Albions hopes of reaching the last 8 of the County Cup were dashed yesterday after a dissapointing 4-0 home dfeat against Division 1 side Buttevant. Albion shared the spoil of possession in the first half with some nice passing play and good solid defending. Either side were showing little in the last third, Albions best chance falling to Tim who was muscled off the ball when through on goal, Buttevants best chance was their attempt at shots from 30 yards out that never hit the target. An unfortunate mistake from Dan Coleman left Buttevant through to make it 1-0 with 10 to play in the first half. Albion didnt lie down and still took the game game to them.

The second half was a different story. Buttevant seemed to camp in Albions half with corner after corner which eventually broke Albion down for goal number two when the left winger went by 3 Albion players all too easily before unleashing a shot which wrong footed keeper Declan Murray. It was 3 & 4 nil both in quick succession in the last 5 mins from set plays. First a free kick and then a corner.

A disappointing result though some positives from the first half.

Team: Murray, D Daly, Coleman, O’Donovan, J Daly, Hayes, O’Driscoll (O’Hare ’83), Ryan, O’Connell (R Daly ’75), Dillon, Harrington.

Albion put in a woeful performance against an average Rathcoole side yesterday to continue their miserable form this season. A decent opening 30 minutes was put to rest when Rathcoole took initiative in finishing a decent worked goal just before the break. The home side had dominated from the start and the goal certainly was deserved but Albion defended well and broke quickly on a couple of occasions but never used the ball wisely. 1-0 half time.

Things got worse in the second half as the home side doubled their advantage. With 3 unmarked players at a corner, their defenders rose highest to head home. 2 minutes later it was 3-0 when a sloppy clearance allowed their winger in to feed their number 10. They were 4-0 up when Martin Ryan conceded a penalty with 20 to go. Albion were given a lifeline when Rob Daly broke and was taken down by the keeper for an Albion peno which Tim neatly converted. Things soon got even worse as a mix up between Jody and James allowed the number 10 to gladly take the ball and finish past Steve in goal for his hat trick.

A shocking display from Albion which has been hampered by poor commitment, dedication and lack of squad numbers. Things cant get much worse than this display which is about the only positive we can take from it.

Team. Steve, Darren, Jody, Colm, Jamie, Japs, James, Martin (Dave ’75), Martin El, Rob, Timmy.

Premier division table toppers Kilreen march on to the 3rd round of the AOH Cup, where they will play Park UTD A or Strand UTD, after defeating Albion 4-0 at Murphys Farm in Bishopstown last Saturday. Albion went into the game as huge underdogs against a much stronger side 3 divisions their superior. Albion started the game well though, realising they would spend 90% of the game defending, they sat back with 2 holding midfielders and allowed Kilreen to pass the ball freely as they closed them in the final third and trying to catch Celtic on the counter attack. Colm O’Donovan & Jamie Daly played their 3rd game as centre half partnership and in the first half looked as though they had been playing together with years. Darren Daly and Jody Mac were playing well at full back and to be fair had to work hard as Kilreen, with little success breaking the ball through centre had to use the wingers as their outlet for any danger in front of goal. Rob Daly was unlucky in the 30th minute when Albion broke down a Kilreen attack, Noel Twomey played the ball to James O’Driscoll who sent a fizzing pass towards Ben O’Donnell. O’Donnell then played through Daly who turned the centre half and left just with the keeper to beat. He hit the shot off his weaker left side which went a good half an inch wide of the corner flag. Unlucky, but a great break in play from the underdogs. Kilreen were starting to show why they were the team to beat in the AUL this year as a headed effort hit the top of the bar and over and minutes later, seeing a rare burst forward from the Albion defence, they broke forward at speed and hit the post. Steve had to make one decent save in the first half with about 5 to play. 0-0 half time.

Kilreen looked like they were playing with more purpose in the second half. Signs started to show that a goal was on the way, though Albion did hold strong for the opening 20 minutes. A messy clearance left Kilreens striker with a break on his own and cooly finished low and right past Steve in goal. Steve was called into action minutes later with a fantastic save to his left which kept the score at 1-0. Rob Daly once again almost made it 1-1, Ryan broke play in centre mid and played to O’Driscoll who launched the ball forward. Daly chased the ball running to a 50/50 with the keeper. He managed to get their just ahead of the keeper toe-poking it through his legs. Luckily for the keeper the ball rubbed his elbow and went inches wide for a corner. Kilreen killed the game with 15 to go with a headed goal from a corner. Albion switched to 4-4-2 with the introduction of Japs & Aaron at this stage. Kilreen soon made it 3-0 and 4-0 in quick succession.

