Proper Cup match today with only a single goal but lots of bookings, 1 red card, injuries on and off the pitch. Leixlip started and Kevin’s hit the bar and had two other good chances in the first 10 minutes, after that we settled and started to create our own chances and after 25 minutes a superb clipped ball from Joe Cribben into the channel for Daniel Bradley which Daniel then instinctively clipped inside for the on rushing Michael Cavanagh who picked it up on the edge of the box and fired across the keeper to the top corner 1 nil. The best move of the game from back to front saw us slip Nathan Byrne in on the right but his shot hit the side net. Second half we played against the wind and dealing with injuries and tackles were flying in, a few yellows shown before a Kevin’s player went in high on Daniel Bradley straight red. We should’ve put it to bed after that with a great run and cross by Nathan Byrne falling to Senan Moriarty whose shot was blocked on the line. Kevin’s never gave up and put us under serious pressure, our keeper had to go off with 10 minutes to go after a clash and our super sub Oggy Panchev stepped up and took the gloves and with him and the back four in particular we held them out as they were peppering us long. Great battling team performance which moves us to the next round.

Goalscorer Charlie Cooke.

A game against a team the league below us but for 65 minutes you couldn't have told the difference. Greystones outplayed and outmuscled us for long periods and it took 2 point blank saves from Dan O'Reilly to keep us level at halftime. We started the second half with a much better tempo but we struggled to create any real chances. Greystones took the lead when a ball over the top wasn't dealt with. It looked like that was going to be the final score when the ball broke to Ben Kineavey on the edge of the box to rifle it into the bottom corner with 5 minutes left. This finally woke the lads up and 2 minutes later Luke Schuster received the ball inside the corner of the box, managed to wriggle free and turn his marker and curl his shot over the keeper and into the net. A game we should have lost but won with 2 moments of Quality and in to the next round. 

Our performance was excellent throughout against a team flying high in the league who had beaten us 4-0 last time out. This game was a well-matched battle all over the pitch and we showed how much we have progressed since the start of the season. The work rate and how well we played as a team were particularly pleasing today. A scoreless first half was a fair reflection and it was more of the same in the second. Larkview scored with 15 left and we piled the pressure on after that. Our pace troubled them throughout and we were unlucky not to get something from a few corners.

Leixlip started well and Ryan O'Neill gave us the lead from a corner after 18 minutes. Verona got level straight away. We went in at half time confident we were in control. Verona took the lead 2 minutes into the second half and got their 3rd and 4th in quick succession. This kicked us back into gear and we started to play again. Despite improving we didn't get the next goal.

Despite conceding early, Leixlip responded well, going into halftime with a 2-1 lead thanks to a Cian Gilgunn strike and an Oscar Butler penalty. However, Rovers came out stronger after the break, drawing level before pushing on to claim victory. A tough lesson for the boys who battled hard but were ultimately outdone by a hungrier Rovers side in the second half.

Ryan Good started the ball rolling with 20 yard strike into the corner of the net. Jamie Flood got our second with a direct free kick. Further goals from Aaron McDonagh, Jesse Cabral, Jack Doran and a double from David Walsh had us 7 up and in dreamland. Unfortunately two injuries to Adam Adiboye and Jamie Flood brought us back down to earth. Second half was really just a question of getting through it and killing the game which we generally managed. Two big cup weekends beckon and we are in really good shape going into them.