24 September 1997
Achill's worst nightmare comes sharply into focus
Westport United .......................... 2 Achill Rovers ............................ 1
By Tom Kelly. . .at the Sports Park
The worst nightmare imaginable for Achill Rovers is slowly but surely coming sharply into focus. A seemingly invincible position in the race for their first Mayo League Premier Division championship title has been undermined.
A nine points lead at the top of the table a month ago was whittled down to a just two following their comprehensive defeat at the hands of Westport United at the Sports Park on Sunday.
With second placed Ballyglass winning by a five goal margin away to bottom side Castlebar United, the defending champions will overtake the islanders by defeating Urlaur United in an outstanding game before the final round of the series takes place in October.
Since opening up their nine point cushion on August 24th, Achill have only registered four points out of a possible 12; losing twice, drawing one and winning only one of the last four games.
Championship winning form mysteriously deserted Rovers when it seemed they had all the hard work done. Their performance against Westport served to underline growing fears about the side's ability to maintain concentration with the winning post in sight.
Achill's doddering finish is one of the saddest stories the game has seen for some time, but their supporters are hoping that Ballyglass will slip up and produce another twist in an intriguing campaign.
Rovers had no excuses for their failure against Westport. United were the better team from start to finish and would have won by a much greater margin had they not struck the woodwork on three occasions in the second half.
They had been fortunate to reach the half-time interval on level terms. John McKenna, United's leading scorer, twice went close to breaking the deadlock, while Rovers goalkeeper Colm Gallagher produced an astonishing save from Neil Chambers's brilliantly executed free-kick.
Rovers had lost key central defender Michael John Fadian in the 27th minute with a recurrence of his cruciate knee ligament problem.
Westport took the lead a minute into the second half. McKenna snatched his 14th goal of the campaign when he connected powerfully with Alan McLoughlin's corner-kick from the left.
Iain McLoughlin went spectacularly close to scoring a second Westport goal four minutes later with a blistering 30-yards drive which struck the crossbar.
Caught short
Things began to look desperate for Achill and they started to push more men forward in an attempt to retrieve the situation. It was a ploy which seemed to be working when Alan English headed a 62nd minute equaliser following a corner-kick by Kieran Gallagher.
But they were being increasingly caught short at the back as the game wore on.
With better luck, Westport would surely have had a field day. Vincent O'Malley was denied by a post from five yards in the 77th minute while Brian Kennedy was denied by the crossbar four minutes later.
It is true that a team requires an element of luck to win the Mayo League title, but Achill's luck ran out with seven minutes remaining when the unmarked Vincent O'Malley pounced from close range.
The opportunity was created by one of Alan McLoughlin's throw-in missiles, and the Achill defenders could only look around at each other in complete disgust at having failed to spot the danger. It was a key moment in the championship that Rovers will want to forget.
"I think it is all over for us now," claimed Achill stalwart Patrick English as he emerged from a depressed dressingroom afterwards.
Westport United: D. Fadian, A. McLoughlin, I. McLoughlin, S. Jordan, C. McLoughlin, B. Kennedy, J. Duffy, N. Chambers, J. McKenna, V. O'Malley. Res: B. Tierney (for Kelly).
Achill Rovers: C. Gallagher, J. P. Keane, V. Gallagher, M.J. Fadian, D. Fadian, R. McNamara, N. Cooney, P. McGinty, M. Corrigan, A. English, M. Corrigan. Res: M. McGing (for M.J. Fadian inj.); F. Kilbane (for McGing).
Ref: M. Walsh (Castlebar).
* Star Rating: Alan McLoughlin. . .created both Westport goals.
