Match Report: Seaford 2-3 Montpelier

LSL Saturday Major 1C
Rockfield Park, 13 December 2025

​

Seaford hearts were broken by a late Montpelier winner after a gritty display by Baz Kirwan's boys.

The division's runaway leaders had a perfect record for the season when they arrived at a blustery Rockfield Park, and despite enduring a horrible losing streak at the foot of the table, the Penguins put it up to the northsiders, only to be cruelly denied at the death.

The home side's veteran keeper Eoin English had to be at his best in the first half, producing a brilliant full-length save to keep out Darragh Foran's ferocious blast. At the other end, captain Eoin O'Farrell created the first Seaford opening, winning the ball high up the pitch and laying in Danny Walsh, who fired just wide.

But Walsh made no mistake on 21 when he opened the scoring, smashing home a volley when Ran Tao's corner broke to him in the box.

The lead was short-lived, as Monto's fullback Luke McGinn forced home from close range after Rory Carberry made a goalline block to keep out Foran's effort, and deep into first-half stoppage time  Adam O'Keeffe made it 2-1 after being set up by Gerard Loftus.

MP maintained the momentum early in the second half, with Loftus clipping the woodwork from long range, before Seaford battled back into the match. O'Farrell and Walsh combined well again, as the skipper set up the big striker with a clever back-heel, but Dean Harte managed to intervene and snuff out the chance. Then, Mario Rodriguez went close with a whipped free-kick but Arturs Olesovs was able to tip it over. And it was Rodriguez who bagged the equaliser on 67, firing home his first Seaford goal after Montpelier failed to deal with a Niall Holleran cross.

It was all the play for now. Scott Tyrrell got clean through for the visitors but struggled to bring the ball under control, and English blocked with his feet. Then a brilliant chance for Seaford on a swift breakaway, as Rodriguez led the counter-attack and found Daniel Mac Dermott rampaging forward from right back. But as the Rockfield tuft cut up underfoot, the ball bobbled up at the crucial moment and caused Mac Dermott's finish to fly over the bar.

And moments later at the other end the luckless Mac Dermott was once against jinxed by the surface, slipping as he was about to clear the ball and allowing Vinicius Silva to slot home for 3-2.

Seaford poured forward in search of an eqauliser, forcing Monto into panicked defending, and the final chance fell to Holleran whose flicked header from Mac Dermott cross was just too high, but men in yellow couldn't find the net for third time. No points, but a brave performance that will give encouragement for the rest of the season.

Seaford FC:  Eoin English, Daniel Mac Dermott, Rory Carberry, Bill Phelan (Mate Salacan, 86), Brian Murphy, Ben Kelly, Ran Tao (Greg Hughes, 65), Eoin O'Farrell, Niall Holleran, Mark Murnaghan (Mario Rodriguez, 17), Danny Walsh 

Montpelier FC: 1 Arturs Arnolds Olesovs, 2 Luke McGinn 3 Bradley O'Shea, 4 Gerard Black, 5 Dean Harte, 6 Sean Gannon, 7 Darragh Foran,  8 Scott Tyrrell, 9 Paul McCullagh, 10 Gerard Loftus, 11 Adam O'Keeffe. Subs: 12 Adam Garvey, 13 Jake McCormack, 14 Peter Foran, 15 Aidan O'Brien, 16 Vinicius Silva, 17 Daniele Scarpi