Derry promotion hopes crushed as Down secure league title victory

Down 2-16, Derry 0-17

Goals in either half from Eoghan Sands and Pearse Og McCrickard crushed Derry's promotion hopes as Down secured the Allianz Hurling Division 2B League title at the Armagh Athletic Grounds on Sunday.

Down full deserved the victory on an afternoon of frustration in which Derry failed to do themselves justice and fell to a second league final defeat in two years. Six months ago, Derry were flying, dropping only one point, against Kildare, on their way to the top of the final league table. That run included a victory over the Mourne men in Celtic Park but that performance looked a long way off as John McEvoy's men played second fiddle throughout.

The short passing, precise game which Derry employed exposed the Oak Leafers six months away from the sport and seldom looked like fashioning the goal chance Derry needed to get them back into a game that got away from them in the second quarter. Four of Derry's seven points from play were scored by substitutes in the final 15 minutes of a game that finished with 14 a side, Derry losing Richie Mullan to injury with all their substitutes used while Down lost sub Marc Fisher to a late red card following a clash with Derry's Thomas Brady.

It was Derry's worst performance of the league campaign but the one positive McEvoy and his management team can take is that they know there is so much more in this panel than what they showed in Armagh. Indeed they have little time to lick their wounds with Sligo arriving at Celtic Park next weekend to start the Christy Ring Cup and McEvoy will want to see a major improvement.

Derry lined up with Se McGuigan and Lavey's Fintan Bradley, making his Oak Leaf debut, as the two inside men with Chrissy Henry and Eoghan Cassidy tucked in behind and they bossed much of the opening half in terms of possession.

However Derry were left kicking themselves as silly mistakes and loose passing allowed the Mourne men to turn around with a 1-08 to 0-9 half-time advantage which owed more to Derry deficiencies than any great play from Down.

The Mourne lead was based around Eoghan Sands' excellent 10th minute goal but again Derry will have reservations about defending that allowed the Down forward to run in on goal from wide out along his touch line. The lively Sands, picked up possession along the touchline, shrugged off the attentions of Sean Cassidy and a second Derry defender before shooting low past Sean Kelly for Down's opening score of the afternoon.

The goal was something of a lifeline for Ronan Sheehan's men who had looked second best in an opening nine minutes that saw no scores, Derry's Cormac O'Doherty grabbing the game's first score on nine minutes.

Sands goal followed but Derry worked their way back into the game, Eamon McGill grabbing a couple of points as Derry engineered themselves back into the lead at 0-6 to 1-02 following the first half water break.

The Down forward line was beginning to impress though with siblings Daithi and Eoghan Sands proving too hot for Derry to handle throughout. At the other end Bradley and McGuigan were getting precious little change of the Mourne full back line in which Michael Hughes was excellent.

Turning round two points adrift, the expected Derry fightback never materialised, early points from Eoghan Sands and Dathi (free) signalling that the Mourne men were not prepared to yield an inch.

O'Doherty's free-tacking was keeping Derry in touch but the tit-for-tat nature of the scoring meant Sand's first half goal was keeping Down clear.

The second half water break arrived with Derry trailing 1-12 to 0-12 and upon the restart, Down all but put the game to bed with a second goal that again owed more to Derry's loose passing than Down ingenuity. Eoghan Sands robbed Cormac O'Doherty of possession along the Derry 22m line under the main stand. The Down forward cut inside before lifting his head to pick out McCrickard who had the freedom of the Athletic Grounds to fire a low finish to the net for a comprehensive six point lead.

If there was a reason for Derry optimism, it was the manner in which they responded to that second goal, refusing to drop heads and fighting their way back to within three points with a scoring burst of 0-4 without reply, substitutes Odhran McKeever, John Mullan and Paul Cleary all on target from play at they closed to 0-17 to 2-14.

It was too little too late though as Down secured the title with points from Conor Woods (free) and McCrickard to ensure they will be playing Division 2A hurling next season.

For Derry, it was another story of what might have been. This one will hurt because they never did themselves justice and the challenge now must be to ensure they do in the Christy Ring, starting next week against Sligo.

Derry scorers: Cormac O'Doherty (0-11, 10f), Eamon McGill (0-2), John Mullan (0-2), Odhran McKeever (0-1), Paul Cleary (0-1),

Down scorers: Eoghan Sands (1-2), Pearse Og McCrick (1-2), Oisin McManus (0-5, 5f), Phelim Savage (0-2), Daithi Sands (0-3), Tim Prenter (0-1), Conor Woods, (0-1, 1f)

Derry: Sean Kelly, Paddy Kelly, Sean Cassidy, Darragh Cartin, Conor Kelly, Brian Og McGilligan Mark Craig, Mark McGuigan , Eamon McGill, Chrissy Henry, Cormac O'Doherty, Fintan Bradley, Richie Mullan, Se McGuigan, Eoghan Cassidy. (Subs) John Mullan for C Henry (inj), 11mins; Odhran McKeever for E Cassidy,HT; Paul Cleary for C KJelly, 49mins; Thomas Brady for M McGuigan, 52mins; Jerome McGuigan for F Bradley, 55mins;

Yellow Cards: M Craig, 54mins;

Down: Stephen Keith, Tom Murray, Caolan Taggart, Michael Hughes, Barry Trainor, Cnor Woods, Liam Savage, Matt Conlan, Phelim Savage, Ronan Costello, Pearse Og McCrickard, Donal Hughes, Oisin Mas Manus, Eoghan Sands, Daithi Sands. (Subs) Ryan McCusker for R Costello, HT; Tim Prenter for O McManus, 55mins; Mark Fisher for D Hughes, 64mins; Darragh Mallon for T Murray, 75mins;

Yellow cards: P Savage, 35mins; D Sands, 40mins

Red Card: M Fisher, 69mins;

Referee: James Clarke (Cavan)