Entertaining cup double header for Amateurs

Cookstown Youth U13 5

SATURDAY saw Dromore Amateurs Youth U13s host last year's league winners Cookstown in a very entertaining shield/league cup double header game at Dromore Community Centre.

The action got under way with Cookstown quickest to get into their stride and a sleeping defence saw Dromore concede within the first three minutes, keeper Louis Simpson having little chance as an umarked attacker struck low and hard to the corner from 12 yards.

This early wake-up call saw Dromore get themselves sorted and the game continued at breakneck pace with both teams fighting hard. Simpson's goal kicking was proving effective at giving attackers Callum Barnes and Nathan Thompson space to run at the Cookstown goal and chances came and went as Dromore pushed for an equaliser.

The visitors also pushed to extend their lead and won a series of corners. Despite their efforts, neither team had further breached the other's goal by half time.

The second half saw substitutes on both sides but again Dromore failed to wake up and Cookstown went two-up within a minute after more sloppy defending.

A third followed shortly after a long ball beating the offside trap and Cookstown appearing firmly in control.

Dromore, chasing the game, reorganised and immediately this saw an effect. The breakthrough came as Barnes turned his defender only to find himself scythed down. Barnes stepped up and drove the resultant penalty home.

This spurred on the locals and it was game on after the impressive Ben Martin fed the ball forward and again Barnes broke through, once more being brought down. Barnes placed the ball a second time and repeated his success.

Kyle Shakesby and Stuart Wilson were by now alone in holding the fort at the back. Cookstown played a long ball through, Dromore vainly appealed for offside, and a resulting corner saw the Tyrone team go 4-2 ahead.

Aaron McConville then made it 4-3 with a fine shot to set up a tense finish, but finally Cookstown got a penalty of their own to kill the tie.

Dromore's man-of-the-match with a driving performance was midfielder Ben Martin.

Team: Simpson (Herron), Hawthorne (Shakesby), Rice, Gibson, Russell, Wilson (c), McConville, Abraham (Ruddock), Martin, Thompson (Murray), Barnes.