ryan restored Mike Ryan to his usual right-wing position, in place of former Carew forward Jamie O’Sullivan. Aled Harkin also returned to the side at left-back, replacing Kilmallock native Ben Quirke.

And that return was certainly a tough one for Harkin, as Carew continually probed the left-side of Janesboro’s defence throughout a dominant opening half-hour.

Richie Mullins, continuing at centre-back in place of a suspended Thomas Clarke, was twice called upon to block poorly-struck byline crosses during this period, as first Purcell, and then Grant, failed to capitalise on their respective opportunities.

But the best chance Carew created from this purple patch arrived in the 15th-minute, when Pa Boyle’s long pass picked out a Jamie Enright overlap. The right-back’s resultant cross was one of several that reached the back-post, thanks to some indecisive ‘Boro penalty-box defending, but Grant’s looping header struck the crossbar to spare the hosts’ blushes.

Predictably, Carew were then punished for their wastefulness in the 36th minute, when the ever-tenacious Steven Bradley — restored to his natural central midfield position — robbed Purcell and played in Power. The former Moyross United winger’s resultant back-post cross evaded all but a waiting Shane Clarke, who duly bagged his 13th league goal of the season.

Moments later, another impressive attacking move should have seen the ‘Boro double their lead. O’Neill released Clarke down the right, with a deft flick of the outside of his left-boot, permitting the striker to play in a criminally-free Ryan with a delightful reverse-pass. Fortunately for the visitors, Slattery stepped up to bravely block the winger’s stinging effort.

That was merely a brief reprieve for the champions however, who eventually fell further behind five minutes from the break. Tierney’s inswinging cross, from a poorly-defended short corner, was only headed clear to the edge of the Carew box, where Power competed with a team-mate to deflect an effort home.

And Power almost turned provider again before the whistle, when Lee Boyle prevented Ryan from converting another of the Moyross man’s back-post deliveries.

After a half-time team-talk conducted on the pitch by Ryan, Janesboro were far quicker out of the traps in the second-half; wasting four glorious chances in its opening 25 minutes.

Clarke created three of the them; the first fashioned with a flicked header to put through Tierney, who was denied a penalty-shout on the byline, before outmuscling Slattery — the accused — and seeing his close-range effort deflected wide by Gary Griffin’s crucial intervention.

Soon after, the league’s top marksman was at it again, playing Power through in the Carew area. But the wideman’s resultant right-footed strike was brilliantly saved by Carew goalkeeper Jamie Stewart.

Carew’s reorganisation into a three-man defensive system, facilitated by the removal of both left-sided players Somers and Boyle, allowed Power to prevail upon his newfound freedom to spurn another big chance.

Beating Adam Frahill to a loose ball, before skipping past the flailing challenge of Griffin, Power again hit the target, with Stewart again up to the challenge at his near-post.

After a woefully-defended throw-in saw Clarke play in Tierney, who overcarried in his resultant attempt to round Stewart, the suspicion was growing that Janesboro were contriving to throw the three points away.

But, unlike the events of last season’s fiery April 21 fixture, in which Grant grabbed a dramatic injury-time point, there were to be no late heroics here for Carew, who were nonetheless denied a late consolation goal in bizarre circumstances, when assistant referee Ken Gorman flagged for offside with the ball in the Janesboro net.

Pa Boyle’s indirect free-kick appeared to be headed past the commanding presence of John Mulready by a host head, but Carew were denied the chance to mount a late siege.

Instead, things went from bad to worse for the beleaguered eighth-placed champions in the penultimate minute, when substitute Derek Hanlon got his marching orders — earning a second-yellow card for a needlessly vigorous foul on the game’s standout performer, Shane Clarke.

Scorers

S. Clarke 36′, Power 40′

Man of the Match

Shane Clarke