Limerick 1 - 0 Longford Town

• Andrew Cunneen
• Sat, Sep 10 2011


Just as the Shannonside rain looked to have diluted Limericks’ promotion hopes, Denis Behan provided a ray of sunshine to keep the dream of Premier Division football alive. His header in the dying seconds of a match high in suspense but low in quality was the difference as Limerick scraped past ten-man Longford Town by a single goal to nil.

The game started off in a fairly lacklustre fashion. Limerick lined up in somewhat of a 4-2-3-1 formation, providing overwhelming attacking options, with Joe Gamble and David O’Leary protecting the backline. Longford came to Jackman Park and fielded two banks of four, with Jean Biansumba playing just off Daniel Purdy.

The problem with the opening stages of this encounter was the defensive lines. Both sides played extremely high lines, pushing their defenders closer to the half way line. As both sides did this, the midfield became highly congested. Every pass was short, and no space was allowed. This resulted in Denis Behan being extremely frustrated with many offside decisions given against him.

The first chance of the game didn’t arrive until twenty minutes into the first half. Shane Tracy played a magnificently weighted ball over the back four of Longford while Denis Behan read the pass perfectly. His run was timed to perfection but the angle proved too much for the Limerick native, and his shot was easily held by Alvin Rouse.

Shaun Kelly was next to have an effort on goal. However, the same result occurred from the same angle. Kelly struck hard and low, but Rouse did just enough to see the ball past his post, and into touch.

Denis Behan had the ball in the net moments later, but was ruled out due to the offside flag. Prior to the decision Limerick had a claim for a penalty turned down, much to the annoyance of the home support. The screw looked as though it was beginning to turn.

The referee blew for half time in a game that neither side really grabbed a hold of. Before the beginning of the second half, Longford switched goalkeepers due to Alvin Rouse having a hamstring problem.

Rory Gaffney appeared to be getting more space down the left hand side at the beginning of the half, catching Chris Deans for pace; the ex-Mervue striker squared a perfect ball into the path of nobody -disappointing from a Limerick perspective.

The wind really picked up in the second half of the tie, with Longford having it in their favour. So many cross field balls drifted into touch due to the harsh conditions. Longford had what appeared to be a rather ambitious effort well saved by Barry Ryan on the hour mark. Jacques Morley whacked a forty yard free kick directly at goal, but the Limerick stopper was there to deny him.

The golden opportunity seemed to have passed Limerick by as Denis Behan went one on one with Paul Hunt in the Town goal. Looking offside, Behan marched through the line, and saw his delay in releasing a shot deny him his goal as some great tracking back from Longford ensured the ball was deflected out for a corner.

Chris Deans was sent off for Longford soon after. As Brosnan collected the ball on the right wing, he dragged it back, and Deans flew in to win the ball, but got the young Kerry native instead. However, the sending off was given due to a stamp from the Longford captain which was seen by referee Kieran O’Reagan. Deans was given his marching orders, but not before a struggle ensured to try get him off the pitch.

Peter White had the next opportunity as the seconds ticked away. A free header in the box was a rarity on the night, and the centre half misjudged his header completely. It looked as though Limericks’ promotion hopes were vanishing into thin air.

The fourth official indicated three additional minutes, much to the horror of the home support. Limerick pressed, and after Jeffrey Judge wasted an opportunity late on, it was down to one last attack.

The effort of Sean Brosnan was exceptional. After chasing what looked a lost cause on the wing, he kept the ball from exiting play. Rory Gaffney took the ball in his stride and beat Thomas Hyland for pace. His cross was deflected, forcing it to rise at the back pose. Four hundred sets of eyes had a glance across to see Denis Behan power home his header with relative ease before wheeling off in celebration towards his team mates. For a match with four hundred people in attendance, the celebrations were somewhat extraordinary and one wouldn’t be criticised for thinking thousands were in sent into raptures.

Limerick FC: Barry Ryan, Andrew Bhandarkar, Peter White, Paddy Purcell, Shaun Kelly, Joe Gamble, David O’Leary ( Jeffrey Judge 70) , Joe Gamble, Rory Gaffney, Shane Tracy (Garbhan Coughlan 81) , Paudie Quinn ( Sean Brosnan 66) , Denis Behan.
Subs not Used: Shane Cusack, Brian McCarthy, Peter Hynes, Garvan Broughall.
Longford Town: Alvin Rouse (Paul Hunt 45), Chris Deans, Jeff Flood, Des Hope, Gary Cronin, Mark Salmon, Cathal Brady, Thomas Hyland, Jacques Morley (James O’Brien 79) , Daniel Purdy (Darragh Satelle 60) , Jean Biansumba.
Subs not Used: Graham Dowling, Sean Skelly, Craig Walsh.

Referee: Kieran O’Reagan.
Extratime.ie Man of the Match: Denis Behan – work rate, passion, and a goal.