Some positives from the first half for Albion as they showed how well they can work as a unit and how quickly they can break forward from play. On the day though, Kilreen proved to be a step or two above them and were clinical in the second half with their passing & finishing. Best of luck to Kilreen going forward – on this note, not a single card was issued in the 90 minutes. A sign that both teams just wanted to play some ball!

Team: Steve Nyhan, Darren Daly, Jody McNamara (Dan Coleman ’80), Jamie Daly, Colm O’Donovan, Ben O’Donnell, James O’Driscoll, Martin Ryan (Aaron O’Sullivan ’75), Noel Twomey, Martin El-Sahen (JP Hayes ’70), Rob Daly.

A convincing 4-0 away victory sees Albion through to the 3rd Round of the County Cup. Though never hitting top gear, Albion did manage to control the game for large spells with JP Hayes & Martin Ryan using Rob Daly as an outlet in the first half. Daly was bringing the wingers and full backs in to play aswell as feeding Tim Harrington up front. Numerous offside calls had Albion slightly frustrated in the opening periods though some may have been harsh. Albion did go 1-0 up through Rob Daly on 16 mins after a mix up between keeper & defender saw Daly slot home for his 3rd of the season. He was on hand to round 2-3 players soon after and cross the ball when the Glanworth defender slid in to prevent Harrington from getting to it, but ended up putting the ball in the back of his own net. Japs handed Harrington a chance two minutes later but was unable to convert. He did make it 3-0 when Daly used the ball well and left Tim with a rasper of a shot that the keeper could do nothing about. 3-0 half time.

The opening 10 minutes of the second half was Glanworths best spell. Albion were starting to panic at the back slightly and failing to clear their lines quick enough. Glanworth had a 1 on 1 with Steve in goal but could only fire wide after the Albion keeper gave little space for the striker. A blow for Albion on 49 mins when Harrington was through on goal and taken out of it (clear penalty), but had to go off with a recurring injury. The ref gave possession back to Glanworth. Glanworth tried pressing but couldn’t find a killer moment to put the ball away. Albion went 4-0 up on ’70 when Rob Daly was played on by Japs, he took the full back and centre half on on his own with Martin El screaming for the ball on the 6 yard line, Daly decided to go it alone and blasted the ball into the top left. 5 minutes later Ben O’Donnell went on a solo run and made the keeper pull off a save with a great effort from just outside the box.

A great win for Albion who will feel it should have been more, a mention too for the back 4 who kept it solid for most of the game with Colm & Jamie forming a solid foundation at centre half.

Team. Steve, Darren, James, Colm, Jamie, Ben (Dan W ’75), Noel, Martin R, Japs, Rob, Tim (Martin El ’49).

Albion came home from the long trip to Banteer with a well earned point after a dogged display saw them wear down the Saxone Cup finalists. Albion looked the better of the two in the first half creating more chances with Banteer trying shots from long range as their only outlet as a threat on goal. Rob Daly will feel he should have had Albion 1-0 when a 1 on 1 shot saw the ball go wide, Tim Harrington with something similar moments later. Ben O’Donnell showed the full back his pace and trickery a few times and caused some hairy moments for the Banteer defence. As the game wore on Banteer were getting frustrated as their centre mid started lashing out off the ball and away from the ref. 0-0 half time.

Banteer looked to have upped their game at the start of the second half but Deccy Murray & Jamie Daly were having none of it in their first pairing at centre half. Albion went 1-0 up after a scrappy clearance attempt from a James O’Driscoll corner saw the ball bounce up, it went behind Dalys head when he flicked his head backwards for a back of the head-headed goal – lovely finish! Not even 2 minutes later Martin Ryan broke up an attacked from Banteer and played the ball through to Rob Daly who then hit a superb through ball breakings Tim Harrington away from the back 4 to toe poke past the on coming keeper. 2-0 Albion with 52 minutes gone. Albion were not slowing down either as JP Hayes was instrumental in most breaks for Albion, playing in a central role using Aaron O’Sullivan on the left and switching play to Ben O’Donnell who was still causing problems for Banteers left full. Harrington had another chance when he tried to lob the keeper and another when his shot went whiskers wide. Banteer did find the net when Timmy “knees” (as they call him) broke down the right, James O’Driscoll clipped the ball away from him, then “knees” threw himself down and caught O’Driscoll with his elbow to the face. Result – free kick to Banteer. David Pallas was on hand to head home to make it 2-1 with 15 minutes to go. 10 minutes later it was all square when Timmy “knees” found himself unmarked and finished to the bottom left. Albion defended well for the remaining minutes to see the game out at 2-2.

