De Courcey Albion kicked off 2011 with a draw in a friendly against neighbours Kinsale B. Albion started strong with a few good attacks in the opening minutes but on 7mins Kinsale took a 1-0 lead after a quick break away against the run of play. Albion tended to hold the ball too long in spells and were caught napping. Rob Daly, however showed his former employers what they’re missing out on with 2 dazzling runs that both ended with the ball striking either post. On 15mins Conan Dillon, also formerly a kinsale player, scored the equalizer to pull Albion back to 1-1.
Half Time: 1-1
The second half couldn’t have gotten off to a worse start when straight from the tip off the Kinsale midfielder latched intercepted the pass back and played the ball in for the striker to nab his 2nd of the game. Albion threw men forward in an attempt to level the game again. They showed their worth at times with some great passing and attacking play with Shane Horgan steadying the ship in the midfield. Rob Daly once again came close as did Conan Dillon but John Duggan was starting to show his skills up front on more than 1 occasion. He beat 3/4 players rounded the keeper and saw his shot, at a tight angle, crawl past the post to go wide. Albion played the last 20 minuted with a 2-5-3 formation and pushed on. Colum Walsh & Ger O’Connell were rarely tested but when they were, they stood firm to keep the score at 2-1. In the final minutes John Duggan ran onto a ball & finished superbly with his weaker foot to ensure a deserved 2-2 draw.
Team: Michael Walsh, Jody MacNamara, Conor Hurley, Colum Walsh, Declan Murray, Jamie Daly, John Duggan, Conan Dillon, Shane Horgan, John Hipwell, Rob Daly.
Subs: Ger O’Connell (J. MacNamara 45′), Ronnie O’Driscoll (J. Daly 45′), James O’Driscoll (John Hipwell 55′), David Butler (Shane Horgan 65′), Darren Daly (Conor Hurley 65′), Martin Ryan (Rob Daly 70′).
Albion play Springfield A in the County Cup this weekend, this will see a big test for Albion at Eli Lilly as Springfield are currently top of Division 1, unbeaten so far this season. The game takes place Sunday Jan 9th at 10.45am.