Broad Rovers Major 1 Saturday side are mounting a serious late promotion charge. After struggling with injuries all season the Ballinteer side had left themselves with a lot to do but it seems now they have finally turned the corner. With many of their staring XI regulars returning from long term injuries Broadford now seem to be a formidable task for any side in the Major 1 Saturday division of the Leinster Senior League. A hard fought victory over promotion rivals Maynooth University Town has put them back in the hunt and momentum certainly seems to be with the Ballinteer side.
The away trip against Maynooth presented an opportunity for revenge after Maynooth’s 4-2 victory over Broadford back in March. After a recent victory over local rivals Wayside Celtic and a well-earned 1-1 draw against St. John Bosco Broadford were certainly coming into the fixture with a sense of optimism. That optimism was there for all to see in the first half as Broadford’s dominance pegged back Maynooth into their own half for most of the first half. Broadford nearly made the pressure count as striker Ben Rossiter went close early on crashing a shot off the crossbar in the first ten minutes.
Next to try his luck for the visitors was lively winger Jay Gaffney who found space in Maynooth’s box after beating his marker but his fierce strike was well held by the Maynooth keeper. However, half-time seemed to come at a bad time for Broadford as it seemed to slow down their momentum. The home side came out a different team in the second half and went close on a number of occasions hitting the post twice. With both sides bad luck in front of goal the tie looked destined to be a draw. However, in the final moments of the game Broadford midfielder Ger Lloyd found himself in space in the box and after evading three Maynooth defenders he found the top corner with a rasping shot to give the away side all three points.
Broadford manager David Carpenter was delighted with his side’s performance and believes they are now in with a serious shout of going up automatically to the top tier of Saturday football in the Leinster Senior League saying “The lads showed great spirit today against a good side. We had to dig deep and defend well at times but I think on the balance of play we more than deserve the three points”. Carpenter talked up his side’s promotion push saying “Despite having bare numbers all season we’ve somehow still got a very big say in the promotion race and after today’s result and the fight that the lad’s showed out there I don’t see why we can’t go up but we need to play like this every week from here on out if we are to go up”.
The victory leaves Broadford fourth in the table just two points off Maynooth in third with a game in hand. With five games to go Broadford seem to be coming into form just at the right time. For more information on upcoming Leinster Senior League fixtures visit www.lsl.ie and for more information regarding Broadford Rovers visit www.broadfordroversfc.com.