Performance of the season so far from a much better looking Albion side who used ball well and defended excellently throughout, bar 2 occasions. Heavy legs and the lack of squad members (only 1 sub available) proved the difference in the end. But they will take confidence from this going into the 2nd Round of the County Cup next Sunday vs Glanworth.

Team. Mike Walsh GK, Darren Daly RB, James O’Driscoll LB, Jamie Daly CB, Declan Murray (Capt) CB, Ben O Donnell RW, Aaron O’Sullivan LW, Martin Ryan CM, JP Hayes CM (David O’Hare ’82), Rob Daly AMF, Tim Harrington FW.

Albion crashed out of the Corinthian cup against an average Shandon side to compound further misery on a disappointing season to date. Albion were the brighter of the teams in the opening 15 minutes, though unfortunately stand in keeper Deccy Murrays first touch was picking the ball out of the net after a switch off at the back allowed their striker to poke home. Albion were back in it 5 minutes later when Martin Ryan’s free kick caught the keeper off guard and could only get a light hand on it to see it into the net. JP Hayes forced a good save from the keeper after a lovely solo run lead to a lob shot. A free head from an extremely harsh free kick saw Shandon go 2-1 up just before the break.

Albion started well again in the second half. Though Shandon went 3-1 up when both their strikers looked well offside but fired past Murray. Albion weren’t out of it when a throw in went over the heads of 3 defenders and bounced nicely for Noel Twomey who pulled on a half volley with his back to goal to score Albions 2nd. Shandon hit the woodwork in the closing stages and Albion will feel they should have had 1 of two penalty claims. A dodgy day from the ref added to Albions woe, but they will take some positives from the game.

Team. Deccy, Jamie (Dan W ’70), Jody, Darren, Colm, Ben, Japs, Martin R, James, Noel, Rob. Sub. D Coleman.

On behalf of everyone involved with De Courcey Albion, we would like to thank David O’Donovan for his management of the team since August of this year. David brought fantastic ideas & fitness sessions to the club which we will use as a positive moving forward. However, after a disappointing start to the season, David and the club have agreed to part ways. Albion will look to kick on this Sunday against Shandon Celtic, which Martin Ryan will take temporary charge of.

Albions miserable start to their league campaign continued with a 2-1 loss to Blackpool Celtic at home in Ballinadee. Albion started well and seemed to dominate play in the opening 20 minutes, but Blackpool slowly crept back into the game as their 5 man midfield started to over run Albions 4. Neither teams had any clear cut chance in the first half though Albion will feel they deserved at least a one goal lead going in at the break.

Blackpool came out the hungrier of the two in the second half and opened the scoring when a mix up between defence and keeper left Blackpools striker with a simple tap in. They were 2-0 up when their winger beat Walsh to the ball and fired past Colm O’Donovan on the line. Albion switched to 3-5-2 and with the introduction of Jamie Daly & Mike O’Connell they started playing more direct ball. They were back in the game when Japs’ corner was met by Blackpools keeper who punched the ball out, Mart Ryan met it outside the box with a half volley that ended up in the top corner. 2-1. Blackpool saw out the remaining 10 minutes to leave with all 3 points.

Worrying signs for Albion whos failure to dominate midfield has left them looming all too close to the relegation zone.

Team. Walsh, D Daly, J McNamara (O’Connell ’60), Murray, O’Donovan, Hayes, O’Donnell, Ryan (O’Hare ’81), Twomey, El-Sahen (J Daly ’60), B Dillon. Subs. D Coleman.

Darren Daly has been named Albions man of the match for his performance vs Ballinhassig.

Albion took all 3 points from local derby encounter with Ballinhassig. Albion took control early on, though at times made hard work of attacking plays. Switching to 3-5-2 for the game the back 3 never looked in trouble but at times in the opening stages were slightly stretched. Albion opened the scoring when James O’Driscolls throw in found Martin Ryan whose shot luckily deflected off the defenders shin on the way. They were soon 2-0 up through Martin El-Sahen when O’Driscolls cross deflected high leaving him with a goal line bicycle kick (or so he says) more of a tap in to the rest of us. 2-0 at half time.

Albion improved slightly in the second half with Rob Daly, James O’Driscoll & Conan Dillon all creating chances and having chances themselves. Martin Ryan was unlucky not to make it 3-0 when his free kick rattled the crossbar. Rob Daly did get on the scoresheet when a goal mouth scramble fell to his feet and he slotted home. Daly, on another day, could have had a hat-trick as Albion created more chances as the game went on.

Overall, a flat performance but 3 points nonetheless.

Team. Walsh, D Daly, Murray, O’Donovan, Ryan (McNamara ’85), Hayes, O’Driscoll, O’Connell (Dillon ’45), El-Sahen (J Daly ’70), B Dillon, R Daly. Sub. O’Hare.